So, I think I must have lost my mind last night.  This morning I was still on edge from Sparkle’s perceived bucking (misfiring) in the wee hours of the morning when I drove around a bit.  I even called a Chevy dealer service tech this morning at 7:30 am to get his opinion — even though I’d been driving for an hour with no problems.  With no symptoms or check engine light, he said no point in bringing it in.  I think it must have just been little bumps on the road.  It happened to me before in Iowa once.  My blood drained out of me when it happened about twenty times in a half hour and I took it to a dealer.  The tech drove it around & couldn’t find anything.  So I drove him around and would say “THAT!” and he’d say “WHAT?” — multiple times.  It was frustrating — but hilarious in retrospect.  So today, 13 hours of driving and not a sneeze from Sparkle.   Yes, I’m delirious with paranoia.  Must be it.  Maybe more sleep tonight will calm my nerves.

Weather not so perfect.  Magnificent at times — but then grey at least 75% of the day.  I’m just happy to be shooting again and don’t care so much about perfect backdrops and reflections.  At least finally making progress towards Colorado.  Didn’t make it out of Illinois til about 5pm but the Iowa list is very short and I should bang through it tomorrow and get into Nebraska.

The dogs got real lakes and rivers today — not the man-made stuff like yesterday.  In the upper 80s — a real break from the 100s!  Grippie, blind as she is, managed to find dead fish bones AND some kind of small horseshoe crab to much on.

Only 11:30 but I’m beat.  Let’s get to it.

From Kewanee, IL in the grey & gloomy.  Apparently, this sign had neon and spinning blades originally:

 

 

Moving on to much later in the day — in Milan, IL:

 

 

From Rock Island, IL.  A local told me that this was originally “The Cavern” a bar.  The door led to stairs to the bar below ground.   It has been there since at least the 1970s and was green as long as he could remember.  It’s no longer in use.  There’s a bar next door but the buildings are not connected.

 

 

From Moline, IL.  This was a windmill at one time.  Beyond that, I don’t know:

 

 

From Rock Island.  Tree problems with this one — the best angle I could get:

 

 

A modern sign — but worthy of inclusion.  From Bud’s Skyline Inn in Moline, IL:

 

 

Lagomarcino’s in Moline — since 1908.  Some history:
http://www.lagomarcinos.com/history.php

There had just been a killer 10-minute rainstorm before these photos.  This side of the block lost power.  Lagomarcino’s was closed because of that — but the folks were nice enough to let me in to shoot a few photos.  The  woman I spoke with said these storms & power losses happen about three times a year.

 

 

And last subject for the night — from Muscatine, IA:

 

 

Alright — in bed now at midnight — yippee!   Iowa & hopefully Nebraska for you tomorrow night.