Thoughts from a Route 66 Business Owner

How I Spent My Groundhog Day

2012-02-02T16:19:00.001-06:00

Ron M. and I took a quick trip (on Route 66 of course) to Stroud today to meet photographer Richard Cox, his mother, and his mother's friend at the Rock Cafe for lunch and so that Richard could return a portion of my postcards that he and Rick, his partner, are using for a Route 66 DVD they're producing.

As usual, we had a delicious lunch at the Rock, and it was fun meeting the two ladies. Ron took this photo of us. It was a nice way to spend Groundhog Day. Down the road at the Methodist Church there is to be a dinner tonight, but the fare didn't sound very appealing so we decided not to stay. :-)

A Newfangled, Hairbrained Idea

2012-01-31T11:16:00.000-06:00

This photo ran in the local Afton newspaper this week. It's a Buick dealership and service garage in Vinita, OK on Route 66. As you know, Vinita is the next town south of Afton. The photo was taken in 1917, shortly before Route 66 was federally commissioned and during the somewhat turbulent era when horse and buggy transportation was giving way to motorize vehicular traffic.

Also accompanying the article was this list of rules adopted by the Anti-Automobile Society of America in 1911. Although it was authentic, one hopes it was written with tongue in cheek.

BE CAREFUL AUTOISTS!

1. Upon discovering an approaching team, the automobilist must stop offside and cover his machine with a blanket painted to correspond with the scenery.

2. The speed limit on country roads this year will be a secret and the penalty for violation will be $10 for every mile an offender is caught going in excess of it.

3. On approaching a corner where he cannot command a view of the road ahead, the automobilist must stop not less than 100 yards from the turn, toot his horn, ring a bell, fire a revolver, halloo, and send up three bombs at intervals of five minutes.

4. Automobiles must be seasonally painted -- that is, so they will merge with the pastoral ensemble and not be startling. They must be green in spring, golden in summer, red in autumn, and white in winter.

5. All members of the society will give up Sunday to chasing automobiles, shooting and shouting at them, making arrests and otherwise discouraging country touring on that day.

6. In case a horse will not pass an automobile, the automobilist will take the machine apart as rapidly as possible and conceal the parts in the grass.

7. In case an automobile approaches a farmhouse when the roads are dusty, it will slow down to one mile an hour, and the chauffeur will lay the dust in front of the house with a hand sprinkler worked over the dashboard.

Apparently those anti-auto folks weren't entirely kidding around. As with any "newfangled hairbrained idea", it took a while for some people to take a shine to those big iron road hogs.

Back again

2012-01-29T15:27:00.000-06:00

My morning wanderlust didn't subside, so I decided to run to the cable store and pick up a new remote to replace my recently deceased on. Since I had to go past Ron M's house, I invited him to go along. After finishing the errand, we decided to drive around a bit, and we ended up in Sapulpa. Just off Route 66 there is the Frankoma House, built by John Frank, the gentleman who founded the famous (but recently defunct) Frankoma Pottery on Route 66, in consultation with architect Bruce Goff. It was built in 1956 and uses pottery for the majority of its exterior and, from what I've heard and seen, for much of the interior as well. Ron had pointed out the house to David and me when we were first exploring Tulsa in the late '90s, but I haven't been back since.

Since the home is still lived in, we couldn't go in, nor did we dare drive up the driveway. So, the third photo is one that I plucked from the web. It's quite an interesting structure. Photos of the interior can be found here: Frankoma House. On the way home, we drove past the Frankoma factory. How sad to see it closed up tight.

Also, I forgot to mention that if she were alive, my mother would be celebrating her 100th birthday today. Happy Birthday, MOM!

Clarity

2012-01-29T09:59:00.000-06:00

Sometimes clarity can only be achieved by a change of perspective. I bounded out of bed this morning knowing intuitively that I was going to need some new perspectives today. These magnificent Sundays, when the weather is unseasonably beautiful and I have no particular plans, must be savored and not wasted. And they should not be spent doing the same old thing. Although I'm prone to falling into ruts, I constantly fight to climb out of them. Therefore, this morning I decided to do a bit of Route 66 "backwards", when the sun would be just rising and I'd see it hit different sides of buildings than those I'm accustomed to. But first, I needed fuel in the form of breakfast, and this morning, to adhere to the theme of alternative perspectives, I decided to try a new place.

Duffy's turned out to be the perfect choice. It's not far off Route 66, it opens at 6 a.m. (an absolute requirement for me) and it has some nice neon. I soon found out that it also serves a nice breakfast! "Home Cooking" is never much of a draw for me, since my mother barely knew how to boil water. But if Duffy's veggie omelet and grits is an example of home cooking, then I'm all for it. The atmosphere was just right, too. (They did accidentally put tomatoes in the omelet when I asked them not to, but it tasted great and... ta da! it didn't kill me!)

In order to do Route 66 backwards, I first had to go forward to where I wanted to start my backward jaunt. I couldn't resist continuing east until the sun had completely risen. I won't turn my back on a beautiful dawn.. . .

. . . or a tranquil little cabin on a horse farm at sunrise.

Time to turn around and drive back into Tulsa via 11th St. (Route 66). I decided to snap photos of some of the old stone buildings along the Route, most of which are either abandoned or marginally altered and repurposed. I was excited. I thought I was getting some awesome shots of the morning sun, which had now almost entirely risen, bouncing off of their irregular surfaces. Well, it turns out my little point-and-shoot wasn't up to the assignment. When I got home and checked out the images, I was very unhappy. They were flat and monotone. Ok, here's what I decided to do. I turned them digitally into black-and-whites! I like them much better this way. I'm not sure when the era of facing structures from river rock started or ended on Route 66, but there's no doubt that these have been here since the road's heyday and with a little upkeep they could still be quite beautiful. The fact that they're still here is somewhat amazing.

I arrived home about an hour ago and there is still a whole day ahead of me. Maybe my camera and I can think of another place to roam before the day is over, and I can find a few more perspectives to enjoy.

An Automobile Production Line at Afton Station?

2012-01-28T17:49:00.000-06:00

Saturdays and Sundays in January are proving to be as busy as some summer days at Afton Station. It certainly causes me to realize that I shouldn't ever close completely in the winter. Last winter I took a lot of weekends off, and it showed in our number of visitors and sales. It's wonderful to have Robin to open on Sundays so I can take a few off in January and February. Meanwhile, I love being at the Station on Saturdays.

Last Sunday Robin visited with 12 travelers, and today we had another twelve. Ron M., Tattoo Man, Robin, Phil, and Marly were all present. Our visitors, with the exception of two gentlemen from St. Louis and two from Ottumwa, IA, were all local to Oklahoma, and most were making their second or third visit to the Station. Friends Jim and Becky Buck from Sapulpa OK, who used to have a very cool little Route 66 souvenir shop in that town, stopped in to say hello. I'm happy to report that Jim is now cancer-free. Jon Edwards, a frequent visitor from Tahlequah, OK stopped in with his grandson on their way to look at some vintage cars for sale in Miami. It's always nice to see Jon. Usually he arrives on a motorcycle, but this time, in deference to the cold weather, they came in a car. Other visitors were from Miami and Nowata, OK.

Here are Jon and his grandson looking over the fabulous new book, Route 66 Sightings, by Ross, Graham, and McClanahan.

Meanwhile, some major automotive design and production was occurring in our work room. David and his 7-year-old son Patrick, as well as two other fathers and sons from Patrick's Cub Scout pack, were busily creating vehicles for the upcoming Pinewood Derby. It involves little blocks of wood from which the Cubs must fashion cars which will be run down a sloping course -- a soapbox derby in miniature. The boys are responsible for carving a car or truck out of the little 6-inch-long block of wood, sand it, paint it, and affix wheels. Their imagination can go wild.

Of course, the dads can help. In this case, David had the tools and he and Marly provided the expertise. Marly showed the boys how to use the airbrush, which is the professional one he uses in his car resto business. The kids did some very impressive work, and we'll be rooting for one of them to win at the competition. Here's one of the little cars, which the boy described as a "Dodge Pickup", with just the first coat of paint and without wheels or decals.

Never a dull moment at Afton Station!

Yamashita Tomohisa

2012-01-26T10:26:00.003-06:00

This past November 6th, I met a "famous idol, singer, and actor" and I didn't even realize it. When Yamashita Tomohisa walked through the door of Afton Station with his entourage of 16 people, I really didn't know until I learned recently that one of the group was such a pop idol in his home country of Japan. The handsome young man was traveling Route 66 filming a multi-part TV series which is finally available on Vimeo, including the episode where Mr. Tomohisa visits Afton Station.

Check it out here: Yamashita Tomohisa (Afton Station is at the 8:35 mark)

I have a few observations on what I gleaned from the visit, and how I compared it to the video which I've just recently viewed. First, the video makes it appear that Mr. Tomohisa is traveling Route 66 alone in his beat-up pickup truck. Very clever, considering the large crew that was continually hovering around him. Secondly, unless you speak Japanese, you won't understand a word of the video. I lived in Japan for two years and taught a class full of Japanese men, and yet I may have recognized three words during the whole thing. This was definitely made for a Japanese audience. You will, however, see nice scenes of the road and get a bit of insight into what a foreign person finds interesting and important. Interspersed amid the scenes of his actual Route 66 adventure, Tomohisa is seen discussing the trip with another gentleman as they sit in a cafe, bar, or some such. I sure wish I knew what they were saying! (I want glasses like the ones from which they're drinking! If anyone knows where to get them, let me know. They are desperately cool!)

The scene where Tomohisa comes through the door of the Station and is greeted by Tattoo Man and me was a set-up. We had to do it about 5 times to get it just the way they wanted it, even though it simply consisted of a quick hello and welcome. The crew was very particular about how things looked. I am convinced of their thoroughness and professional capability. They were very nice, too. Ron "Tattoo Man" Jones gave a good interview. I suggest you view all the videos in their entirety.

I'm disappointed that they skipped the city of Tulsa altogether. After Afton, they moved on to Oklahoma City, where Tomohisa ate at Tapwerks, which is in Bricktown, not on Route 66. Although his trip was far from the perfect Mother Road adventure, it won't surprise me if it increase Route 66 tourism among the people of Japan. I certainly hope so!

Nelson's Buffeteria

2012-01-24T15:57:00.000-06:00

The second place I ever dined in Tulsa, Oklahoma was Nelson's Buffeteria. The first place was the Metro Diner on Route 66, which was later obliterated so that the University of Tulsa could grow a bigger lawn, which I've never seen anyone use. But that's another story.

Nelson's Buffeteria was in the middle of downtown and specialized in Chicken Fried Steak. It wasn't far off Route 66, and had been downtown since 1929. The day I went there, it was lunch time and very, very crowded. We stood in line with others at the buffet -- the old fashioned kind where someone dishes your food for you -- and noticed that everyone ordered chicken fried steak, because the look on the face of the elderly gentleman doing the dishing looked like he would either cry or stab you if you dared to order anything else. It was fun, and a great introduction to Tulsa, but I dared to not order the chicken fried steak that day. I was such a rebel. And obviously, I wasn't a true Tulsan quite yet.

In 2004, Nelson's closed the downtown restaurant. Folks weren't coming downtown much any more, so business had fallen off considerably. A Nelson's owned by another member of the family opened about a mile from downtown in 2009 and is doing well but last week, what is more like the original Nelson's Buffeteria, this time owned by the 73-year-old wife of the original owner, opened about 5 miles south of town. I felt the need to be there to finally sample the famous chicken fried steak and christen myself as a real Tulsan.

So, I met a friend there this morning. We were the first ones there. We both ordered eggs and the chicken fried steak. I felt guilty ordering something so decadent for breakfast, but that didn't stop me. It just felt good to be participating in such a Tulsa tradition. I wish I could say it was the best breakfast I've ever had in my life. But I must confess, I just couldn't warm up to that deep fried pounded beef steak slathered in white gravy. I had it once before, a couple of months ago at Ann's Chicken Fry on Route 66 in Oklahoma City, and at the time I said on this blog that it had changed my feelings about the dish forever, but maybe it just changed my mind about Ann's version of it. Nelson's was ok, but maybe not such a great idea for breakfast.

Nevertheless, I did enjoy eating at Nelson's. The eggs were great, and so was the toast slathered in not-quite-butter. The building has an old googie "star" atop, and the sign is just like that of the old Nelson's, albeit not neon. The old gentleman behind the steam table is probably the same one who served me downtown. All of that made the visit very special. But next time, I'll order the bacon.

The old Nelson's downtown on Boston Avenue.

A Guest Ranch in Afton

2012-01-23T13:55:00.000-06:00

Last summer we had a visit from a couple of folks who were in the process of turning a 4,000 acre spread into a guest ranch right outside of Afton. I haven't heard much from them since, but I just visited their website and it appears that they're open for business. Their website is: JMC Ranch . The site includes some photos and contact information. I'm just telling you this because if you're traveling Route 66 in the future and would enjoy a very different kind of accomodation, and maybe learn a little bit about riding and roping (or at least watch others do it) this might be for you. If you are traveling with (or on) a horse, they will board it for you. RV hookups are also available. If you decide to inquire about their facility, tell them I sent you.

Restlessness Redux

2012-01-22T13:05:00.000-06:00

It was before 8 a.m. and I was already restless. What's wrong with me? I'd been to breakfast and then to the gas station, and I simply can't resist a full tummy, a full tank of gas and a generally free day. As I believe I've admitted before, I'm running out of places on Route 66 in the immediate area (meaning northeast Oklahoma) to explore and photograph. The morning was cloudy and blustery, but that didn't stop me. I decided to start close to home.

There's a cemetery on 11th St. (Route 66) that is less than a half mile from my house. It's a pretty ordinary vintage early 20th Century cemetery except for one or two things. For one, it's felt that a mass grave was dug there in 1921 to bury the victims of the Tulsa Race Riots. This has never been entirely proved, but a very interesting story which has led many to believe that it's true can be read here: www.tinyurl.com/7y5qjce. Secondly, the view of the Tulsa skyline is wonderful from the cemetery. Even on a darkish morning, I got these decent images.

Behind the cemetery is the Fire Alarm Building of 1934. It's not exactly ON Route 66, but it's adjacent to it. The attractive building is on the National Register and is one of a great many examples of Art Deco architecture which can be found all over Tulsa. The story of the Fire Alarm Building can be found here: www.tinyurl.com/7fba2w7

Back on 11th St., I found one more place that I've overlooked in the past. A small bar called the 11th Street Pub has a mural of sorts across the front of its concrete block building. I believe it's meant to be a map of Route 66 from Chicago to L.A., but the appearance of mountains in the general region of Illinois leads me to believe that it's just a speculative representation, and that's good enough for me! If only more establishments along 11th St. would display the Route 66 shield as prominently as the 11th Street Pub, it would work as a guide for Route 66 visitors as well as good business for those establishments, since we all know that Route 66 tourists are far more apt to enter businesses which are so marked. The Pub also has this great greeting on its west facing wall.

Finally, I will close with a little quiz:

What do these people have in common: Abe, Jim McKnight, Marie, Clay, Arnie, Scott, Jim, Mr. Ward,, Mustafa, Mr. Batman, and Senor Jalesco? Scroll down for the answer. . .
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Answer: If one reads the signs on 11th St., one must conclude that each of these people owns a used car lot or has one named for him/her. LOL! These, of course, are a mere fraction of the used car lots in a 3-mile chunk of 11th St., but the others have more generic names such as A-1, Ace, or Car Max.

http://www.tinyurl.com/7y5qjce

Route 66 Just Keeps Rolling On

2012-01-21T18:24:00.000-06:00

Once again, today took me completely by surprise. It was another Saturday without a minute of "down" time, and lots of variety and interest, hardly a typical January day at Afton Station!

Our first visitor came from Grove, OK, followed closely by our Tulsa friends Ron Warnick and Emily Priddy. They stopped by on their way to a Route 66 geocaching expedition. Here's Emily checking her iPad as Ron M. looks on and Phil and Marly chat in the background.

Shortly after they departed to head toward Picher, it was time to celebrate Phil's birthday. Although not in any of these photos, Robin was with us for the festivities, too. The purple cupcakes furnished by Marly were absolutely delicious, and we enjoyed an afternoon of purple lips and tongues. After that, it was several hours before any more visitors arrived at the door. We were having lots of laughs, but just as we were considering closing up a little early we had an onslaught of travelers! As it turned out, instead of leaving early, we ended up closing almost an hour late.

When I asked this couple where they lived, their answer was "Route 66". I asked again, thinking I'd misunderstood. But their answer was the same. This lucky duo has been driving Route 66 (and a few places off Route 66) for almost two years, when they took to the road, living in motels along the way. She's an artist, he's got a job that requires him to travel 100% of the time. How nice!! However, they have decided it's about time to settle down, so they're considering several potential homes for the future.

This couple is from Joplin and they were just taking a day trip down Route 66. She bears a rather amazing resemblance to Snooki on Jersey Shore, we thought. (If you happen to be reading this, we think you left your rosary case at the Station, at least we think it's yours. We'll keep it safe until you are able to come back for it.)

These folks from Tulsa dropped in with their amazingly well-behaved pup, Pudge. Other visitors came from Grove, OK and Chicago, IL.

We were glad when Marly told us that he talked to Tom Bassett from the defunct grocery store across the street, and Tom indicated that instead of razing the entire building, they are beginning to clean out the debris from the collapsed roof and plan to put on a new one. I'm breathing a BIG sigh of relief about that! It would be a sad time for the town if that 1911 buggy factory building ceased to exist, not to mention the neat ghost sign on it's side.

Sunrise Dilemma

2012-01-19T12:28:00.000-06:00

All I have today is this photo of this morning's sunrise. When I saw the sky turning a blazing red, I knew I needed a photo. However, I was in the city and I knew that by the time I drove somewhere where those power lines wouldn't obstruct the picture, it would be too late. So, here it is -- with the power lines. I just couldn't resist. It was quite incredible!

Joplin Journey

2012-01-17T17:04:00.000-06:00

Another beautiful day -- cooler, yet sunny and clear -- and Ron M. and I decided to take a little jaunt to Joplin. We'd already been there once to view the terrible ruins from the tragic May 22, 2011 tornado, but this time we wanted to see for ourselves the seven homes built there (in seven days!) under the auspices of the TV show Extreme Makeover with the help of thousands of volunteers from all over the country.

Although we were somewhat pressed for time, we made a quick stop in Baxter Springs, KS to take a photo of the new gas pumps just installed at the former Phillips station which is now the Route 66 Information Center there. Very nice! Congratulations to the folks from the Kansas Route 66 Association. The whole property looks great!

Here's what one sees when driving into the tornado-torn area of Joplin. This is a very small segment of the seven square miles of devastation. The poles indicate that electricity has been restored to the area, but so far there are very few places where it is being used. A few houses are under construction right now, and a few are completed. However, there are still thousands of bare lots that once held homes. It's a sad and almost unbelievable sight.

On one of the higher elevations amid the wreckage, Extreme Makeover constructed these seven homes for seven families who lost everything in the storm. Two of the families lost small children. It's such a sad story. The homes are all very different and quite nice. They're well landscaped and have garages accessible from a rear alley. They are definitely a symbol of hope for the city.

And speaking of hope, here is the Hope Wall on Main St., a spontaneous collection of Joplin citizens' thoughts on the impact of the tornado. There are some large graffiti-like offerings as well as hundreds of expressions of hope, faith, and dreams scribbled on individual bricks.

Finally, here is the Middle School. There isn't a single window that wasn't broken by the vicious wind-borne flying debris. The high school was destroyed completely, and the big regional hospital has also been devastated.

A visit to Joplin, which used to be my old stomping ground, never fails to move me. I remember those streets full of small but well-kept houses, and those stores at which I did most of my shopping. They are all gone now. But I have no doubt that the city will rise again, and it appears that the restoration has already begun in earnest.

The Good Kind of Lost

2012-01-15T15:40:00.000-06:00

There are two kinds of lost. There's the bad kind of lost, when you're late for an appointment, are in a questionable neighborhood, your GPS dies, and your map flies out the window. Then there's the good kind of lost, which is what I was today. It was a planned lost. I wanted it that way. I started out in familiar territory (then again, don't we always start in familiar territory?), and after stopping at a few Route 66 places, I opted for a little country road I'd never been on, or even seen, before. Once again, I just needed to get away. I wanted to be lost.

These unseasonably warm and sunny days are like fine wine. They must be savored before the bottle runs dry, because it's a long time before being able to buy another bottle of such succulence. So, here I was in the car once again. I know, I know. I'm the biggest waster of gasoline on the planet. But here's how I see it -- if I couldn't drive around (sometimes in circles), they'd have to send me to the asylum, and that would probably cost the taxpayers more than the cost of me screwing up the ozone layer a couple of times a week.

I turned off my GPS. It's pretty worthless anyway, more so because I've never taken the time to learn how to use it properly. I turned on the radio expecting to hear some NPR Sunday educational stuff. I don't like to listen to music when I drive, but I just happened upon a program where they were playing snippets of songs from blues musicians who have died in the past year or so. Just right for my mood.

On the way out of town, I stopped at the corner of Admiral and Memorial while still in Tulsa to try to discern where the Interpretive site I keep hearing about is going to be situated. There's a building for sale on the southwest corner which used to be a bank. Could that be it? If anyone knows, tell me!

I continued down the road and found myself in Catoosa, so of course I had to swing by the Blue Whale, which was closed up tight and devoid of tourists or anyone else. I snapped another picture of the crumbling ark there, which I find to be extremely photogenic.

Once again, I stopped to admire the hunk of old historic Route 66 bridge that the wonderful folks at Molly's Landing, one of the best restaurants in the Tulsa area, had hauled to their property in order to save it from being dismantled and discarded. Although these photos makes it look like it's still a major roadway, it's now just a path to the restaurant. Very clever, I think.

Just down the road is that old section of concrete Route 66 that winds through an upscale development. It ends abruptly with a boulder in the road as the pavement crumbles and turns to dirt and gravel. But there it is, behind that big rock, old Route 66!

This is the part of the trip where I got lost. I had never explored the small Route 66 town of Verdigris, Oklahoma, so when I arrived there I opted for a little country road which wound around hither and yon, through pecan groves and more pecan groves, some small ranches, and not much else. I kept thinking I would eventually come to something I recognized, but I hoped that wouldn't happen too soon. It didn't. It was lovely to drive through the fields and I could only imagine how pretty this ride would be in the spring with leaves on the trees, were I ever able to find it again.

Alas, eventually I was back on the road to Pryor, a route familiar to me but which I've rarely traveled. From there, through Choteau with just one stop to take a picture of their grain mill/grain elevator, just because I think they're neat buildings.

Route 66 is wonderful, but so are so many of the side roads that wander away from it for a while. I highly recommend getting lost as much as possible on your next trip down the Mother Road!

Back on Route 66

2012-01-14T17:32:00.000-06:00

It seems like such a long time since I've been on Route 66, although it's only been six days. Today was my first day at Afton Station since last weekend, and it was a good day for getting back in the groove.

There were 28 visitors today, but 20 of those were a Cub Scout pack and their fathers. The rest were travelers of one sort or another.

David's son Patrick is a Cub Scout, and he invited the pack to Afton Station for hot dogs, rides in some of the old cars, and a birthday cake for one of the little boys who was celebrating today. The kids (and I believe their parents, too) had a very good time. The little boys particularly enjoyed tearing around in the back yard and crawling around on the old cars, the trailers, a playhouse-size castle, and other assorted junk.

The boys also got a huge kick out of being able to each squash a penny of his own choice. The mob scene around the penny press resulted in some coveted souvenirs!

The fathers (and one mother) mostly hung out in the car showrooms and admired the iron.

But there were 8 other visitors today, too. They came from Nevada MO, Dewey OK, Ulysses KS, Fairland OK, and Oklahoma City, OK. The Oklahoma City folks were Rick and Richard from Cimarron Photographers, our friends who are doing a video about Oklahoma Route 66. This is their third or fourth visit to Afton Station, and they keep finding more things to shoot. It should be a most interesting video!

The usual suspects almost all showed up today, too. Ron M., Robin, Marly, Betty, and Tattoo Man were around for most of the day, and David's wife Sylvie was there, too. Phil was the only one absent today. He's been in California and is driving home (on Route 66, or course) starting today.

We will be open tomorrow, even though I had told a few people we would not. Robin volunteered to work tomorrow, so if you're in the area on what is expected to be another lovely day, make plans to stop in.

Veering Off Route 66

2012-01-08T17:09:00.002-06:00

Ok, it was a pretty major veer. Fifty miles, more or less. But it was a most interesting day exploring new territory in Green Country. (Green Country is the nickname that the OK Tourism Bureau gives to most of the northeast corner of the state, because it has more trees and foliage than the other, more arid, parts).

Four of us piled in my car and our first stop was at the Country Cottage in Locust Grove for their buffet Sunday brunch. It's a wonderful place, and absolutely packed with customers, despite a little run-in with e-coli back in 2008. That has been long taken care of, and the locals have returned in droves. We ate ourselves silly on a gigantic buffet, and then afterwards we decided to take a little ride to work off the meal. (Oh, riding in a car doesn't work off a bout of overeating? Oh well. . .)

Joe is an expert in Oklahoma state history, and he said he'd show us some interesting sites. Salina was the first permanent white settlement in Oklahoma, settled in 1796 by Major Jean Pierre Choteau. Here is the site of the first trading post in the state.

Beside it is the "Paradise Tree" planted in Oklahoma in 1802 by Choteau, who brought it over from France. And, it's STILL STANDING! It is felt to be the first tree planted in Oklahoma.

We also drove to Spavinaw, birthplace of Mickey Mantle and home of the huge Spavinaw Dam which forms the reservoir from which Tulsa water originates. I talked about this town after a previous visit at http://tinyurl.com/6vb9v93 .

On the way home, and to be honest I'm not sure where we were, Joe showed us this "Bicycle Tree", which is just what you think -- a tree with dozens of bicycles hanging from it's branches and over much of the property. I hate to admit it, but it kind of puts Route 66's Shoe Tree to shame! :-)

So. . . another beautiful day, taking advantage of the continuing pleasant weather, and lots of fun with friends.

In January? Holy Cow!

2012-01-07T17:59:00.000-06:00

And to think, we weren't even "officially" open today! Hard to believe that we had 16 visitors, and all of them wonderful folks. Ron M. and I were joined by Robin, Marly, and Betty for a good part of the day. We started out doing a careful inventory of sweatshirts, of which we have many. I'm about to put all the Route 66 sweatshirts on a BIG sale ($16 each for very high quality merchandise!) because they take up a lot of space, and because winter is the best time to sell sweatshirts. Come and get 'em!

Having not been at Afton Station for several weeks, I expected to find much to do there, but it was obvious that the place has been in good hands with Marly and Robin being there occasionally. Everything was clean and organized, and they even greeted a number of visitors in my absence.

Shortly after getting the piles of sweatshirts put back in their proper spots, people started arriving! All told, we had 16 visitors today! First came a couple from Wyandotte, OK, and close on their heels a 4-generation family from Siloam Springs, AR and Colcord, OK. Here are all of them together, with the couple from Wyandotte on the right.

Later there were visitors from Disney OK, Laramie WY, and Monkey Island, OK.

I've been wanting to meet the new owners of the iconic Blue Swallow Motel on Route 66 in Tucumcari, NM ever since they bought the place early in 2011. How exciting it was to find them at the door of Afton Station this afternoon! Kevin and Nancy Mueller are traveling to Florida for a little vacation after dropping off their son Cameron and his girlfriend Jessica in Kentucky on the way. What a pleasure to meet the folks who have taken on the daunting task of keeping the historic lodging operating. We thoroughly enjoyed meeting this very lovely family!

Kevin was on a motorcycle (fortunately, our warm streak is continuing), followed by Nancy, Jessica, and Cameron in a pickup pulling this awesome trailer. It's perfect advertising for the Swallow, not that they need it. It's quite certainly the most popular motel on all of Route 66.

Ron caught this shot of the Mueller's pup hanging out in the pickup. We are very dog-friendly at Afton Station, but apparently this cutie was quite happy just relaxing and enjoying a breath of fresh air.

Today was nothing short of excellent at Afton Station. I hope the nice weather continues so that travelers can take advantage of beautiful days and a few attractions which are open in the winter. I will be back in Afton again next Saturday, but Marly and David will be working there during the week, so we'll be open off and on.

Another Great New Route 66 Book

2012-01-05T10:34:00.003-06:00

Joe Sonderman and Jim Ross have collaborated on "Route 66 in Oklahoma", a volume in the Images of America series published by Arcadia Press. As a collector of Route 66 postcards and other vintage images, I find these books fascinating and important. This one was just published a couple of weeks ago and, as with others, consists of captioned images of old Route 66 sites as the road crossed Oklahoma in the past. Most are postcards from the authors' collections, but a few others have contributed images as well. I'm proud to say that I am one of the contributors to this comprehensive compilation. [Patting myself on the back here], as are other folks in our little circle of Mother Road collectors. But the real credit should go to Joe and Jim for all the fine, time-consuming research that went into the book. A signed copy can be ordered at stlrt66@aol.com for $24 postage paid. Worth every penny!
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Feeling restless again, and needing to take advantage of another warm, springlike January day (before the bad stuff comes, if it ever does), I decided to once again take a ride and do some exploring this afternoon. So I collected Ron M. and off we went. We were nowhere near Route 66, but there is a connection to the Mother Road in that we found ourselves quite far east of Tulsa at a lock on the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System, the same waterway that goes to the Port of Catoosa, near the Blue Whale. One traveling Route 66 there crosses a bridge over the waterway, and tours of the Port, which is the most landlocked deepwater port in the country, are available at their museum. We were far downstream from that, but we found a great little group of campsites (with hookups) on the waterway at Bluff Landing. There's a launch ramp there, too. This is quite a gem of a find, if you ask me. It made me want to drag out the tent and sleeping bag!

We ended up in the small town of Coweta, where we had a great time lunching at the Green Parrot Cafe in the center of the small downtown area. We ate good sandwiches while listening to one of the most talkative and pleasant waitress either of us has ever encountered, and we thoroughly enjoyed the diner atmosphere.

Finally, you can't take a ride in the country without encountering some very sweet livestock. These little donkeys filled that bill.

Admiral Twin Rises from the Ashes

2012-01-03T15:20:00.002-06:00

I took a ride this afternoon to check on progress in the rebuilding of the Admiral Twin Drive-In on the Admiral alignment of Route 66 here in Tulsa. You may remember from earlier posts that it burned to the ground in September of 2010. I don't exactly know why I feel so emotionally attached to this place, since I've never seen a movie there, but I am. I love drive-ins, and they were a definite part of my growing up. Also, this one was the inspiration for one of my favorite books, The Flamingo Rising.

Donations were solicited last summer to rebuild, and about $30,000 were raised. However, various building code restrictions etc. caused the start of construction to be pushed back to this December. Now, I could see a concrete shell rising and lots of workers and construction vehicles on the scene. In this age of drive-in theaters disappearing left and right, it's so good to see one that is about to come back to life. Hooray, Tulsa!

I passed this school this afternoon and had a moment of uncertainty about the quality of language arts being taught there. LOL! (Actually, it's a wonderful school, so this time I'm willing to give them a ~~breac~~k... er, break.)

While we're on the subject of schools, here's a "Report Book" from the Afton (Indian Territory) Public Schools for 1903-1904. There were three teachers and one principal covering all grades. I found this among my Afton memorabilia when I was sorting old postcards earlier today. It will go into the showcase when I go to Afton on Saturday.

New Years Day, Route 66 Style

2012-01-02T11:57:00.000-06:00

This year, my traditional New Years Day gathering consisted of Route 66 fans (plus a few others) and one white cat. There was plenty of food and wine, being enjoyed by (among others). . . .

. . . Tattoo Man and his wife Roz, LaSandra and Brad Nickson. . .

Brad, again, with Ron Warnick. . .

. . . Marian Clark, the Nicksons again, and Ron McCoy. . .

. . . and this beautiful white kitty which desperately wanted to come in.

Year-End Random Photos

2011-12-30T15:27:00.000-06:00

Since it's the end of the year, I'm cleaning off my camera's memory card. Therefore, I'm going to post these with minimal explanation and no fanfare whatsoever.

First, here's a wooden bridge (4 tons limit) in the Bruner Hill area of Tulsa. Ron M. and I drove over it during a tour of the neighborhood brought on by an interesting article in the Tulsa World. It's nowhere near Route 66, but it's a very intriguing little part of the city, and its citizens are worried that it is fading into history.

I thought Afton was the only town on Oklahoma Route 66 with an abandoned bathtub out in the open for all to see.

I was wrong. There's one out behind the Rock Cafe in Stroud, and it's a much classier one than the Afton Pink Tub!

Interesting building on Route 66 in Bristow, OK

Reportedly haunted, the Belvidere Mansion in Claremore, OK is a neat structure.

I took this one morning a week or two ago. Sunrise in Tulsa. Yes, another one.

My most cherished Christmas present. Sarah had my favorite photo of her enlarged and printed on canvas. In it, she is celebrating the joy of vacation in the Black Hills.

And that's probably all for 2011. I can scarcely believe it's passed so quickly. I wish each one of you a 2012 filled with joy, prosperity, and good health.

Shoes in Trees and Spaetzle with Cheese

2011-12-27T15:09:00.001-06:00

Upon reading my poetic title, Oklahoma Route 66 fans should be able to figure out where my wanderlust took me today. As a cure for the boredom I rattled on about yesterday, I decided to get off my butt (then get back on my butt only this time behind the wheel of my car) and head west. Well, I didn't exactly make it all the way out to Cowboy-and-Indian country, but I did get as far as Stroud. That's just 50 miles away, but it's a nice 50-mile ride on old Route 66.

I had no real destination in mind, except to take advantage of this gorgeous, sunny, almost springlike day. This route is quite familiar to me, but I particularly wanted to check out the status of the Shoe Tree just east of Stroud. When the former Shoe Tree died and fell a couple of years ago, a new one was started nearby. Starting a shoe tree consists choosing a tree and then throwing a shoe or two up into its branches, in hopes that others will follow suit. The last time I saw the new Shoe Tree, it only had a handful of shoes in it. Today, I found two Shoe Trees side by side, and both had a healthy crop of footwear clinging to their branches.

This seems a good sign to me, an indication of the large number of tourists who passed by here during the last couple of summers. It took the old Shoe Tree years and years to accumulate as many shoes as now swing from the new ones. There are also some shoes which have fallen to the ground -- a red high heel, a flip flop, a like-new running shoe among others -- but they lie there unmolested.

I stopped to take a quick photo of one of my favorite old, abandoned stretches of Route 66 also near Stroud.

Shortly thereafter, I found myself directly in front of Stroud's Rock Cafe at exactly noon, so I took it as a sign that I should go there for lunch. The parking lot wasn't full, so that was an even stronger sign. The Rock is such a warm and welcoming place, and the food is very good. As I dined on my plate of Spaetzle with Cheese, one of Dawn's specialties, Dawn herself emerged from the kitchen and sat with me for a little while so we could chat. The dish was delicious, and even though listed under appetizers, I couldn't even finish it. Also, guilt about eating cheese (a total no-no for kidney patients!), made me push aside (reluctantly) the last few forkfuls. Yum! It was nice to see Dawn, although briefly, too.

I'm happy to report that I no longer feel bored. My little trip, plus the fact that my dishwasher started working again this morning after I thought it had kicked the bucket, has cheered me and energized me!

Feeling Boring

2011-12-26T16:29:00.001-06:00

I've heard it said that people are never bored unless they are boring themselves. I've often been plagued by boredom, so I guess I'm not the most exciting banana in the bunch myself. Peak boredom time for me is the week between Christmas and New Years. At this time, I'm right on the edge. If I don't keep myself busy, even with the most prosaic of tasks, my boredom could spill over into the realm of depression, and that, for me, is an absolute no-no.

It's not that I don't have a lot to do. I'm hosting a fairly large gathering in the near future, but everything for that is either finished or is something I'm not in the mood to do today. Whether the mood strikes me to do those things tomorrow is up in the air this moment. I'm reading a very good book, but 4 hours of reading it this morning at dialysis has about done my eyes in. I have a number of projects I could launch, but I just don't feel like starting something new. I could go to Afton, but sitting alone in a cold room doesn't sound like much of a cure for boredom. And I don't much feel like seeing other people, either.

So, I must face the fact that, if you should happen to run into me today, I will be boring. Not surprising since my high school newspaper "Senior Predictions", named me "Most Likely To Be Bored". Does that mean I was boring back then, too? Probably. Or was it a self-fulfilling prophecy? As an only child, I was always able to amuse myself with no effort. Now, it takes more effort. I'm going to engage that effort right now. . .
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I just came back from a drive in my Subaru. I cruised three alignments of Route 66 in Tulsa and found nothing that 1) I haven't already photographed or 2) isn't worth photographing. I'd better not be running out of material for this blog. I implore my readers to hang in there with me for a couple of weeks when posts will be sparse and, face it, probably boring. After a week or two, I predict that the film will fall away from my eyes and things will start to look new again.

Meanwhile, just writing this little essay has helped.
_________________

I've decided that I need a picture on this post, and what could fit the theme of "boring" more than this shot of the cupboard in which I keep my plastic containers. Yesterday Ron M. gave me a big box of nice new Rubbermaid ones in many sizes, so last night (as only a boring person would do on Christmas night), I cleaned out the cupboard, threw away all the old containers which had no lids or vice versa, and now when I open the cabinet door they no longer rain down upon me like big, unmatched square rubber hailstones. Thanks, Ron!

Greetings!

2011-12-23T14:43:00.000-06:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

If you're traveling by car for the holidays,

I hope you can take the slow road.

Christmas Kindness

2011-12-21T14:20:00.000-06:00

My blog readers are such great people! For example, these incredible Route 66 Christmas ornaments arrived in the mail yesterday from Susan Y., one of my faithful readers whom I've only met once in person. On the basis of that one visit this fall, I feel we've been friends for a long time. She made these clever ornaments herself out of Route 66 fabrics. Needless to say, I love them!

A gift of another kind came today as well. Paul Fogg, who sent me the cool collage I posted yesterday, has just sent this slide show of some of the cars he photographed on his last Route 66 jaunt. Most of them are from Afton Station, in fact. Car nuts, take note! These are some VERY nice images! Vintage Online

I can't stop thinking about the Route 66 travelers who may have been trapped in the snowstorm out in New Mexico and the panhandle of Texas the last few days. I do hope everyone is safe and continuing on their way to more adventures in less daunting climates!

Neat Collage

2011-12-19T16:47:00.003-06:00

From time to time, a visitor will take a really great photo that I post here. In this case, a gentleman named Paul Fogg, who visited this weekend, sent me this collage he created. The Packard was inside, but he put it outside, and he added the Packard sign which is in an entirely different place! Very creative! You may see more of his work at Grand Lake Web Designs.

It's very rainy in Tulsa today, but we seem to have dodged the bullet of the big snows they're anticipating in New Mexico, Arizona, and even the panhandle of Oklahoma. I'll take the rain, thank you.

Abracadabra!

2011-12-18T16:56:00.000-06:00

It wasn't a busy day at Afton Station today, but it went quite quickly. As I was leaving, I realized that unless I get a special request, this will be the last time I'm there until after the New Year. I don't foresee having enough time to drive up there in the next two weeks, unless the urge is just too great for me to resist (or if someone politely begs...LOL).

Marly (who is back from a 4-day trip to N. Carolina), Betty (recovered from pneumonia) and Phil were all present at various times today. Ron M., due to severe back problems, wasn't. There were only three guests today, but I was so pleased with all of them. Early this morning, a cute young couple from Oxford, England arrived in their rented RV. The lucky Brits have six whole weeks to tour the U.S. They've already been to Florida and NYC, and are now heading across Route 66. Along the way, they plan to visit the Grand Canyon and Las Vegas, then finish Route 66 and drive up the coast to San Francisco. On these locally drab and cold days, that sounds like paradise to me!

Later in the day, when just Betty and I were sitting and chatting, the Amazing Blackford entered the Station! I do believe he's our first magician, and Betty and I weren't shy about asking him to perform a few tricks. He did a rope trick, a couple of card tricks, and an illusion involving a string of colored lights that had both of us amazed indeed! Amazing Blackford is now living in Grove, OK but as his business card advises, he once lived and performed in Hawaii.

I'll continue to blog as I find interesting things to babble about, even though I won't be at Afton Station. So please don't give up on me!

Who'da Thunk It!

2011-12-17T18:21:00.000-06:00

We were all most pleasantly surprised by how this cold day in December turned out to be one of the more interesting days we've had at Afton Station. Ron M., Phil, Robin, Tattoo Man and I were expecting a typical quiet winter experience, but that didn't happen. We knew it was going to be a good day when the first car to drive up was this beautiful replica of a '37 Auburn Boattail Speedster! The gentleman (from Vinita, OK) has only owned it for one day, and we were quite honored that we got to admire it on his first day of ownership. He and his friend were very nice guests, too.

Next, famous car customizer Darryl Starbird walked through the door. He was looking for a good background for magazine photos of some of his cars and liked the looks of our building and pumps. He was also lured in by the aforementioned Auburn which was still sitting in our parking lot. He was with his visiting grandson from Placentia, CA and they both enjoyed touring our new showroom, which wasn't built the last time Darryl came to visit. He also gave me an autographed copy of his amazing, huge coffee table book. Here he is talking to the Auburn fellows.

More folks came, and they kept on coming. All were local, but all were interesting. They came from Joplin MO, and Bernice, Tulsa, and Grove OK. And then these two guys showed up. They were such fun! Dwight (right) is from Dayton, OR and has an extensive collection of very intriguing vintage cars, many of which his father pulled from hay fields during his job of mowing hay. Pat (left) is from Kansas City. We certainly enjoyed visiting and laughing with them (and they both bought sweatshirts. Yippee!)

Since yesterday was the 2nd anniversary of artist and friend Bob Waldmire's death, Ron, Phil, Robin, and I toasted him beneath the mural which he painted and which we are honored to own. Bob was one incredible fellow, and although Robin and Phil never met him, they feel they know him simply from his reputation. He is missed by everyone who calls himself or herself a true roadie. (We toasted with a bottle of champagne. No wonder it was such a good day!)

But we're not done yet! At the very end of the day we had an anticipated visit from the Millers. Travis is a filmmaker who had communicated with me about the possibility of using some of our cars in one of his movies. We said "sure" so he and his wife came to look over the fleet. They found some they'd be interested in, and they also showed a great interest in using the town of Afton as a potential backdrop for films in the future. Nice people, and I look forward to working with them.

A brief visit from Dean "Crazy Legs" Walker rounded out the day with a grand total of 15 visitors, quite a departure from the typical lonely December weekend. It was a beautiful day. I wonder if Bob Waldmire had anything to do with that??

An Unexpected Trip

2011-12-13T12:21:00.001-06:00

Today was supposed to be a fairly uneventful day for me, right up until I opened my wallet at the restaurant where I stopped for breakfast and found that one of my credit cards was missing! That sinking feeling (I'm sure you've all felt it) rendered my breakfast almost immediately undigestible. Thus began the thought process. Where did I use the card last? Should I dash right home and call to have it deactivated? How could I be so stupid? Fortunately, it didn't take me long to remember where I must have left it, and that place happened to be in Claremore. A call to them was like an early Christmas present for me because they assured me that indeed they had it and were taking good care of it for me! Whew! I told them I'd be there to fetch it in a couple of hours.

I'm never opposed to a ride on Route 66 at any time, so I wasn't at all bothered by the idea of this unexpected trip. After I picked up my wayward credit card and thanked them profusely, I decided to drive around a bit. Those of you who are slightly older will remember a singer named Patti Page. I vaguely remember my parents listening to her music, and I understand that she's still very much alive. Well, she was born in Claremore, and apparently Claremore is proud of that, because there is a road named after her. But, there's also a tiny strip mall named for her, and all that's in the mall are a loan company and a bail bond place. Just doesn't seem right, for someone of such stature. I'm just sayin. . .

From there, I headed to Catoosa, home of the famous Blue Whale. I've been there so many times and taken so many photos of it that I barely stopped, just long enough to make sure it was still there and being well taken care of. Blaine Davis has gone south for the winter, but the town of Catoosa has taken an interest in the property and it looks great.

Also in Catoosa is an historic Route 66 bridge that was recently removed because it was deemed unsafe. There was much moaning and gnashing of teeth when this happened, but fortunately all of our unhappiness was assuaged when the wonderful Molly's Landing Restaurant, which sits right next to the former site of the bridge, took the entire huge thing and had it moved to their property! This has got to be one of the coolest things that ever happened on Route 66! The bridge now acts as part of the long driveway that leads up to the restaurant, thus it has not been lost to history.

Just beyond Molly's Landing is a little-known section of old concrete Route 66 that winds through a most unexpected place, a rather upscale housing area. I always get a kick out of driving this section and attempting to imagine what it looked like when it wasn't lined with good sized houses and brick-encrusted mailboxes. Even the entrance to the housing development feels discordant, with an Historic Route 66 sign implanted in a brick pillar surrounded by little ionic columns.

Random Sunday in December Thoughts

2011-12-11T17:07:00.001-06:00

Here I am, back in this lonely room with no visitors. It's much better today, however. Marly and Phil are working in the back and taking turns coming in to replenish coffee and chat for a while. Phil was here early and turned on the heat, so I walked into a cozy room for a change.

First, let me apologize for my blog looking or acting funny for a while. I'm in the learning stages of Google Chrome and when it comes to things computer-related, I have a very long learning curve. Yesterday's entry looked fine to me, but others emailed to say that it looked weird to them. I'd appreciate y'all telling me if you see any weirdness in the future, and thanks to those who have offered help.

I drove to Afton this morning pre-dawn, stopped for breakfast in Claremore, then did a quick run through Chelsea because by that time there was a little mist that I thought might add a some interest to any photos I might take. Here's the one that turned out pretty good. I especially like the full moon.

No visitors so far today, but it's still early and I'm optimistic. I hope no one is put off by my winter babble which tends to occur when I have no visitors to talk to or about.

Phil had a great idea. Since next weekend is the 2nd anniversary of the death of our dear friend Bob Waldmire, we're going to toast him with a bottle of champagne! Bob never drank a drop, of course, but what fun would it be to toast him with wheat germ or zucchini? And other mind-altering substances would probably be unwise, too.

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I'm home now, and able to report that we did have a few visitors after all. A young man from Gore, OK who has quite a car collection himself came by to be impressed by our collection. A Native American gentleman from Kenwood, KS stopped to ask the whereabouts of Afton Spring. Unfortunately, we didn't have the answer. I wrote about the Spring a while back, in case anyone is interested in exploring the topic. (See November 2, 2010). A woman from Miami, OK came in to sell a 1957 Tennessee license plate. It was nice, particularly the unique shape, but it was entirely covered with rust, so I had to decline. Finally, a man from Afton came in to talk to Marly. Not altogether an auspicious group insofar as their interest in Route 66, but they were interesting folks and we were glad to have them.

On the way out of town, I spotted this pretty little horse in the back yard of one of the houses on a back street in Afton.

2011-12-10T16:47:00.001-06:00

I guess the moon looked ever so slightly un-round this morning, but as eclipses go, this one was a bummer. But then, the last 24 hours have been somewhat of a bummer too, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Yesterday Blogger, who runs this blog site, decided to tell me, without warning, that it no longer supports my browser. Surprise! I could read my blog but couldn't write on it. No explanation given. After massive grumbling, hyperventilating, stomping around, and using some S-words and F-words not appropriate for my ordinarily reserved demeanor, I apparently pushed some magic button that told me I could regain custody of my blog if I joined Google Chrome. With no choice in the matter, I did. Very clever recruiting device, Google! The feeling of not being able to continue blogging was akin to turning the key on a cold morning and the car not starting. That, at least, didn't happen to me yesterday.

I drove to Afton this morning in a scrim of fog so thick that I'm surprised I didn't end up in Albuquerque. Actually, I kind of wish I had. I'm here at Afton Station now, freezing my knees off, and reading the note from Robin, who had only two visitors and zero sales yesterday. Why do we even bother in the winter?

I guess we bother because I refuse to have a "closed for the winter" kind of business as long as I have the strength, gas in the car, and money to pay Robin on Fridays. Besides, I like it here, despite the shivering and blue toes. And those two travelers who did show up yesterday deserved not to be met with a locked door.That is unacceptable! Route 66 is a 365-days-a-year treat, even for those silly enough to travel in December.

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The fog, and my spirits, finally lifted. As I sat reading an article in the latest issue of Cowboys and Indians Magazine about the 100th birthday of Roy Rogers, people appeared at the door. First it was Robin and Phil, who decided to stay and keep me company all day (hooray!), followed by seven visitors! They came from Valley Center KS, Grove OK, and Almont MI. None were specifically taking Route 66 trips, but all were most interested in what we have to offer at Afton Station. As it turned out, it was a fine day after all, and I drove home on a clear, sunny, crisp 45-degree day, ready to go back tomorrow and hope for more visitors.

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The new business down the road, right on the 9-foot alignment of Route 66 at the corner of the old alignment, has chosen the name Route 66 Truck and Trailer. Excellent! The more of those Route 66 shields we can display in Afton the better. The owners of the rather large business, which services and builds trucks and trailers, are very supportive of Route 66. In Afton, it's about time!

Test

2011-12-09T18:13:00.001-06:00

This is a test. Blogger is doing weird things tonight, and I'm not sure if I can still access it to make new posts. Just ignore me, please. :-)

The Incredible Shrinking Town

2011-12-09T14:26:00.005-06:00

When I first moved to Tulsa, it seemed like such a big town. There were so many nooks and crannies to explore, and so many roads to drive. But after a year or two, I started to feel the city limits closing in. Now, six years later, I've been down every road in the city, and many of them I believe I could drive blindfolded.

Or so I thought. Just a couple of hours ago, my friend Denny Gibson from Ohio emailed to wish me a Happy Anniversary. Anniversary? But of course! Doesn't everyone know that today is the 150th anniversary of the Civil War Battle of Chusto-Talasah, also known as the Battle of Caving Banks? Huh? Never heard of it myself. So, I wondered: Who? What? Where? When? Why?

Lets start with Where: The battle was fought right here in Tulsa County.

Who? Creek and Seminole Indians for the Union vs the Confederate States Indian Department. What? An all-out battle, from what I can tell, engaging over four thousand troops. Why? Like the rest of the nation, Indian Territory was divided during the Civil War.

Where? On the very north end of Tulsa County, a place which (for the purposes of this blog) will be referred to as "the boonies".

My father was a dyed-in-the-wool Civil War afficionado, and yet I doubt he ever heard of this battle. And frankly, I still don't have an entirely good handle on exactly how the battle was waged. And yet, of the Confederate troops, 15 were killed and 37 wounded. The Union had 500 men killed or wounded. Those numbers are not to be ignored, particularly on the 150th anniversary of the bloody confrontation.

So, I decided to drive out there and find a monument to the battle that was called to my attention by Denny. The instructions on the website he gave me (Battle of Chusto-Talasah December 9, 1861) were slightly vague, but I decided to drop everything and try to find it. There would probably have been a more convenient time for me to do this, but it seemed that it would mean more if I paid my respects on the anniversary date. So, off I went.

I wasn't expecting to find much, and I wasn't disappointed. But, on a lonely road far from the skyscrapers and traffic of the city, I found the monument. It sits in the front yard of a tiny nondescript rundown house amid sad farmland, occasional cattle, working oil wells, and dry creek beds. I stopped to take a photo (in fact, I took three), but apparently the ghosts of those lost in the battle were hell bent on preventing me from getting a good image. All three are blurred. Therefore, the photo here is from the website mentioned above. The inscription reads:

"The Battle of Caving Banks was fought on December 9, 1861 between 1500 Texas and Indian calvarymen under Confederate Col. D.H. Cooper and 2500 loyal Creeks and Cherokees enroute to Kansas with Chief Opothle Yahola. The struggle centered around a log house near the tip of the horseshoe bend in Bird Creek west of this point. Fifteen Confederate dead are buried on this battlefield. Many others lie in unknown graves.

___________

Marked by the Tulsa Historical Society of Central High School and the Tulsa Indian Women's Club. April 15, 1045."

And to make a long story slightly shorter, that's how I found a corner of Tulsa I've never known before. Thanks, Denny.

Happy Birthday, Brown Car!

2011-12-06T13:12:00.004-06:00

Happy Birthday to my brown car. You're one year old today, and you've given me almost 41,000 smooth and trouble-free miles, mostly on Route 66. You got me through the nasty weather of last winter, and I expect you to do the same this year. I drive the hell out of you, and you don't seem to mind a bit. And much to my surprise, people don't think you're ugly!Another thing that can go either way in the ugliness department is an oil refinery. I drove up a hill early this morning to look out at the refinery area of Tulsa just before sunrise. I don't think it's ugly. The hill from which this photo is taken also overlooks the old Avery Bridge, and on this hill some day will stand the headquarters of the Route 66 Alliance. I like that it will overlook the refinery area, an important part of Tulsa's history.

A Dusty Tree and a Mystery Man

2011-12-04T16:54:00.005-06:00

Not much to say about today at Afton Station. Ron M., Betty, Tattoo Man, and I were all there to greet guests, but not very many appeared on our doorstep. We almost outnumbered the guests, but we did have six: a man from Barnsdall, OK with his friend who was visiting from Oregon, a couple from Grove, OK doing a little weekend touring, and a woman and her young son from Afton who ended up here on a quest for a someone who could add some air to a deflating tire. It really looks like the long-distance Route 66 travelers, as well as most of the international travelers, are staying at home and waiting for spring before they get back to the Mother Road. That's ok. We'll be waiting for them.

Our little sad (and dusty, according to Ron M.) Christmas tree is now living atop the postcard rack. I'm also handing out candy canes to visitors. Otherwise, I'm afraid we haven't given much attention to holiday decor around here.
When my latest copy of Sexy Beast Magazine arrived yesterday, I thought I recognized the cover model. Geez, he looks SO familiar. . . .it's something about the face, I think. Hmmm..... but it seems that there's something missing. Help me! What could it be? Who is this mystery man?

Oh wait, I think I know! Scroll down to find the answer......

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May 1969, Camp Evans, Viet Nam. A young man who later would gain international fame as "The Route 66 Tattoo Man", pauses for a snapshot, his body not yet a canvas filled with body art. Yes, this is our dear Ron Jones, pre-Route 66 obsession. (Sorry, Tattoo. I couldn't resist making a magazine cover out of you. Tee hee!)

The Mysterious Floating Earrings

2011-12-03T17:28:00.004-06:00

Ok, they're not floating above Route 66! But they are a pair of really cool earrings fashioned by Robin, who is creating quite a nice collection of jewelry made out of the pressed pennies from our machine. The "floating earring" image occurred when I was careless about posing them on the cover of the new "Route 66 Sightings" book by Jim Ross, Shellee Graham, and Jerry McClanahan. So hey, it becomes an advertisement for both the earrings AND the book! (Earrings are $5 at the Station.)
Today was actually much better than I had expected it would be at Afton Station. Cold rain fell for most of the day, and although the first hour afforded a bit of sunshine, it quickly turned to gray gloom for the rest of the day. Nevertheless, we had 7 visitors, all from Oklahoma. They came from Chelsea, Tahlequah, and Bernice. Below are the Sikorskis from Bernice. Kathi is active around Grand Lake, and her website, www.GrandLakeAreaInfo.com is a great clearinghouse for events and attractions in the area, both on and off Route 66. Besides being a great ambassador for the Lake area, she also has a sign and graphic design business. And if that's not enough, she and her husband also own and run Grand Country Lakeside RV Park. I'll be receiving more information about this later, but you can see their site at www.grandlakewest.com.

Speaking of signs, both Marly and Robin have been working on a big, almost-billboard-size sign, one of three that will eventually be erected on Route 66 both north and south of Afton Station. They're doing a great job, but work has been delayed while another project (the fixing of one of David's trailers) has usurped the sign-making space in the work room. However, by the time spring arrives, the signs should be ready to be unveiled. Meanwhile, here's a preview of the partially finished sign.

I'll be in Afton again tomorrow, barring any surprise snow storms. See you then!

Begin Route 66

2011-12-02T13:22:00.002-06:00

My daughter who lives in Chicago snapped this photo with her iPhone as she was coming home from the symphony last night. I just thought it had a nice vibe -- lots of atmosphere. That's all for today.

A Sixty-Six Fix

2011-12-01T13:14:00.003-06:00

Three days away from Route 66 was too much to bear, so after a pretty sunrise in the park and a good breakfast at Jimmy's Egg, I needed to feel the tires on a lumpy road. I didn't want to drive east again, however. Four or five days a week for most of the year is quite enough of that stretch. I needed something different. Having not much choice, I pointed the car to the west.

I stopped at the new little Route 66 park in Red Fork, just west of Tulsa, and took a couple of photos of those amazing, huge, majestic train cars parked there. I'm not sure if I've posted photos of the caboose and the tanker car, so here they are.
The restorers have done a fantastic job of bringing these behemoths of transportation back to life. We "car people" often forget the importance the railroad played in the development of Route 66.

The countryside never looks quite as ugly as it does at this time of year. The leaves are gone, the fields are brown, and even under a bright, sunny sky I get a slightly foreboding feeling. Driving west out of Tulsa at this time of year doesn't do much to dispel this feeling, and yet I tend to be drawn to this stretch of Route 66 in the winter as if by magnet. No offense to any who may disagree, but the miles between Red Fork and Sapulpa are some of the ugliest on Route 66. There's not much other than a few small manufacturing facilities, rundown houses and trailers, several abandoned gas stations, and crowned by the unfortunate hulk of what used to be Frankoma Pottery, until recently one of the premier stops along the Route. Try as hard as I can, I still can't picture this stretch in the heyday of Route 66. The train tracks run along one side of the road and the sounds of the Interstate can be heard from the south. It just seems so forsaken.

Sapulpa is a great little town, but today I drove through it quickly. I decided that it had been over 10 years since I drove the Tank Farm Road, a small alignment of old 66 between Kellyville and Bristow, so that's where I headed. This loop isn't the most exciting when it comes to scenery, but it contains a stretch of original concrete pavement and some of the old, rusted oil tanks for which it is named.

After bumping along on the Tank Farm Road, I turned back toward Tulsa, refreshed. It was still only 10 a.m. But aahhh, now I feel much better!

Visitors? What visitors?

2011-11-27T16:25:00.004-06:00

Day 2 of the big shopping weekend has passed right by Afton Station. Today, I sold exactly $1 less than I sold yesterday, and that means $0. Don't get me wrong. I'm not there to sell things. But it's fun to wonder whether people are really out there shopping. According to the radio news I heard while driving home just now, there were plenty of folks out spending lots of money, just not at Afton Station.

The bigger disappointment is that of having so few visitors. Today, we greeted one man from Cape Canaveral, Florida, who had been visiting family in the area, and four little kids from Afton who were getting bored toward the end of their Thanksgiving vacation. Betty also stopped in for a while, and Ron M. was with me all day. We got a little cleaning done, did some reading, did some crossword puzzles, and Ron grabbed my camera and took a few photos.

Robin has made a number of the squashed penny bracelets in three sizes. She has also made a charm bracelet which isn't in this picture. I've been wearing my bracelet continuously and I love it.

We got out our meager Christmas decorations, and no sooner did we get Rudolph out of the box than he jumped on the cash register and went after the turtle who lives there. No worries. We kept him from making a meal of Turtle so a catastrophe was averted. Yes, we were quite bored today. At least the sun was out most of the day. Happy Winter!

Small Business Saturday in Afton: The Results

2011-11-26T17:06:00.006-06:00

Well, apparently the news of Small Business Saturday didn't make it to Afton, OK. On this day, I sold exactly one dollar's worth of merchandise, a postcard. Oh well, nice try. LOL! The weather was ghastly today -- cold, pouring rain most of the day, and a dark sky that made me feel like it was almost bedtime all day. I really can't blame folks for not taking to the road for a pleasant jaunt on a day like this.

Nevertheless, we did have three intrepid couples who chose today to do some Route 66ing. They were from Neosho MO, Oklahoma City OK, and Aiken IL. All of them seemed to be mainly unaffected by the weather and enjoying their time on the Mother Road. Here are the folks from Oklahoma City.We also had most of our "regulars" drop in and stay a while, so we had time to socialize with Ron M., Marly, Betty, Phil, Robin, and Michael Scruggs.

There is a group promoting the painting of murals on the sides of buildings along Route 66 across all of Oklahoma. I took a couple of photos of a very visible wall of a building in Afton which we think would be a perfect spot for a colorful mural. The bare rock wall faces Route 66 and it's unlikely that anything will be built in the vacant lot in front of it. Since this is just the beginning of an idea, however, we're not sure that the town of Afton could ever come up with the needed funds to support such an endeavor. Afton could sure use a facelift, though!

Small Business Saturday

2011-11-25T16:09:00.004-06:00

On the way to dialysis this morning at 5 a.m. I felt compelled to drive past a part of town that includes a number of big chain stores because I'm always intrigued by the concept of Black Friday. I took the above photo outside of Sears. Later, as I sat in the dialysis chair and the nurse was inserting, rather painfully, two needles into my sensitive arm, what crossed my mind was that I'd rather endure those needles than stand in line outside a big store at 5 a.m. But that's just me. I'm not a shopper, I'm not a line stander, and I can think of better things to compete for than the latest half price gadget.

On the other hand, tomorrow is Small Business Saturday, and I'm assuming I'll arrive at Afton Station to find a long line of folks getting ready to break down the door in order to be first to get to my key chains, sweatshirts, Route 66 guidebooks, and postcards.

Hah! That'll be the day!

My point, if you haven't figured it out yet, is that I fully and enthusiastically support the concept of Small Business Saturday. How happy I'd be to see lines forming outside of any mom 'n pop business tomorrow or any day. I know it won't happen, but I do encourage all of you to think about patronizing just one small local store this weekend.

T-Day at My House

2011-11-25T04:08:00.003-06:00

Are we having fun yet? We really did have a good time, although this photo must have caught these two guests at a "thoughtful" moment. Thanksgiving is over, I have a champagne hangover, and am off to dialysis to get my blood cleansed. Today, it really needs it!

I take it back, at least a little of it. . .

2011-11-24T08:02:00.002-06:00

I guess I should apologize, partially, for my unkind "harrumph" yesterday when it came to coverage of the monument ceremony by our Afton hometown newspaper. This week's edition has one more small picture, but at least this time there is one member of the Route 66 community in it -- Marilyn Emde, Executive Director of the OK Route 66 Association. The other three in the photo are Afton citizens who actually had nothing whatsoever to do with the monument. I think this is what happens when a photographer is sent by a newspaper to cover an event without properly being told who are the important elements. Maybe it's my fault for not taking the time to point out that the president and vice president of the Association were also in attendance, as well as a couple of people such as Marly who was responsible for transporting the monument 350 miles and maintaining the site. Oh well, at least folks in town know the dedication actually took place. Now, back to being thankful. . .

Early Rising

2011-11-24T07:19:00.002-06:00

There are many advantages to being an early riser. For one thing, there are the sunrises. Those who read my blog regularly know of my affinity for a great dawn. But there are other advantages as well. This morning, as I was fussing in the kitchen at 4 a.m., I was also watching a rerun of one of last week's Jay Leno shows, and thus was introduced to Vince Gill's new hit song, "That Old Lucky Diamond Motel". Wow, what a truly great Route 66 song. Check it out at http://tinyurl.com/7j9durn.

Another advantage of jumping out of bed before sunrise is that on occasion you will find a friend who is also awake and alert at an early hour. This morning I got a very early email from Rick Thompson, who was also up and cooking. Attached to the email were a couple of great photos. Here's one that Rick took of the Waldmire mural that hangs in Afton Station. I think it's the first close-up of the map all in one shot. Very nice!

He also sent this absolutely fantastic black-and-white shot he inherited from his uncle. It was taken somewhere on Route 66 in eastern OK or possibly western MO in the '50s, when apparently people shot out electrical insulators as some kind of sport. What a hoot!

Now, back to the kitchen for more Thanksgiving preparations. Once again, I hope everyone is enjoying wonderful food among dear friends and family.

Thanksgiving Prep

2011-11-23T16:03:00.006-06:00

I drove up to Grove today to claim my annual fried turkey from David. This arrangement has been happening ever since he ended up with the turkey frying equipment after our divorce. Good thing we're friends, because he fries a mean turkey! This year, Ron M. drove up with me and on the way home we stopped at Afton Station to check on things. It happened that Marley was there too, and let me know that we've had a pretty good number of visitors on the days when I've been absent while he's been there working on cars, etc. This is great news.

Marly also brought us a copy of the Grove newspaper from the week prior to the monument dedication which I'd never seen before . Here's a rather poor photo of the excellent page which is almost entirely devoted to promoting the dedication. It's a whole lot better than the tiny 2" by 3" mislabeled photo on the back page of the Afton newspaper! Harrumph!
The other day on the way home from Afton, Ron M. and I took a little side trip to explore a little-known Route 66 alignment near Vinita. Phil told us that he was told by the owners of the property (just behind the pecan place north of the city) that it was a real alignment at one time. I want to find out more about this. If anyone knows anything about the validity of this alignment, please let me know. (Yoo hoo.... Jim R. or Jerry M., are you there?)
I was cruising around Tulsa on 11th St. (Route 66) the other day and drove into the parking lot of the restored Hotel Campbell. I was amazed by the plainness of the building and its main entrance. The "Ramada Inn" look of the exterior belies the exquisite rooms and overall elegance of the property. I hope that people can see past the outside and pay this exciting restoration an overnight visit!
Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and I guess I'm ready. After returning from Grove with the turkey, I put finishing touches on a few other dishes. It will just be four of us this year, so no need to overdo it. A casual Thanksgiving can be relaxing and fun. I give thanks for all of you, and hope your holiday is full of warmth, friends, and family.

Sunday in Tulsa

2011-11-20T12:18:00.005-06:00

So this is what Tulsa looks like on Sunday! It's been so long since I've been home on Sunday that it just feels weird. Because of a one-time change in my dialysis schedule, I had to go there this morning, and now I'm home and making a big pot of turkey soup. That may sound odd just a few days before Thanksgiving, but in order to make gravy for the big day, I had to roast a bunch of turkey legs and thighs and render the juice. Now, I have a fridge full of turkey meat! Meanwhile, Robin is holding the reins at Afton Station today. I hope she has lots of visitors!

Today is also the day of the running of the Route 66 Marathon here in Tulsa. There are a lot of streets blocked off, so it took some creativity to traverse the one mile from the hospital to my house. In 2008, our Studebaker was chosen to lead off the runners at the start, and that was really fun. Sadly, we haven't been asked back, but the Marathon has become very much larger over the years. Although I don't see much connection to Route 66 other than the name, I guess it's a good way to spread the word that Route 66 goes through Tulsa. Sometimes it's the locals who are less likely than visitors to recognize the importance of the Mother Road's presence in a city.

Here's one of the photos sent to me by Rick Thompson. It shows my ex, David, and his son Patrick checking out the Ribbon Road monument last weekend.

Reunion

2011-11-19T16:51:00.002-06:00

We witnessed a sweet reunion at Afton Station today. Velida Palmer and her husband drove up from Tulsa to visit us and, more importantly, to visit Tripper! Velida is the artist who took a lump of fiberglass about 8 years ago and turned it into our beloved Route 66 penguin. Tripper has been photographed by thousands of tourists from all over the world since I bought him from the zoo all those many years ago. He's lived at Afton Station for several years, and before that he spent some time "on loan" to Route 66 Harley-Davidson in Tulsa. Since Velida last saw him, he's acquired a wheeled platform which allows him to be moved around from place to place. Velida was happy to see Tripper, and I know Tripper was thrilled by the visit. So was I. More of Velida's beautiful artwork can be seen at www.velidapalmer.com. Check it out!
Robin, Afton Station's own Jewelry-Artist-In-Residence, has created some lovely bracelets made from our Afton Station pressed pennies. She has them in three sizes: Small for $6, Medium for $7, and Large for $8. They're available immediately at Afton Station. Come 'n get 'em!

The picture isn't the greatest, but the bracelets are nice!

Other visitors came in today, making it not nearly as boring a day as Ron M. and I had expected when we drove to Afton on a gloomy and very windy day. We had visits from 7 folks, from Joplin MO, Wagoner OK, Tulsa OK, and Bentonville, AR.

I received some nice photos of last weekend's monument dedication from photographer Rick Thompson. Tomorrow, I'll sort them out and publish a few here. Thanks, Rick!

Place Filler

2011-11-17T12:39:00.003-06:00

I can't get used to NOT writing a blog post on a Thursday. But seriously, I don't have much to say, since I'm not in Afton today. So, as a filler, here's a photo of the beautiful color on the trees at the end of my street.

Welcome to my first day of "vacation"!

2011-11-15T13:51:00.009-06:00

It's my first "day off" from my regular Afton Station summer schedule. I almost don't know what to do with myself. I ran errands and spent an inordinate amount of time in Target. It's been so long since I've been there -- years! -- that it felt like I was exploring a new universe. A pretty boring universe, actually. A Made in China universe. I'd rather be on Route 66.

Here are some more of the photos Ron M. took at the Monument Dedication on Saturday.

Brad begins his speech. Since the wind was so strong, he needed to use a megaphone.

Brad being interviewed by Rick Thompson of Cimarron Photo.
Long-time Afton citizens Melvin Berks and his wife chat with others.
Oklahoma Route 66 Association President Mike Hickey (right) speaks to OK Assoc. member Rick Schmigle.

Folks sign the guest book as I look on.
Marilyn Emde, OK Route 66 Association and Carolyn and Mike Pendleton of the KS Route 66 Association.
Betty Wheatley and her sister Marlene serve beverages.

Ron "Tattoo Man" Jones chats with Glenda Pike of the MO Route 66 Association.

Video of Dedication

2011-11-13T17:24:00.002-06:00

Two quick things to add to the post I just finished. . .

I just received this video from KOAM TV7 in Joplin, MO showing the monument dedication, and an interview with Brad Nickson, Eastern VP of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association. There's another story on the video, but it's just the first one that concerns the dedication..

Video - KOAM TV 7 Joplin and Pittsburg

Also, my blog layout magically corrected itself again. Sigh. . .

Listen here, Blog!

2011-11-13T16:38:00.006-06:00

Just another glorious Oklahoma sunrise

Hey, Blog! You've picked a fine time to go wacko on me! Every now and then, Blogger chooses to completely mess up the layout of my blog. Now, I'll admit that it could be operator error, however it seems to happen without my input. The unfortunate thing is that I'm not HTML-literate enough to fix it myself, so in trying to do so I often make it worse. Anyway, please excuse how "Ramblings. . ." looks right now. I'm working on a fix.

Meanwhile, we had an extremely slow day today. Ron M., Tattoo Man and I mostly sat around and read Christmas catalogues, if you want the truth. We also did some remaining cleanup from yesterday's festivities and ate up some of the leftovers, so the day wasn't excruciatingly slow. The guests we did have -- a father and son from Grove, OK and a couple from Tulsa, OK -- were great! The Tulsa couple consisted of transplants from New York State and Germany. Very nice people. Here they are:

I expect to have some more photos from the monument dedication ready to put on the blog tomorrow, and perhaps even a video. And now, check out this photo I snapped coming home tonight. It's Turkey Mountain in Tulsa. Fall color has finally arrived here!

Wow... Great Day!!!

2011-11-12T17:48:00.015-06:00

As we had hoped it would be, today was glorious. The weather cooperated (except for a strong wind that didn't really bother anyone except those, like me, who were wearing skirts). The crowd was bigger than even I anticipated, about 70 for the monument dedication, maybe 40-45 who came back to Afton Station for the reception, then while many were still there, the group of 24 from the Eastern OK Mercedes Benz Club arrived in their neat old cars. It was party, party, party all day!

There were a few glitches -- an exploding 2 litre Coke bottle sprayed Coke all over, and I do mean ALL over, the room where we were setting up the refreshments. An iced cake landed upside down. One of the other cakes came out of the pan in crumbs. No sweat, though. All disasters were taken care of in no time.

We had Route 66 folks from Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri attend. Quite a few local citizens came too, including the Mayor of Afton. Brad Nickson, our OK Route 66 Association's Eastern VP, gave a great speech telling a bit of the history of the Ribbon Road and the monument program and thanking all the appropriate people.

There were also 11 other "drop in" travelers who came for a visit. They were from Wichita KS, Modesto CA, Riverton KS, Yukon OK, and Nottingham England.

Ron M. took many, many photos, but I don't have the time or energy to sort through them tonight. Over the next few days I'll get them in order and post more here. Meanwhile, here are a few.

Preparations for the Weekend

2011-11-10T17:39:00.003-06:00

Shortly after we arrived at Afton Station, Ron M. and I left and drove down to the Monument so I could stencil the posts. They turned out pretty good, not perfect, not even close to perfect, but they'll do. I didn't really have the right equipment and the wind was a bit uncooperative. Nevertheless, they're done. Marly watched the Station for the half hour that we were gone.

We also got everything else ready for Saturday's big event. We've received word that folks representing both the KS and MO Route 66 Associations will be attending, along with the Oklahoma contingent, of course. I hope that a number of Afton residents will come, too. The event will also be photographed by some professional photographers. Should be fun.

We only had five visitors today. A man from Oklahoma City dropped in, as did a couple from Mt. Pleasant, Michigan. They were in the area on their way to Texas and decided to do as much as possible on Route 66. Then, this stunningly attractive young couple from Genoa, Italy visited us on their very first trip to the U.S. They're exploring Route 66 as far as Las Vegas, then due to commitments back home they will not be able to finish the rest of the Route. Lovely people with a great attitude and appreciation of everything they've seen so far.

We had the pleasure of having Betty W. and Marly around for most of the day, too.

That's about all for today, but once again I want to mention that if you're anywhere near Afton on Saturday, please consider attending the monument dedication at 1 p.m. and the reception at Afton Station immediately thereafter. I'd love to see you!

That Lemonade Thing

2011-11-08T17:08:00.004-06:00

"When life gives you lemons, make lemonade" is probably the most overused adage in the world today. It's not that I don't believe it and agree with it, but I'd just like to change the wording to, "When life gives you a gloomy, damp stormy morning after being rousted out of bed by yet another earthquake and you couldn't go back to sleep so you end up at the grocery store at 3:45 a.m. and then drive to Afton in the dark, gusty winds, and heavy rain, only to sit all day in a chilly room with only two visitors. . . make lemonade!" Or, to put it another way, enjoy autumn and use the free time to do some creative tasks!

That's what I did today, during the L-O-N-G time alone between Visitor #1 (a gentleman from Dayton, Iowa) in the morning and Visitor #2 (a gentleman from Deer Creek, Oklahoma) who arrived just as I was packing up to leave. No offense to the visitors. Both were really great guys. But I have to say I enjoyed the down time, too.

I made a stencil which I hope to use to decorate the four iron poles with which surround the Ribbon Road monument. Although I'm extremely experienced in stencil making, I didn't have any of the right equipment with me (a sharp x-acto knife, stencil paper, a pane of glass on which to cut), so it turned out pretty primitive, but it's not horrible. It won't be blue on the posts. It's just that blue is the color I happened to have at the Station.

Then I made about 40 magnets and badges. Two of the designs are just for Saturday's monument dedication. I hope to sell a few that day to defray the cost of food and paper products.
Oh, about that earthquake. . . Yes, we had another one last night, and it jolted me awake again. I really don't hate the feeling, but I'm aware that folks in the small towns closer to the epicenter are pretty freaked out. So far, there have been no injuries, but people are losing their chimneys , the brick facing on their homes, and the crockery on their shelves. Here, about 50 miles from the center, we feel shaking but it's not violent although it lasts quite a long time.

I used the drive home from Afton on Route 66 to appreciate the foliage. It was still dark and gloomy and spitting a bit of rain, but that's just how autumn tends to behave. The leaves were showing more color as a result of the moisture on them. By the time I got home, I'd made lemonade out of those lemons.

Earth-Shaking Day

2011-11-06T17:11:00.004-06:00

Having been awakened from a sound sleep last night by a 5.6 earthquake, I figured the day couldn't get much more exciting after that. Wrong! It was my first earthquake. It fascinated me and didn't frighten me, and I now realize that the state of Oklahoma has got to be the epicenter of every single weird climatological and geological phenomenon on earth. LOL!

But anyway. . . I arrived at Afton Station 45 minutes early, and there were already four people waiting at the door. Good start! They never stopped arriving, creating a full house all day. By the end of the day, I'd greeted 27 travelers, and most of them were on extended Route 66 trips. But more about that later. . .

We also had a visit from 17 members of a Japanese filming team which is traveling across Route 66 producing a travelogue for Japanese TV. They were mostly there to interview Tattoo Man, but they spent about two hours at the Station and filmed it from every angle, too.

While they were there, a gentleman representing the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association arrived to shoot a video that will be distributed to new RV buyers. He remained for a long time too, and was especially interested in the 1917 RV in our showroom. I'm so pleased that the word about Route 66 and Afton Station is getting around to all corners of the world.

This family from El Reno, OK came to visit because Mom has been a loyal reader of my blog. That always makes me smile! Although it seems odd that perfect strangers know so much about it, I have to say that my blog is apparently attracting only the nicest people. This family was no exception.
The rest of the visitors came from Flower Mound TX, Prosper TX, Wahaunic IN, Orangevale CA, Bristol CT, Virginia Beach VA, Frederickburg TX, Broken Arrow OK, Vincennes IN, Nowata OK, Berkeley CA,, Tucson AZ, and Grove, OK.

This past summer, we had a visit from a lovely young couple from Italy. Yesterday, I received this nice photo from them, along with a few more. It was so nice to hear that they had a great Route 66 trip.

Did you ever throw a Clean-Up Day. . .

2011-11-05T17:14:00.004-05:00

. . . and nobody came? Unlike the last Afton Clean-Up Day, which was quite well-attended, this one was pretty much of a fizzle. The chairman, D'Ann, showed up, as did a couple of other people, but only enough to form one team to go out and clean up one property. I had a 30-cup coffeemaker filled up and ready to go, but most of it went down the drain. Perhaps the cooler weather had something to do with it, or maybe it was the large number of local football games. But as you can see, D'Ann and one volunteer, Mike, are still smiling despite the disappointment.
Getting to the Station at 7:30 this morning (yes, Ron M. and I had to leave Tulsa before 6!), meant that we had a rare opportunity to photograph in the dark. Ron took these really nice pics.

Once we dismantled the cleanup paraphernalia we had some down time, but shortly thereafter the travelers started to arrive. By the end of the day, not counting the Aftonites who did show up for the cleanup, we had hosted visits by 14 folks. They originated from Washington IN, Cedaredge CO, Grove and Miami OK, and Stockholm, Sweden. Marly and Tattoo Man were both around for a while, too.

Tomorrow might turn out to be very interesting, so stay tuned. . .

Page One, Above the Fold

2011-11-03T17:23:00.002-05:00

Ok, so it's not the New York Times or Wall Street Journal, but we did make the front page of the Miami (OK) News-Record yesterday! The article announcing our upcoming Monument Dedication (Nov. 12) might boost attendance at the event. Now, let's see if the other local newspapers will come forward and give us some free publicity.
It was a slow day with only 7 visitors, but they were a good bunch. Two gentlemen from Tulsa drove up on a "fact finding mission" as they plan to organize a very large bicycle tour of Route 66. Although they intend to start small, with perhaps only a couple of hundred miles the first year, they hope to eventually extend the distance and grow the roster of participants until it becomes something like RAGBRAI, the famous ride across Iowa which often has tens of thousands of entrants. How cool it would be to have something like that come through Afton on Route 66. Start training!

A local lady named Clarissa came in to introduce herself. Although a recent resident of Afton, she has fond memories of the town from her childhood. She is attempting to start up a photo business in which she would offer to take photos of travelers in front of their cars (or our cars, or our building) and then imprint them upon mugs and other items. Sounds promising and we said we'd help her in any way we can.

Our other visitors came from Tulsa, Grove, and Salina, OK. One gentleman was especially interested in and knowledgable about Packards. All visits were pleasant and much appreciated. Even so, each day I see a reduction of visitors. Yesterday, Robin greeted 12 folks, but all were relatively local except for a party from Toronto, Canada.

Joe Sonderman was kind enough to allow me to use his image of the Buffalo Dill's sign. Buffalo Dill's was an Indian trading post back in the heyday of Route 66. It was located 9 miles east of Vinita, which would make it 6 miles west of Afton. That would put it at the bend known as Dead Man's Corner. I plan to find out more about it from locals. Interesting!

Autumn on 66

2011-11-01T17:31:00.003-05:00

Due to the extremely dry summer, here in Eastern Oklahoma we aren't having as pretty and colorful a fall as we usually have. Even so, there is still enough color on the land to make it feel autumnal. The sunrise this morning added an orangy glow to the landscape as I drove down Route 66 on the way to Afton. The air was crisp and I felt good.

The very quiet morning at the Station afforded no clue as to how crazy it would get around closing time. Early visitors included one man from just down the road in Fairland, and then an anticipated visit from friend Larry Kinsey from Kansas City, coming through town in his new motorhome on the way to Texas to visit family. Larry is a veteran traveler who always stops to say hello if his roaming takes him through Afton. He's the guy who got me interested in playing the Indian flute. Thank goodness he didn't ask for a recital, because I think I've probably practiced for about 10 minutes since he gave me my last lesson two years ago!

There was a lull of about two hours, during which Marly and I chatted, I did end-of-month bookwork, and Marly worked on lettering for the billboard he's painting. Just as we were discussing the idea of closing 15 minutes early so I could take some flyers around town (reminding citizens of the Monument dedication on the 12th), a flood of 10 visitors arrived. They were from Miami, Stillwater, Langley, and Coweta OK, and from Los Angeles, CA.

As a result, I left Afton a half hour late rather than 15 minutes early, but I didn't mind. I enjoyed the visits of all of those folks and I'm sure happy that we hadn't closed up shop early.
__________

There's a new business in town. This sign has appeared on one of the windows of a section of the new building across the street. Marly tells me it is going to be a flea market and resale shop. Cute name! The other half of the building is now a hairdressing salon with several tanning beds as well. It's called Curl Up and Dye. Another cute name! Commerce is coming (very slowly) to our little town . . .

Marly's Birthday!

2011-10-30T17:37:00.003-05:00

We celebrated Marly's birthday today during a lull in the action. Here he is with the world's most bland cake (just the way he likes it!), being watched by Ron M. and Marly's lady, Sue. We had threatened Marly with a rhubarb pie, but decided to be kind to him now that he's getting so old. Ha ha. . .

Seventeen visitors stopped in today. Although most came from Oklahoma or neighboring states, these three folks won the long distance award, as they had traveled from Hillsboro, New Mexico. Yes, the two ladies are twins.
This couple warranted a picture here because their last name is Packard. To the best of my knowledge, we've only had one other Packard family visit us. These Packards were from Bartlesville, OK.Our other visitors came from Bentonville AR, Overland Park KS, Bella Vista AR, and Perry, Sperry, Bartlesville, Wyandotte, and Seneca, Oklahoma.

And now for a few random photos from the day. . .

Here is Ron Jones' latest tattoo -- the Hi-Way Cafe in Vinita, OK.

Here's Robin, explaining to us how one of her customers yesterday thought a do-rag was supposed to be worn. Was he Amish, perhaps?

Our new plastic animal friends are two pink flamingos given to us by Bob Swengrosh. One is now in the window and the other is resting comfortably atop one of our display racks. We've gone googie!Finally, Ron M. caught this little guy taking refuge in the shade of our air conditioner compressor. I just hope he's hoppy. (sorry!)

Something Different

2011-10-29T17:26:00.004-05:00

Now I realize how much I really needed a day off. The trip to Arcadia and Oklahoma City today was just what the doctor ordered. I feel refreshed!

Ron M. and I met filmmakers/photographers/friends Rick and Richard in the parking lot of Pop's in Arcadia and piled into their car for a driving tour of Oklahoma City. Since both guys are long-standing members of the OKC Historical Society and have done extensive filming in the city, they were perfect tour guides. We concentrated on downtown OKC, including the neighborhoods of Bricktown, Automobile Alley, Deep Deuce, and Heritage Hills. I was stopped in my tracks when we came upon the former Packard dealership building, now restored and appearing to house an art gallery.
We then drove out to Lake Overholser to take a ride over the newly reopened Lake Overholser Bridge (on Route 66) and to view the dam.

After several hours of touring, we stopped at Ann's Chicken Fry, the famous OKC Route 66 eatery. It changed my opinion forever on the matter of chicken fried steak. This was scrumptious!Once our stomachs were ridiculously over-filled with unhealthy but lip smackin' good food, we moved on to Arcadia to attend the first book signing of Jim Ross, Shellee Graham, and Jerry McClanahan's outstanding new volume "Route 66 Sightings". Jerry -- Jim -- Shellee

Pop's was packed with people, and many were purchasing the book. Jim was also selling the new revision of his wonderful "Oklahoma Route 66" guidebook. We saw several friends there, although we were only able to stay for about an hour before saying good bye and thank you to Rick and Richard and heading back to Tulsa. What a super day! Tomorrow, back to Afton Station to celebrate Marly's birthday.

Lots of Special Guests

2011-10-27T17:26:00.004-05:00

This was a day of special, anticipated guests. In fact, we only had two drop-ins, a couple of guys from Brisbane, Australia who were traveling a portion of Route 66.

Our friend and frequent visitor Bob Swengrosh from Lake of the Ozarks, MO drove down to Afton with one of the Route 66 icons I've been wanting to meet in person for a long, long time -- Gary Turner of the well-known Gay Parita Station in Paris Springs, MO. Although I've spoken to Gary several times in the past and was even in the same room with him once, this was our first face-to-face meeting. Gary constantly sends travelers to my Station and I do the same for his. Gary is known as one of the premier Route 66 ambassadors, and his stories are known all over the world. Here are Gary (left) and Bob.
Besides Gary, Bob also brought me another present -- this whimsical pair of pink flamingos! They will soon find a place at Afton Station. Sticking their heads out of one of the cars, perhaps?
My computer friend Susan Yates, another person I've communicated with quite a bit without having met face-to-face even though she lives not far from me in Tulsa, came for a visit this afternoon and brought along Debbie and Matt Churchill from Gloucester, England. This is the second time Debbie and Matt have visited Susan and made Route 66 trips with her, but the last time Afton Station wasn't open. We remedied that today with a nice long visit. What charming folks! Susan brought me gifts, too -- some lovely coasters she made herself out of Route 66 fabric and a jar of yummy Halloween trail mix (which Ron M. and I partially polished off in the car on the way home from Afton!). Thank you! Here are Debbie (left) and Susan after examining the Packard motorbus.

And here is Matt, getting up close and personal with the '58 Packard Hawk.
Ron M. was with me today and very helpful, as usual. Betty, Tattoo Man, and Marly also stopped by for a while, and it seemed like a very full day despite the low number of visitors.

Oh yes, another gift! On Tuesday, Candy Fuser from Afton, dropped in with a piece of memorabilia -- this auto brush advertising the long gone Painter Phillips 66 Station which is now empty and decaying. I do hope that station can be revived and restored some day! Meanwhile, I'm so grateful to have this momento.

Pontiacs and Packards

2011-10-25T17:50:00.005-05:00

Oh, how I wish I had about 4 more hours in each day! I never feel like I have time to do everything I want. I already have a list of nine things that I must get done tomorrow afternoon, after dialysis, just to catch up. In December, I plan to take a few days off from Afton Station and really catch up.

Meanwhile, it was good day at the Station today, with an average number of visitors (10) but some interesting ones. These fellows, from Phoenix, AZ and Gibsonburg, OH rolled in in their 1937 Pontiac, taking it across the country for the second time in three years. Beautiful car, but. . .
. . . they had a really creepy passenger in the back seat!

This gentleman from Pleasant Ridge, MI impressed us with his Route 66 knowledge after several trips. He's a graphic designer who has created some works with a Route 66 theme. (http://www.gkstudiodesigns.com/) He had just visited with "McJerry" McClanahan at his studio and had bought a copy of the book just published this week by McJerry, Jim Ross, and Shellee Graham. Coincidentally, I received my copy yesterday as well. The book is BEAUTIFUL! Afton Station got a very nice write-up, too. I'll talk more about the book later in the week. I do have copies available for sale at the Station. Think Christmas presents!

One of the Packards that has been in David's garage at home for so long that I'd forgotten we had it came back to roost in the new showroom today. It's this beauty of a 1937 Super 8. It's massive in size and completely original. David intends to keep it original unrestored. I concur.

Ron M. accompanied me to the Station today. Tattoo Man came in to show us an article about his tattoos in his hometown newspaper, and Betty stopped by briefly, too.

Thanks for Hitting Me!

2011-10-24T12:39:00.004-05:00

I'm excited about the 100,000th hit on my "Ramblings. . ." blog! Thanks so much to all who support this crazy effort. It feels good to know that there are a few people out there who like to read what I write. (Or, maybe there's just one person who comes back over 100 times a day?)

Today Wasn't Yesterday!

2011-10-23T17:11:00.004-05:00

It's always strange when a slow day follows a busy one. These two weekend days couldn't have been more different, and yet both were interesting in their own way. As you know, yesterday was a mad rush of people and vehicles and we could barely keep up with the crowds.

Today, not so much. There were only three actual visitors all day, "actual" meaning newcomers on tour. They came from Harrisonville, MO and Rogers, AR. Most of our day was taken up with a photo shoot. Rick and Richard from Cimarron Photo and Design in Oklahoma City, which is producing a film about Oklahoma Route 66, came back for the third time to shoot Afton Station for the film. Today they returned specifically to take still photos of me to run during the interview which I gave a few weeks ago. Well, you know how much I hate having my picture taken. I expected this to be torture, but the guys are so nice and so friendly that they made it fun. Plus, Richard promised to Photoshop the hell out of my photo, so I'm not going to worry about it. He said he'd make me look like Marilyn Monroe. Hey, he's a photographer, not a magician! Anyway, here they are setting up. I don't look happy!Here's Rick making adjustments. . .

. . . and here's Richard in the car showroom getting some more shots. We got to see the photos they'd taken on previous visits, and they're really, really good!

This slow tourist day may signal the end of the busy season. But I'm not giving up just yet. We'll be open 7 days next week, and probably won't reduce hours until several weeks into November. So, see you on Tuesday!

21 x A = FUN!

2011-10-22T17:47:00.005-05:00

Model A Fords to the right of us. . .

Model A Fords to the left of us. . .

Model A Fords all around us. . .
. . . and we were thrilled about it! This gorgeous fleet of 21 Model As from the Tulsa Model A Club paid a late afternoon visit to Afton Station and, as in the past, we welcomed them with open arms. There were approximately 42 people in the group, and their tour leader Ken Brust (shown below with his wife) planned an ambitious 3-day outing for the group, which included visits to the Coleman Theater in Miami, Har-Ber Village in Grove, Darryl Starbird's Museum on Monkey Island, a meal at Waylan's Ku Ku, and of course Afton Station! Thanks so much, folks, for putting us on your schedule. We love it when you visit.
Along with the Model A folks, it was a very, very busy day. We had 37 other visitors (plus a few that slipped past when I was busy), and they came from Joplin MO, Findlay OH, Lawrence KS, Medford OR, Vilonia AR, Columbus OH, Kansas City MO, Long Island NY, and the following towns in Oklahoma -- Ponca City, Stillwater, Jay, Afton, Drumright, Tulsa, and Oklahoma City.

One who slipped away was a guy on a bicycle. He came and went before I could talk to him, but it appears by the flag on his bike in the picture taken by Ron M., that he was from Texas. Sorry to miss hearing his story.
This gentleman from Findlay, OH enjoyed his time behind the wheel of the 1917 motor home. Since we had the big garage door open in that building, there was more light in there in which to admire the older cars and the motor home.

Ron M. was the official photographer today, among all the other help he offers, and Marly was busy down the road removing the gravel from the short stretch of Ribbon Road in front of the new monument. Phil and Robin dropped in, and so did Betty Wheatley. RhondaLee from Kansas City, an old friend of Betty's, came by and I finally got to meet the woman I've talked to on the phone and Facebook but never previously met in person.

Whew, I'm kind of tired. There were more photos taken today, but perhaps I'll have time to post them tomorrow.

Separated at Birth

2011-10-20T16:55:00.005-05:00

We've all heard about siblings separated at birth and then finding each other 40 or more years later, but I never expected to meet anyone to whom this has happened. Today, we were visited by two brothers who found each other recently under just such circumstances. They were traveling together and enjoying each other's company. What a nice story!

Other visitors had nice stories, too, today. It was just Marly and me today, and the morning was absolutely flat. But around noon things turned around and we ended up with 15 visitors, not bad for a Thursday in October. Yesterday, Robin worked and had only 8 people drop in. Today, we hosted folks from Orlando FL, Wilmington NC, New South Wales Australia, and Owasso, Broken Bow, Vinita, Tulsa, Miami, and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Looks like Afton Station will be getting another wonderful iconic Route 66 "art object" in the near future. That's all I can say except that some very generous people are donating it to Afton Station. I'm very excited about this acquisition, but can't let the cat out of the bag just yet. Stay tuned.

We are gearing up for what should turn out to be a very big weekend at the Station. Saturday, for example, we are expecting 25 Model A vehicles to visit. Fun!

Super Slooooooow Day

2011-10-18T17:10:00.005-05:00

Six visitors today -- just six. It was the first really chilly day of the fall here in eastern Oklahoma, and because I flatly refuse to give up my sandals just yet, my toes remained frozen all day.

The day began with a couple from Manhattan, Kansas arriving a little before our official opening time. That was ok, because Marly, Phil, and I were already there. A bit later, this happy family, the Williamsons from Clarksville, Tennessee came to see us, and we really enjoyed their visit.

Later in the day, a rather sad looking gentleman riding a bicycle and pulling a small trailer containing his sleeping equipment as well as, I speculate, all his other worldly goods. He looked around a bit and warmed up before moving on. He said he was originally from Indianapolis, but was vague about his current lodgings. I felt sorry that the chilly nights will no doubt make his travels less comfortable.

The only diversion of the day was watching Marly, Phil, and David wash David's enormous motorhome in the front driveway. He's taking it to Missouri this weekend and wants it to be clean and in good shape after several months of inactivity.

Saturday, November 12 has been set as the date for the dedication of the Ribbon Road monument marker in Afton. Please try to attend. It will be dedicated at 1:00 p.m., followed by refreshments at Afton Station (just a mile away) immediately thereafter. The Oklahoma Route 66 Association will be represented, as well as local officials and everyone we can entice into coming along for the fun.

Miss Dazey and Snortin' Norton

2011-10-16T17:40:00.003-05:00

Memorabilia from the old Campbell 66 Express Co. (which was on Route 66 in Springfield, MO) and their trademark "Snortin' Norton" camel are prized "finds" for every true Route 66 collector. So, you can imagine my surprise and delight when Bruce Crim, a former employee there and a top collector of the memorabilia, came for a visit to Afton Station today. He came with his wife Linda, who until today was only known to me as Miss Dazey on Facebook and Twitter. She has been a faithful reader of this blog for a long time and we've frequently emailed about the blog. They stopped in to meet us in person, and Bruce presented me with a whole bag filled with Campbell 66 goodies! I am thrilled, and I'm already thinking of how I plan to display it in the showroom. Here he is modeling my new Snortin' Norton cap and a piece of advertising memorabilia from the company. There were a lot more goodies in the bag, too. Thank you so much, and it was delightful meeting both of you! Here is Bruce's site explaining the history of the company. Welcome to the New Campbell 66 Express
The first of our 19 visitors today came on this motorcycle which will be on the road for almost 4 months before the couple arrives home to Yacolt, Washington. They're traveling west now on the last leg of their trip, and they plan to do all of Route 66 until they get to California.
We also met this young couple from Bedfordshire, England. They are enjoying their very first Route 66 experience. Here they are chatting with one of our frequent Afton friends.

Others who visited today came from Pontiac IL, Claremore OK, Chelsea OK, Norman OK, Coffeyville KS, and Houston, TX. Friends from Afton, Reuben and Colleen Tipton (also known as the dear folks who give us the most awesome corn every summer) stopped in and they, too, had gifts for me. I now have a neat Route 66 bracelet and a Route 66 magnet which is already at rest on my fridge. Thanks, Tiptons!

I'm putting this picture here despite the fact that I believe I've already done so once or twice. I just want to let you know that the "Welcome to Afton" sign is still broken and the part that says "Afton" is still on the ground. And, we are still wondering when the town is going to take care of this problem. We have been told that it would be "taken care of". We're still waiting, and we're not sure if we'd get in trouble if we took matters into our own hands. Seems to me that a town should be proud to announce itself as people roll in.

The Aussies are Back!

2011-10-15T17:55:00.004-05:00

Very big day at Afton Station today! We visited with 13 visitors, plus a gigantic group of Australians brought to us once again by our favorite tour guide, Dale Butel. The Aussies came in two groups separated by about a half hour, which was fortunate because there were 72 travelers altogether. Being in two groups kept the crowding down, and Marly, Ron M., Tatoo, and I had a better chance to interact with the folks. As I've said several times in the past, Australians are such fun-loving people that I always look forward to seeing them. This time, Dale's group came in both rented cars and motorcycles. Here are a few random photos taken by Ron M.

Our other 13 visitors came from Catoosa OK, Temecula CA, Cologne Germany, Disney OK, Dallas OR, and Garland TX. This lady from Catoosa brought her two adorable doggies, J.J. and Riley. Or, perhaps they brought her. They certainly were leash tuggers! But they were well-behaved and beautifully groomed pups, and little Riley was one of the most "huggable" dogs I've ever met!
Now, for a little something completely off-topic, I introduce to you possibly the most ridiculous kitchen appliance ever put on the market. And yes, I bought one. Look! It's a microwave s'mores maker! I couldn't resist. It brought back such rich memories of gathering with Girl Scouts around the campfire of my youth. Just had to have one. Ron M. and I tried it out last night, and lo-and-behold, it produces decent s'mores. I know you're all jealous, aren't you?
See you tomorrow, when I'll have s'more to tell you. . .

Intrepid Pedalers

2011-10-13T17:05:00.004-05:00

We looked forward to today's visit from these folks, and they finally arrived around 1 p.m. They're from Maryland Hills, MO and Wilmington, DE and they're biking Route 66 in chunks. This year, they've been pedaling from Texas to Miami, OK, so this is their last day on the road after about two weeks. They're pulling two little trailers to haul their tents, sleeping bags, etc. Tattoo Man came to meet them, as did Marly and Phil. After about a half hour, they rode on to Miami. They are an inspiration!

We had 17 guests today, and the rest of them came from La Crosse, WI, as well as the following towns in Oklahoma -- Grove, Sand Springs, Sallisaw, Claremore, and Quapaw.

____________

We are very excited about having been included in a list which is being posted on the Internet naming "Oklahoma's Top Attractions Along Route 66" by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism. There were a mere 13 sites on the list, so we are quite thrilled. See the list at: http://tinyurl.com/3guhc63.

Signs of Progress

2011-10-11T17:56:00.003-05:00

For a long time, I've been dragging my feet on an important Afton Station project -- making identifying signs to put in front of the vintage cars in the showrooms. Well, finally (and many thanks to Marly for doing research), I finished the signs last night and Ron M. and I put them in the frames and placed them at the foot of each car today. It's a long-overdue courtesy for our visitors, since I don't always know the answers to questions about what's under the hood of each cars.
However, this extreme vintage car enthusiast (below), with his family, was first through the door after the signs were in place. And of course, he managed to ask me at least a half dozen questions that I still couldn't answer! Sigh. . .

They were nevertheless an absolutely delightful family (mom, dad, adult son) who came to see us on their motorcycles from Manhattan, Kansas. They certainly brightened our morning and reminded me how much I still need to learn about cylinders, horsepower, superchargers, and other matters automotive.

Meanwhile, Ron M. was busy trying out my brand new camera. It's a little red Nikon Coolpix, and so far I love it. He took this interesting shot of one of the old cars out back with the macro feature. Not bad!
Ron "Tattoo Man" Jones was with us for most of the day, and in the afternoon we had a visit from Dave Emerson from Kansas City KS, publisher of the Route 66 Yellow Pages. Mike Wheat from Pryor OK, a frequent visitor, stopped in and brought me a very cool Blue Swallow cap! We had very pleasant visits with all three. Throughout the day, we only saw 10 visitors. Those not already mentioned were from Kansas City MO, Kimberling City MO, and Lewisville, TX.

Beer and Potpourri

2011-10-09T17:14:00.003-05:00

I keep forgetting to mention this. Not everyone who comes to Afton Station comes to look around the museum or buy a guidebook. Some come in for other reasons, usually misinformed as to what kind of a place we are. We frequently help lost people seeking directions. Sometimes indigent folks come in asking if they can bum a cigarette or, if they're lucky enough to find a butt in a gutter somewhere, they ask for a light. Occasionally people will pull up to the pumps and come in to ask us to fill 'er up. (Most are kidding, but a surprising number aren't!). We are also often mistaken for a flea market, a used car dealership, or a restaurant. We were also once mistaken for City Hall!

But the strangest request we've ever had occurred a few days ago, when a shabbily dressed gentleman stuck his head in the door and said, "Do you sell beer and potpourri?" Now there's a combination!

Anyway, back to the events of today. I must say, there weren't many. It was a slow day with a mere 10 visitors. They came from Vermillion SD, Noel MO, Oregon IL, Grove OK, and Tulsa OK. The visitor from Tulsa was Don Wagner, author of "Route 66: The Oklahoma Experience" which I sell at the shop. It was nice to visit with Don and his wife again.

We unpacked the new ball caps that Kathy Anderson brought to us yesterday. They're nice. Here's a blurred photo (oops!) of Ron M. modeling one. We have them in both baseball and golf style.

Ron had a sudden transformation moments after he put the hat on his head. If you buy one, I'm pretty sure it won't happen to you.

Here's an unretouched photo of this morning's sky.

Apology

2011-10-08T18:16:00.001-05:00

My blog seems to have taken on a life of its own. I apologize if it looks weird. I have no idea how to fix it, and I'm not aware that I've done anything to make it look this way. Maybe it will correct itself. It's done so in the past. Sorry.

Today and Yesterday

2011-10-08T17:29:00.007-05:00

Today was so busy at Afton Station that the time went as fast as the wind. From the very beginning, talking to a local gentleman who is as disturbed as we are by the heaping of gravel all over the historic Sidewalk Highway to an always welcome visit from friend Kathy Anderson (who brought more shirts and some nifty ball caps for us to sell), the day was varied and productive.
First in the door this morning was this couple from Shorewood, WI. . .
. . . followed by this family from Devon, England with two adorable little boys. They're traveling all of Route 66 in a rented motor home, which makes it easier when there are two kids of napping age to contend with. The children were beautifully behaved.Rick Thompson and Richard Fox from Cimarron Photography and Design in Oklahoma City came to take photos of the Station and to interview me for their upcoming DVD about Route 66. They stayed a long time, much to our pleasure. These are delightful men and I look forward to seeing their DVD. Meanwhile, examples of their creativity can be seen here. http://www.cimarronphoto.com/.

The rest of today's 22 visitors hailed from Festus MO, Pittsburgh PA, Buffalo NY, Caledonia MI, and Portland OR.

On the way home, Ron M. and I stopped at the Blue Whale to pick up some brochures. We talked to "Mr. Blue Whale" Blaine Davis for a few minutes, and all of a sudden the day was over. Where did the time go?

____________

A quick note and some photos of last night, when Ron M. and I attended Michael Wallis's birthday party in the garden of his home in the Sophian Plaza. I wouldn't ordinarily report on a private party, but since so many of you know Michael, either personally or by reputation, I thought you might like to see the pics. The theme was Michael's turning 66, a big milestone for "Mr. Route 66". A good time was had by all. It was also fun to catch up with Pat and Larry Wofford, formerly of Route 66 Harley Davidson, and truly enjoyed the balmy night, good food, and great company.

Cranky and Grouchy. . .

2011-10-06T17:02:00.005-05:00

. . . are not two of the 7 Dwarfs. They kind of describe me today. Yesterday, while I was sitting in the dialysis chair in Tulsa, 27 people from all over the world visited Afton Station. Robin, Marly, and Phil reported that it was a tremendous day. Today, I arrived at 8:30 and had my first -- and almost last -- visitors by 9 a.m. They were a cute young German couple, and it was worth opening up just for them. Even so. . .

I am anything but a violent person, but today I felt like hurling rocks through the windshields of all the cars that slowed down to take pictures of the Station but didn't come in. I've been told repeatedly that this is a good thing, or at least better than nothing, but I still can't stop wanting people to come in for a visit. After all, we're a "Visitors' " Center, not a "Slow Down and Take a Picture" center. So I guess that's why I'm grumpy.

Betty came by and brought a strawberry cake for Marly. Later, Marly arrived and we both had a piece of the cake. Delicious! Fresh strawberries! Ok, I'm starting to feel better.

____________

I'm home now and happy to report that three people came in just before closing -- a fellow from Chelsea (OK) and a couple from Tulsa. The Tulsa folks were quite versed in Packards, so they appreciated the collection and I enjoyed their visit.

I got to Afton early this morning and took a short trip on an old farm road. I've always liked this barn.

Oh, and we had another pretty sunrise today, too.

Pretty Pictures

2011-10-04T17:48:00.005-05:00

Pretty cars and a cute kid! What more could one want! First, meet Ellie -- for the second time. Ellie and her parents first visited when Ellie was only 3 months old, our youngest visitor ever. They returned today with a walking, talking version of Ellie, now almost 2 years old. Now Ellie is running around, curious about everything, and declaring that just about everything in the shop is "mine!" The family is from Pottsboro, Texas.
Now, how about some pretty cars. David brought out the '36 Packard, all shined up by Phil and looking awesome, so he could take some folks for a ride tonight. Here it is, with Ron M. doing the admiring.Some folks from the beautiful town of Beaufort, SC came for a visit in their equally lovely Hudson. Sharp car, but. . .

. . . I'm just a bit worried about what they're carrying around in their trunk!
Two couples from Sweden visited early this morning. They came from the towns of Sjogesta and Lagerhyddsgatan. Pronounce those if you dare! The folks were enjoyable visitors who showed an interest in all things Route 66. Here are the Swedish ladies looking through my many boxes of old postcards for sale.
We had 23 visitors altogether, and besides those showcased above, they came from Simi CA, Woodland Hills CA, Vale SD, Waxahachee TX, Hammond IN, Claremore OK, Miami OK, and Terre Haute, IN. It was a busy and productive day.

Drowning in Sweatshirts

2011-10-02T17:06:00.003-05:00

Ron M. and I decided to organize our sweatshirt inventory by size and attempt to put them all out so potential buyers can more easily find the sizes they want. Since we usually have fewer visitors on Sunday morning, it seemed like the best time for this task. Well, making piles of the sweatshirts all over the room was all that it took to bring visitors in abundance. (We will have to try that trick more often!) While wading through the sweatshirts, we managed to visit with folks from Las Vegas NV, Weiser ID, Bedfordshire UK, and Nashville IL.

All of them were fun to talk to, and all were appreciative of what we have here at Afton Station. And sales were really great today, too! These sisters from Las Vegas (left) and Weiser, ID (right) grew up in Afton and went to Afton schools. They didn't stay here as adults, but they remembered how they would watch the hobos jump on and off the freight trains as they rumbled past their trackside home when they were kids. Their dad owned the local plumbing company back when Afton was a much busier place.
This couple from the United Kingdom have embarked on a full Route 66 trip. The gentleman in the background and his wife were here from Nashville, IL and are only driving Route 66 partially on this trip. Ron "Tattoo Man" Jones was there at the time and everyone was fascinated by his 101 Route 66 tattoos. Yes, he keeps getting them, and we are pretty sure he's going to run out of body space soon (or at least any space that he's willing to bare to the public....). Here he is showing off some of the new ones.
By the end of the day, we had reorganized the heaps of sweatshirts. You should really come in and have a look. They're very nice, thick fabric, black with two different patterns. And I have all of them on clearance sale for just $22! Marly came in and finished up the research for signs we plan to put in the auto showroom to impart a little information about each car. (I'm getting tired of being asked questions about horsepower and number of cylinders -- both questions I usually can't answer.) Betty W. came in to spend a little time with us, too! Toward the end of the day we also had visitors from Grove and Afton. Good weekend!

Reminders of My Past

2011-10-01T17:59:00.002-05:00

For a while this morning, I thought I might have more "regulars" at Afton Station than travelers today. Ron M., Marly, Phil, and Robin all spent most of the day there, and there was quite a bit of time to sit around and chew the fat while waiting for visitors. Eventually things started to get more lively.

Of the 14 visitors, three brought me memories of places I used to live. These two gentlemen grew up in North Tonawanda, NY, the town where I did my one year of public school teaching. It was there that I realized that dealing with 7th and 8th grade remedial students wasn't my cup of tea. The kids got the best of me and I hung up my teaching hat. Nevertheless, the days when we lived in Buffalo and I taught in the suburb were some of the happiest of my young life. And these two gentlemen, who live elsewhere now, were happy reminders of those days.

Earlier in the day, I made the acquaintance of a lively and fun woman from Hauppauge, Long Island, NY. If you looked across Long Island Sound from the beach of my previous home town of Darien, CT you could almost see Hauppauge. The lady, Genay, expressed an interest in leaving the East Coast and moving permanently to our part of the country, possibly even Afton itself. She wants to have enough land to raise horses, and to be away from the traffic and madness of the NYC metro area. I can relate! I hope she makes the move.

Other visitors came from Detroit MI, Youngsville NC, Mount Clemens MI, Eastpointe MI, Sand Springs OK, Cave Creek AZ, Seneca OK, and Barcelona Spain.

Recently, an artist/photographer named Bob Davis presented us with this "altered photograph" showing Afton Station as it might have looked in the '50s. Starting with a photo, he adds, subtracts, and rearranges things to capture the feel of a previous decade. We like it very much and intend to get it framed soon. More of his work can be seen at www.locustgrovestudio.com.

Good morning, Sunshine!

2011-09-29T17:03:00.003-05:00

I hope nobody is getting tired of my sunrise shots. I'm sorry. I just can't resist a tremendous sunrise. This morning's wasn't particularly unique, but watching that big golden ball rise over Route 66 never fails to thrill me. I love mornings!
I arrived at Afton Station very early today -- 8 a.m. to be exact. Most of "the gang" was here at some point during the day. Ron M. was not, since he had a dental appointment. However Marly, Phil, Betty, and Tattoo Man all stopped in. Phil is polishing the '36 Packard to within an inch of it's life. It looks WONDERFUL! Tattoo Man had a wreck in one of his PT Cruisers and since it was totaled, he's shopping for something new. Never fear, Tattoo was not hurt at all.

Visitors today came from Higginsville MO, Blacksburg VA, Huntsville AR, LaPlaya TX, Springfield MO, Oslo Norway, and Miami, OK.

This is Larry from the Miami (OK) Convention and Visitors Bureau. He came in to pick up some trip guides that were left with me, and in return he left a whole box of his town's guidebook and several other pieces of literature. What a nice guy, with the perfect personality to meet and greet visitors to Miami.

I think that visits from travelers may be starting to wind down a little bit. I hate not having more visitors, but to be honest, I do look forward to taking a day off now and then to do some local exploring. I'll stay open 7 days a week until the end of October, then may cut back on hours.

Hello, Beautiful Day!

2011-09-27T17:00:00.002-05:00

Indeed, the sunrise greeted me in a lovely way as I drove to Afton this morning. It seems that sunrises over Route 66 are beautiful more days than not. Or maybe it's just my rosy attitude. I'm on Route 66! I'm heading to Afton! What could be nicer?

It was a very quiet day at Afton Station. Tattoo Man came in early to pick up the camera he'd forgotten on Saturday and I took the opportunity to photograph his newest tattoo of the sign at the about-to-be-restored Boots Motel in Carthage, MO.

Marly and Phil were with me for most of the day, too. Visitors were quite sparse, however. Early in the morning we were visited by two couples from Volkel, The Netherlands. Later a couple from Camano Island, Washington dropped in. After a long dry spell of a couple of hours, near closing Betty W. came for a visit and, finally, a gentleman from Joplin MO arrived on a motorcycle. And that wraps up my whole day. Short but sweet!

Serendipity

2011-09-25T18:01:00.003-05:00

Oh dear, I find myself rushing again! I just finished a long phone chat with my daughter, so I can't think of a better way to get behind schedule. :-)

It was a serendipitous day at Afton Station. Ron M. was with me again as was Ron "Tattoo Man" Jones, and the 29 visitors started to arrive almost as soon as we did. This pup named Gabby from Oklahoma City is doing a short OK Route 66 trip accompanied by his person, a very nice man. Although Gabby is obviously good at posing for pictures, he wasn't as serene as a visitor. He got so overly excited that eventually his owner had to take him back to the car. Cute doggie!

This fellow from Cape Town, South Africa is traversing Route 66 on his motorcycle -- very distinguished gentleman with a lot of thoughtful commentary on his journey thus far.
Friend and photographer Michael Scruggs dropped in with his mandolin and his banjo. He tried to encourage me to play, but I failed miserably. There are a few photos of me trying out my musical non-talent, but the pictures of me are as bad as my playing so you won't be seeing them. Michael also regaled us with stories about his job, as "pastor" at a walk-in wedding chapel down the road in Miami, OK. I think I've decided what my next job should be!
Other visitors came from Aukland, New Zealand, Ava MO, Kansas City MO, Ft. Scott KS, Pleasanton KS, Granby MO, Allen TX, Joplin MO, and Carl Junction MO. The expected group from the Czech Republic never arrived. I wonder what happened to them???

And then. . .

2011-09-24T18:20:00.006-05:00

Ron M. and I arrived at Afton Station at the usual time. And then. . .

Phil and Robin arrived. Robin helped us greet visitors for several hours while Phil stayed in the back and spit polished a motorcycle. And then. . .. . . our friend Kathy Anderson came for a visit from Edmond, OK and brought with her another batch of t-shirts and sweatshirts for us to sell.
These shirts are hard to keep in stock. The price is right ($22 for heavy sweatshirts and $10 for nice tshirts). And then. . .. . . this little boy from Afton brought his mom and sister over from their home just a few blocks away to hang out for a while. And then. . .. . . repeat visitors Bill and son Chandler dropped in. They're such great guests that this is the second time I've featured them with a photo here on the blog. And then. . .

. . . David brought back two of the cars that were in a parade today. There are three more that haven't been returned yet, so the showrooms looked a little bare today. And then. . .

. . . Betty W. came and sat with us for a while. And then. . .

. . . several more travelers came to visit. They were from Prairie Grove AR, Lincoln AR, and Broken Arrow, OK. And then. . .

. . . on the way out of town we drove down to the Afton Town Hall to see how the voting was going. Voting? On Saturday? Yes, the Cherokee Tribe is re-voting for Tribal Chief today after a recent much-disputed election that was too close to call. With so many Cherokees (and other tribes) present in Oklahoma, choosing their leaders is a big deal. Today was voting day, and I look forward to finding out the results. And then. . .

. . . we drove down to the Ribbon Road (9 Ft. Highway) to check on the word that the county is dumping gravel all over it. The word was true. They are. I'm just sick about it, but will speak to the OK State Historic Preservation officer early next week.

Whew, I'm tired. Time to rest for a few hours before leaving for Afton again tomorrow morning.

Mostly Methodists

2011-09-22T17:31:00.006-05:00

I have so much to do and so little time to do it. A couple of times a year I begin to feel completely overwhelmed. I think I'm getting there right about now. But you guys don't need to hear my troubles. Just understand that if my blog posts are a bit skimpy and filled with typos for the next week or two, there are good reasons behind it. (Not that there are ever good excuses for typos, but well. . .)

Afton Station today was filled with Methodists! A bus from Claremore brought 22 senior citizens to our door mid-morning. They were on a "mystery tour". They had no idea where they were going when they boarded the bus, but they put their trust in their fearless leader, Ahnawake (which means "bright eyes" in Cherokee). Here she is.I found that herding Methodists for the purpose of taking a picture of them is akin to herding cats. After a bit of a struggle, I managed to get most of them in two photos, although it was impossible to get most of the men out of the car showrooms for something as mundane as photography. Here are those who agreed to pose. I believe they all had a good time. Many told me stories from their childhoods, and several complimented the cars. After their visit, they headed for a "mystery" lunch in Vinita. (Their leader whispered to me that the venue would be Clanton's.)

We had other visitors too, of course. They came from Palestine TX, Battle Creek MI, Owenton KY, Horse Creek OK, and Dunlop Ayrshire Scotland. Here are the folks from Palestine. They'll be ending their Route 66 trip in Oklahoma City and doing the western half another time.

Phil is about to begin on the large billboards he's painting for Afton Station. I must go and make him some font stencils. See you on Saturday!

Yesterday. . .

2011-09-20T17:11:00.005-05:00

. . . was a very busy day at Afton Station. Robin had a crowd on her hands, and I wasn't there to help. She does a great job, however, and I have every confidence in her. Acccording to the notes she left, she had 41 visitors, including folks from France, Holland, Germany, Australia, England, New Hampshire, Texas, Florida, and Illinois.

Today was a bit quieter, but I didn't mind at all. I've been dealing with a few little problems, the kind that take a lot more trouble to fix than they're really worth. For example, on Sunday a truck kicked up a pebble on my windshield, causing a lovely crack in my less-than-year-old window. The fixer came to Afton today to repair it, but the replacement windshield he brought wasn't quite right, so it's back to the drawing board. In the meantime, the crack keeps traveling across the windshield and is now about 16 inches long. Hopefully, it will be fixed on Thursday.

On the home front, the battery on the smoke detector on my cathedral ceilinged bedroom died last Thursday. I've been sleeping with ear-splitting BEEPS every 35 seconds for 4 nights. Finally yesterday I was able to hire a handyman with an extra long ladder to take care of the problem. Ahhh, uninterrupted sleep again!

But enough about my little difficulties. . . Today there were 21 visitors taking advantage of one of the finest days we've had in this part of the country in months. Sunny and cool with a chance of smiles! Travelers who visited were from Coon Valley WI, Cedar Vale KS, Faucett MO, Grove OK, Fairland OK, and Kinna Sweden and Brussels Belgium.

Although the Swedish contingent was doing its mother roading in a rented SUV, their major passion back home is restoring and riding antique Honda motorcycles. They came armed with some beautiful photos of their rides with equally lovely landscapes in the background.

These young Belgian couples were doing part of Route 66 during a loop beginning and ending in Dallas, TX.

The security guy came today to fix whatever is making the alarm go off so often with no provocation. When I finally left tonight, he and David were still at the Station trying to work out the problem.

This photo doesn't have much to do with anything, but I had to snap a pic of the gaggle of roofers on top of the Holiday Inn when I went past on my way to Afton this morning.

Letters, We Get Letters. . .

2011-09-19T13:52:00.003-05:00

Thank you for responding to my request for information on why in the world you bother to read my blog frequently. Most of the responses can be read in the Comments section of my last post, but here's one that was sent snail mail. I think it's representative of what most of you said, i.e. you read the blog because you love Route 66 and find it enjoyable to know what we do on the Mother Road on a day-to-day basis.

"I read your blog first thing in the mornings before I start my day at work. My husband and I have only traveled Route 66 once, but what a trip! I love the nostalgia that the Mother Road presents and love reading your blog as to what goes on daily in a real Route 66 town and the many visitors you have. I think here is the true spirit of America, the small towns and its' people. I appreciate your traveling as far as you do each day to Afton Station, allowing the roadies of Route 66 a glimpse of the Mother Road."

This one gave me a big smile since it comes from Saudi Arabia. Nobody should dare think that love of Route 66 isn't an international disease!

"I found your blog through a link on Ron McCoy's Antique & Collecting newsletter. I live in Saudi Arabia, and there's not much to do so I check my favorite blogs daily. My father went to school briefly in Afton, and my parents live in the very NE corner of Oklahoma now. I want to visit your museum next summer when I visit them."

I'll publish more of these thoughts as they come in. Thanks to all. See you tomorrow!

A Trip to Commerce

2011-09-18T17:42:00.006-05:00

With no visitors until about noon, Ron M. and I were starting to wonder if we had done something to offend the world. The famine was broken when these 4 Swiss citizens (from a town named Domdidier) stopped in. With the help of the one in the group who spoke English about as well as I speak French (not very!), I managed to find out that they're heading to Las Vegas, doing Route 66 the whole way but skipping most of California.

Next came a couple from Henderson, Tennessee. We first noticed the desert water bag on the front of their car. Upon chatting with them, we found out that they've been on the road for 6 1/2 weeks and are heading home. He's had the water bag since the '60s and they actually used in in the desert on this trip!

After greeting a few more guests -- from Moore, Vinita, and Broken Arrow, OK -- we decided to close up early and do some investigation. It seems that a visitor yesterday informed us that Mickey Mantle's boyhood home in Commerce (about 20 miles from Afton) had been moved and was sitting on blocks near the center of the town. He even showed us pictures of the house in its new location. We were a little dumbfounded because we hadn't heard a thing about this major development. So. . . off we went to Commerce to see what we could find out.

We found the house on blocks right where the visitor had told us it was. It didn't look quite right, so we proceeded to the place where Mickey's house has always stood. It's still there! I'm not sure how the gentleman's signals got crossed, but he said a person in Commerce gave him the information. I'm so glad we checked.

Here's the house on blocks. . .

. . .and here's Mickey's house at 319 S. Quincy St. It could use a little uplift, but at least it still sits where it belongs. . . for now, at least. If anyone has heard anything about this, please let us know.For quite some time, I've wondered who are the folks who are regular (daily or almost daily) readers of this blog. No special reason, just curiosity. So, if you'd drop me an email (LaurelRK66@aol.com) or put a comment right here on the blog telling me who you are and why you're interested in our daily hijinx at the Station, I'd sure appreciate it!

One out of two ain't bad (I guess). . .

2011-09-17T18:10:00.005-05:00

Only one of the two anticipated tour groups showed up today at Afton Station, but there were plenty of other visitors who did drop in. Our visiting group was a caravan of 17 vintage cars and hot rods from the Heartbeat of the Ozarks Classic Car Club from Northwest Arkansas. They braved strong thunderstorms, tons of lightning, and torrential rain to get there, and for that I applaud them. It's good to see folks with such nice cars not getting upset about driving in inclement weather. Good for you, guys!

Love this bit of car humor!

One of the Arkansas shoppers.

The second anticipated group was a bit "iffy" right from the start. We waited until after 3:30 but the busload of 70+ British tourists never arrived. We had only been alerted to their visit this morning, but I asked them to call if they'd be arriving later than 3, which they didn't. They may have been delayed by the storms. I was remiss in not getting their contact phone number so I could track their progress. I'm so sorry we missed them.

The rest of our visitors came from Turin Italy, Norfolk Engand, Vinita OK, Bentonville AR, Bartlesville OK, Roland IA, Pryor OK, and Hudson MA.

Ron M. and Marly were with me all day (in fact, Ron took all the above photos), and Phil and Robin dropped in for a while. We are all thrilled by the rain and cooler temperatures. At last! Even our flooded streets didn't bother us. By the end of the day, the sun had come out and the water had receded.

Birthdays and a Shiny Floor

2011-09-15T17:53:00.003-05:00

Upon arrival at Afton Station, Ron M. and I were blinded by light emanating from our reflections on the newly stripped and waxed floor. My incredible friends and helpers -- Marly, Robin, and Phil -- stayed very late last night to make the formerly filthy floor of the showroom shine like the top of the Chrysler Building. Marly actually stayed until 2:30 a.m. to finish the job. Our first order of business this morning, then, was to return everything that had been relocated to the back room for the wax job to their original places. That, of course, led to the desire to weed out a lot of the junk I don't need any more, rehang some pictures, etc. etc. It was a busy morning.

We did, however, stop long enough to celebrate the birthdays of Betty W. and Ron "Tattoo Man" Jones (or what's left of him after several weeks of a rigid diet). We had smily-face cookies instead of cake this time, and NO singing was done. Happy Birthday to these two awesome folks!

Here's a picture of the painting I mentioned on Tuesday, done by Jon Edwards and presented to me as a gift. It's an awfully nice painting from an extremely talented friend.

Among our 17 visitors today were these lovely folks hailing from New Brunswick, Canada. Although they're driving Route 66 on this trip, they told us about their several LONG walking trips in France and Spain, 600 miles each. I suggested they try walking Route 66 some day. I know they'd enjoy it and have absolutely no problem doing it.
Another group of jolly Aussies came in toward the end of the day. They're from Sydney and, like every Australian I've ever met, were having a great time and exuding friendly smiles. Other folks came from Knoxville TN, Mineral Wells TX, Nampa ID, Tulsa OK, and Bozman MD, fine folks all!

This is NOT one of today's visitors, thank goodness! Instead he is our first Halloween decoration, provided by Robin and Phil. I hope he doesn't scare too many people away! BOO!

The Monument

2011-09-13T17:25:00.004-05:00

TA DAA!!!!!
The Ribbon Road Monument! It's here! It's in the ground! All one thousand pounds of it! There's still a lot to be done on the site, but I'm feeling I can breathe a little easier now that we have full cooperation from the town and the county, and Marly was successful in bringing it "home" in one piece from the stone yard on the other side of the state. This morning when I arrived in Afton at 8:30 a.m., the county guys were already hard at work installing the monument and leveling land for the parking area. The site should be finished (or almost) within a week or two.

There was another really nice gift given to Afton Station today. My friend Jon Edwards from Tahlequah drove up on his motorcycle with a rather large package strapped to his bike. He's an artist, and he surprised me with a lovely oil painting of Afton Station! What a great gift! Sometimes I just feel so fortunate to have come to Oklahoma, opened Afton Station, and met so many wonderful people as a result. I'm so psyched today! A photo of the painting will be posted on my Thursday blog.

Again, it wasn't a tremendously busy day at Afton Station, but it wasn't bad! The visitors who came calling hailed from Dulle Switzerland, Vinita OK, Tahlequah OK, Hood River OR, Edgewood MO, Perth Australia, Grove OK, and Ventura, CA. Actually, the two young folks from Ventura are in the process of moving from Atlanta to California, having just been married. They're on their Route 66 honeymoon, so of course I snapped their picture. It's been fun to have so many honeymooning visitors this year.

Oktoberfest!

2011-09-12T14:56:00.002-05:00

I've been asked by the fine folks at 4 Women on the Route in Galena, Kansas to announce a fundraiser the town of Galena will be having on Oct. 8. Money raised will go toward restoration of some buildings on Route 66. Sounds like fun -- Music, Dancing, Much More.

Saturday, October 8, 2011
10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Pappy Litch Park
Galena, Kansas

More details later!

Moving On

2011-09-11T17:15:00.010-05:00

9/11 is not something I will not soon forget. I was involved with the World Trade Center in a number of ways, and engraved in my mind is the view I saw a couple of days after the tragedy, when I returned to Connecticut, drove down to our town beach to look across the water and see the smoke rising from where the World Trade Center was once visible in the far distance on a clear day. My husband worked at the WTC sometimes, but we happened to be in Oklahoma on 9/11, starting on our restoration of Afton Station.

It's 10 years later now, and for the purpose of this blog, I choose to move on.
New buildings at WTC site
_________________

It was a fairly ordinary day at the Station. Ron M. was with me, and we had just 13 guests. They came from Logan OH, Jerseyville IL, Tucumcari NM, Springfield IL, Lansing IL, Jacksonville FL, and Vinita, OK.

These two folks from Tucumcari, NM were quite interesting. He has a large collection of vintage cars which can be seen in a big fenced-in area in the city. He said that if anyone wants to view his collection, go to the Blue Swallow Motel. His place is on a side street directly across from the Blue Swallow.

This photo is from David Wickline's "Images I". It shows the building in which the above gentleman was raised. His dad was blind, but also ran a service station and small store in this building. The family lived in the rear. Wickline says, "The old Newkirk post office (1910) is located on old Route 66 in Newkirk NM. The building was a gas station and store that also offered early 66 travelers a place to camp". My visitor gave me some details of how the building looked before it became a ruin. Very interesting!

A couple of our regular visitors, Michael Scruggs and P.J., also stopped by. Ron and I were able to sit outside today, for the first time this summer. With luck, the cooler weather will be here to stay.

Super Duper Day!

2011-09-10T17:27:00.006-05:00

Once again, it was a busy and varied day, and I have a lot to report. Afton Station is really buzzing these days.

Guest of honor today was my friend and extreme Route 66 collector Steve Rider from Albany, NY. He flew in to attend the Missouri Motor Tour, but left it for the morning in order to drive down to Afton for a visit, his first since quite a few years ago when we were still restoring the Station. He got to see the finished product, and also the Bob Waldmire mural he gave me recently. So very good to see Steve!

We also visited with six riders from the Claremore Gold Wing group. Here are a couple of their snazzy machines.

In my ongoing attempt to photograph all honeymoon couples who visit, here are two lovebirds from Brussels, Belgium. She's actually from Italy, but they'll be living their married life in Brussels. Congratulations to these cute kids!

Here's Don Wagner and his companion. Don wrote and photographed the lovely book entitled Route 66: The Oklahoma Experience, which I'll be selling at Afton Station beginning tomorrow. It's a bargain at $16 because it's filled with great pictures of important places on the Mother Road in our state. He also wrote a book called Route 66: The Tulsa Experience, a companion to the Oklahoma book.

Along with these folks, we also had visits from travelers from League City TX, Bartlesville OK, Ventura CA, Paris France, Billings MT, San Diego CA, Urbana IL, Joplin MO, Gotheberg Sweden, and Hanover Germany.

Here's the first peek at the monument that will be guiding the way to the Sidewalk Highway as soon as it's in the ground. Marly drove to the other side of the state to pick it up yesterday and brought it "home" successfully. It's still strapped down in the trailer and will remain there until it's time to put it in the ground. Please note that it says "Erected 2010". That reflects the ridiculously long time it took to get permission to erect it! But. . . better late than never!The Golden Driller, that 76 ft. tall statue of an oil field worker that stands in Tulsa, has been turned into a Scotsman for the upcoming Scottish Games. The world's largest kilt (or so they think) has been added to the statue. Ron M. and I snapped this pic on the way to Afton early this morning. (That's a boatload of tartan plaid! Glad I wasn't the seamstress!)

Bits and Pieces

2011-09-08T17:40:00.003-05:00

I drove into the beautiful sunrise on my way to Afton today. So many sunrises are breathtaking in this land of big skies. I never fail to be moved by them.

To most people, this will look like a boring photo of scraped earth. To others (such as me) it is nothing short of wonderful. This is the site of the upcoming installation of the Sidewalk Highway monument that we've been awaiting for close to two years. It's been held up by red tape, but today the guys from Ottawa County started to prepare the land, and Marly has driven across the state (350 miles) to pick up the monument and drive it back to Afton tomorrow. Ottawa Co. says we should have it planted in the ground in less than a week! The entire site won't be done by then however, since the OK Dept. of Transportation is responsible for some elements, and they're notoriously slow. But we should soon be ready to have a big celebration and I, for one, can't wait!
When I left Afton Station this afternoon, Phil was still there with a room full of visitors. He called me about an hour later, when I was about half way home, and said he still had people coming in the door. He's awfully nice to hang in there when I have to leave to drive back to Tulsa.

While I was there, we had 22 visitors. A good number of them were Europeans, from Wellington UK, Glasgow Scotland, Mnetenp Netherlands, Weisbaden Germany, and Barcelona Spain. Here's a couple from the U.K. who arrived as early this morning as I did! I certainly enjoyed their early morning enthusiasm and conversation!

The domestic visitors came from Greeley CO, Yulee FL, and Claremore, Drumright, Tulsa, and Afton, OK.

Afton "old timer", 86-year-old Melvin Berks, stops in every now and then and always has some great stories to tell. Today's offering was actually rather shocking. I knew that Afton Station once served as a bus station for the town, but I didn't know that one of it's functions was the place where young pregnant girls from all over the state would come in order to pay visits to a well-known abortion doctor who lived nearby. The girls (often as many as 5 a day) would take the bus to Afton and then be transported via taxi to the doctor's office. Melvin's mother happened to be the taxi driver. Interesting, indeed.

Melvin also told me that a small stretch of original Route 66 near the Sidewalk Highway used to go across his land, very close to his house. Vestiges of it are still visible there. In order to make his driveway, he broke up a stretch of it, and the pieces of concrete were used to face a couple of buildings in town. The old post office building is one of them.
Say goodbye to the little building on the curve at Dead Man's Corner, also known as 5 Mile Corner by Afton residents. It was once Chubby's Bar and later a flea market. The two country boys who now own it plan to tear down what's left of it. A plaque in the floor indicates it was built in 1948. They have lived in the house behind it for months, with no electricity or running water until just a week ago. They intend to improve the look of the land, but I'm sorry to see the old building fall.

Groovy Tuesday (or: My Camera Picked a Fine Day to Quit)

2011-09-06T17:20:00.003-05:00

Today we set a new "personal best" at Afton Station, with a grand total of 95 (!) visitors! I was basically alone facing the crowd today. David and Marly were there, but they were in the back working on a vehicle. The day began with a visit from 50 motorcycle riders in Rodger Fox's annual Run for the Relay. They ride Route 66 each year in support of cancer research. The group continues to grow annually, and they come to see us every year. They're a friendly group with some fine rigs, so of course this was when my camera decided to sit down on the job. By good fortune and total serendipity, frequent visitor and friend P.J. just happened to show up with his video camera and tripod, and moments ago he sent me this great video of the occasion.

A group of 22 New Zealanders driving Mustang convertibles were next, a pleasant surprise. I love the Kiwis. It seems like every day is a party for them.

There were also the 23 other visitors not with groups. They came from Broomfield CO, Pryor OK, Las Vegas NV, Fern Creek KY, St. Charles MO, Blue Ash OH, San Antonio TX, Neptune NJ, Lincoln AR, Ft. Scott KS, Union NJ, Deptford NJ, and Fairland OK. Dean "Crazy Legs" Walker also visited for a while. He was accompanying the Ride for the Relay folks.

Here are a couple of photos I took before my camera imploded. This is my one picture of some of the participants in the Ride for the Relay.

The shaved ice stand next to Afton Station is now "Closed for the Season". It's barely been open at all this summer. That doesn't sound like much of a business plan to me. I had hoped for a summer of yummy sno cones and an increase in visitors because of shared customers. Never happened.

My friend Frank Gierhart from Sapulpa, OK surprised me with a great gift. He owns a frame shop, and on Sunday he brought me this beautifully framed copy of the article about me that appeared in the Tulsa World last week. What an extraordinary surprise gift! Thank you, Frank!

. . . and something I forgot to mention. . .

2011-09-05T14:48:00.003-05:00

Ive been meaning to call your attention to a nice article about Afton and Afton Station in the Sept/Oct edition of the online magazine "Route 66: The Mother Road".

http://www.66themotherroad.com/

Get yourself to pages 18-19-20 and check it out.

________________

I just got the information from Marly, who is working the Station today, that a big group of car enthusiasts, Great PlainZ Modern Mopars of Oklahoma, stopped by this morning. They have a wonderful day for a cruise. It's sunny and cool. Glorious!

Labor Day Musings

2011-09-05T14:04:00.003-05:00

Happy Labor Day to all! Life itself is a labor of love. Preservation is a labor of love. Promoting Route 66 is a labor of love. A special thanks to all who love to labor.

I'm not in Afton today, but I have a few things to show you. First, here's an image of the blotter advertising Tumlin's Trading Post in Afton that was given to me by a friend recently. I'm not having much luck finding anyone in Afton who remembers the establishment. If anyone has a clue, let me know.

My scanner has decided to start working again (apparently it thought yesterday was Labor Day and took the day off), so here's a better image of the same photo I posted yesterday. The gentleman is Wilton Cunningham and the photo was taken shortly after WW I. That's about all I know about it, but I'm thrilled that the streets are still dirt and that a ferris wheel is being erected (or dismantled) right on Main Street!

Now, here are four really great short time-lapse videos taken by Brad Nickson at Saturday's Afton Clean Up Day with his brand new time-lapse camera. What fun! Wish I had one of those cameras myself! http://tinyurl.com/AftonCleanUpTimeLapse They're each only about a half minute long. I particularly like the one taken by setting the camera on that discarded 8-burner commercial stove that's sitting across the street from Afton Station. We couldn't haul the stove away on Clean Up Day because ownership (if any) is uncertain, and we didn't want to step on any citizen's toes. On Saturday, it made a fine tripod.

Cool and Quiet!

2011-09-04T18:16:00.002-05:00

Cool and Quiet. The watchwords for the day. The temperature allowed us to operate sans air conditioning ALL DAY, for the first time this summer. So, there was no infuriating and constand buzz of the a/c. And, compared to yesterday, it was a quiet day in regard to visitors, too. Oh, we had plenty, but it was a far cry from the pandemonium of yesterday's Clean Up occasion.

Our visitors came from Wusterhof Germany, Tulsa OK, Capetown South Africa, Joplin MO, Sapulpa OK, Muskogee OK, Kalamazoo MI, and St. Regis Park MN.

The visitors from Joplin grew up in Afton and happened to have this photo with them, which they gave to me. (My scanner is being stubborn, so this is a photo of a photo. I'll show a better one when I get my scanner working.) Here's a gentleman named Wilton Cunningham, shortly after WW I, standing near the corner of 1st St. (Route 66 prior to it being Route 66) and Main St. in Afton. He's the grandfather of the visitors from Joplin. I love this photo, which shows Livingston's Dry Goods, the pool hall and the bank, all of which no longer exist. The street is dirt. And look! A ferris wheel! At one time, Afton apparently had a carnival come to town. This photo is so wonderful!
These folks from Muskogee were roaming around Route 66 for the long weekend. The boys made a beeline for the squashed penny machine, as kids so often do.
Joe, the dialysis technician who cares for me, and his wife came for a short visit. It's always fun to have Joe visit. Betty W. also spent part of the morning with us. Frank Gierhart from Sapulpa, a member of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association also visited and brought me an incredibly thoughtful gift. . . a beautifully framed copy of the article about me which was published in last Sunday's Tulsa World newspaper. Thank you so much, Frank! And of course, Ron M. was there, totally helpful as usual.

If anyone reading this has ever heard of Tumlin's Trading Post, which once did business in Afton (probably pre-1940s), please let me know. I was given a momento of the business by a friend and can't seem to find anyone who remembers it. I look forward to solving this mystery.

Summing Up Cleanup Day

2011-09-03T17:54:00.007-05:00

Although our entire morning was devoted to acting as "headquarters" for the Afton Route 66 Clean Up Day", we certainly didn't forget those who came as travelers throughout the day. More about both of those groups shortly.

First, I must say that Friday afternoon was quite an eye-opener for me. Ron M. and I decided to spend the night up in Miami (OK) so we'd be closer to Afton this morning, thus alleviating the 4 a.m. wakeup that we'd needed in order to get from Tulsa to Afton in time to set up for the Clean Up at 7 a.m. But before we secured our rooms at the Buffalo Run Hotel, we took a ride through the tornado-ravaged section of Joplin, MO. Since the tornado hit much of the part of Joplin that used to be where I shopped when I lived in Grove, I was almost afraid to see it in its present condition. Viewing the miles of destruction took my breath away. Although, three months after the event, much of the debris has been removed, viewing the streets full of nothing was incredible. Yes, there are some people who have already started to rebuild. But for the most part it is just flattened. I was astonished. I was sad. I was hopeful.

So. . . this morning we arrived at Afton Station at about 6:30 a.m. Marly and Phil were already there and had set up the tables and brought most of the equipment outside. Those guys are just fantastic! We got the coffee pot started, put out the donuts, and people started arriving. We had about 40 people show up for the event, most either current residents of Afton or those who had grown up there but moved away. But we also had families from afar -- Sand Springs, Broken Arrow, Tulsa OK, and Wichita, KS -- who had no particular ties to Route 66 or Afton, but who just heard about the event and wanted to help. My friend Brad Nickson, Eastern VP of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association, came from Tulsa with his camera and his excellent photography skills. His whole album is here: Afton Cleanup - Brad Nickson - Picasa Web Albums. Be sure to check it out. Thank you so much, Brad!

D'ann Mathia, a local, took over the task of assigning jobs throughout the town. Remarkably, even with all those folks out there working, we finished up everything on the task list by noon. At that time, we had painted all the fire hydrants in town, cleaned up myriad acres of brush and weeds, swept sidewalks, washed windows, and trimmed around several historic buildings in town. I use the word "we", to mean those who were out there working. That did not include me. Some of us stayed behind to arrange lunch and keep the Station open for visitors.

We had 21 travelers come in during the pandemonium, too. They came from Grove OK, Springtown TX, Oklahoma City, OK, Claremore OK, Jenks OK, London England, Ardmore OK, and one gentleman who simply signed in as "No Fixed Abode".

This couple, who rode in from Oklahoma City on their Harleys, arrived near the end of the day when we were trying to figure out what to do with all the leftover food. Since they said they were celebrating their 6th anniversary, we presented them with a gift -- a baggie filled with leftover hot dogs. This did, of course, lead to many weenie jokes, but by that time of the day we were all pretty silly-tired.

Marly cooked the hot dogs on his brand new grill!

All in all, it was a great day, and many thanks to all who participated!!!

Preparing for the Weekend

2011-09-01T17:32:00.003-05:00

It's going to be a long weekend for us at Afton Station, and tonight I'm getting prepared for it. The good news is that visits from the Mayor and some other town workers today has assured me that the town itself is behind our Clean Up effort. The town workers have, collectively, donated cases of bottled water and lots of snacks. The Mayor brought us 10 spray cans of red paint and a chart showing where all the fire hydrants in town are located, along with permission to paint them. Many townspeople have been contacted to get permission to clean up their properties. Others have already started cleaning up their own.

Meanwhile, the visitors keep coming to Afton Station. I was alone there today, but it wasn't a problem. Our Distance Award goes to this couple from Arbrouth, Scotland. This is their second visit to Route 66 in three years, and he told me that one of the first things he does every day when he's back home is to sign on to Ron Warnick's fine Route 66 News site to keep up with the latest Mother Road happenings. In fact, so do I! http://rwarn17588.wordpress.com/ This gorgeous woody truck was driven by a visitor from Inola, OK. He took some nice photos of it in front of the Station. This is truly a perfectly restored vehicle. I want it!Other visitors came from Dallas TX, Carrollton TX, Hampstead MO, Weatherford TX, Victoria, British Columbia, Bartlesville OK, Ozark MO, and Vandalia MO.

Love this sign, which is near the site of the soon-to-be erected Ribbon Road monument, just a mile from Afton Station. The spelling leaves much to be desired, but I like it for that very reason.

I probably won't be back here in Blogging Land until Sunday night. Come on up to Afton on Saturday and pitch in to help us clean up Route 66. Free food! Fun! Oh. . . probably a good bit of hard work, too.

I snapped this pic on my way back into Tulsa this evening. I don't know why, except I never stop loving the Tulsa skyline.

The Spirit of 66

2011-08-31T12:57:00.003-05:00

Here's an article published by City Watch of Los Angeles. It says a lot about the camaradie of folks along Route 66 and what we're willing and eager to do to make our visiting travelers feel welcome and secure.

http://tinyurl.com/RamonAndCristi

The photo in the article is mine, and Afton Station is mentioned.