A couple of weeks ago MysteryMan and I drove way out of our way to the only Ruby Tuesdays left in the greater Toledo area (because some Sundays call for mini-burgers and the unlimited garden bar) and the iPhone map led us through an area of the city we both swore we’d never been in before. Now… I spent a few years in various States of this great nation, but still, between the two of us we’ve got more than 50 years in the Northwest Ohio, Southeast Michigan region. It seems like in fifty cumulative years, we should know every square inch of this area and I find it vaguely depressing (and a little pathetic) that we don’t.

So of course I said, “you know what we should do?” And then got that look on my face that makes MysteryMan’s eyeballs roll so far back into his head I think I might have to extract them with a pair of pliers.

So I know it only appeals to 17% of my audience here (thank you google analytics), but having new stuff to post to this website is one of the few things that motivates me to do things outside my comfort zone… and although more often than not that manifests itself in things like perching myself on the roof of a dilapidated building with a hammer, sometimes it means putting on a dress and standing in front of a camera.

I mean, let’s not pigeonhole ourselves, shall we?

So… I’m sacrificing a little time and DIYdiva real estate to searching out all those things we should be doing in Toledo, but for some reason aren’t. (For the rest of you, I’m doing my best to include some fun photography so please direct you attention to the picture of the big ass snake below and consider that I took that picture without a zoom lens.)

Fate smiled upon this crazy idea of mine when my friend E (gorgeous umbrella maiden, pictured above) came into some last minute tickets to the ZOOtoDO at the Toledo Zoo.

Dressing up and eating with the monkeys? Uh, duh… how could that not be a good time?

Let me introduce you to the guest of honor, Monty…

I’ve actually been acquainted with Monty for a long time, and there is video footage of this exact snake mistaking my mothers foot for something that could be suffocated and swallowed whole way back when extra permed hair was extra cool, which is to say decades ago. She had to stand on one foot for a significant period of time until 12-foot-long Monty realized he would not be having any of her limbs for a snack. In Monty’s defense it really was a case of mistaken identity and for having a body as thick as my waist, he’s pretty damn cool.

After visiting with the guest of honor we ate four times our body weight in free snacks from dozens of different local restaurants. And after having redeemed no small number of beverage ticktets, we decided not to waste a perfectly good opportunity to MacGyver something, and turned this centerpiece…

…into the props for a very glam photoshoot.

And then proceded to act even more mature.

But listen, the best part about ZOOtoDO is that the standard dress for the evening was tuxedo jackets with bermuda shorts and sneakers. What could be more fun than actually being a grown up, but getting to pretend that you’re a kid playing dress-up?

As far as things to do in Toledo, ZOOtoDO isn’t cheap, but it sure is fun.

Price: $$$
Fun: ****
Info: ZOOtoDO page; Toledo Zoo site