The kitchen for instance must be kept clean. Nobody wants to cook in a greasy, off-color sink with unwashed utensils. The living room is where most of the house members gather for a nightly TV viewing or conversation or a short playtime. Thus, it must be clean too. No one wants to sit on a couch full of books and personal belongings.

This is my perception, ladies and gentlemen. I really do not care whatever people do inside their own rooms. Plant a tree, raise a monkey, interbreed insects, act like Tarzan – I do not care a fig! It is your room and you have all the rights to transform it to whatever sci-fi scene you want. Just leave the “common” area free of your ‘cultured bugs’ or your ‘monkey’s hair’. This advice goes to anyone, by the way, and points not to a particular nationality only!

I had lived in Europe for two years and luckily my Dutch friends were not that messy in their homes.

As a final note, I am agreeing to what my friends say about other culture’s idea of cleanliness. I have high regards for other people not of my nationality, especially for women; perhaps they could change this ‘messy’ perception. After all, they are women, the torch that gives light to the household. Let that torch shine, therefore, to see which is clean and which is not.

Peace!

I’ve read the Lord Amherst Hotel online reviews and, aside from few occupants who mentioned negative things about the place, most were actually satisfied of their stay. The hotel was rated about 3.8 out of 5.0, which is quite high compared to others that had only 2.0.

Like the rest of the hotels I had occupied before, I wanted to have a free wireless internet connection in my room and a free continental breakfast. Most cheap hotels don’t give free breakfast — which I think is a big turn-off. People want to drink hot coffee and eat a bun or a cupcake in the morning. Why would some hotels not offer their customers these?

The Lord Amherst Hotel has a fast internet connection. But what I love about their rooms is the space. The moment I entered my room, I was surprised to see how spacious it was that I could even play basketball inside. The look of the room was quite old fashioned, but it seems fitting for its name. The door can be locked and opened by a real metal key, not the usual card key that you can just swipe. But I did not find this as a problem.

The toilet and bath were okay, although I saw a rusty part on the sink. The king bed was huge and comfy. I read in an online forum that cleaning service could be a problem. However, in my three-day stay at the hotel, the cleaning service was prompt and my room was always left spic and span.

The Lord Amherst Hotel is only 15 minutes drive to the Niagara Falls. It is also close to most of the places, events and attractions in the Buffalo area, such as:

# Seneca Niagara Casino
# Western New York
# Darien Lake (Six Flags)
# Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls
# Buffalo Bills Football
# Buffalo Sabres Hockey
# Ralph Wilson Stadium
# HSBC Arena
# Pepsi Center
# Amherst Recreation Center
# Daemen College
# Medaille College
# Canisius College
# University of Buffalo
# State University of New York at Buffalo – SUNYAB
# Erie Community College – ECC

The Lord Amherst is located at a crossroads of Buffalo transportation, less than one mile from Exit 50 of the NYS Thruway (I-90). From the Youngmann Highway (I-290) take Exit 7A onto Main Street (Rte. 5) West. The Lord Amherst is adjacent to the I-290 on the right.

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The story of the Grotto of the Redemption and how it came about is just as inspiring as the structure itself.

Paul Matthias Dobberstein was born in Rosenfeld, Germany on September 21, 1872. He received part of his early education at the University of Deitsche-Krone in Germany. When Paul was 20 years old he immigrated to America. On coming to America he entered the Seminary of St. Francis near Milwaukee to prepare for the Priesthood. It was there that he began to show signs of unusual artistic ability that was to characterize all the waking hours of his earthly existence.

He completed his studies for the Priesthood at St. Francis Seminary and was ordained there on June 30th, 1897. For one year he served as chaplain for the Sisters of Mount Carmel hospital in Dubuque. Then when the Archdiocese of Dubuque was divided and Sioux City jurisdiction was formed he was appointed the pastor of West Bend Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church and remained there in that capacity for the rest of his life. During fifty-seven years he was counselor, instructor, and leader to the parishioners of St. Peter and Paul’s.

It is generally told as a fact that as a young seminarian, Father Dobberstein became critically ill with pneumonia. As he fought for his life he prayed to the Blessed Virgin Mary (the Mother of God) to intercede for him for the grace of health. He promised to build a shrine in her honor of he lived.

The illness passed, the student completed his studies and after his ordination he came to West Bend as Pastor in 1898. For over a decade he was stockpiling rocks and precious stones. The actual work of giving permanence to his promise began to take shape in 1912.

The designed purpose of the Grotto is to tell in silent stone made spiritually eloquent, the story of man’s fall and his redemption by Christ, the savior of the world.

It is truly a work of art with some religious story in the background. For those offended by few religious rants from the tour guide, you may want to skip the guided tour and see the structure yourself (it is much better if you have already done your research, at least know the grotto’s history). For Christians familiar with the Stations of the Cross, the grotto has it too. The best part of the structure is climbing up the stairs to the top and looking at the various stone designs below. The presence of a water park at the opposite side of grotto adds to the already-beautiful scenery.

There is also a museum that showcases precious stones and some stone artifacts that date millions of years ago. The souvenir shop is located across the street fronting the grotto. The shop sells religious items — from holy rosaries and figurines to cards and fridge magnets.

Recommendation score: 8/10

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History Channel even featured this amazing shrine.

Address of Grotto of the Redemption:
300 N Broadway, PO Box 376, West Bend, IA 50597
GPS N42.96401 W94.4451
Tel no. 800-868-3641

1. Health Outcomes (how healthy a county is)
- Mortality (death proportions)
- Morbidity (health state)

2. Health Factors – (what influences health of county)
- Health Behaviors – (smoking, diet, exercise, alcohol use)
- Clinical Care – (access to care, quality of care)
- Social & Economic Factors – (education, employment, income, safety)
- Physical Environment – (Air quality, built environment)
- Mortality – (length of life, premature death)
- Morbidity – (quality of life, low birth weight)

On “Health Outcomes”, Lincoln county is second and Clay county is third. On “Health Factors”, Lincoln ranks first, followed by Lawrence county and Brookings is third.

Top 10 County Health Rankings (SD) on Health Outcomes:

1 - Brookings
2 - Lincoln
3 - Clay
4 - Union
5 - Turner
6 - Hamlin
7 - Spink
8 - Brown
9 - Hughes
10 - Yankton

Top 10 County Health Rankings (SD) on Health Factors:

1 - Lincoln
2 - Lawrence
3 - Brookings
4 - Hughes
5 - Minnehaha
6 - Brule
7 - Miner
8 - Kingsbury
9 - Custer
10 - Hutchinson

The full 2010 County Health Rankings for South Dakota can be accessed here.