Small Towns & Empty Backroads Of Southwest Wisconsin- City Of Presidents / The Grotto In Dickeyville
Wisconsin Small Towns April 2024
Transcript
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welcome everyone Adam the woo here as
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the recording of this it is Tuesday
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April
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16th 20124 standing here on this street
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here in debuk Iowa right on the state
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line tri state area they call it you got
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Iowa just across the Mississippi River
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is Illinois and Wisconsin all within a
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couple of
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Miles done Illinois and Iowa the last
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couple days today going to cross cross
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over into Wisconsin a state I am not
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super familiar with going check out some
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small towns some unusual things some
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back roads and just see what the day has
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to bestow upon
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myself and you for joining
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me I'm inviting you shall
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you kind of mixed up the intro there now
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there's supposed to be some inclement
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weather rolling in a little bit later
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see how that pans out some storm some
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wind rain possible other
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things you can see right there very
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windier believe that's the Iowa flag up
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there but I'm only going to be in Iowa a
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couple more minutes before crossing over
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a bridge into whis Wisconsin Wisconsin
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Wisconsin it's a coner I also really
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like this clock tower right here in the
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middle keep pointing that
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out pretty neat it's right there in the
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middle of the road you just circle
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around
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it okay this is really random right here
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off the side I'm now officially in
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Wisconsin
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a lot of times you'll see cows on the
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side of the road I love some
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cows I also
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love UFO
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stories unidentified flying objects
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right here along this fence line is a
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UFO that has a cow inside I don't know
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if the cow is the alien or
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the aliens have sucked up the cow into
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their
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decide also
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appears like some sort of a laser down
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there
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field oh dang even down a little farther
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this might even be the same
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property farmer hauling some cattle
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there back of that
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truck this is probably probably about a
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half a mile from where I just was it
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might even be the same property if not
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the same creator of UFOs
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dinosaurs and prehistoric metal
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creatures the wind is kicking out here
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okay that's a legit alien in there no
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cow in that one and it looks like this
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dinosaur is looking at its
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eggs love it all right pulling into the
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community of Hazel Green right now
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population
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1,100 residents there's the water tower
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nice small little downtown about a block
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or two a couple
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Burger a restaurant
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yeah antique store here too
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oh look at this place has a bunch of old
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signage antique shop or
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something not even a traffic light just
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a four-way stop right here yeah they got
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all kind of stuff True Vine Antiques and
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fines here on Main
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Street got old Pepsi machine out
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front like this could have been a a
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motel at one time converted into a store
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maybe it was a
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true
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light traffic lights traffic lights
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some people want traffic lights so they
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buy traffic lights from an antique store
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I
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guess Le you got a lot of people in your
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house you need direct traffic storm
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shelter tornadoes they go underneath the
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ground there to get out of weather to be
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protected when the storm cuz the
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tornadoes are really bad in this area
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coach that's
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cool old water
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pups a colonial looking
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building I guess that's would be what
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the architecture would be called
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yeah you definitely see some storm
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clouds starting to formulate over there
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dark clouds rolling in this is the Opera
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House the Hazel Green opera house
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located on the 21st in
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Maine and this van right here in front
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has a sticker on the back that says
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Puppeteer so do puppet shows in the
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opera
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fever River puppeteers I guess the river
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that runs by here is fever
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river that street that where we turn
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around in is where you go down to the
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river
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probably this is the library police
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department and the Village Hall all in
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one all right now this is awesome there
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this old service station right here it
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has an open sign it's called Simmons
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Auto
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Center tractor going
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by water tower off in the
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distance yeah this is really
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cool even down here you drive over this
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and that is what alerts
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you or alerts the people inside that you
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need to fuel
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up back when it was the full service
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days most
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likely I do like the add the addition of
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the the flags up top and classic car
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alert over
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here it's old
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Ford my mom's with me obviously she's in
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the car right now doesn't want to get
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out in the wind but we'll probably
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see some things she going to pop out of
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the car but want of just driving around
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again it's very Gusty
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here old Coca-Cola sign a think of
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beauty s up
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doesn't get much cooler than this
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honestly love and it's an active place
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there is a mechanic on duty fixing a
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Local's
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truck still open just a little nods to
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the
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Past
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ni yeah that's what that's what drew me
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in is all the old signage oh
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okay I usually have a whole bunch of
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stuff out for for display but weather's
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just finally starting to change so we
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can start doing
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that the old 40 came out of storage
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there last
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week yeah this is
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cool a registered restroom I've never
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even heard you had to have them
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registered huh yep back in the day wow
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did you uh where in Florida you from
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near Orlando near kind of near Disney
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World Orlando Central Florida oh okay I
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have a sister loes in K Coral okay yeah
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that's like South Florida y That's where
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south of where I'm at oh wow look at
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that that's some of my displays that I
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put out the two cars were uh they came
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in just for a photo shoot
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that's neat you have all this stuff in
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here not just not just the outside looks
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awesome but you also have the inside
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with all this stuff yeah there's a lot
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of lot of memories in the old building
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lot of memories some good some
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bad still got her soaking yeah yeah work
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snow plows today
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I'm a supervisor all right talked to the
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owner said he's owned this place for
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over 25 years He restored this this was
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his grandparents car that they got
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married
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in very very kind
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guy all right moving on see how the
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coffee is in here convenient store just
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up o that is look at that look at that
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that is definitely piping hot
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very very nice very nice okay the people
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in this town are very very very friendly
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got my coffee here so the lady behind
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the counter here was saying you want to
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see an old train
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tunnel said yes I do so she told me how
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to get to it so I'm going to go that
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direction and find the old train tunnel
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she told me a whole story about a train
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tunnel well at least where it was not
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the backstory we're down a kind of a
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road that really there's nothing out
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here there's a couple houses no traffic
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there's an old windmill right here seen
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better days rusted
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out I don't exactly know where I'm going
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I'm just going off of the direction she
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said to head down this road so either
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going to find a train tunnel or this is
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how horror films
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start see him mhm de
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they go up the hill they're really blend
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in with a
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color see
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them there two of
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them where are they over there you in
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front of the tree you got to back back
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some oh I see it see them back back back
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up actually I see behind the
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trees they're up there in the woods oh
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there there's another one over there
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there's three of
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them yeah they blend in with
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it's hard to see
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them they must like heels that's that
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behind face house that big old Hill and
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you find them up there all the
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time used to be a business or a house
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here now
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just just sitting here with trees
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growing around
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and a little satellite dish two dogs
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down there oh they're all down in y too
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there's lots of them lots of goats oh
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yeah the two dogs there's more goats
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down there in that
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shelter see them yeah all kinds of
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them hello
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goats all right we never found the train
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trestle or the train tunnel that's okay
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though saw some
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goats and mosied up the road a bit to
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entrance to Cuba
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City see what we can find here got the
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water tower off in the distance there
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over the top of the tin
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Lantern Motel affordable clean and quiet
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the old neon sign right here on the
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corner of Washington and East McKinley
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Street
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yeah that's great the water tower
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protruding up over
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greetings Cuba City the city of
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presidents they call it even though
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there is only a population of 2,000 it's
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still a city cities don't necessarily
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have to have skyscrapers
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classic Thompson's
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IGA you know what the IG stands for I
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think you told me once I can't remember
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it's been a long time ago you did
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probably
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did even
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International grocer Association or
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grocery Association if I remember right
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now it's interesting on the light poles
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they have each and every US president
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accounted for including John Tyler
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polls stretching down the Main
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Street city of
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presidents here's the presidential
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Courtyard and the US Presidential Museum
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is trying to raise some money they have
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the thermostat elevating right
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there Cuba City State Bank
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the Whistle
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Post Wayside railroad signs are once a
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common side along railroad tracks the
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whistle posts are usually 1/4 Mile in
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advance of a road
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it the Seal of the city of presidents
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Cuba City Wisconsin
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Incorporated
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1875 I can't tell if it's a road or a
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parking lot or what it is it's paved I
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mean it's painted over with the blue
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like
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ocean traffic signal oh push the red
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button on the side of the post and see
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the lights
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flashing speeder car with
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tools work car speeder car as they're
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called handle sections to patrol and
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repair the tracks
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and he has the tools of the railroad
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down in
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here oh they have an itemized list
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numbered crowbar Spike driver railroad
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pick aligning tool Welding Tool a tie
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Tong Spike pool a rail carrier a tie
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Tong a switch bolt rail spikes and a
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rail
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lifter this almost looks like a
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skateboard like a longboard
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there's a milk
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cart and traffic
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signal right
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there oh the city of President salutes
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Frontline workers okay they must have
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painted this 2020 looks older than
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2020 oh here's a presidential hopscotch
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Washington's Adams Jefferson James
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Madison
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Monroe John Adams Jackson Martin vanb
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and Harrison
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Tyler don't even
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think about Rob in any of these
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places here in the city of
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presidents this cute little dowt don't
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even
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considerate
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state-of-the-art burglar alarm at the
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corner bar right there pizza Burgers
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beer Zachary Taylor this building here
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is date stamp 1907 on the roof love a
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good date
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stamp a good placard and a good date
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stamp could teach you a lot about when
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something and when and why something was
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created this is cute this insurance
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company puts out little doggy treats for
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people walking their
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dogs barber pole
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there and a nice little relic of the
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past michelo beer sign brewed since
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1896 they have the end painted over on
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this side but not painted
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over on that side that must be the name
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of the establish M right here this bar
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lot of antique stores I'm just now
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realizing this was the old train
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depot used now as Grandma's addicts
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Antiques and I didn't realize at first
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also that
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Abraham
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form hey how you doing all right here's
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a little info about the presidential
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Shields just talked to a local resident
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that pulled up and said hi he was saying
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not a whole lot of presidential stuff
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other than the Shields and the little
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Courtyard here that I've in but yeah
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city of presidents
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got a lot of dairy farms in this area
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see a cow over there doing a little
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grazing outside the fit
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this is
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the diesel or ditel Ridge Acres
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this is very interesting I've never
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seen Cales cattle on the side of the
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road like almost like in little dog
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houses look at them they're just in
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there right on the side of the
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you ever see anything like that uh-uh n
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what's what's on in those down there
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those are calves down there too is that
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other look at they're just like in
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little
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houses look at them they're so
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and they all look different
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too all right now pulling into
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dickyville population
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1, 15
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people they also have a water
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tower all right this is their little
24:27
Main Street right through
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here if you want to find something
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interesting in a small town follow the
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wooden dinosaur car wooden carved out
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dinosaurs they have led us here on Main
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Street and Orchard Street on this
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corner at the Holy Ghost park next to
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this church
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is the
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back right here next to the Holy Ghost
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Church at Holy Ghost Park is the grotto
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have you ever seen a grotto before no
25:34
never
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have was asking me as I was driving over
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to show her this what exactly it was I
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said you just got to see it CU it's kind
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of hard to explain spay out of rock and
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tile
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and other
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things next to the church they have the
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same items that make up the
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Grotto but they have it here along this
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railing
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also it looks like sometimes you can go
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inside but you can't go inside at the
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the moment
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carvings in the side there
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wisdom
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understanding look like a piece of
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petrified
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wood a big clamshell
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each of these little sculptures has the
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name of the saint it is four this is St
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James St
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Matthew believe the coins
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there oh that's neat has like a tree
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going up and then it goes into the tile
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work or The Rock work to form make the
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tree there's the steeple
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there there's the Nativity down
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been to a few Grotto in my day this is
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not the largest and not the smallest
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that I've been to but they're all very
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impressive in their own way a lot of a
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lot of time and effort creativity goes
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into these
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F oh it stretches over that way too down
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hill
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yeah this is just the main section of I
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thought it was just this one
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part it's like a little path like a a
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maze
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area got the Cherub down
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there there some sculptures of lambs and
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geese got the dickyville water tower off
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of the distance and another section of
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grot
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here is that supposed to be Mary
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Magdalene this is really impressive this
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section right through here with the
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archway and the
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fountain it's a little too chilly having
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water in the
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fountain this is nice got the eagle up
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oh
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I entire truck of GE sh so
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that's use
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the yeah I mean I give tours all the
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time do things depending on who's
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looking what time of day
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some of these date back to
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1911 early
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that were
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wallet all right so the church was built
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in 1913 then they built the School The
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Grotto started being built in 1918
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and one of the workers is going to let
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us go inside the
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gr we' been under a restoration and they
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were just
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installed oh new
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gates so um are you guys familiar
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with okay no that's all right I just
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need to
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know so we've got um patriotism on one
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side and religion on the other so you
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have to set yourself here in history
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you're between World War I and World War
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II and these are German imrs so they
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are um over the door you see a Maria
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which is Latin for Hail Mary on either
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side of the arch 1925 1929 that's what
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Tor yeah so make sure when you come in
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you look up and then feel free to go
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towards the Altar and then turn back cuz
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there's
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more tode
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you so the statue of Mary holding baby
33:42
Jesus is lifesize Italian carara
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mvel um she was donated and is the
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reason why father Runner wanted to build
33:51
a place for the Statue as well so you
33:54
built it around that yeah with her in
33:57
mind to make a place place for the
33:58
Statue so a grot is an artificial cave
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that's why you you know you walk into
34:03
this
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space and again you can kind of smell
34:07
the minerals and rock and cement that
34:09
you're in every square inch is covered
34:13
we're unique in the fact that father
34:14
wner is not only has natural materials
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like rocks and stones but he
34:19
incorporates brightly colored
34:21
glass which came from C Indiana
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Oh that's where my sister's from yeah so
34:28
if you're seeing the brightly color
34:29
glass like the blue behind the Mary
34:31
that's all cable glass wow and then um
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trying to think what else did I point
34:37
out gear shift knobs I've been talking
34:38
to a lot of people no no gear shift
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knobs okay so if you
34:43
look they're they're on the front of the
34:45
main gr easier but if you look around
34:48
like these little windows and they look
34:50
like perfectly round brownish I see them
34:53
yeah okay those are the gear ship Maps
34:56
Henry Ford sent over an entire truckload
34:58
of them I can show you on the front of
35:00
this you're going to find them
35:02
throughout the site um other things you
35:05
might be familiar with uh in the New
35:07
Testament the story of the
35:08
multiplication of Loaves and Fishes so
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we have two seashell fishes and a basket
35:13
of bread oh yeah see the fish M and the
35:16
CL yeah that's one of my favorite Parts
35:19
in here yeah
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and we got the orgon up there on the
36:04
balcony all right in the gift shop now
36:06
there's the builder of the grotto there
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and there's like some paraphernalia from
36:11
over the years that they have in here
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they also have some some things for
36:17
sale as
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well even so we have little miniature
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versions of the gr that you can buy over
36:25
here in the gift shop
36:28
overlooking the backside of The Grotto
36:30
itself she said they brought him in by
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railroad card just full of all this
36:36
stuff to do all
36:44
this all right we carried on a little
36:44
bit over to
37:19
up there's the post office 5 3812 is a
37:19
zip
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code you see the flags there wav to the
37:26
Bree go
37:29
by this is the Auto Mall we're passing
37:31
the Auto
37:34
Mall forklift there retro looking
37:51
silos this place has the best homemade
37:51
pizza in downtown Kyler that's what it
37:54
says on the side gues Greenhouse Kyler
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Wisconsin the best homemade pizza in
38:05
town I don't know if they have any
38:07
competition
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but have a paint store here too The
38:12
Village
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bar Fine Food and generous cocktails
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they closed down well they're closed
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yeah maybe Clos down proba Night Time
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stuff also we were noticing there's a
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lot like a lot of the diners restaurants
38:28
are called supper clubs you don't see in
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other areas but I guess around this part
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of the the country they're called supper
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clubs instead of dining or a restaurant
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you just go to a supper club and get all
38:42
dressed up and go out to supper and
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speaking of supper AKA dinner going to
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get some groceries back over now and
38:50
debuk spend some time with my
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mom my sister her husband a little later
38:59
rest of the eve whole family time get
39:03
some groceries from hi ve this Lane is
39:05
only for RX I guess that's we you go
39:08
through there
39:09
interesting all right that's going to do
39:11
it for today thanks for
39:17
watching see the next video the Vlog
39:17
there's firewood over
39:19
there the Vlog
39:32
it's over take a look at this bonus
39:32
footage Dave's Killer Dave's a shredder
39:35
oh dang those are some kickass asparagus
39:38
spikes