I have decided to go on a quest to scrapbook all 67 counties in my home state of Pennsylvania. This started as a way to get out and about during COVID, just something to safely do. Drive around, take some interesting photos, and go home and create a scrapbook page.
It changed into a huge project that I am really enjoying. Not only am I learning more about my new home state (we moved here four years ago) but I am being reminded about how much fun simple things are. And how many authentic projects are out there waiting to be discovered!
For example, in one county my husband and I drove past a huge factory. We commented on it, but it didn’t really look that interesting. When we returned home we mentioned this to some friends, who then told us, that was the original Chef Boyardeee Factory. If we had stopped and investigated a little, we would have seen the smoke stack with Chef Boyardeee written on it. But we had just driven past.
So a few weeks later we made the two hour drive back to investigate, and sure enough, there it was. We took some photos, explored some more, returned home, and ate Chef Boyardee Ravioli and Beefaroni! We then researched about the history of Chef Boyardee and the factory. Fascinating story. Lots of potential authentic projects – history, biography, time line, financing, factory location, factory construction…
So many authentic projects are just waiting out there, if you stop and smell the roses – or in this case the ravioli – there are buildings, and objects, and plants, and animals…. just waiting for someone to stop, look, question, research, and learn from.
The Educational Journey 