Mmmmunchies and beers at the Adobe Deli.
Ron, Diane, Sharon and yours truly.
Look forward to our next meet. Love and God Bless....Ray, Diane, & the Boys
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Sunday, October 9, 2011
CAMP DEMING
Salutations from Deming, New Mexico, somewhere between Las Cruces and Lordsburg. This has been a kick back, uneventful week. We left Tucumcari last Monday and drove to Alamogordo, next to the "White Sands" proving grounds. We spent a couple of days there, then drove to Deming via Las Cruces. I think we will spend two or three weeks here, visit some favorite haunts, and do a little maintenance. When we leave we hope to go through Bisbee and visit my oldest friend, (He is younger than I), and his girlfriend Marsha.
USED FARM IMPLEMENTS
After we visit Mike and Marsha, we'll probably head to Yuma for a visit with Andy and Linda Clarkson, then over the hill to beautiful downtown Jamul, the Hamptons of San Diego. Hope you are all doing well, and adapting to the changing seasons. It is amazing, the changes we have seen in the last 2-3 weeks. We are looking forward to seeing everyone again. Love and GOD BLESS.......
Ray, Diane, Ross & Satchmo..............
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Saturday, October 1, 2011
FT. SMITH JAILBIRD
Aloha from Tucumcari. Last week at this time, we were in Arkansas. We visited the historical part of Ft. Smith with friends Johnny and Georgia
Then on to Elk City, Oklahoma. Through the Texas panhandle, and on to Tucumcari. The weather has been very agreeable, and the roads good for the most part. Some construction, and Ohlahoma City was without doubt, the worst peice of I-40 from California to Nashville. We are doing well and Ross is hanging in there, Hope all is well with you. We miss you all, and look forward to seeing you again. God Bless......
JUDGE PARKER (the HANGING JUDGE) GALLOWS
These are the gallows where "Hanging Judge Parker" issued swift and sure punishment. On two occasions, he hung 6 gang members at the same time. Being fitted for nooses are Diane and Georgia.
FT. SMITH BORDER, U.S.A. AND INDIAN TERRITORY
Fort Smith was famous as the border between the US (Arkansas) and the Indian Territory. The 19th century saw plenty of opportunity for raw crime. There was conflict between the Osage and Cheyenne indians, bankrobbers, and a host of other criminals trying to escape into the Oklahoma territory. Indian tribes from the Southeast were being herded to Oklahoma Territory (the Trail of Tears), so unrest in this area was substantial.
TUCUMCARI MT.
This is the Too damn scarey (Tucumcari)monument. It just kind of hangs there, staring down at the desert plain. We decided to spend the weekend and investigate this Route 66 town memorialized in the song of the same title. It looks like it was abandoned in the 50's. 7 out of 10 of the commercial buildings have been abandoned, 2 of the 10 are closed, and 1 is sort of open. Much of the old Route 66 is in similar condition. I am surprised that some large corporation hasn't bought the place, and revived it. I think it would draw a lot of business.
WE FOLLOWED INSTRUCTIONS, AND HERE WE ARE
One thing this town does have, is murals. Beautiful murals painted on old walls. Tucumcari is located almost halfway between Lithuania and Egypt. There is a decent truck stop, a couple of open restaurants, half a dozen motels, which may or may not be open. They pretty much look the same. This picture is only about 1/10 of the overall mural.
TUCUMCARI TRUMP HOTEL.......NOT!
In spite of the condition, I love these old semi-ghost towns. If you have a warped imagination, as I do, it is fun to picture the activity of these places in their haydays. This old building is a composite of building materials; adobe, rock, brick, and iron. It is also an amalgamation of architecural styles.
50'S DESOTO PARKED IN MOTEL WITH MUCHO VACANCY
Nice old car. This is one of those "maybe open, maybe not" Motels of the 50's. I can verify there are a ton of vacancies.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
LOCAL IRISH PUB
Hey y'all, greetings from Ozark. Everything's just dandy here. The weather is perfect, and the scenery spectacular, so much that we have decided to hang here for another week. Met up with friends Johnny and Geargia again. Last night we all went to the Rivertown BBQ in town, then on to a free 3 hour Bluegrass concert in the local park. 3 great bands. Tomorrow, it's in to Ft. Smith to visit Judge Parker (the hangin judge) court, house etc.
POST FAMILIE WINERY
A couple of days ago, we took a little drive East through some small towns. We stopped at the "Post Familie" winery in Altus for some tasting and buying. Good stuff! The folks at the winery recommended the Irish pub in the previous photo, for lunch. Having been in a few pubs in Ireland, I was impressed with the authentic fare and the atmosphere..
THE "BIG HOUSE", OZARK JAIL
This old jail house is built of local limestone, and is fairly representitive of many of the buildings in the two or three blocks of downtown Ozark. City population is 3500.
TOWN OF OZARK in the DISTANCE
This picture was taken from a couple miles away. You can see the bridge over the Arkansas River between the tree limbs. Campers delight...BRIDGE OVER the ARKANSAS RIVER at OZARK
Just a close up of the previous picture.
The bridge is covered with lights, and at night makes quite a spectacle over the river.
ARCH-ARC LOCKS & DAM at OZARK
If you look to the right of the dam and locks, you can see where we are camped. I drove around and over the bridge in the previous picture and climbed the hill to take this pic.
Hope everyone of you had a wonderful summer. Time for fall, I know because the Chargers will be playing this afternoon, and we'll be watching. Hope they do better than last week.
RIVER FOG
This looked much better in person, but I had to try. This is fog laying on top of a mirror still river at 8:00 am.
It almost looks like cotton balls. Wierd! But so is everything first thing in the morning.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
SALUTATIONS & FELICITATIONS from ARKANSAS (again)
Well, here we are in Arkansas again, this time headed west. This has almost been a blessing. It has rained since we arrived from Memphis last Thursday. We had a wonderful time seeing the sights and enjoying the sounds ,and tastes of Nashville and Memphis with sister Mary Ann and her hubby, Juergen. We are once again camped in Ozark, AR. on the river, at the locks & dam. So peaceful and beautiful.
"OLE MAN RIBBAH BARGE PUSHER
The river is maybe a quarter of a mile wide where we are camped. Right on the dam and locks. The barge pictured here, is headed north and was just raised by the locks to the lake level. Being pushed by the boat, are 12 huge barges loaded with ???
SOUTHBOUND CHOO CHOO
Just below the train here, are the locks gates that the riverboats go through to go up or down river. The train tracks go right along the side of the lock slots.
WE ARE HERE!!
This is a map of the Arkansas River lock and dam system. Each of these spots, is an Army Corps of Engineers campground. We are at the OZARK park, and it is georgeous, and inexpensive. $10 per night with 50 amp power, good clean water, paved parking, pic-nik table with cover and each has it's own fire pit and grill. Recommended by the Brehms.... .
Sunday, September 11, 2011
RIPPY'S RIBS
In order to properly kick off a night of Honky Tonkin in Nashville, we stopped in at "Rippy's Ribs", a rather primitive building with barbeque ribs and beer as the specialty. It was great. We have had a ball carousing the town, seeing the sights, sampling the cuisine and beverages. Yeee Hawww. My sister and brother (outlaw) are here from Baden-Baden, Germany. We have similar devisive interests, so the fun never ends. We have seen all the sights here and are off to corrupt Memphis next. Look forward to our next meet with you, love and God Bless, Hank & Reba.
HONKY TONK DISTRICT, NASHVILLE
Around the area of 2nd & 3rd on Broadway in Nashville, is the Honky Tonk district. The bars are all "neoned "up, and almost everyone has live music. Lots of real talent just waiting to be discovered. They all just work for tips. That might be good or bad depending on how good they are.
COYOTE UGLY
What would a night visiting honky tonks in Nashville be with out sampling a couple beers at the"Coyote Ugly" bar?
CONCEPT CORVETTE
We took a day and drove to Bowling Green Kentucky to visit the National Corvette Museum and factory. The factory visit was not possible the day we went, but Jurgen went back a few days later. He is a proud Corvette Owner in Germany. I have always been intrigued by concept cars, and this is one of the many concept Corvettes in the museum.
DIAMOND CAVE, BOWLING GREEN, KENTUCKY
While in Bowling Green, we went to visit the Diamond Cave, part of the Mammoth Cave Park.
CAMP MEMPHIS
Our camp at this lovely RV Park, right on the Mississippi River. Pictured here, Juergen Schulz, bro-in-law, Mary Ann Brehm, sister, and Diane.
JUST DUCKY
Every day at 11:00 am, the ducks at the famous Peabody Hotel,ride the elevator down from the roof to the lobby, where they run
across the red carpet to the fountain. At 5:00 pm, they return to
the roof via the elevator.
Ducks departing elevator
Duck Master Anthony
SEVEN FLAGS & PYRAMID of MEMPHIS
This view taken from the Memphis Queen riverboat. These are the seven flags of the seven
governments that have ruled Tennissee over the
years. The pyramid in the backround used to be a sports venue for the basketball team. They later moved to another location. The pyramid will
reopen as a Bass Pro store, with many related attractions.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
"MOTHER CHURCH OF COUNTRY MUSIC"
Howdeeeee! Sorry, just couldn't resist the Minnie yelp. We are having a wonderful time here in Nashville. Joined up with sister Mary Ann and Brother (in law), Jurgen. We have taken a couple of tours and seen a lot. Tonight, we do the Honky Tonk by night thing. It's raining, and the smell of the grass is delightful. We will be here until the 7th. Hopefully we can wear out our welcome by then. From here, we move to Memphis for more of the same. Then we begin our slow, take it all in, return to San Diego. Should be there in Nov. or Dec. Hope you are all well and having fun. Love and God Bless..............Ray, Diane, & the fur fellas
STAGE AT THE RYMAN
We took a tour of the old Ryman Auditorium, previous home of the Grand Ole Opry. It was built as a church, and has the second best acoustics of any building in the country. The first is the Morman Tabernacle. The Ryman is pretty much a museum now, and is loaded with pictures, costumes, musical instruments and various memorabilia from the very early days of Country Music. The set from "Hee Haw" is still here.
NASHVILLE SKYLINE, RYMAN AUDITORIUM ON RIGHT
Nashville is a very modern, and large city. Home of Vanderbuilt, Opra Winfrey, country music, and others. In some areas, it is as metropolitan as New York, and in others communities, it looks like the turn of the century. The country side looks like a huge golf course. Everything is green and mowed. Homes range from huge mansions to decrepit abandoned and collapsing old homes, All are very scenic.
PARTHENON REPLICA, NASHVILLE
This is a replica of the Parthenon in Greece. Three such Greek Temples were replicated here at the turn of the century, for the worlds fair. After the fair, the buildings were all leveled. Later, they rebuild this replica. Glad they did! It sets regally on the hill.
HALL OF FAME AND MUSEUM
We toured this also. Magnificient. Memorabilia, music, films that cover everything and everyone in country music. The Chet Atkins exhibit is wonderful.
GOLD AND PLATINUM RECORDS
This wall is maybe 1/4 of all the gold and platinum records displayed here.
THE NEW (since1974) GRAND OLE OPRY HOUSE
This facility has been the home of the "Opry" since 1974. It is enormous. We took a back stage tour. Visited the plush and elegant dressing rooms, the "Green Room", which is a lounge area for the stars to hang out in when they are not on stage. They have post office boxes for all the inducted members of the Opry. Most of their fan mail comes there. We also went up on the stage.
ON STAGE at the GRAND OLE OPRY HOUSE
Here we are on stage. The round piece of floor we are standing on has been used in every venue for the Grand Ole Opry since 1924. Every performer that has ever performed at the Opry has stood on this piece of history.
ATRIUM AT THE OPRYLAND HOTEL
Not far from the "Opry House", is the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. Magnificent! We spent most of our time in the indoor gardens of the Atrium. Nine acres under glass. Rivers, boat tours, rare tropical plants, ferns, and fruit trees abound. Waterfalls, huge crystal chandeliers, exotic fish, restauants, shops, and on and on. What a place....
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