On a warm spring day, Rooster and I decided to go hobnobbing with Doctor Who. It was an adventure filled with unique places and discoveries. #Doctor Who #Combine Cafe #Nashville #Indiana #Hob Nob #The Chocolate Mouse #Cedar Creek Winery
Hobnobbing with Doctor Who
Green farm machinery with bright yellow wheels stretched as far as the eye could see greeted us when we pulled into the John Deere dealership on US 31 North in Tipton County. I like farm machinery as well as the next girl, but I never imagined I’d spend a Saturday morning eating breakfast at a tractor store. The guys at work were talking up the praises of Combine Cafe. They said you could get a decent breakfast cheap and look at weed eaters and riding mowers while you enjoy your meal. We weren’t sure about what we’d find when we strolled through the door into the world of bright green farming equipment. Hence, the Combine Cafe was our first stop before hobnobbing with Doctor Who.
The Combine Cafe
A guy named John was operating the grill and waiting for customers. We ordered a bacon breakfast sandwich, and Rooster had a side of biscuits and gravy. We took a seat next to a riding lawnmower. John was also functioning as a waitress. He brought our meal to the table. Rooster and I were impressed with the sandwich, but Rooster thought the biscuits and gravy didn’t measure up to his. He claims it’s all about the sausage. The café started to get busy. It appears the Combine Café is the favorite eating spot for the locals.
The tiny eatery presented them with an opportunity to gossip and look over the latest gadgets in lawn care and farming machinery while devouring a good meal. I would never have guessed a tractor store would be a place where you could enjoy breakfast. The lunch menu looked scrumptious. We’re going to have to come back to sample the grouper sandwich. After we finished breakfast, we meandered through the store examining the merchandise.
The merchandise I found at the Combine Cafe
I found a plethora of toys, clothing, and ball caps with the store’s logo done in John Deere green. I discovered a board game called Tractor-opoly based on the popular one which goes by a similar name. What could be more recreational for a farm family than to gather around the dining room table on a Saturday night drink a few beers and move tiny tractors around a giant square to see who comes out as 4-H overachiever of the year?
What is Who North America?
Our next destination on this Saturday’s excursion is Who North America. I read about this store/museum online several months ago. As Yanks, Rooster and I weren’t familiar with the Doctor Who character or the long-running BBC series. I thought he was some sort of supervillain.
Rooster believed him to be one of the Marvel superheroes. We walked through the door of the blue building and into the world of Doctor Who and his cohorts. We were about to get schooled on everything Doctor Who.
Turns out he isn’t a supervillain at all. He’s a character on a BBC television show which has run since it first appeared in 1963. The plot of the series seems to be the main character, Doctor Who, is transported through time in a blue telephone police box named T.A.R.D.I.S. to defeat a series of monsters out to destroy humanity. Rooster and I plan to find at least one episode to watch when we get home.
What we discovered at this odd museum and store.
The museum held old pieces of Doctor Who memorabilia. The other side of the building housed merchandise you could purchase related to the television series. There were blue bow ties, striped knit scarfs, action figures created to look like characters from the popular BBC series, and bright blue telephone police boxes scattered throughout the shop.
There was even a life-sized replica of a Dalek on loan from a gentleman who lives in Ohio. Rooster wanted to take it home to be displayed in our living room. I was happy the metal monster wasn’t for sale. If you are a Doctor Who fan, you will find this shop a must-see when you visit the state of Indiana.
Check out Doctor Who on the BBC.
If you’ve never heard of the BBC show, you should come for a visit anyway. It was a fascinating place to hang out and learn about Doctor Who. Stop by 8901 S. State Road 67 in Camby, Indiana to discover a world filled with all things Doctor Who. Tell them The Hen House Lady sent you. You can also visit them online at www.whona.com. Rooster and I enjoyed the time we spent hobnobbing with doctor who.
On to the next leg of our Journey.
The weather was about to turn rainy. Nashville, Indiana wasn’t on our itinerary, but we had some spare time before the music was scheduled to start at Cedar Creek Winery. We decided to find a coffee shop where we could pull out the laptops and write for a couple of hours. Even in our adventures, we are creatures of habit.
We tend to stick to a routine. It occurred to me as we drove the back roads of Indiana the world was starting to green up after the grey skies and dirt browns of winter. There’s been so much rain this spring it has made it hard for farmers to get into the fields and has created flooding in low-lying areas. Folks around here are talking about building an arc. We decided we should travel to Nashville after hobnobbing with Doctor Who .
Our stop in Nashville, Indiana.
Nashville is an artistic community jam-packed with log cabins and shops where local artists sell their creations. The streets are crowded with tourists. Parking is almost impossible to find on a busy Saturday afternoon. Nashville is the place you should go If you want to discover a unique piece of folk art. We drove through the heavy traffic until we came across.
Writing at The Chocolate Moose
The Chocolate Moose. It’s an ice cream/ coffee shop that has been in business since 1933. In its early days, it was a walkup ice cream stand where you ordered scoops through the window. They have an honest to goodness café now where a person can pull out their computer and write for hours if they so desire. That was what Rooster and I decided to do.
The only interruption to our plan was when a gang of unruly children decided to fish for a toy in one of those machines with an electric steel talon functioning as a tool to grab a toy from the bottom of the yellow trimmed glass cage. This claw machine seemed to be a big attraction for the kids in the shop. They sounded like a gaggle of geese as they dived for treasure.
The rain started to fall. We made a fantastic discovery about Nashville when we packed up our laptops and went in search of a decent restaurant. The best time to get a good parking place and visit the shops without being elbow to elbow with folks looking for a bargain is during a cold, steady April rain.
A meal at the Hob Nob
We found the perfect parking space in front of The Hob Nob. We must have passed the eatery a hundred times on our trips through the tiny tourist trap, but we never stopped to have a meal. There always seemed to be a line outside the door of this old white storefront located on the corner of Van Buren Street and Main. We strolled through the door and were delighted to discover we were among the few customers dining in the Hob Nob.
Moreover, we didn’t have long to wait before a white-haired gentleman moved from behind the bar and greeted us. The squeaky wood floor made a lot of noise as we strolled to a table that slanted to the right a tiny bit. (I suspected it was the floor which was leaning to the middle, not the table.
In one place duct tape and tin were used to patch a hole in its surface. Rooster said they needed to get it fixed since they charged so much for the food they served.) I ordered the tenderloin, and Rooster ordered a tasty chicken salad. He liked it because of the unique flavor, but he thought there wasn’t enough of the yummy food to satisfy his appetite.
My tenderloin was good but small as for as Indiana tenderloins are typically cooked. It only covered the bun and not the entire plate. Anyhow, once the food was in our stomachs we left for our final stop on the quest to go hobnobbing with Doctor Who.
Short visit to Cedar Creek Winery
We ventured out into the rain and wandered into a few of the shops. Time was ticking. Music at Cedar Creek Winery started an hour ago. Pit Bull leather is a biker’s dream. Unfortunately, they closed for the day.
They carry all the riding gear you would ever need to make your journey comfortable and dry. Every time we’re in Nashville we like to visit this shop to see what new items they have for sale. The time for the band to start playing at the winery had already passed, so we decided not to hang around Nashville any longer. We climbed into the Sunshine Mobile and headed for Cedar Creek Winery located outside of Martinsville.
It took thirty minutes for us to arrive at 3820 Leonard Road. The winery and distillery occupied a large expanse of acreage. Vines bearing grapes grew at the front of the property. The buildings to the rear of the winery property looked aged to perfection like a good wine. Fresh ozone blended with the slight fragrance of fermenting grapes seconds before the heavy rain started to fall. An antique car and truck added atmosphere to the outside décor.
Finally, we have to go home,
When we climbed out of the Sunshine Mobile, the sound of gunfire ricocheted in the damp air. Someone was target practicing in a nearby field. We walked into the building and heard music from the band playing in the next room. It was standing room only. They played a song before they took a break. Their lead singer broke his elbow the night before, so they did best they could under the circumstances. It was getting late. We decided not to stick around because we had a long drive home.
When we got to the outskirts of Indianapolis, we made a big error. We traveled through the center of the city instead of jumping on 465. We thought it would be faster. Indeed, many of the freeway lanes are closed because of construction.
We didn’t know the Republicans were having an event at Lucas Oil Stadium. This created bumper to bumper traffic and long delays as people attempted to navigate around the event. Not to mention the construction on Meridian Street. In the state of Indiana, we have moved out of winter road delays and entered the construction season. The road construct made us wish for our time spent hobnobbing with Doctor Who.
Watching Doctor Who
In addition, we made it home in time for Rooster to pull up one of the Doctor Who shows on U-Tube, therefore, we received an education on the identity of the mysterious Doctor Who. We watched a 1979 episode in which the Daleks were searching for their creator, Davros. (At the beginning of the program, I thought they were calling the evil robots Darlings.) The Movellans, another race of robots out to control the universe, were trying to stop the Daleks. The two robot factions were at war to see who would come out on top as controllers of the universe. We found the program interesting.
It was like a BBC version of an early Star Track episode without Captain Kirk. Doctor Who conducted the entire adventure in style with his fancy knit scarf resting on his shoulders for the complete episode. Rooster and I plan to track down a more recent clip to see how the Doctor Who characters have evolved over time. The day was a most interesting adventure of discovery. We learned so many things from the excursion. We found a portal to a long-running British television show we knew little about and a way to beat the crowds in Nashville. It was a day I would gladly do over again. In fact, watching the BBC warped up our day hobnobbing with Doctor Who.
Who is Molly Shea?
Molly Shea is an accomplished fictional short story writer from Indiana, who writes short stories and novels about a fictional town called Tecumseh. To read more of her short stories and adventures click here.
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