Recordpub.com - ALONG THE WAY: Marci Piltz

By Marci Piltz

Record-Courier staff writer

Horticulture enthusiasts may have paid close attention recently as the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo staff awaited the blooming of their titan arum, sometimes called the "corpse flower."

I was among hundreds of eager visitors to the zoo recently; unfortunately, the flower had not yet bloomed. That event occurred about two days after my visit.

Still, I was impressed with the size of the plant. I was kind of glad it hadn't bloomed while we were there, because I didn't get to smell it.

For those that don't know, the nickname corpse flower comes from the flower's stench in the first 24-hours after blooming, which has been compared with the smell of rotting flesh. In its natural habitat, the smell is used to attract bugs to the plant, according to the zoo's Web site.

The zoo's titan arum, called Cronus, has never bloomed in the 13 years it has been at the zoo, and it's not expected to bloom again for another three to five years. Maybe when that happens, I can go again, only this time after it has bloomed so I can see if the nickname indeed is fitting.

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Been to any stores lately and seen children zipping around the aisles on those shoes with wheels in the heels? Add me to the list of crazy people who have them. Yes, I realize I'm probably out of the age range the shoes (Heely's) are targeted for, but I don't care.

I recently bought a pair because I'd gotten my elder son a pair and he was having so much fun with them, I decided I wanted to give them a try.

It took me several days of practice, but I can now skate along beside the kiddos while they ride their bikes around the block. It's actually quite fun, except for the two or three times I've come close to falling so far.

I think my co-workers are still taking bets on which bone I'll break first when I finally do take the big dive.

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My family and I recently returned from our annual trip to Oak Island, N.C., just southeast of Wilmington. This year's trip was one I'm sure we won't forget soon for a host of reasons, including various illnesses, a trip to the emergency room and the unbearable heat and humidity.

When I say the average temperature was anywhere between 100 and 104 degrees each day, I'm sure most think, "Well, it's North Carolina. It's supposed to be hot." Inland, usually. But on an island, that's usually not the case. We usually get a good wind coming off the ocean, cooling the island down 15 or so degrees from the heat of inland cities such as Wilmington.

Unfortunately, this year, we had very little wind and even the island suffered under the scorching sun. Add to that the humidity, which varied between nearly 90 and 95 percent almost every day, and we had our own sauna just outside the sliding deck doors.

Needless to say, much of our time was spent indoors this year in the air conditioning, other than the few hours I spent each night fishing off the sound-side dock in our backyard.

And, in true Marci-fashion, I didn't burn while on vacation -- but about 15 hours after we got home to Ravenna, I turned a nice shade of red following my son's Cub Scout rocket launch. Only I could do something like that.