TRAVELIN’ ON.

It’s moving day. We will park for one night close to Ontario in reach of the airport. Jim’s reaction is expressed in the sign above.  He complains because we haven’t had much time together this year and it is getting shorter.

I’m going home to become a  famous artist like this lady, well, hey…all I did yesterday is take pictures of more palm trees to paint. Well,  we know that isn’t going to happen, but I can dream a little and choose to play. The truth is, I did the laundry, a zumba workout and read. About 3:00, Jan and Larry came by to share some snacks and a drink and say goodbye.

When I fly home, I pick up my car which is parked near the airport at my daughters. I’ve always wanted to paint a car in some artsy way. Maybe I’ll do that someday?

But, this one was probably a bit hard to sell. Maybe I better leave well enough alone.

This sign reminded me of my friend Guerry. He has a weird cat. More people I know have weird cats. Dogs seem more stable. I no longer have a cat but I had one that drank the leftover spiked eggnog after a new year party and stayed drunk under my couch for two weeks. He was terrified of my vacuum cleaner, but while he was drunk, he let me vacuum him of all of his loose hair. I can hear the pet lovers out there castigating me as I write. But, this was in the early sixties, the very first cat I ever had, and who knew that I probably almost killed him? He came out of it without a single symptom of any harm, still hated the vacuum cleaner, and lived a long life.

Ciao

 

ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA AND ART IN TOWN

A visit to Saint Anthony of Padua Church almost didn’t happen. When we arrived it was locked tight and Jim was bent on visiting what he remembered as one of the most beautiful churches he’d ever seen. His parents were married here in 1938. His mother attended the French Catholic School around the corner.  His cousin Jeanette lives nearby and probably still attends church here. Playing with his cousins at his grandmother’s house. Jim has so many memories of the older section of downtown North New Bedford.

The parish office was in the building next to the church and we rang the bell and got permission from Father Murphy to go inside and take pictures. His first question? Did you attend mass this morning? We hadn’t  and he proceeded to tell us that churches, his included, are struggling because so many people don’t attend. He lectured us about our lack of attendance, but he allowed us in.

The organ loft.

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A view of the ceiling.

The Altar.

Each side of the church opened into alcoves where the Stations of the Cross are depicted in carved statues.

The 12 Stations of the Cross are written in Latin as was the official language of the church even when I was a child.

The statuary was amazing, like something you see in old European Cathedrals. Here an Angel holds the Shroud of Turin.

The Communion rails were made of highly polished, carved wood.

The podium of carved white marble. The columns are marble as well.

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I am not a church goer, but I can appreciate the beauty and the workmanship that went into the building of this gorgeous church while keeping in mind the hand tools used for such work 101 years ago.

It would be nice to think a place of such beauty will last forever. I do hope it is professionally photographed to retain the essence of this magnificent edifice in the event something happens to this historical treasure.

We decided to visit a nearby Art Museum which was displayed in two different buildings. One building was formerly the Star Department Store where Jim’ s grandmother worked as a retail clerk in Ladies Clothing.

The small collection was mostly very modern pieces except for an exhibit of old photos.

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It was nice to walk around town on a Sunday because there is little traffic and ample parking space.

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We kind of gasped at cigarette prices. Jim heard they just raised the price of cigarette tax by $3.00 a pack in Massachusetts.  It should help people break the habit. Hypnotism works best, I’m told.

We enjoyed dinner with Donna and Bob. After snacks we had stuffed roasted vegtables, stuffed quahogs, and clam boil stew using up the leftovers from Friday.

Bob roasted the leftover veggies from the feast in the barbecue.

You could never leave the Parkers house hungry. Donna is an excellent cook and loves to feed people.

LOOKING BACK

We like it here in Port Arthur at the American Legion so much, we stayed an extra day and just lazed around. I’m reading a Mary Higgins Clark mystery and played with picture files most of the day. I have to qualify my book. I enjoyed her early books and then at some point she got sloppy and so formulaic you could guess the ending in the first five chapters. I quit reading her books.Recently,  I picked up another, Night Time Is My Time and hey, she has redeemed herself. I get in the mood for mystery and true crime books. But, so far, Ann Rule is the best true crime writer. My recent favorite books? None are genre books. Night Whispers by Judith McNaught, Before Women Had Wings, by Connie May Fowler, Fortune’s Rocks, by Anita Shreve.

Looking back at pictures over the past few weeks, I’ll just post them willy- nilly. But first, let me warn you :

I KNOW YOU wouldn’t.

A beautiful sculpture of a local hero at Rockport.

Jim taking pictures on the streets of Galveston.

Remember the Naked Mermaid store?  Well, they weren’t ALL naked.

I think this mermaid is drunk. I call her the floozie mermaid.

Getting ready for Mardi Gras in Galveston.

Quite a catch. These were caught with a rod and reel, when sport fishing was really a sport. It isn’t against the law here in Texas to pull your pick-up truck next to the river, turn on a big spotlight and shine it into the water, and net the fish up that are attracted to the light. Night fishing or frogging in every state I’ve lived in is not allowed, it puts the critter at such a disadvantage. Can’t call it sportsman-like. It is slaughter.

Another photo of the great Miss Joplin from The Gulf Coast Museum.

And exquisite glass pieces too.

Beautiful, aren’t they?

The way I look at it is this:   I can’t afford beautiful glass like this. But, I can collect pictures of beautiful objects and keep them forever to look at and enjoy again and again.

I have a hard time to fathom the skill and technique it must take to create these pieces. There is a need for those of us who can only appreciate such beauty.

These tiny birds are not magnificent long-billed water birds, but cute little common street birds. I think I must like all birds, even the pesty jays, woodpeckers and crows.

Indelible impressions of the Texas Gulf Coast are the many boats at many marinas. The shimmering shadows in water, the blue, white, and gray colors.  Lovely.

The black gold that put Texas on forefront of the economy.

This is a common practice to honor an artist who has died. Her paint brushes in the back of a turtle sculpture.

So, this is Texas. This morning, the Commander of the American Legion Post we are about to leave, invited us in for omelets with he and his wife and dog. Bar none. The friendliest post we’ve ever been to. What a way to end our stay here. Unforgettable. We will unload in Louisiana by the end of the day. Goodbye Texas, for now.

SIGNS OF A LAZY DAY

Yesterday, the sun shined brightly and we soaked it up. Jim worked on the mal functioning auto lock on the passenger side door of the Bronco. I washed a couple of rugs and hung them out to drain and dry in the sun. It felt good to move about and feel the sun on our faces.

We did the laundry and bought home-made tamales from Rosa’s on the way home. Delicious late lunch. We  sort of melted into the cushions and read the rest of the  day and just snacked for dinner. On the way home I saw a sign for a frame shop, Hall Of Frames. I’m often impressed by the clever names people choose for their businesses. I don’t always get the picture, but I indulge in clever signs whenever I get a chance.

Dog grooming.

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This sign is in old town Gallup, NM,  outside of a business near a park. I once had a small retail store and I understand this completely.

Of course, strange but  serious signs are funny too,  like this one on a desert walking trail.

You don’t see one of these very often. It is part of General Patton’s Museum in California where they tested tanks and other war equipment at one time.

Others are just fun. (The blur is my fault.)

.In Tombstone Arizona where the waiters and waitresses wear guns, unloaded, I’m sure. The customers are not allowed to wear guns.

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An ad on a T-shirt.

I think this was a game shop, cards, poker chips etc. in Las Vegas.

Stapled to a power pole in Bisbee, Arizona.

A cookbook for sale in a motorcycle  museum.

This curious statement on a business window in Harlingen, Texas,  intrigued me. Driving by it a second time, I found out the new business going in will be a bike shop. Can’t reason it out. Obviously something I don’t know about bikes and bikers.

Well, this one is easy to understand. It is posted at my Italian neighbor’s house, and she is a hoot.

SEIZE THE DAY

We drove to Corpus Christi early enough in the day to find our parking spot and take a cruise downtown and visit an Art Gallery I wanted to see. Jim turned right instead of left and we saw an Eagles Club that wasn’t on Google Earth. We pulled in to say hello and found one of the friendliest guys you’d ever want to meet. And, funny, too.

His name is Larry Mills and we let him entertain us for the rest of the day. He is from Michigan, my home state, but he’s become a Texan since moving here in 1982.

He manages the Eagles Hall, here, and showed us around, though it was closed and we were the only ones in the place. It has a wooden dance floor. As a former square dancer, I nearly drooled.

A great hall, a great guy. We decided to alter our plans a stay a couple more days.

But, since we stayed in, I was remembering two  signs I saw the day we were in the Brownsville museum. Both kind of surprised me.

This one is an old-time Mexican saying since the revolutionary days. With our intrusive policies, it still holds true.

And this one was an excerpt from a priest’s prayer just  before a voyage. Cheerful, bugger wasn’t he? They should have fired him as their priest or burned him at stake, or whatever they did to people in 1596  when he wasn’t doing his job well.

Being on the road as much as we are, we see signs of all types and they kind of amuse or boggle the brain or leave you wondering what they meant. Like this one. From the road you cannot read the small print on the bottom as you can (barely) in this cropped photo I took while driving by.

This is the newspaper delivery guy’s sense of humor. Whoever takes the last paper is greeted with this message. The rack is located in Palm Desert, CA, a well-known vacation spot.

The door is metal and the temperature in Palm Desert gets into triple digits, and yes, the door was hot. You’d think, they’d install a wooden door, now wouldn’t you? We were wintering there and the temperature was in the high seventies.

This drive by photo needs no explanation. I knew immediately the sign maker was talking about Congress. Pathetic, isn’t it?

Another little choice bit of wisdom. Hey, we roadies aren’t waiting in line either. It’s a great lifestyle. Life is short. Come join us. Retire early, hit the road. Enjoy life, not stuff.

A LAUGH BREAK

Politics, the spewing of hatred, verbal bullies calling names, the blame game, character assassination…divisiveness, what we need is some radical laughter.
These signs are authentic. Wish I had pictures of them. But, hopefully they will supply you a laugh break.

 

Sign over a Gynecologist’s Office: “Dr. Jones, at your cervix.” ************************** In a Podiatrist’s office: “Time wounds all heels.” ************************** On a Septic Tank Truck: Yesterday’s Meals on Wheels ************************** On a Plumber’s truck: “We repair what your husband fixed.” ************************** On another Plumber’s truck: “Don’t sleep with a drip. Call your plumber.” ************************** On a Church’s Bill board: “7 days without God makes one weak.” ************************** At a Tire Store “Invite us to your next blowout.” ************************** On an Electrician’s truck: “Let us remove your shorts.” ************************** In a Non-smoking Area: “If we see smoke, we will assume you are on fire and take appropriate action.” ************************** On a Maternity Room door: “Push. Push. Push.” ************************** At an Optometrist’s Office: “If you don’t see what you’re looking for, you’ve come to the right place.” ************************** On a Taxidermist’s window: “We really know our stuff.” ************************** On a Fence: “Salesmen welcome! Dog food is expensive!” ************************** At a Car Dealership: “The best way to get back on your feet – miss a car payment.” ************************** Outside a Car Exhaust Store: “No appointment necessary. We hear you coming.” ************************** In a Vets waiting room: “Be back in 5 minutes. Sit! Stay!” ************************** In a Restaurant window: “Don’t stand there and be hungry; come on in and get fed up.” ************************** In the front yard of a Funeral Home: “Drive carefully. We’ll wait.” ************************** And don’t forget the sign at a RADIATOR SHOP: “Best place in town to take a leak.” ********************** Sign on the back of yet another Septic Tank Truck: “Caution – This Truck is full of Political Promises”

Note:  These came in an email and I don’t know who to credit.