Ain't No Party Like a Scranton Party...

It's no secret that I am a huge fan of (the US version of) The Office. So when a friend suggested a road trip to Scranton, I busted out my fun jeans and proceeded to take a self-guided (and self-designed) Office tour.

First stop, Scranton Welcomes You...to the Steamtown Mall:

Why are there no leaves on the trees in Scranton in June?

Apparently so many people were stopping on the highway to take pictures of the sign from the opening credits of the show that Scranton decided to move their most famous landmark to the food court inside the Mall at Steamtown. I'm assuming with this move, they were hoping visitors would also be inspired to spend lots of money on Office merchandise. Obviously, the people who run Scranton are sales-tax savvy.

This did, however, give me an opportunity to pose for a picture with my future husband, Jim Halpert. I think we make a great couple because his head is actually bigger than mine:

Pam who?

Next up, the Anthracite Heritage Museum, which my trusty GPS Celeste thought was right in Scranton, but was actually in the middle of nowhere:


I'm going to admit, it didn't seem promising and we really just wanted to use the bathroom. But the little old lady selling tickets at the entrance was so cute and enthusiastic that we kind of had to take the tour.

Now, I think we would have learned more if Dwight Schrute was there, but it's beet sowing season, and he was probably busy. So I will just share what I felt were the most pertinent parts of my visit.

1) Donkeys

Donkeys, the unsung heroes of Lehigh Valley Anthracite.

2) Donkey hats

Am I the only one that feels bad for the donkeys?

Normally I'm not real big on animals wearing clothing (unless it's my cat, Henry), but it turns out that the invention of the donkey hat saved lots of donkey lives by keeping their poor donkey ears from brushing electrical wires hanging from the coal mine ceiling.

2) Unpleasant Medical Devices

What is that, a 10 gauge?

Museums are supposed to enlighten, not confuse.

4) Enlightenment

Does this make up for me missing church yesterday?

5) Deer Parts as Decor

Deer hoof hooks defy explanation.

A morning spent learning about coal mining really helped us work up an appetite for our next stop, Coopers!

I hope they don't serve venison.

I didn't know ties were required for lunch.

Sorry, Doug. I think Cooper's has you beat. =(

Then it was off to Poor Richard's Pub, which apparently doesn't open until 5pm. Who knew?

Our last stop of the day was Manning's:

Melissa, our favorite Scrantonite, told us that Manning's ice cream would make up for the lack of refreshments at Poor Richards. I was kind of dubious about eating anything from a dairy farm in the middle of nowhere, but my chocolate peanut butter cup ice cream was delicious.

And with that, our day in Scranton was over. I'm just sorry I didn't get to go on the coal chute ride.