Tuesday, October 30, 2012

A beautiful start of a good day. . .

I drove to the lake this morning.  It was too early for me to be at the Station and I needed some new and different scenery.  My expedition took exactly 30 extra minutes, and yet it refreshed me beyond belief.  

The tiny lake town of Bernice is just down the road from Afton, but not down Route 66, for a change.  It sits directly on the shore of Grand Lake and much of its shoreline is occupied by RV and trailer parks, but there is also a very nice small state park containing multitudes of picnic tables.  Five minutes sitting at one of these tables (freezing to death), looking at the lake, was exactly what I needed.  A breath of fresh air.  There were more seagulls huddled on the water's edge than I've ever seen in one place at one time.  They squawked at me for a moment, then settled down.  I decided to leave them alone, so I got back into my car and headed for Afton Station, only 15 minutes away but in a different world, just around the bend in the road.


Later, Betty came for a visit and we had a pleasant hour or two before visitors began to arrive.  The few visitors we did see were from White Lake MI, Denver CO, Afton and Grove OK, plus a husband and wife who are five year veterans of full-time RVing.  Originally from Omaha, they spend their retired life happily moving from place to place, depending upon the weather and family obligations.

An elderly man from Afton came in with his friend.  Floyd is 92 years old and as sharp as a tack.  He fascinated me with a story I'd never heard before, about him as a small boy witnessing the day in 1927 that the Kimes Gang rolled into the small town of Beggs, OK and robbed two banks.  The getaway car was a Packard.  Since I'd never heard of this particular criminal gang, I looked it up when I got home.  If  you're interested, here's one article I found.  Very interesting, particularly since Floyd was so accurate in his recollections. 

Dean "Crazy Legs" Walker came to visit later in the day with lots of tales and photographs of his recent trip to Cars Land at Disneyland where he was treated like a celebrity due to his being the inspiration of the film's character "Tow Mater".  He also showed me an extraordinary map he recently acquired which pinpoints all of the ghost towns in Oklahoma.  There are over 600 of them!! I was so excited about the map that I asked Dean to get a copy for me, and he promised to do so.  Fascinating!  



Sunday, October 28, 2012

Oklahoma Calm

I'm thankful for a beautiful sunny but chilly day in Oklahoma.  I have lots of friends on the East Coast, so of course I worry about them as I hear news of Hurricane Sandy getting closer and closer to shore.  My thoughts are with my readers who may be waiting in anticipation for the result of unpredictable nature.

The gentleman below, Randall from Greenville SC, stopped at Afton Station to check us out before heading for Tulsa to catch a plane back home to South Carolina.  During his visit, he got a call saying his flight has already been delayed for at least an hour due to the hurricane.   He's been in our area for 6 weeks on business, so is eager to be home.  We enjoyed meeting him, however, and wish he could have stayed longer.  I  think he would have enjoyed a longer visit, too.
It was another quiet day at the Station, with the remainder of our guests coming from Sherwood Park Alberta Canada, and Pryor, Grove, and Miami, OK.   There were not too many people on the roads this weekend, but our Canadian guests were staying with elderly relatives in Tulsa and decided to take the day to check out what Route 66 is all about. They were intrigued enough to say they'd like to do the whole Road soon.   The Grove, OK visitors just moved to Oklahoma a few days ago, and they too wanted to check out the Mother Road in the region.  They'll be back.   The Pryor, OK visitor was a familiar face, a nice young man who used to live in Afton but hadn't been back for a visit since he moved last year.  Good to see him!

Ron M. was with me today, but none of the other "regulars" came by all day.   We got quite a bit of reading done between visitors.

Saturday, October 27, 2012

Romania!

It's not often that Afton Station has visitors from Romania.  In fact, I can only remember one, and that was some years ago.  But today we had the pleasure of meeting this couple, Victor and Corina, from Bucharest, Romania!  Here they are, proudly displaying their nation's flag.   They were a bit taken aback by the sudden cold front that moved in overnight (under 30 degrees when we got to Afton!), but they certainly weren't letting it bother their trip of a lifetime.
As is fairly normal this late in October, all of our other guests today were from closer to home, from Oklahoma, in fact.   They came from Gans, Ketchum, and Jones, OK.  And then there was the photographer from Grove, OK who came with a helper and a subject -- a young man, a senior in high school, who wished to have his Senior portrait taken in front of one of our antique vehicles.  I told them that we'd be honored to be a background for his most important photo.  We've done the same with other clients of this photographer, and we're always happy to do whatever we can for local kids.

Despite the low number of visitors, we had a nice day at the Station, with Betty, Tattoo, Marly, Phil, and Robin all around for part of the day.  Ron M. rode up with me today too, so we had a full house!

In September, we were visited by two lovely young ladies from the U.K., cousins from England and Ireland. Today, I received two notes in my email box, one from each of them.   Both notes were quite similar, but since they were so nice to write, I have decided to publish one here, along with a photo they sent with it.  I am always so impressed when visitors write to me after the fact and tell me about their enjoyment of Route 66!  
  Hello Laurel, I hope this email finds you well.
My cousin and I visited your shop in September, we were driving Route 66. We had such a fantastic time! It was so lovely to meet you! I Absolutely loved your shop! The whole trip was amazing from start to finish!
We had such a fantastic expierence we are planning to do it all over again! Hopefully next  year we can arrange for that to happen.  We will definately come visit you.
 We were so sad when it was time for us to go home. Back to cold weather and sights that just aren't as captivating as route 66. However, It was a lovely surprise to get home and see us both mentioned on your blog. Thank you so much for writing such kind words.
  I've attached the photo we took of the three of us that day.  Thank you for your wonderful hospitality, we most certainly will be back.
 Lots of love,  Michelle (The smaller one from Ireland)

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Monumental

Ron M. and I drove up to Miami this morning to check out the new Ribbon Road monument I first mentioned on Tuesday.   It's done, firmly implanted in the ground, and looking great.  Here it is.  Remember, you can click on the photo to enlarge it so you can more easily read the text. 
We rushed back from Miami so we could be there in time to open Afton Station but that turned out not to be necessary.  For one thing, Marly and Phil were already there and had opened up for me.  And then, after Marly and Phil left to do other things, Ron and I ended up sitting there with no visitors for the first two hours.  It was almost noon before our first guests arrived, this couple from Thurold, Ontario, Canada.  We had a very nice chat about several subjects such as Niagara Falls (they live close to it, and I used to), the US/Canada exchange rate, and their frustration with some aspects of their Route 66 trip.  Although they're having a great time, they have struggled with losing their way a number of times.  I let them know that they'd be just fine in Oklahoma, where it's fairly easy to negotiate Route 66 with the help of a good map or guidebook.
Our next visitor was also quite interesting.  A young man, a recruiter for Northeastern State University of Oklahoma, was taking advantage of a free hour before heading to Afton High School to try to interest some of the seniors in his fine institution of  higher learning.  After touring the Station, he sat with us for a while and I found it interesting to hear his tales of how the recruiting "biz" has changed over the years.  College expenses are higher (but I guess we all knew that), the kids are less interested in what he has to say, and many of them depend on their parents to fill out their applications, apply for loans, etc. Nevertheless, he hopes to nudge at least a couple of motivated Afton kids toward NSU.  

Next, a couple of guys from Claremore OK, right up the road, stopped by for a second visit and a half hour of drooling over the old cars.  Finally, the couple from Rochester, IN who visited on Tuesday came back for a second time.  They'll be in the area for another couple of weeks, visiting their son's new farm in the Afton area, and plan to return a few more times before they head for home.  He loves the cars, and she is great fun to chat with.  Looking forward to seeing them again.

There you have it.  Only 7 visitors today and Robin visited with only 6 yesterday.  I guess it's time to admit that the season is winding down and it's time to reduce my hours.  Therefore, I hereby declare the following:
BEGINNING THE WEEK OF SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 18, WE WILL BEGIN OUR WINTER HOURS:   OPEN WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY, AND SUNDAY.  CLOSED MONDAY, TUESDAY AND THURSDAY UNLESS WE ARE CONTACTED A COUPLE OF DAYS IN ADVANCE, IN WHICH CASE WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO ACCOMMODATE TRAVELERS ON THOSE DAYS.   Remember, this schedule doesn't start for a few weeks.



Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Two Good Things

Here is a photo of the monument that's going up at the Miami end of the Sidewalk Highway.   Obviously, the installation wasn't quite finished, so I hope to travel to Miami tomorrow to take a picture of the finished product.   This photo was taken yesterday by Afton Station visitors  the Katarskis from Escondido, CA.
And,  here's a shot of two guys who visited Afton Station on Oct. 10, and had a great visit with Phil. Jason Patrick, on the left, sent this nice note with the photo.  I was pleased that Afton Station was once again the site of  travelers from different countries coming together to share  their common interest in Route 66.    Jason sent this note with the photo:
"I just wanted to drop a line and say hello and that on a recent motorcycle trip I stopped in at the Station on my way home.  While stopping in to check things out I had the incredible fortune of running into a fellow motorcyclist who had traveled all the way from Germany to be able to ride his motorcycle here in the states!  It was a wonderful visit and we talked with the gentleman who was in the shop that day (the 10th of October) for some time about the old road and road tripping in general.  It was a wonderful experience and I look forward to the next time I stop in!  Hopefully I will be able to get in one more good ride before it gets too chilly!I have attached to this email a photo that was taken of myself and Volker outside of the Station!  I am on the left sitting on the Harley and Volker is on the right sitting on his BMW.

Thanks for preserving such a wonderful piece of Mother Road history!!"

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Crash! Bang! Boom!

It was a noisy day in Afton today.  There's apparently some roofing being done across the street at the old livery stable building, and every few minutes large pieces of old sheet metal were hurled to the ground with a mighty crash that caused me to jump out of my chair every single time.  I only hope its a repair project and not a tear-down of that historic stone edifice. The owner  has favored demolition over restoration in regard to other buildings in the past.
The better news was delivered by Marly this morning.  A stone monument similar to the one we put up at the Afton section of the 9-foot Highway last fall is going up at the foot of the Miami section of that highway!  That's directly across from Marly's house, and he said its quite nice.  I don't know who sponsored it, but I do recall hearing that the City of Miami was considering doing so.  Now both segments of the historic Ribbon Road will be properly marked.  I'll take a photo the next time I get down that way.

October seems to have settled into a "one day on, one day off" pattern at Afton Station.  Robin, who worked yesterday, was lucky enough to have 24 visitors.  I, on the other hand, had a mere 7 today.  They came from Aurora CO, Rochester IN, Plains GA, and Escondido CA.  The friendly Aurora, CO folks were celebrating the wife's 66th birthday with a jaunt on Route 66.  Lately, its fun to see so many people spending their 66th that way.  As a fellow 66-year-old, I approve.  Hmmm, I wonder where Route 67 is?????
 This absolutely delightful Escondido, CA couple had done a great deal of "homework" prior to taking to the Mother Road. They even managed to attend the Cuba (MO) Fest last weekend and got to meet several Route 66 celebrities, including Jim Hinckley from whom they purchased his newly-published "Route 66 Encyclopedia".  Since my copy hasn't arrived as yet, I thumbed through theirs.  What a wonderful work of research!  (Thanks, Jim, for a great writeup  and photo of Afton Station!)
Here are my new Escondido friends chatting with Mike Pendleton of the Kansas Route 66 Association when he dropped in this morning.

Just a heads-up for anyone planning to travel to or through Afton any time soon.  The sheriff and his boys have been pulling over speeders at a rapid rate for the past few weeks.  Just slow down to 35 when you hit the edge of town and you'll be fine.  Better yet, slow down to 0 in front of Afton Station and come on in for a visit!



Sunday, October 21, 2012

And Then There Were Ten

This day, at least up until about 1 p.m., was about as different from yesterday as night and day at Afton Station.   Ron M., Tattoo, and I sat and twiddled our thumbs until afternoon while not a single traveler found his or her way to our door.   Hey, what's going on here?   Almost 90 people yesterday and NOBODY today?  Has Afton finally been quarantined?  

At last, visitors started coming in, but slowly.  By the end of the day we had visited with only 10 folks, but fine folks they were.   They came from Newark DE, Omaha NE, Oklahoma City OK, Hutchinson KS, and Hannibal MO.   We had nice chats with all of them, but I failed to take a single picture of any of them.  I guess I was still coming out of the coma induced by the boredom of the morning.  The best thing about the day was that just about every visitor was truly interested in the old cars, thus I was asked quite a few questions I couldn't answer.  That's what I should have been doing in the morning -- using the quiet time to brush up on what's under a Packard hood!
Tattoo Man got another tattoo yesterday (big surprise. . .).  He had it put on his left hand, and he asked me to post a photo of it here so he can direct friends to the blog if they want to see it.  It would seem that there's not a single spot left on his body (well, on the public portions of his body) for any more tats.  Nevertheless, he already has plans for several more.  This is No. 118.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

The Land Down Under

I was given this bumper sticker today.   Don't you love it?   And, since we hosted a bumper crop of Australians this morning, thanks to another one of Dale Butel's wonderful tour groups coming for a visit, it's quite appropriate.   There were 69 people in Dale's group, half on motorcycles and  half in Mustangs and other vehicles.  
 They were parked all over town.  Afton hasn't been this populated since Route 66 was bypassed!  
And they were in a buying mood.  This, obviously, didn't bother me a bit, except that now I'm running a bit low on some merchandise.  And, as is always the case with our friends from Down Under, there wasn't an unhappy person in the group.  They were having fun, and isn't that what Route 66 is all about?

Ron M. and Marly were there to help handle the crowds.  Since the Aussie folks were by no means the only visitors today, their  help was absolutely vital.  You would have thought this was a day in mid-July, not late October.  Eighteen more visitors came from Mountain View CA, Signal Mountain TN, Indianapolis IN, Bella Vista AR, Gold Coast Australia, Mexico City Mexico, Denver CO, Centralia OK, and Warsaw MO.

This husband and wife from Mountain View, CA were first in the door this morning, which is why they're the only folks I had time to photograph.  They drove from CA to Chicago to begin their trip going east to west, because people had told them that it's easier that way.  They agreed, and they're having a great trip in their little RV.
 I hope tomorrow is as wonderful as today.  The weather has been great, so maybe lots of people will be out exploring the wonders of the Mother Road.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Three Awesome Musketeers

The above three guys made my day!   Meet Rich from E. Longmeadow, Massachusetts, Rick from Portland, Oregon and Tom from W. Springfield, Massachusetts.   They're Route 66 friends whom I've met both at Afton Station and at several festivals and get-togethers, and today they came for a visit to Afton Station.  I was so looking forward to their visit, since they're so nice and so much fun.  They stayed for about 90 minutes, and I'm pretty sure that 88 of those minutes were spent laughing and joking.   It was just great!  They're headed for Cuba, MO for a Route 66 gathering there this weekend, and I almost jumped in the car and went with them.  Alas, that's not possible, but it was sure nice to see Rick, Rich, and Tom again and I know they'll be the life of the party in Cuba.  

Tattoo Man was also around today, and he came in time to chat with the above trio.   Phil was there all day, polishing one of the cars, and Marly and Robin also stopped in for a while.  Our other visitors came from Grand Prairie TX, Brookville OH, Independence KS, and Ardennes, France.    
 Here's a photo of Marly.  Just because he, too, is someone I'm always happy to see.

A very large group is scheduled to visit on Saturday, so stay tuned for news.


Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Back to Work

It was great to be back to Afton Station, and it was a comfortably undramatic day.  Ron M. rode up to Afton with me, and Betty, Phil, and Marly all were around for parts of the day.  It was so nice to see them all, and it was great to find that all my very competent volunteers held down the fort so perfectly while I was gone.   They greeted 132 visitors last week, which isn't bad for mid-October, and they sold a good bit of merchandise, too.

Today, there were 18 visitors, but 7 of them arrived at the Station after Ron M. and I left.  Marly stayed behind and let me know via text when further travelers came in.  While I was there, the visitors came from Stoutsville OH, Amanda OH, Nora Springs IA, Winfield KS, Broken Arrow OK, Bella Vista AR, and Baxter Springs KS
These folks were our first visitors of the morning, traveling from my native state of Ohio.   They plan to get at least as far as Arizona on Route 66, then head north to the Grand Canyon.

Mike Pendleton from Baxter Springs, KS dropped by for a while, as he often does, to bring news from Kansas Route 66.  I was happy to hear that his wife Carolyn is finally recovering from several illnesses which all seemed to befall her at once.  Keep healing, Carolyn!

So, it turned out to be a fairly quiet day, which was perfect so I could catch up on some bookwork, etc.  I'm expecting some special guests on Thursday.  Looking forward to that!

Monday, October 15, 2012

Further Travel Notes

I found a few more photos from my Chicago trip.  They're pretty random, but here they are anyway.  First, here's what I call the Big Weenie Man (sorry) on Route 66 in Atlanta, IL.   I love the town of Atlanta, and have frequently told folks that it is at the top of my list of small Route 66 towns in which I'd enjoy living.  There are lots of murals, some beautiful old homes, and of course this big guy, recently restored, hovers over the town.  Also, it would be a lot easier to get to Chicago to see Sarah.
Here's yesterday morning's sunrise as I drove through Illinois on my way home.  Later, in the Missouri Ozarks, the leaves were in full color and incredibly beautiful.  I just wish I'd had more time to admire the scenery.   
  Here's our little home-away-from-home at the Skokie North Shore Hampton Inn and Suites.  Sarah's friend Daniel was visiting at the time.   For most of our time cooped up in the hotel room we watched Sarah's DVDs of every season of Mad Men.  I'd never seen it at all, so I'm glad she brought the DVDs.  What a great series!!! Unfortunately, we only got through Season 1.  Now I crave viewing the rest, but I just don't have time to devote to it now.
 The hotel had a Ruby Tuesday's, so we sent for room service once. Ever been to Ruby Tuesday's?  Don't!

I'll be back at Afton Station tomorrow!



Sunday, October 14, 2012

I Just Drove 722 Miles in 12 Hours

I would have arrived home sooner, but there were some rainstorms so severe as to limit my visibility and slow me down.   I've only been out of the car for about 30 minutes, and the room is still rocking as it does after a long trip.

So, where was I?   On Monday after dialysis I drove to St. Louis, spent the night, then in the morning proceeded to Chicago to be with my daughter and help her out after surgery.  She had two rather serious foot surgeries (both on the same foot, thank goodness!) and was told not to try to walk for at least a week.  She has a great big cast on the foot, and since she lives in a 3rd floor walk-up, that was going to be a problem.   So, after the surgery on Wednesday, we checked into a rather luxurious suite at a hotel with an elevator near the hospital in Skokie, IL and holed up there for the rest of the week!   If it  hadn't been for Sarah's pain, it would have been quite the fancy little getaway.... room service, maid service, etc.   Anyway, Sarah is fine and back in her apartment now.  She should be back to walking normally in about a month, soI decided to drive home all in one day.

        
But heading out there last week, between St. Louis and Chicago I was a little ahead of schedule so although I did most of the trip on the interstate, I just had to get off in a few Route 66 towns in Illinois, roam around a bit, and take a few photos.   Since I have absolutely no time this evening to elaborate on the trip, I'm going to turn this into a little quiz, albeit a very easy one.  Below are the pictures I took.  All are in Illinois.   Who can name where they were taken????  (Incidentally, if a certain person sees his establishment in one of the photos and wonders why I didn't stop for a visit,  it's because  it was 7:30 in the morning when I was there.  LOL)  Answers will be revealed tomorrow, as will further details of my trip.  





Sunday, October 7, 2012

The Travelers Were Traveling

I can't complain a bit about the day at Afton Station.   The sun was shining and the travelers were traveling.  I'm not loaded with time to devote to this post tonight, but I'll try to summarize.   When we (Ron M. and I) drove up to the Station a half hour early, there was a guy in bicycle gear looking in the window.  It turns out he's from Mechanicsville, VA and he's part of a group of 18 riders who are pedaling across Route 66 from Chicago to Albuquerque as members of a non-profit group called Adventure Bicycle Club.  They aren't going for speed; they only go 50 to 65 miles a day, but that's quite a feat indeed.  None of the other cyclers stopped at the Station, but we were certainly  honored by the visit from the one who did.
Shortly thereafter, this happy group from Atlanta, GA arrrived.  We had a discussion about remembering names after first meetings (I'm just terrible at that!) so I vowed I'd remember the names of these three. Left to right:  TJ, Signe, Rick.  There!  I think I did it!   These folks also brought happiness to our day as they moved across Route 66 to Amarillo.  
 Here are three generations of a family from Aukland, New Zealand.  It's so nice to see three generations traveling together, and it's rare that we have small children from foreign countries.  At the same time, a couple from Napier, New Zealand came in and new friendships were made.
 Our friends Brad and LaSandra Nickson dropped in with their friend, photographer Natalie Green, all from Tulsa.  They were on a "site finding" mission, in preparation for Natalie's photography class taking a Route 66 photo-taking tour.  Last year, when they took a Route 66 photo tour west of Tulsa, the result was an incredible show which I attended. (See this blog post for Feb. 26, 2012).  They will be coming next Saturday to photograph Afton Station and I can't wait to see the photos produced by this group.
There were other visitors too, of course.  They came from Wewoka OK, Dallas TX, Grove OK, Wichita KS and Afton.

I'll probably be away from blogging for all of next week, as I won't be able to be in Afton for the week.  You may see a word from me here and there, but don't expect any Afton Station news until I return.  THANKS TO MY WONDERFUL VOLUNTEERS, WE WILL BE OPEN EVERY DAY, HOWEVER!

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Change Happens. . .

. . . in the wink of an eye.  Such it was when waking up this morning to autumn.  Yesterday it was summer. Yesterday we needed air conditioning.  Today the space heater blasts warm air at my frozen feet.  There was sleet on the windshield as I left Tulsa.  Afton has that dark, chilly, lonely feeling. Closed up tight.  Deserted.  None of the customary wayward souls roaming the streets, never realizing they're on the Mother Road.  The semis continue to roar past, saving their pennies-per-mile by avoiding the big, bad turnpike.  And there's the occasional farm boy imagining himself a NASCAR hottie as he puts the pedal to the floor and urgess his beat up, mufflerless pickup down Main Street.  Not much else, though.  No tourists, either
________________________

And speaking of change. . .things got less lonely shortly after I wrote the words above.  Tattoo Man arrived, and so did Robin and Phil, bearing fresh plums from California.   After waiting a bit, a few visitors started to wander in.  There were only 9, and they came from Coleridge NE, Johnson City TN, Bella Vista AR, Parsons KS, and this interesting fellow from Hartford, near London, England.  He's a professional photographer named Martin Smith.  Check out the absolutely wonderful images on his website at www.worldonfilm.com.  He stayed for several hours, and he told me he travels in the U.S. frequently and for long stretches of time. Here he is, amused by Tattoo Man's etched body.                                                                                                                                                                           
No more loneliness.  I'm at home now, and the clouds are parting a little.  I'm hoping for some sun tomorrow.  I'm not ready for the onset of winter.  Mother Nature, just give us a few more days of fall, please.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Iowa Day

I'm calling this Iowa Day because more than half of our visitors came from Iowa.  There was the couple from Clear Lake, who told me that it's the place where Buddy Holly played  his last concert before boarding the plane that crashed and killed him.  There were two couples, traveling together from Ottumwa, Iowa, who came in toward the end of the day.  And there was the couple from DesMoines, Iowa who arrived in this great '65 Corvair, one of many they own.  They were on their way to Edmond, OK for a Corvair gathering, but they are also on their honeymoon, having been married just 6 days ago.  It seemed to me that this was a marriage made in heaven, as both are completely involved in Corvairs and other car matters.
 And look at this!  The new bride has a business which creates these beautiful presentations for vintage car owners who want to show off their collections on their walls or in front of their cars at car shows.  Antique car owners, check it out at www.classiccarshowphotography.com.   It's a great idea, and they definitely do excellent, very professional work.
 We also had visitors from Vincennes, Indiana who own, but weren't driving, a '55 Chevy and matching teardrop trailer which he built himself.  They hope to take the rig across Route 66 soon.
Domestic visitors also came from McLoud, OK and Dexter MI.   And on top of all that, we had Route 66 travelers from three other countries, Purmerend Netherlands, Chillawag British Columbia, and this fellow from Huidslon, Denmark.   He is taking a partial "practice" road trip this week while at a seminar in Oklahoma City dealing with agriculture in the age of technology.  However, next summer he will be the chase vehicle for his friend who will be riding a bicycle across the U.S.A. with a group that hopes to get from coast to coast in 10 days.  Impressive!
 Ron M. was with me today, and Betty, Phil, Marly, and David all dropped in briefly.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Tuesday Blues

This is the second Tuesday in a row which was super slow.   Ron M. was with me both days, and I don't think he believes that we had such large crowds during the whole time he was in the hospital.  We're into October now, so I'm assuming that things will slow down in general in the next few weeks, but I'm not looking forward to it.

We had 8 visitors today, from Indianapolis IN, Hutchinson KS, Hannibal MO, Boonville MO, Tulsa OK, and Bartlesville, OK, so we know that travelers are still out there.   This lady from Indy came the first thing in the morning.  She's doing Oklahoma Route 66 solo, and she's traveled other portions of it over the last couple of years.  She has a site full of great photos, both of Route 66 and other places, at http://www.flickr.com/photos/thedefiningmoment.  Check it out.
 Robin and Phil brought me this great flag which they got in Arizona en route to California on their vacation.  I just love it, and I think it will draw the attention of passing Route 66 travelers.  Thank you, guys!

Monday, October 1, 2012

The Tulsa Route 66 Statue is here, mostly

You can look at my blurred photo here, but I suggest you go to this site -- http://www.newson6.com/story/19675345/statue -- to hear the exciting news about the statue which is  finally about to be installed in Tulsa, at the Route 66 Cyrus Avery Bridge.   I must confess that I just don't have time today to say much more about it other than, like most of Tulsa, I am very excited that it's finally finished and being installed in two parts.   You can see how large it is next to the man working next to it.  Other details are available at the above site.
My photo is terrible because I took it with the meager telephoto on my point-and-shoot Nikon.  I was on top of the hill adjoining the bridge.   Sorry!