Why it's a Good Idea to Carry Your Good Camera with You...

I could just kick myself!! I left work yesterday evening & saw these amazing skies off in the distance. I knew exactly where to go, just a bit above town to get the right shot... only I didn't have my good camera with me. It would have been only a tad out of the way to go grab it... but I was just feeling a little too tired (and hungry!) after work to make the side trip. Big mistake! My little 4 megapixel point & shoot just doesn't do this amazing show of nature justice! 

A Little Slice of Texas

I had never been to Texas, so I figured it being my last week & all, I should at least see just a little slice of it, since I'm just a few miles from the west Texas border. The nearest big city is Amarillo, so off I went. Lots of open space... and LOTS of cows along the way. I didn't stop for pics until I saw this guy above. It's Tex Randall- he's a sculptural icon of Canyon, Texas, and has been around since the 1950's. Recently, a campaign has been started to save Tex, as he was slated to be demolished. Apparently, fundraising is going well... Tex is now on facebook! You click here to learn more~ http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2222

In search of some down home Texas barbeque, a woman at work recommended I go to Ribs & More, in old town Amarillo.... so I did, but you guessed it... it was closed! My second choice which I had long heard about was the Big Texan, a well known tourist icon just off the I-40.

This is the home of the "Free" 72 oz steak! Free that is, if you can eat the entire 72 oz steak & all the fixings in under an hour... and people have actually done this! Needless to say, I didn't even think about trying it! After a mediocre BBQ beef sandwich, I headed off to the Cadillac Ranch... perhaps you've heard of it?

It was the brainchild of Stanley Marsh & the Art Farm, a San Francisco Art Collective.

I really wasn't sure what to make of it... it's certainly a sculptural installation, (an interactive one at that... as people bring their spray paint cans to add some fresh graffiti) but is it really Art? I just kept thinking of the line from Field of Dreams... if you build it, they will come. And come they do... it's a popular tourist draw... I saw license plates from Washington, Nevada, Kentucky... and well, of course, Texas. Some closer views~

Like I said... I wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but it was interesting. People visiting had various reactions... some looked puzzled, while others joined in with their spray paint cans to add the latest layer to the already much graffitied "works of art."

For more on the artist & other things Amarillo, visit this post from Pat at "A View from the Edge"

http://pat-aviewfromtheedge.blogspot.com/2010/07/flashback-friday-is-for-amarillo.html

A Rainy Commute

No, this is not a bunch of crazy people driving down the middle of a river... this was my actual commute home from work the other day. The rain had been coming down hard for at least an hour before I left, and the streets were flooded... I was beginning to wonder if I should look for the Ark! I couldn't resist pulling off on a side street to take some photos... where thankfully the water was only ankle deep when I stepped out of my car.

(click on photos to enlarge)

A Traveler's Tales

Well, this is not a typical post... but I figure now that I'm out of school & back to my travel job, all my thoughts, images & experiences are fair game. I sat down this evening to type out an email to my recruiter (he helps arrange interviews/jobs/housing) & to selected family & friends. I found it so highly entertaining to write that after I hit the "send" button I thought what the heck... I'll post it right here on the ol' blog. And to think you thought my life was all art and travel!

Hello to Bill, family & friends,

Today, I thought I'd write a little traveler's tale for your amusement. You never know what you are going to get when you're a traveler. This is in terms of EVERYTHING... your housing, the location, the facility, the pay, the weather, etc. My traveler friend Laura & I used to call it the five factors plus factor "X." (factor X = is there a dateable guy around.) For this issue of "The Glamorous Life of a Traveler..." I'll focus on the housing. The house itself is fine. I mean, some of the lights were burned out... there is a garage with no garage opener, and I was left with no key to the deadbolt.... but, hey, these things are trivial. Let's talk about cleanliness... 'cause everybody knows... cleanliness is next to Godliness! Below is a picture of my bathroom sink upon arrival!! (The shower stall & cabinet shelves were only marginally better....)

How about sleeping arrangements? Well, after many miles (and cheap motels to try to stay within the "travel budget,") it sure would be nice to "come home" to a nice comfy bed... but this is what I found! Puzzled? it is in fact, two twin beds! But no! You can't pull them apart... because they rest on a king bed frame! The funny part... as if this weren't funny already... is that there is not a sheet in the place big enough to cover them... so I had to make them separately!

But!! Below was my other option. I don't know, you tell me... how old does a mattress have to be to fall apart like this? (I once had a mattress for 17 years & it was still in tip top shape!) Well thankfully, the beds were not made, so at least I could see what I was (or wasn't) getting in to. By the way... can you see bed bugs? Just curious, 'cause I woke up with itchy bumps on my arms after my first night!

Uuummm... "shabby chic," or "sheet in the window?"

I think you know the answer...

Oh, and this was a fun find! It's always nice to find BULLETS on the shelf in your new home!! NOT!!!

Oh well, at least they started to clean the tub...

Usually, the housing comes with the basics... like say a kitchen trash can... but at first I couldn't locate it. Oh, wait.... I found it... outside! Because, who doesn't want to do some serious cleaning after driving over 1,500 miles to get to their new job!

Uuumm, wait, what's missing? Yep, no photo of the dining room table.... oh, 'cause there isn't one!! There is however, an outdoor chair in it's place... a little misrepresentation, or what? Well, this concludes the very first issue of "The Glamorous Life of a Traveler!"

Stay tuned for more glorious adventure!!

:) Becky

p.s.- dang... if only I started compiling these stories when my travels began 5 1/2 years ago... I'd have a book by now!