Illinois is rather flat. There are lush, rolling hills along the Northwest edge of the state, and at the Southern tip. But, as a whole, it's mighty flat.

Matthiessen State Park, near Utica, is an exception. There's a beautiful little canyon. Easy to scale. The Sysmidgets loved it. There were pools of tadpoles for Flipper. Walls to climb for the twins. And perilous rocks to jump on to cross the river for Chili. I hate to sound like the tourism board. But these kind of trips stick with us a lot more than a trip to an amusement park.

We were at the far part of the canyon, about a mile from where we'd left our car, when a thunderstorm broke out. The Sysmistress had brought along some rain ponchos for the kids. None for us. We were soaked to the skin. But it was warm out, and the rain felt nice and cool. The kids were a bit freaked about being out (in standing water) during a thunderstorm. Understandable. And perfectly rational. So I had them wait in a shelter, and I went to get the car.

We stopped in town to grab some ice cream. Looking at the menu, I said to the Sysmistress, "This has to be a tourist place. The locals must never eat here."

"Why do you say that?" she asked.

"The price of a hot dog. Three dollars. Would you buy a hot dog for three dollars at a local place?"

"Hell, no."

But we gladly paid that for the ice cream.

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