noun or adjective?

 

Noun or adjective?  Context is often determined by word usage.  Nouns may be used as adjectives, referred to as "attributive" (sorry, former English teacher!)  So what's in the warehouse?

 

Midget Warehouses

Lubbock, Texas

larry's hat

 

Every gentleman around town needs a top hat -- with feather.  This is the one worn by the virtuoso of the Tornado Gallery -- Larry Simmons.



green glow

 

If you saw Larry and Tony's newest project in the neon shop, your eyes would sparkle too.

 

Tornado Gallery

1822 Buddy Holly

Lubbock, Texas

that'll be the day

 

Some 15 years ago, as part of the Regis Corridor Beautification Project, the north row of houses facing Regis Avenue was razed. Since Regis is the connector to I-27 from the airport, the purpose was  to make the first and last impressions of Lubbock for airport passengers more attractive.  The removal of houses left the alley and fences in view of travelers.  The original project planned for landscape plants and flowering trees on the south side of Regis -- that never happened.  So one resident has provided his own welcome sign for Lubbock visitors.

 

900 Block of Regis

Lubbock, Texas

rest in peace

 

While looking for something else I came across this old photograph.  This is from what was probably the only roll of black and white film I ever shot!  It was for a class and was shot with my first SLR - a Pentax K1000. Many photo ops were available when I lived in Jacksonville, Alabama.  As you can tell, my interest in old cemeteries is long-standing.  The City Cemetery in Jacksonville is old, with many Confederate war veterans.  This lone gravestone for a child is sad - but at least it's sheltered by the ancient oak.

 

Jacksonville, Alabama

1984

first day of spring

a girl, a ball and a trampoline

I'm a sucker for a good sign.  Driving east on FM 2641 today, I spotted small new signs for the Friendship Holy Baptist Church.  So I turned and, sure enough, there at 3213 N CR 2750 there was a small brick church I had never noticed before.  A little further down the road was this sign, so naturally I had to follow the arrow to heaven.  Here's what I found at the end of gravel CR 2775:



who?

 

This burrowing owl acts if I'm encroaching on his neighborhood when in fact he's the encroacher.  Burrowing owls appropriate vacant prairie dog burrows for their own.  Look for these small owls in prairie dog colonies.  This one is an urban resident, located in the prairie dog town at 47th and Magnolia.

Happy Birthday, Ava

 

Today is Ava's second birthday.  She has a fascination for Minnie Mouse (who is ageless rather showing her 88 years!).  I am excited for the birthday party on Saturday at Ava's Bowtique. Wonder if I have to wear ears?

the door

 

Old doors with their mysterious stories are intriguing.  I love everything about this door (except the price!) -- the turquoise color, the peeling paint, the carved motif and especially the fist-shaped knocker (purportedly from Egypt). But what would I do with an eight-foot door?

 

Unique Rabbit

2024 Broadway

Lubbock, Texas



sidewalk sale

 

There are not many businesses in Baird but Konczak seems to have cornered the market for anything you might need!  There was almost too much to absorb and that was just on the sidewalk!Unfortunately, under the "open" sign is a smaller one stating "closed for lunch" so the interior is still unknown.  Evidently it's OK to leave merchandise on the sidewalk while the store is unattended, except for the old fire hydrant -- it's chained to the post.  There is creative use of grocery baskets for bins to hold guitar cases, 50 cal ammo cases and spring chips, whatever they are.   The Union garden implement stand, complete with hoes, rakes and shovels, may be vintage.  But what really caught my eye was the Texas historical marker in the window.  Turns out it looks real but it's fake (you can buy one on-line). It proclaims that March 2, 1836 Texas declared independence from Mexico and "this building was not here yet."

 

Baird, Texas

3.4.2016

 





anglin pier

 

A  walk along the pier would have made a perfect evening when we dined at the Aruba Beach Café in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea (yes, that really is the name of the town!).  Unfortunately the pier, first built in 1941 and subsequently rebuilt after hurricanes, has been closed by the city fathers for code violations.  We had to settle for watching the waves from the beach.

 

Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, Florida

3.9.2016



 



no vacancy

 

The derelict condition of the Derrick Motel is probably due to the oil bust of the '80s rather than the current downturn.  Or it may be that not much traffic stops off the interstate in Clyde, Texas.

 

Derrick Motel

Clyde, Texas

3.4.2016



margaritaville

 

I've neglected this blog this past few days while in Ft. Lauderdale.  However, I didn't spend all the time "wasting away in Margaritaville."

 

Margaritaville Beach Resort

Hollywood, Florida



There are only two places to dine in Thurber, now a ghost of the former mining town's self. One is the Smokestack Restaurant, named aptly after all that remains of the town's power plant.  The other choice is the restaurant atop New York Hill, across the interstate. If you choose not to eat, the Thurber tour takes hardly any time.

Thurber, Texas
3.4.2016

got beer?

 

I'd like to say I had a beer in the Mule Lip Bar in Mingus but I didn't.  I think the actual bar is in the newer stone building to the right, but the handwritten sign on the historic building had more character! The Mule Lip even has its own Facebook page with the disclaimer "We don't serve women--bring your own!" For a small place of about 200, the town supports at least two bars (the Boar's Nest offers darts and shuffleboard) and Lori's Liquor Store. The Outlaw Cowboy Church balances out the activities in Mingus.

 

Mule Lip Bar

Mingus, Texas

FM 193 and 108

3.4.2016

end of the line

 

While it appeared that using a trolley in front of an old gas station to make a diner was a good idea, the location was less than ideal.  Wonder where the trolley originally came from? Interstate 20 Exit 373 (hence the name?) is for FM 193, in Palo Pinto county, in the nothingness between Weatherford and Eastland. Not many travelers get off here.  Since I was off the interstate and right there, I took a quick side trip to Gordon, 2.5 miles up FM 193. Once a bustling railroad town, Gordon is now a a quiet community with FOUR cemeteries! Alas, I did not have time to tarry but continued along FM 193 to Mingus to Thurber and back to I-20.  Did you know it is 443 miles from Tyler to Lubbock (plus side trips)?

 

I-20 Exit 373

Palo Pinto County, Texas

March is too early for the roses but the camellias are blooming!

Tyler Rose Garden
Tyler, Texas

twin spires

 

Throughout the IOOF (Independent Order of Odd Fellows) Cemetery, a handful of Spanish Colonial style mini-cathedrals mark gravesites.  More traditional markers, including Woodman of the World, fill the cemetery.  This Plainview Cemetery's oldest burial is the town founder in about 1880.  In this century, the cemetery received a Texas Historic Cemetery designation.  The utility poles replicate the skyward-bound twin spires.

 

IOOF Cemetery

Plainview, Texas

2.27.2016