Almost as Good as Summer!

Friday afternoon, I took my section from Cook on an outing to Jersey Junction in Gaslight Village, East Grand Rapids. It was possibly the most beautiful day this year! Sunny, 70's, with a light breeze. Perfect weather for ice cream!

Only ten minutes away from Cornerstone, East Grand Rapids is a great hang-out for students and families alike. Coffee shops, restaurants, boutiques, out-of-door sculptures and fountains, a lakeside park and an awesome public library provide hours of entertainment for little money. However, we came for one thing and one thing only that day... ice cream! One track minds, you might say. But I say we had our priorities straight for such a beautiful day!

Jersey Junction is an adorable ice cream shop. Inside there is a toy train which runs on its tracks that are mounted high up on the wall, and if one needs to wait for someone, adorable old fashioned school desks are available for seating. After considering all the flavors, I ordered a single scoop of coffee lover's dream ice cream in one of their homemade waffle cones. It really was a dream come true. Sitting outside on the deck, eating my ice cream, and hanging out with some of my favorite people has never been more fun! We even took some time to close our eyes and imagine that we were at the beach getting some sun. The sound of cars driving by became the sound of waves lapping the shore, and even the call of seagulls somehow managed to enter into the day dream. It was amazing!

As if the ice cream itself wasn't exciting enough, some local hudlums decided that it would funny if they lit the next door business's trash can on fire. Only after flames began leaping out of the trash can was the fire extinguished. The excitement caused by this small case of arson was enormous. Adults and children alike commented on it, several policemen streamed into the area, and a small old fashioned fire truck arrived on the scene. Even my section got involved in solving the case. Janessa, a freshman, took the time to make a report to the police about what she had observed.

The combination of ice cream, weather, and friends was almost as good as summer. Of course, the fire added a bit of pizazz to the trip as well. It seems hard to imagine a trip to East Grand Rapids as exciting as this one!