Roadside Americana

Life is so mysterious. You can be going along, minding your own business and never see any type of vehicle styled like a pig and then WHAMMO! You're at the pig-car nexus of the universe. I don't know how or why, but it's science. I think. While I was on ...

This afternoon while cleaning up some of the bookmarks on my computer, I re-read a story from 2008 that I'd saved from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Demolition uncovers Mail Pouch ad. When I looked at the image in the article, I immediately thought, "heyyyyyy, I know that mural." The first time that ...

Because I had all the time in the world, or so it seemed, I took my time riding through Pennsylvania's rolling hills. Whenever I'm in Pa., something about the little towns and the farms lets me know that I'm in the Keystone state. I suppose it could be a trick ...

Once I managed to secure my license plate enough so that it didn't go winging off and scalp someone on the side of the road, I continued west from Hackettstown on Route 46. I've only traveled that far western section of 46 a few times. Riding along in the morning ...

Last fall after finishing a stint at the Void Rally 10 in Virginia, I set off on a road trip around Illinois. My plan was to just bum around and look at stuff. As an Americana-lover, Illinois and it's section of Route 66 have a lot to offer. One thing ...

Hurry, hurry, hurry!  That is the awful, terrible habit that I've tried to undo for the last few years. I'm not sure when I picked it up but it is something I suffer from greatly. Really, what good does it do? It just makes chunks of the day a blur. Stupid, ...

When I left my hotel in Napoleon, Ohio headed east towards home I didn't really have much of a plan other than go towards where the sun was coming up. I picked up US 6 because it was familiar. Actually, I could follow it almost all the way home if ...

For someone who never goes anywhere and never does anything, I managed to go a few places and do a few things on my motorcycle in 2015. In those travels, I saw firsthand some of the amassing giant chicken army. Nescopeck, PA: Charleroi, PA - The greatest parking space in the ...

Nine times out of 10, when I see pictures of food in ride reports it looks terribly unappealing. Unless there is a fingernail in it, you won't usually catch me taking photos of my food, either. But... I will sometimes make an exception for those round wheels of cakey-lovin' - ...

On a chilly day, what better way to warm your heart than with some roadside Americana? I present to you... Balancing Yugos. Pretty nifty, aren't they? When I was a teenager, I worked in a shoe store. My boss there had a Yugo in a color that is probably best ...

The Gemini Giant stands sentinel on Route 66 in the town of Wilmington, Illinois. For as long as I can remember being aware of muffler men, he has captured my imagination as being special. Is it the handsome green space suit? The helmet? Maybe his name? I can't say for sure ...

When I was a girl of about 18, I used to stop to fill up my car at the same full-service gas station often. Over time, it seemed that the guy who worked the pumps was glad to see me when I pulled in. He would chat me up as ...

This morning when I saw the Daily Page prompt: What's the quirkiest thing about you? I had to smirk. Personally, I don't think I'm exceptionally quirky but then, who does? It's other people who find your you-ness quirky and comment on it. I don't think I dare ask my husband ...

The World's Largest Bottle of Ketchup is a roadside icon! When I pulled into the parking lot below the world's largest ketchup bottle there was a man talking on his cellphone. I snapped a few photos and scribbled some notes on the hotel pad I keep in my tankbag. During ...

Does anyone ever wake up in the morning, rub the sleep from their eyes, stretch and think... "I bet I'll see Bigfoot today"? I've got 5-bucks on probably not. But that's the funny thing about life. It is seemingly random. Bigfoot in Cave City, Kentucky I say seemingly because even ...

Do you live in the type of place that could have a smiley face water tower? I don't. But I wish I did. This tower was along my route from Metropolis to Springfield, Ill. in the town of Makanda. That bulbous knob with a smirk surveying the land has to ...

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After my conversation with the woman who lost her home in the tornado, I finished packing up my bike and set off for the day. When I pulled up the waypoint listing in my GPS, one of the closest things to me was something called "Atomic City Mural." To be ...

As I wound my way across West Virginia towards Kentucky, I spotted a few great pink roadside attractions. A super-duper pink elephant in Barboursville on Route 60. Just down the road from the pink elephant in Huntington, WV is a pink giraffe with green spots. Naturally. And smack in between ...

Scratch another one off of the bucket list! I know, I know. I sound like a broken record when I ask you if you think things are meant to be or if you believe in luck or fate. But... sometimes circumstances just seem too perfect that calling it a coincidence ...

While scrolling through my blog's draft folder, I found a not-so-unusual exchange between my husband Kenny, daughter Chloe and myself. It's just a little glimpse in to what goes on around here when we've been cooped up in the house. This draft was from December 2014 when winter was settling ...

The phone sitting on the seat of my Tiger rings. "Hey, babe. What's going on?" "Wow, you went far. What are you doing?" "I'm standing in a gas station eating a turkey sandwich. I'm at my turn around point. I just rode 300 miles to take a photo." "Not a ...

There was a time when visiting the Bedford Coffee Pot was one of those things that just nagged and nagged me. Way over on the western half of Pennsylvania, it seemed lightyears away. In truth it is a mere 330 miles that for whatever reason may as well have been a million ...

There are 5 yarnbombed trees at the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook. Talk about Instagram-worthy! Made up of over 250,000 feet of fabric cord, over 200 people volunteered their time to complete this project. The colorful swirls on the tree coats in concert with the spindly tree limbs look ...

At first glance, you might think that the Uniontown, Pennsylvania muffler man is your run of the mill handsome Bunyan. But, upon closer inspection? Oh, no, he is not. Check out the come hither eyelashes! ::hubba::hubba:: In a funny way, he looks more come at me, bro than some of ...