MOLLY CALLAHAN (1961–2022)

Molly Callahan was a freelance writer and copy editor who focused on local journalism and digital marketing. A native of Northeast Ohio, Molly was a graduate of Kent State University, with a major in journalism, and lived in this area most of her life. She started the CLE ON THE CHEAP blog when she discovered that, as she said, “you don’t need a lot of money to have a lot of fun.” Before her freelance career, Molly was a copy editor and columnist at a number of newspapers, including the New Orleans Times-Picayune and the Cleveland Plain Dealer.  From 2017 until the end of her life, she was a committed activist on behalf of women living with ovarian cancer.

Outdoor Education

No matter what alert level your county is in, the Cleveland Metroparks remain accessible. This would be a good time to visit some reservations you haven’t been to before. You also might want to try a new activity.

If you’re not sure where to go or what to do, check out the Metroparks’ Virtual Classroom. Each weekday at 1 p.m., you can watch on Facebook Live as naturalists and outdoor recreation specialists share their expertise.The free lessons have been taking place since March 17, but don’t worry about being late for class. Videos of past lessons are available here. 

Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation

You’ll find a nice variety of subject matter. You can learn about plants, trees, local waterways and animals at the reopened Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and in the wild. 

Get out and explore at a safe social distance.

It’s Showtime!

CLE on the Cheap is back after an unplanned hiatus. And tonight, while it might not be safe to go back in the water, it is safe to go to the drive-in to see “Jaws.”

The Aut-O-Rama Twin Drive-In Theatre in North Ridgeville reopened last week with new rules to accommodate social-distancing requirements. The throwback theater is showing throwback movies “Jaws” and “Shrek” at 9:40 p.m., “Despicable Me” (in 3D) at 11:30 p.m. and “Jurassic Park” at 11:55 p.m.

Admission is $10 for people 12 and older and $5 for everyone else. Among the changes you’ll find on the drive-in’s website is its policy about outside food. Patrons are allowed to bring in their own food for the time being. However, concessions are available at a walk-up window and contactless payments are an option.

Tickets are available here and at the box office.

You might have watched more than your share of movies at home the past few months, but the drive-in offers a different experience. It’s a chance to get out while having little or no contact with other people. And not everyone has this option. The Aut-O-Rama Twin on Lorain Road is one of just 24 drive-in theaters still open in Ohio. 

Another one of those 24 is the Mayfield Road Drive-In Theatre in Chardon. It’s closed tonight for a private event, but it will show “Jaws” at 9:20 p.m. and “Jurassic Park” at 11:40 p.m. Saturday through Wednesday.

Admission is $20 per carload and can be paid here. Outside food is allowed, but a food permit must be purchased for $8 per car per visit. Bottled water is allowed in at no charge. Concessions will have separate walk-up windows for ordering and pickup. 

Throwback Broadcasts

Baseball fans were supposed to be enjoying the 2020 MLB season by now. Home openers for teams including the Cleveland Indians had been scheduled for last week before COVID-19 put all sports on hold.

MLB Network and Sports Time Ohio have been showing classic games and baseball-themed programs to fill the airwaves and give fans their fix. Depending on your age, you might have seen some of the games when they were originally broadcast. But younger fans could be seeing them for the first time.

If you’re stuck at home — and if you’re practicing social distancing you should be home a lot — you can listen to games from wayyyyy back while you tackle all those items on your to-do list that you haven’t had time for.

The Internet Archive has put radio broadcasts of Major League Baseball games online and you can listen to them for free. The available broadcasts all aired before 1974. Broadcasts from games played after that are not yet in the public domain.

The oldest broadcast is the 1934 All-Star Game, played at New York's Polo Grounds. No spoilers here, but among the players in that game were Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx and Carl Hubbell, all Hall of Famers.

The most recent broadcast is Game 7 of the 1973 World Series between the Oakland A’s and New York Mets. This series closed out Willie Mays’ career. 

In between are other World Series, League Championship and All-Star games, the first-ever Mets game broadcast from 1962, the 1951 New York Giants-Brooklyn Dodgers playoff game featuring “The Shot Heard ’Round the World” and the 1948 World Series, the last one our Indians won.

We don’t know when the 2020 baseball season will begin, but it’s safe to assume it won’t be in April. These radio broadcasts, which many (or most) of us have never heard before, could help fill the void. 

Family Trees

What do you do when your blog is about free and low-cost ways to have fun in Northeast Ohio and the whole state shuts down because of a global pandemic?

It’s a challenge. Last week I didn’t post anything as I tried to figure out how to adapt CLE on the Cheap to fit these unprecedented circumstances. I’ve come up with some ideas that I hope will carry us through until social distancing is a thing of the past.

With St. Patrick’s Day and the 2020 U.S. Census on my mind, I came across something interesting on the Cuyahoga County Public Library’s website. The library system is offering the library edition of Ancestry.com for at-home use. All you need is your library card number and a PIN. If you don’t have a Cuyahoga County Public Library card, you can get one online.

I found the site to be really user-friendly. There are census results and birth, marriage and death records for starters. My great-grandparents died long before I was born, but I found my mother’s grandparents’ marriage license from 1884. You can see it here. I was thrilled to find a record of two people I never knew but am connected to nonetheless.

The 1900 Census shows information about my great-grandparents Michael and Julia Joyce and eight children, some of whom I never met or barely remember. My mom’s uncle Ray, a relative I knew and liked, was 4 months old when the census was taken. The 1910 Census shows Michael, Julia and 12 children, ranging in age from 5½ to 25, living in Youngstown, Ohio. I at least know of most of them, but there are a couple of names I don’t recognize. 

Both Michael and Julia emigrated from Ireland before they were married, although Michael was born in England. Michael’s parents, whose names I don’t know, were born in Ireland, according to the records. I’m going to do more digging to see if I can find out something about them.

Since we’re spending more time at home now, this would be a good time to research your own family tree. If relatives from older generations in your family are still living, ask them about their families and other ancestors. This is also a good time to fill out the 2020 Census.     

   

Schedule Change

I had two posts ready to go, one for Friday about Cleveland's St. Patrick's Day parade and the other for next Tuesday about voting on Election Day.

Now that the parade has been canceled because of COVID-19, I'm consolidating those posts into this brief message: If you live in Ohio, please consider voting by mail in the March 17 primary election. Applications for mail-in ballots must be postmarked by noon Saturday, March 14, so there's still time to send yours in.

You can print an application from your county Board of Elections website or pick up a paper application at a local library. The only cost is for postage.

Racial Equity on Film

The Racial Equity and Inclusion Series starts tomorrow night at the Capitol Theatre in Cleveland’s Gordon Square neighborhood. The free film series begins at 6:30 p.m. with “Queen and Slim.” In this drama, a black man and woman on their first date somewhere in Ohio become fugitives after the man kills a police officer in self-defense.

Although admission is free, a $5 donation is suggested. A post-film discussion will take place down the street at XYZ the Tavern with free food and a cash bar. 

The other films in the series are “Always in Season,” which will be shown on April 14, and “Just Mercy” on May 13. 

“Always in Season” looks at the history of lynching through the true story of Lennon Lacy, a black teenager found hanging from a swingset in North Carolina in 2014. “Just Mercy” is based on a true story and stars Michael B. Jordan as a defense attorney fighting for his client’s life while battling racism.

Both of those films will also be screened at 6:30 p.m. followed by a discussion at XYZ the Tavern. Advance tickets for the series are available at the Capitol’s box office or online.

All Things Irish

We gained a day last month and we’re losing an hour Sunday morning. Still, it’s important to make time for fun.

The All Irish Boutique is returning to Rocky River this weekend. Admission is free for this event, which will include a variety of vendors. You’ll find items to show your Irish and/or Cleveland pride, including mugs, glasses and handmade signs.

You’ll also find vendors selling baked goods, tea, shirts, art, accessories and home decor. One vendor is selling sauces and condiments that are sugar free and gluten free. Another is selling dog biscuits.

The event is taking place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at Rocky River Memorial Hall, 21012 Hilliard Blvd. Remember that 11 a.m. will arrive an hour earlier on Sunday than it will on Saturday because we’re “springing ahead” at 2 a.m. 

Entertainment on Saturday will feature performances by dance troupes beginning at 11 a.m. You’ll be sure to see some Irish dancing.

I went to this event last year and bought a few gifts and some delicious scones and jam. I was surprised by the number of vendors and the wide variety of goods for sale. The event was well attended but not overly crowded, at least when my friend Tonya and I were there. 

Parking might be a challenge. Memorial Hall shares a parking area with a few other buildings, including the rec center, the police station and the senior center. Be patient as you look for a spot. People will be coming and going all day. 

Follow the Facebook page to learn about the vendors who will be at this year’s event.

Celebrating Women

February is almost over, although we do have an extra day of it this year. But March begins Sunday, and whether it comes in like a lion or a lamb, it’s Women’s History Month.

As you might know, this year marks the 100th anniversary of women’s right to vote. You probably learned about suffragist Susan B. Anthony in school. Those of us of a certain age even remember the Susan B. Anthony dollar, first issued in 1979. I worked at a drug store then and the coin was a nuisance for customers who mistook it for a quarter at the cash register. Nobody wanted to get one of those dollars back in change. Production of the coin was suspended in 1981, but it was brought back in 1999, only to be retired again the next year.

Suffragists, from left, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
Susan B. Anthony and Lucretia Mott

Ah, but Anthony represents so much more than her ill-fated dollar. And Women’s History Month gives us an opportunity to learn more about her, others in the suffrage movement and women who have accomplished all kinds of things without many of us knowing their names.

The William McKinley Presidential Library & Museum in Canton is presenting a four-week lecture series this month in honor of women’s history. Beginning Monday, March 2, and continuing for the next three Mondays from 2 to 4 p.m., the series will highlight women’s suffrage; significant women in Canton’s history; fashion; and women in science.

Those days and times might not fit into a lot of people’s schedules, but the lecture series could be worthwhile if you’re free on Monday afternoons. The cost for each lecture is $10 per person. However, if you sign up for all four, the cost is $30, so you get one lecture for free.

The museum is at 800 McKinley Monument Drive NW, just a couple of miles from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Fight the Frost

I’m not sure you can really fight the frost in Northeast Ohio. The best you can do is avoid it by staying inside until spring (or whenever it gets warm again).

Still, the Fight the Frost Festival is coming to the Cleveland Metroparks CanalWay Center on Saturday afternoon. From the description, this free event could rightly be called the Embrace the Frost Festival. But that non-alliterative name isn’t very catchy.

Between noon and 4 p.m. Saturday, visitors are invited to enjoy cookies and cocoa, make crafts, take 30-minute winter walks and learn about the power of water in the winter. Snowshoeing will be part of the fun, weather permitting.

The 1-mile walks will include information about birds and other wildlife that stay active throughout the winter. And indoors there will be carpet skating. In case you don’t know what that is, it’s demonstrated in the video below.

The festival should appeal to fans and foes of winter and those interested in nature. Honestly, they had me at cookies and cocoa.

Brite Winter

Music, art, food and drinks. They’re all part of Brite Winter 2020, a free outdoor (that’s right) festival happening Saturday. This year’s festival begins at 3 p.m. at 1231 Main Ave., on the West Bank of the Flats, and goes until 1 a.m. Sunday.

The location has varied for the annual event that began in 2010, when it drew about 800 people. The crowds have grown over the years, with 2019 attendance estimated at 20,000. Cleveland experienced unseasonably warm weather the day of last year’s festival, which may or may not have been a factor. This show goes on no matter the temperature.

Multiple musical acts on multiple stages are a big part of Brite Winter. With more than 40 bands and musical acts scheduled, you might want to check the lineup and plan which ones you want to see. Art plays a starring role too. This year’s theme is coping with the winter blues, and the festival offers more than a dozen immersive art experiences to help you do that. 

The video from Brite Winter 2018 will give you an idea of what to expect. It appears to be a family-friendly event.

Organizers recommend getting tickets in advance. Don’t be alarmed when you click on the ticket link and see a $250 VIP ticket as the first option. There are two VIP ticket levels and a $25 general admission level, which includes a Brite Winter hat, but those aren’t your only options. A $10 donation will get you a ticket plus a Brite Winter koozie and pin. The free tickets get you into the festival, but they don’t include any gifts.

You can expect to be outside for hours, mostly after the sun goes down. Be sure to check the weather forecast and dress accordingly. 

  

A Day for Presidents

James A. Garfield
Ryder Studio/Cleveland Memory Project

Ohio is known as the “Mother of Presidents.” The Buckeye State can claim the seven presidents who were born here, but it sometimes quarrels with Virginia over William Henry Harrison. Our ninth president was born in Virginia, but he was a congressman and senator from Ohio. It’s probably not worth arguing about. Harrison died of pneumonia after only 30 days in office.

Anyway, Monday is Presidents Day and some of you have the day off and might be looking for something to do. In Greater Cleveland, you can visit a presidential home. The James A. Garfield National Historic Site in Mentor will be open for a fee-free day from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The event will include tours, presidential trivia, activities for kids and visits from presidents Washington, Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt and first ladies Edith Roosevelt and Lucretia Garfield. President Garfield apparently has other plans.

I visited this site about 20 years ago and really enjoyed it. I didn’t know much about Garfield other than that he was assassinated. Among the things I learned was that he died after just 6½ months in office. 

Normally tours of the home are $10 per person age 16 or older, so the free day is a good deal. (Anyone younger than 16 always gets in free.)

By the way, Garfield is buried in Cleveland. The James A. Garfield Memorial and Wade Chapel at Lakeview Cemetery closed in November and will reopen April 1.

Here’s a trivia question for you: Which seven presidents were born in Ohio? You should be able to name at least one. Hint: Grover Cleveland isn’t one of them.

The answer is below:

Ulysses S. Grant (18th president), Rutherford B. Hayes (19th), James A. Garfield (20th), Benjamin Harrison (23rd and William Henry Harrison’s grandson), William McKinley (25th) William H. Taft (27th) and Warren G. Harding (29th)

   

Love and Art

I’ve been seeing a lot of online promos for Valentine’s Day events that aren’t just for couples. Galentine’s Day is one popular alternative. Other events offer something for everyone, whether unattached or coupled.

One place where you can find love on Friday is the Cleveland Museum of Art. With free admission, you can visit exhibits including PROOF: Photography in the Era of the Contact Sheet and Tiffany in Bloom: Stained Glass Lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany. You can also take a love-inspired guided tour. All of these activities can be enjoyed with a loved one — or not.

For a fee, you can see a screening of the classic comedy “Some Like it Hot” starring Marilyn Monroe, Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis. Admission is $7 for members, $10 for others.

The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday.

There’s a related free event Friday on the West Side, in the Hingetown neighborhood. The Transformer Station is holding an opening reception from 7 to 9 p.m. for the exhibit “Signal Noise: Aaron Rothman,” featuring images of the American West. The event will include free refreshments and a chance to meet the artist. The exhibit opens Saturday.

Bargain Books

Years ago, the newspaper I worked for had an annual book sale for employees. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of books were sent with hopes they would be reviewed. There were way more books than the paper could have possibly accommodated, even with an actual book section on Sundays.

So each year at Christmastime, the books were set on tables in a room in our building and offered at deep discounts. It was chaotic and crowded and the only time I could go was during my 30-minute dinner break. The books were not organized by author or genre, as I recall, so we had to really hunt for the bargains and possibly elbow some co-workers in the process.

Still, the lure of the book sale was undeniable for a bunch of journalists. These were new books! And we could feel good about buying them because all the proceeds went to charity.

I was reminded of this yesterday when I went to a used-book sale at Westlake Porter Public Library. Here the books were organized by genre and arranged alphabetically by author! There also were DVDs and CDs for sale, but I limited my shopping to books. I paid a total of $6 for four books.

Library book sales occur pretty regularly in Greater Cleveland, but I hadn’t been to one in a long time. Yesterday I went to the library to pick up a book I’d put on hold and I couldn’t resist checking out the sale while I was there. FYI, it goes through Sunday.

Check your local library's website or follow the library on social media to find out when it’s having a used-book sale. This month alone, the Cuyahoga County Public Library is putting on sales at three of its branches. Many libraries offer used books and other materials for sale year round. It’s worth taking a peek when you’re there. You never know what you might find.

Do Feed the Birds

You have a few more weeks to hand feed a chickadee in the Cleveland Metroparks. The Brecksville Reservation is offering this free opportunity from 10 a.m. to noon every Saturday and Sunday through Feb. 29.

The Metroparks will provide instructions and the black oil sunflower seeds that will have the birds eating out of your hand. You can see chickadees throughout Northeast Ohio, but feeding them is a different experience. This video from RpetsAndUs was not made locally, but I imagine the scene depicted here is similar to chickadee feeding in the Metroparks. 

Chickadees’ diets include sunflower seeds, peanuts, suet, peanut butter and mealworms, which they feast on at feeders, according to The Holden Arboretum. They also eat insects, spiders and spider eggs. I’m glad seeds are the only thing on the menu for hand feeding the chickadees.

Happy Chinese New Year

So you thought the New Year’s celebrations were over, huh? Not so fast. 

Chinese New Year is being celebrated this weekend and Feb. 1 in Cleveland’s Asiatown. This is the year of the rat.

Tonight’s Kwan Lion dance performance at Li Wah restaurant is sold out, but all are invited to a free, all-day Chinese New Year celebration Saturday at Asia Plaza, 2999 Payne Ave. It will begin at 10 a.m. and include several dance performances, music and a Tai Chi demonstration before it wraps up at 6 p.m.

The Kwan Family Lion Dance performances on Saturday and Sunday night at Li Wah are also sold out. However, there are two more chances to see the performance, both on Feb. 1.

Seating will be first come first served for the first one, which begins at 11 a.m. As of this writing, space is still available for the second performance, which begins at 7 p.m. Reservations are required. Call Li Wah at 216-696-6556.

The video here shows a Kwan Family Lion Dance performance at Cleveland's Asian Festival in 2017.

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Getting Out

There are two approaches you can take to get through winter: Stay indoors as much as possible or go outside and embrace it. I tend to take the first approach, but even I occasionally venture outdoors to look for an upside to the season.

Saturday in Vermilion there will be an opportunity to enjoy what winter has to offer. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Vermilion River Reservation, Lorain County Metro Parks is holding Winter Days. (The event is only one day despite its name.)

The lineup of activities includes meeting sled dogs, taking a horse-drawn sleigh ride and watching cooking and ice-carving demonstrations. Most of the activities are free, although donations will be accepted for some. Free s’mores will be first-come first-served and food and hot beverages will be for sale.

Photo by Larisa Koshkina

As I write this, the weather forecast is calling for a high of 40 degrees Saturday. That’s considerably warmer than Greater Cleveland has been since last weekend and might be enough to lure even the reluctant outside.