Bell's Eccentric Cafe and a Backyard Pool in Kalamazoo

First stop in Kalamazoo was Bell's Eccentric Cafe on E. Kalamazoo Ave. — Michigan's first onsite brewery pub, open since 1993, after the state finally changed the law to let breweries run taprooms. The wall outside has a huge yellow arrow pointing you toward the door, and the timber pavilion in the beer garden has a big sun face mounted in the gable, half sun and half moon, looking down at everyone. The general store from the original brewery site is right next door. We took turns standing under the arrow before heading in.

The rest of the day was a backyard pool across town. The oldest kid claimed the orange inner tube with the built-in backrest and handles and refused to give it up. Cannonballs off the diving board sent water over the deck, and the littlest one watched from the edge in a red swimsuit, not quite ready to jump. An American flag hung over the whole thing on a pole by the fence. Somebody's turtle float drifted around unclaimed most of the afternoon.