How to un-suck the holiday season. Be the better person.

Frankly, the holidays can go bite my left ear.

Although my level of seasonal depression fluctuates from year to year, 2013 has reached an all-time high of super suck. Sure I may be having a good time for a couple days out of these several weeks, with the food, hugs, well-wishes, etc. But really, regardless of how much I'm involved, there comes a moment when I'm here sitting by myself in some state of loneliness wondering why everything had to crash down on me at once right before the holidays. Perfect timing, huh?

Quick Stops: Grandpa's Cheesebarn (Ashland, OH)

When I'm not on the motorcycle, I'm scouting for new places to stop when I'm back on the bike again.

Since I started working up in NE Ohio about six months ago, the 160-mile drive up and down the very uneventful I-71 became a very droning chore through the night. I would usually leave after work on a Friday to head down to Columbus, spend the weekend with Matt, and then make my way back up to Cleveland either late Sunday night or early Monday morning, rolling straight into work after a quick breakfast and an iced coffee.

A few weeks ago, I made the rare decision to leave for Columbus on Saturday morning to swing by Goschinski's Fin, Feather and Fur Outfitters in Ashland, exactly halfway between my origin and destination, to pick up a new holster for my Glock 27 (yes, that's my other hobby out here). But that wasn't my only reason for stopping off of US-250. Right next to the store is a place called Grandpa's Cheesebarn, a tourist attraction that had me curious for a while but one I couldn't see without making this exception in my regular travel schedule.

The building may look small, but it's stuffed to the gills with food, gifts, novelties, ice cream, cookies, and other nom noms.

When I entered the store, I was immediately greeted at the cafe counter and a menu with goodies ranging from fresh-baked cookies to ice cream and even paninis. I resisted all temptations and continued perusing the store, checking out the many tables full of edible goodies. Jams, chocolates, dried fruits, trail mixes, and other snacks had sample cups on display, urging me to dip a pretzel stick or mini spoon and take a taste of everything. You could hang around for a good hour just staring and sampling the treats. I really would like to know how people can work at this store without gaining at least three pounds a day from all food in this place. And that was just the first floor.

Accepting the way the cookie crumbles...

Last week, I had the chance to participate in a Christmas activity for the first time in my life: festive cookie baking.

Now, I've baked mad stashes of cookies in the past, during various times of the year, but there's a charm to the special Christmas-only cookies that come with the season. Also, since I was staying in NE Ohio this weekend instead of making my weekly migration down to Columbus to see my husband, it gave me something to do that Saturday before he showed up.

M&M Candy Cookies and Butterballs! The powdered sugar on the Butterballs was all me.

What made this special was that I was creating treats from recipes that were several generations old, passed down from a grandmother who worked at a historical bakery in Cleveland and could whip up a dish regardless of what was in the pantry. Some additions have been made through the years, and as a guest I had the chance to indulge in a tradition with legendary concoctions that were many years in the making.

My first go at using a cookie press. I can say they came out quite well.

Preparing the Pinwheels for a trip through the oven.

The finished products! After posting this picture on Facebook, I was getting requests to send a number of these to California. Maybe I should quit my day job in December and just do this.