AZ to NH Vacation - part 2

The remainder of the trip was spent visiting family and friends and I won't bore you with personal gossip. Instead, I thought I'd share some of the sights along the way that caused us to turn around, go back, look again or say, "WHAT?" ....

Creativity is where you find it... This is a view of my car through an Arizona bathroom window. Love the fractured colors and shapes ... and the sight of several adults crowded into a smallish power room saying... "neat!"

Payson, AZ has a subdivision off of the local airport that is set up to fly your plane in, taxi home and put it in your own garage. I love the kid-sized stop/street signs - it lets the wings go right over them

Seen in New Mexico - What a neat idea - light industrial space under and a light filled, two bedroom apartment over. Perfect for the home-based business. Now I'm wondering if the idea would catch on in rural New Hampshire as I'd love to have living space with studio arranged this way.

Amarillo, Texas gave us the great fun of walking a cow pasture that holds Cadillac Ranch. Ten half buried cars covered with layers and layers of graffiti.




Looking for dinner somewhere

around Wichita Falls we giggled at a local bar sign, but didn't venture in for a drink.





And were amazed at how Texans managed their highways.





I like rusted metal and could have hauled everything on this truck home with me.
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While looking for dinner one night we got semi-lost in an industrial part of town. I looked over and saw these eyes looking back at me from a deserted building. A U-turn took us back to find even more great art on the side of the building. I wished that I could have transplanted the whole structure to my back yard to use as a studio.









Somehow I should have expected to find the really unusual in Texas.... I saw the long horns in a field and caught the distinctive shape of camel out of the side of my eye. Going back and looking again showed us zebras, camels and long horned cattle - all in the same pasture.

Heading into the Midwest, I had to take this photo for my Son who is into cars and believes that the 50's & 60's are ancient history. Wonder what that says for his Mother who lived those decades?





Someone in Farmer City IL must have a problem with the Town Fathers....

The windmill farm near Bloomington IL proved fascinating. There are hundreds of them planted in the midst of cornfields and it isn't until you get close that you realize just how big they really are. We just had to take a midnight run to see what it looked like at night as they all blink red in unison (well almost all).

I like cemeteries and seeing different regional grave markers. We visited some of our ancestors in Central Illinois and I noticed the unique cast cement grave markers. This family plot had urns, a tree trunk, a chair and corner markers - all in fanciful, ornate cement.

Just North of Farmer City, IL we came to a "T" in the road and wondered just what this sign was trying to tell us.

A side trip to Virden IL allowed me to find my Grandparent's home. I spent the first year of my life in this house while my Father was overseas in WWII. I remember it as being dark brown, a lot bigger, and having a huge oak tree in the side yard. Funny thing... I met my friend & co-driver in NH, through the Internet, yet both of our beginnings were close to each other in Illinois.

Everyone should attend some sort of reunion every 20 years or so .... I spent a weekend listening to tall tales and many stories of races won/lost in the CCSCC (car club) as well as people wondering just when they had gotten so gray.

A last minute change in plans took us to Toronto and through Canada. The University of Toronto is a beautiful campus. I enjoyed the blend of old and new architecture situated in the center of a large metropolitan area. The line on the ground for the Meridian of Toronto was a fascinating fact.

Canine Stories:

What's a trip without a couple of good animal photos?

In Ohio we visited with Boo, a dog that winters next door to me in Arizona and is convinced that my house is his second home. Playing with a grandchild and chalk gave us this view of a multi-striped dog.




What the well dressed dog wears in Toronto.

The End....

Coming through Newbury NH, I caught sight of one of the local legends. I was finally back in New Hampshire and feeling of two minds - not wanting the trip to end, but also wanting to stop moving and find the comfort of my own bed.