JB's Warehouse & Curio Emporium

83: WHAT WE DID ON OUR HOLIDAYS 6: NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND THE DEVIL'S HIGHWAY DAY 6 Santa Fe/Los Alamos/Espanola/Chama/Pagosa Springs, CO/Durango/Cortez/Monticello, UT/Moab Time to start heading north...but first a sidetrip to Los Alamos, home of the Manhattan Project. It was worth the trip just for the scenic drive along New Mexico 566. Discovered Chevy Cavaliers don't like putting on speed while going uphill, but the car never overheated. Stopped at the Bradbury Science Museum , home of atomic-age artifacts. One amusing, yet still frightening one in light of recent paranoia, was this notice... Models of Fat Man and Little Boy were on display...not the originals, but similar casings from the period. Most of the museum was gung-ho about the benefits of nuclear physics, but efforts were made to show the downside. Not a buh... Drove back to US 84 and grabbed lunch at a Subway in Espanola. We were stuck behind a family who we suspected had never stepped foot in a Subway before,...

81: WHAT WE DID ON OUR HOLIDAYS 5: DO YOU KNOW THE WAY TO SANTA FE? DAY 5 Tucumcari/Santa Rosa/Pecos/Santa Fe Decisions needed to be made about how far west we would go at this point. When I left, I figured there would be enough time to reach Las Vegas, then head north on US93 into British Columbia. Some quick math proved this route might make time tight towards the end of the trip. We'd likely arrive in LV on a Friday night, which might have been pricey. At first, thought about going as far as Flagstaff, then shortened that to Gallup. Subconciously, we may have also wanted a day where there wasn't so much driving involved. Drove through Tucumcari, which is nothing but hotels, active and abandoned. Out of town, all you could was a landscape that was bare except for the odd shrub. Drove along I-40, since parts of old 66 faded into the dirt. Stopped in Santa Rosa for lunch at another 66 landmark, Joseph's. Though it has been around since the 50s, it recently adopted t...

A quick break from the trip chronicle... One positive side-effect of the blackout's aftermath - it's been much easier to adjust back to work. Monday and Tuesday were half-days, while the rest of the week has been on reduced lighting and air conditioning, allowing me to wear shorts to work. Went to the CNE Tuesday afternoon with Mom and Amy. It was opening day, but not too busy. The ride operators were generous with ride time, especially on the Tilt-A-Whirl. Picked up the last thing I needed, compact discs, which were going for $5. One that I suspect will get a few spins at future dinner parties, if I don't hide it, is one of the discs played often in second year at Arts House... I see it now...group singalongs of Slow Cars, Fast Cars . Rock on Chicago... Made one fatal error - don't go on spider/octopus like rides immediately after digesting large quantities of Caribbean food, Honeydew and water. Now I know how a egg feels when it's scrambled. Stumbled off ...

79: WHAT WE DID ON OUR HOLIDAYS 4: WALTZ ACROSS (THE PANHANDLE OF) TEXAS DAY 4 Edmond/Oklahoma City/Yukon/Canadian River/Clinton/Erick/McLean TX/Groom/Amarillo/Tucumcuri NM Day 4 began with a quick trip through Oklahoma City. One recommendation - drive towards the state capitol from the north - it's an awesome sight (but one with no parking along the way). Passed out of the city, stopped to snap pix of an old bridge on the outskirts, as well as Yukon, OK's main attraction... Now, Yukon's claim to fame is as the hometown of Garth Brooks. Thankfully, no memorabilia was in sight. Next main sight on 66 was the pony bridge over the Canadian River, with at least 38 trusses. The river was nearly dry. Then came Clinton, home of the Route 66 Museum . We stopped, took the tour, then picked up souvenirs. We started to the notice the landscape change, as the land grew dustier and vegetation sparser. Shrubs began to dominate. Final stop in Oklahoma was Erick, whose main intersect...

DAY 3 Springfield, MO/Joplin/Kansas/Miami, OK/Vinita/Tulsa/many little Oklahoma towns/Davenport/Arcadia/Edmond The third day began with a quest for a money order to pay off the cops back in Bourbon. Tried a bank first, but the over-enthusiastic teller told me that they wouldn't sell me one unless I had an account there. It was the strangest layout I'd ever seen in a bank - all of the officers had desks in the open in the middle of the floor. I wound up at a check-cashing place where (a) no questions were asked, (b) the fee was much less than the bank would have charged and (c) I didn't have to go searching for stamps to mail the darn thing. Once this was taken care (along with a brief stop at a supermarket and a Big Lots), we left town. Instead of Meramec Caverns or walnut bowls, all of the billboards along I-44 led travellers to Ozark Village. Again, had to see what the fuss was about. We didn't go in after taking one glance in the window - so much junk ...

DAY 2 Bloomington-Normal/McLean/Springfield, IL/Cahokia/St. Louis/I-44/Bourbon/Meramec Caverns/Rolla/St. Robert/Lebanon/Springfield, MO Began the day with the first of several hotel breakfasts in a row where make-your-own waffles was among the options. Couldn't resist a tiny taste of the other soon-to-be-staple, sausage gravy and biscuits, a dish definitely not found on this side of the border. It looks like somebody's healthy sneeze, and old folks love shovelling it away. We finally drove onto an old stretch of 66 at the south end of Bloomington-Normal. The Illinois portion of the old highway is one of the least exciting, hugging I-55 close as it passes cornfield after cornfield. The odd town and attraction pop up, such as the much-written about Dixie Trucker's Stop in McLean. It was under renovation, but we caught a look at the Illinois Route 66 Hall of Fame . Snapped shots in other towns, but didn't take a lengthy stop until we hit Springfield. Springfi...

After years of daydreaming and months of obsession, the long-pondered roadtrip across the continent became reality Aug 3, 2003. The plan: in two weeks, drive down old Route 66 as far as Las Vegas (Los Angeles was too far), head north along US 93 into Canada, turn east at Banff, then take the Trans-Canada Highway back to Toronto. With my sister along for the ride, here is the story of that adventure... DAY 1 Detroit/Ann Arbor/Irish Hills/Coldwater/Indiana/South Chicagoland/Joliet/Bloomington-Normal The trip began with a gargantuan breakfast at Louie's, a sandwich nook on the east side of Detroit. I hadn't been there for a few years, since my father passed away. We went there for excellent bean soup and ham sandwiches. One thing that had changed was the decor - there were now booths. Our booth was barely large enough to hold the food we ordered. I ordered pastrami and eggs - the pastrami was piled high on a separate plate. From there, we stopped in another of our us...