Well, I guess it was only the western half – but still, it was a lot of territory for one day.  With another big push tomorrow, I might be able to wrap up AR.    It was about a 50/50 mix of sun and clouds.  Which is way better than rain.  Pretty hot and humid (80s?) and the dogs got relief in the Arkansas River two or three times. 

We went to the dog park in Burns Park in North Little Rock.  Even though it was plenty big, Grem pretty much immediately scurried sideways under the fence to the more woodsy area.  But her recall has improved quite a lot and she came right back under when I called her.  A two dog limit but we were the only ones there which seems to be the case in the middle of the day on weekdays at these places.  There were kiddie pools and nicely maintained.  But after just a few minutes, we headed over to the boat launch with river access which was a lot more fun for everybody.

Let’s move on to the photos as I’m falling asleep at the keyboard here (after midnight).  This faded beauty is in Crystal Springs:

I saw all the tourists doing it in Eureka Springs.  So I figured I’d fill up the dogs water jug with the “special water”.  The fine print describes the mineral breakdown.  The water came out of the spigot hot!

There are razorback hog images everywhere you go in Arkansas.  Statues, signs, cars…
http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2125

At one of my stops, I found this razorback hat on the shoulder.  More or less clean so I adopted it.  I don’t wear hats except for my wool husky hat in winter.  But this one was just so goofy that I wore it for a while (in the privacy of the van that is).  It only made my head hotter.  I think I’ll abandon it somewhere before I leave Arkansas.  Or maybe I’ll just keep it and use it as a camera protector if the rain starts up again.

Two views – one more serious, one more goofy.  I think my camera distorts things when shooting close up.  I don’t think my nose is really this big.  And even my face shape is slightly off.  Sort of a fish eye effect — but what the heck.  I’m 53 and kind of past worrying about my appearance.

This place was in Fort Smith.  It looks like it might have been a drive-in restaurant originally.  But maybe it was always this Little Mexico garden statue type place:

And while in Fort Smith, I had to pay a visit to Mr. Peanut.  I’ve shot him before but couldn’t remember if he had neon on him.  Since it was getting dark, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to shoot him if that was the case.  But no neon.  I let the dogs have one last run for the day around his base.  I saw the dome cameras nearby and expected someone to come yell at me any minute but they didn’t.  Nik is visible with blue toy at far right bottom:

Another steamy day today.  Must’ve been in the 80s at least.  Grey for most of it making for dull flat photos.  Which didn’t matter as much to me today since I had a “date” in the middle of the day.  It made the shooting time sacrifice easier to take.

I got together with Warren Milks — the genius that invented and produced Roto-Spheres:
http://www.agilitynut.com/sca/roto.html

Warren is 87 now and I don’t know how much longer he’ll be around.  I took him to lunch and as it turned out, not only was today Easter (and he had no plans) but it was also his birthday.  After lunch, I took him to Starbucks (where he’d never been before) and went on-line to show him a bunch of things.  He’s old school and has never used a computer.  So I showed him a bunch of photos that people have taken of his signs and how they gush and marvel over them.  I hope I convinced him that he’s a celebrity — a household name among sign-lovers.  I showed him a video of how the one in Salt Lake City works, the fake Roto-Sphere in Broussard that I shot a couple days ago, and Neo-Lectras which he’d never seen.  I also played the Playhouse 90 video which we had all concluded must have been the inspiration for his signs.  Nope – he said it was more like a toy commercial.  So I guess we will just never solve this mystery.

Anyhow, I got some shots of Warren at his place.  In one corner, he has some neon potted plants which he created.  Not sure when because he has no sense of time (Alzheimer’s is setting in).  At first he said 3 months ago, then he said 3 years ago.  And it was probably more like 15 years ago.  He also created the neon portrait of his grand-daughters on the upper right.  And he made the other piece above left (though I didn’t get an explanation of what it represented).

He also had another one of these potted-neons (my term, not his) of a bunny for Easter in the front window:

In the garage, he had a piece that he never finished – a lower torso of a woman:

And this sign he created as well – no idea when but probably at least 15 years ago:

It was great to see him and I’m sure this was big, fun event for him — the crazy woman from New York with the four nutso dogs.  I respectfully tied my guys up in the back of the van (which really pissed them off) for transporting Warren to/from lunch.  Warren’s wife of many, many years passed away about six months ago.  So that’s gotta be really, really tough.  When I met them a couple years ago, she seemed to be the real driving force of the duo.  A little tough of Warren I’d say.  But it makes me very, very sad to think that this guy had no plans for his birthday and no longer goes to church.  It doesn’t sound like he has much, if any, social life.  From the sounds of it, he spends most of his time sleeping.  Doesn’t like TV, doesn’t have any hobbies.  I think I’ll start calling him more often just because.  He has two sons but I don’t know how well or often they are looking after this guy.

OK then – here’s some of the stuff I shot today.  This sign was in Many, LA.  I am totally mystified as to how a heavy steel sign, this high up, can get damaged like this.  I don’t think hurricanes can do this — unless maybe a car got picked up and thrown at the sign:

This wild looking building, also from Many:

A bunch of photos from Shreveport — which has loads of interesting stuff.  I’d love to know what this sign advertised for.  There’s a seafood place on the lot now:

A big honker downtown:

A couple cool Streamline Moderne beauties, down on their luck.  No idea of original use for either of them:

This one at least is in use:

After my get-together with Warren, I headed into AR.  Didn’t get much done but I’ll be digging in for about three more days.  I’ll close with this sign in Texarkana on the outskirts which I hadn’t seen before:

A significant milestone today as we began the slow journey northward toward home.  Still another week left to go though.  I should have time for 3 or 4 days in AR, then maybe 3 days in TN & KY, and then the usual mad dash home.  East TX didn’t make the cut this time.  I’ll just have that much more to do next spring.

Hoo-wee, was it hot today!  The day started out dark & foggy/cloudy but was already humid and sticky by 10am.  It was in the low or mid 90s depending on which bank clocks were right.  I only turn on the A/C when necessary and today wasn’t one of those days.  Sparkle’s working hard enough running 12 hours per day.  And I want that full Southern Experience.  The dogs toughed it out.  Fixie was the only one really panting though:

I did some water jug dousing and kept an eye out for a stream.  As I came over a bayou bridge in Jennings, I saw a big river and thought that might be a good doggie swimming hole opportunity.  I asked a guy at a repair shop if there might be gators back there and he said there very likely were.  But if I went to that pond over “they-uh”, he was sure it was gator-free.  It was his boss’ house/property and they were away.  Pond Paradise!  Score!

Moving on to the signs and buildings…  This nice oldie is from New Iberia:

This neat guy was at A-1 Radiator in or near Erath.  He was built in 1992.  He used to function as a fountain.  The hose coming out of his belly used to be a bit lower — but the town didn’t like that:

A couple nice buildings that were on opposite corners from each other in Opelousas.  Both vacant as are most things on this block.  Abdulla’s looks like it was probably a department store:

The Rice Theatre in Crowley is a frequent subject for photographers:

It was also selected by these girls for this local sidewalk chalk painting contest.  Most of the other kids seemed to be doing just abstract stuff.  So I hope these girls win and go on to become historical preservationists.  We need to start enlisting the next generation!

Another great building in Crowley — difficult to photo because of trees and sun:

In Lake Arthur, I did a quick U-turn for this castle-styled birdhouse.  But upon closer inspection, is it a phony birdhouse?  The windows all seem blocked:

Despite the siding and other alterations, this building is still a head-turner.  Also from Lake Arthur:

An abandoned sign in Lake Charles:

This place is in Leesville:

This wacky car was on the roof of Paul’s Paint & Body just west of Alexandria.  Although it seemed life-sized, I couldn’t tell if this was three-dimensional or not:

So, it seems the taco shop mariachi band figures that I shot the other day and included here were mass-produced.  I ran into these guys in Alexandria:

OK – so I have been seeing these daiquiri places since Florida I think.  I don’t know what to make of them.  I guess they are non-alcoholic since so many of them offer take-away, drive-thru options.  Perhaps a local can explain this phenomenon and obsession with daiquiris.  These places come in all sizes and shapes — from low-life, ugly-dirty to cutesy, mall-y modern.  This one I include since it’s a repurposed gas station in Leesville:

I’ve got at least two full days left of LA to do.  And then there’s Arkansas which will probably be equally time-consuming.  That might be about all I can get through before I have to skedaddle home to return to my Real Job.

A few cloudy bits but mostly sun today.  And HOT.  Or at least relative to what the dogs and I are used to.  All these hot swampy bayous and it’s just a taste of what this place must be like in warmer months.  I’ve never been to LA or FL in the summer and have no plans for it.  I managed to find some ponds for the dogs to cool off in but I was careful to pick spots that would be gator-free. 

Most of the time, the dogs are more than happy with the half-dirt, half-grass lots that I find for them.  But today, I found a particularly great spot in Houma.  A self-storage place that looked brand new and was surrounded by HUGE grassy lots.  Gorgeous grass, all nicely mowed — and for what?  I’m sure not a soul uses these lawns so I’m happy that at least we got to enjoy them.  And my appreciation to whoever puts in the time and money for such things.

Here’s the young ones running & retrieving (Nik at left just wants a few thousand more throws, while Grem at right is working here for cheddar bits):

One day, I’ll read the manual and figure out how to take action shots.  The “action mode” doesn’t do much better than my normal “auto” mode.  Anyhow, Grem moves pretty fast so the blur is fitting, and Nik is either wiping out or slamming on the brakes for ballie:

I’m glad that Grip is still into goofing around with toys, running and retrieving, at 13 years old:

About a month before this trip, Grip’s right eye went red (you can still see that here).  The opthamologist said that her retina had detached and there was nothing that could be done.  The bloody look would gradually fade.  Grip does crash into stuff quite a lot.  Unlike Nik who seems to have perfect depth perception despite being blind in the same eye.

The two seniors and our Self-Storage Paradise.  Fix has never really been into sports.  When I threw a ball for her today, she gave me that “you gotta be KIDDING me” look.  In the cold, she’s a little more into it. But in the heat, forget it.  She did chase Nik a bit though & got some cardio though.

Here’s Sparkle airing out.  Yes, after 22 days of wet doggies and one sweaty human, she needed it!

I believe I’ve given you “house tours” in previous posts of Sparkle’s interior organization.  But I don’t think I’ve shown you the back before.  These are the fairly new dog-proof bins with drawers instead of tops.  Nik always managed to work those lids off and present toys to me as I was driving.  Or find toys that he’s not allowed to have and gut them.  So far, this drawer type is working great.  I also put lots of blankets on top of the bins to make it more difficult for him.  He enjoys this as it makes for one big comfy bed and he can just inhale all the toy fumes below him and dream about them.

95% of the bins are a staggering variety of dog toys for all seasons, mouth size and personality.  The other 5% is stuff like a hammer, a jar of aspirin, a screwdriver, bandages, Benadryl (for doggie bee stings), etc.  The laundry detergent, towels, and Fantastic gets used a lot as there always seems to be somebody throwing up or rolling in dead fish.  (Grip says hi.)

Alrighty then — enough with the dog stuff.  How about some signs — this one in New Orleans.  There were actually two identical ones here — one on the west approach, one on the east:

This sign in Houma — the place looked long closed:

This neat 1960s-looking showroom is in Thibodaux:

Barbera Chevrolet in Napoleonville had this sign set far back from the road.  I’m glad they kept it for sentimental reasons:

A new Mexican restaurant in Baton Rouge that deserves credit for creating a fun neon sign (that was working even during the day):

… and for integrating an old gas station into their building design:

Towards the very end of the day, I stopped in Breaux Bridge hoping to see the Simon’s Drugs neon sign. Imagine my disappointment when I saw this hanging there:

But then I noticed in the windows, that they had saved the two faces of the sign.  I guess they felt they needed to “update” or maybe the city harassed them?  I don’t know the story but at least they are hanging onto the old sign.

I always make it a point to tell business owners, managers, counter help, and neighbors how much I love, LOVE, their sign or building or statue.  I gush about how historic, important, fun, and whatever other adjectives I can come up with.  I hope you do the same.  Hopefully, we can convince some of these people that these things might be “worth something” (financially and/or culturally) and help keep them in place.

Lots of traffic from roadwork and accidents slowed me down some today in New Orleans.  But I banged through most of my list.  Just a few hours left I think for tomorrow.  Then, lots more LA to accomplish after that.  I’m hearing something about rain tomorrow afternoon.  I’ve had a good run lately.  There were just a few cloudy hours this morning and then more blue skies after that.

The dogs spent lots of time outside the van today.  Water romps at a state park and in Slidell.  Then I managed to sneak in a couple legit dog parks in New Orleans.  One in the French Quarter (Cabrini Park) was surprisingly big and had a hose and kiddie pools which was a really nice.  It was HOT today for dogs that run a lot.  In the afternoon, we checked out the “park” (not fenced) at Broadway & Leake.  There were some big bullying dogs that kept stealing my dogs toys.  Both Nik and Grem got roughed up.  I even got knocked over by a Doberman that sailed into me from behind.  So we were not there long!  We’ll stick to our own improvised vacant lots & such as I find them.

I ended the day with meeting Terry Toler who runs the Frostop in La Place.  I’ve long been fascinated with this chain and this location has been in her family since the beginning (1958).  Their recently restored, revolving giant neon mug is worth the schlep westward if you’re ever in the New Orleans area.  So now I’m extra late in getting stuff up to Flickr & the blog — but it was a very fun visit.

Let’s get to it.  I was told that this cute Snow Castle ice cream stand in Lacombe, LA was a fireworks place for many years.  I imagine those pointy corner pieces were originally painted to look like rockets:

 

This sign was in or around Michoud, LA.  The bottom of the sign was unremarkable, trust me.  I can never get enough of mortar & pestle signs:

This place had been on my list for awhile:  Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World in Algiers (New Orleans).  They are most famous for the fiberglass stuff they make for Mardi Gras parade floats.
http://www.mardigrasworld.com/

They let me walk around in a couple buildings and I took some photos — this is just a sampling:

Moving on to New Orleans stuff for the rest of this post.  I don’t believe this is an old painted sign — but I could be wrong.  I don’t think they even have “Little Debbie Snack Cakes” down here — but I could be wrong.  This is sort of an inside joke since I HATE being called “Debbie”:

Two impressively huge neon parking signs on the same block:

A pretty but sad theatre.  But that’s not the main reason I’m posting this one.  Do you see that dark spot in the sky to the left of the sign tower?  Well, this has been making me nuts for about a week now.  I have cleaned, with solution and microfiber cloth, my filter and my lens many times and this thing will not go away.  I have been photo-shopping the dot out when it’s in an obvious place.  I’ll have to get this looked at or fixed when I get home.  I hope I haven’t damaged the lens somehow.  I always  have the UV filter on.  But I have been getting a lot of rain on this trip.  Maybe I just need a cleaning – hopefully, not a new lens.  Although I do have a 5-year warranty or something.  Any ideas what the cause of this spot might be? 

I like the delicate detail of this building, the big sign, the variation in curtains — oh, just everything:

Last one for the night.  A lot of people have already shot this for Flickr I think – but I’ll include  it anyway.  It’s pretty massive as these painted signs go.  And I’m pretty sure it hasn’t been messed with and is authentic: 

Lots of sun, lots of miles and finally we’re just barely into LA for a few days.  Tomorrow, starting off with a long list for New Orleans.  I’m three days behind schedule and will probably fall further behind in this state based on the size of my stack.  No tickets or mishaps today.  MS drivers like to drive fast on the interstate.  I found myself doing 95 with the pack at one point and decided to back off.  I’m comfortable at 75 or 80 — but I think 90 is a bit much.  Safety-wise and trooper-wise. 

The dogs got to play on the beach in Gulfport towards the end of the day.  Lots of post-Katrina construction still going on so there are lots of worksite-adjacent doggie opportunities to run on the white sand.  The water was definitely warm and everybody enjoyed getting wet.  Lots of sand in the van which always makes me happy.

12:30 already and I’m fading fast.  So here are today’s blog-worthy finds.  Painted wall ads in Vicksburg:

South of Vicksburg — this neat bus / ship.  I don’t know if this was a one-of-a-kind or if there were a fleet of these used for tourists.  Super neat either way:

Lots of great architecture in these old Delta towns.  The sidewalks in Natchez seemed ancient – loved them:

This seems a strange claim to fame to me:

The rest of today’s photos are from Hattiesburg where I had a bunch of stuff to shoot.  I don’t think I’d ever been to this city before.

The skeletal remains of a drug store sign:

One good thing about traveling in Spring is that the trees haven’t filled in yet, obscuring signs such as this one for Gus’ Cafe:

A strange building.  At first glance, it looks like one of those trompe l’oeil murals — but no, the entrance is really recessed like this:

You can’t help but look when you pass something like this — and I couldn’t help but shoot it:

This appears to be a recently demolished building and freshly uncovered tobacco ad.  The colors still pretty vibrant:

Last one before I crawl off to bed.  Taco Sombrero in Gulfport appeared to be just another semi-fast-food Mexican restaurant in Gulfport.  But these nice mariachi figures were installed above their plastic box sign:

Lots of miles between cities with just single stops.  Lots of radio, coffee, and gum needed to tough it out.  Then ended the shooting for the day in Jackson which was photo (and traffic) rich.  Just another day of perfect weather.  Tomorrow, I hear it may be in the 80s.  Should be back at the Gulf beaches tomorrow for the dogs.  Today, they got by with big dirt fields and a couple ponds.

Got my first, and hopefully last, speeding ticket of the trip.  On an absolutely straight stretch of highway with nothing but farmland.  Clocked me at 79 in a 55.  Have to call the court to find out how much I owe.  Whatever.  I figure MS can really use the money.  And I’ve been speeding like mad for 19 days now and it’s gotten me probably another hundred stops in.  Just part of the travel costs.  The trooper had a real racket going.  As soon as I pulled away, he made a U-turn and immediately put his blue lights on someone else.  He must make a fortune.  I’ll try to simmer down a little and keep it at 10 mph above the speed limit or hide in the middle of a pack of fast-movers.

I made a quick trip across the border to Helena, AR for some stuff.  One thing was an old Coca-Cola bottling plant:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/southerncalifornian/2139604077/
But, according a couple people that I spoke with, the roof and a wall collapsed a month ago and it was reduced to a pile of bricks.  Sure enough, that’s what I witnessed.  All the more reason folks to get out there with your cameras to see and document things because you just never know when they’ll be gone forever.

This sign is in Helena:

This one in Clarksdale:

This abandoned movie theatre in Clarksdale:

The former Taborian Hospital in Mound Bayou.  I had the dogs out for a pee on leashes here and they were going nuts sniffing along the walls, digging, screaming.  I think the building is loaded with rats:

Who knew there was so much Art Deco / Streamline Moderne stuff in MS?  This neat Hostess Cake building is in Greenwood:

This sign was in Belzoni.  I have no idea what it was before it was a thrift store.  It has a terrific zig-zaggy shape:

A couple nice embossed plastic signs from Jackson:

This place in Jackson is still in business:

I understand that it’s been raining for days now back home in NYC.  Hopefully, this will cheer up some of my pals — soon – very soon!

And two more from Jackson to close out this post.  Usually, it’s Gripper that barks at statues.  The other dogs seem to know instantly when something is real or not.  But Grip obsesses about it til we’re gone.  She’s even gone into barking fits over advertisements with people on them (billboards, buses).  Nik is usually only freaked out about men in uniform or men carrying big things.  But this thing sent him over the edge:

And this one sort of sent me over the edge.  This Obama head (right?) is about six feet tall and in front of an art studio / gallery.

Day 18 – boy, that sounds like a lot!  Still another 13 days to go.  Which will be enough.  This is really exhausting stuff.  It would be far saner to do this for five or six days at a time, then take a day off to just chill somewhere.  But, no, not possible for me.  You never know what will be gone the next time you’re passing through.  What weather will befall you on the next trip.  so I’m obsessed with getting as many shots as possible from daybreak til sunset, every single day, rain or shine. 

Speaking of shine — it was an absolutely gorgeous day from start to finish.  Only a few clouds — of the pretty white kind.   Even the traffic in downtown Memphis was minimal – strange for a Monday I think.  I hit some annoying slow traffic in the afternoon outside the city.  But I’m finally perched back on the MS border ready to dive in again after completing everything in that little Memphis corner.  At least I will have gotten some TN stuff done if I have to ditch plans somewhere in AR and get back to Real Life.

The dogs got to cut loose at Shelby Farms.  A super fun place with a huge pond that was warm enough for swimming (them, not me).  Even though there aren’t fences, or minimally so, Grem was too busy hopping in the grassy fields and finding critters holes to dig in to make me worry about her taking off. 

I stopped off in Senatobia, MS before tackling Memphis.  I was hoping to check out this sign:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/naslrogues/3377820956/

But alas, look what this church has done to it:

While many Central Park fast food stands are still open, it seems most have been turned into other businesses.  I thought this might be just a candy-apple-only place — which would be kind of bizarre.   But despite the name, I didn’t even see it on the menu.  This is in West Memphis, AR:

Also in West Memphis — unbelievably cute signs:

Nice rooftop letters in Memphis:

A poorly concealed former Burger Chef:
http://agilitynut.com/eateries/bchef.html

I’ve been seeing lots of flowering trees and daffodils lately.  Today, was the first tulip sighting (Memphis):

This is from the Puck Building in Memphis:

Here are a couple in Memphis that I’d like to know more about.  What was this building used for before it was this church? (south of downtown)

And this sign (north of downt0wn). The letters under “Your Future Learning Center” seem to spell out Angelo’s maybe in script at the top.  But that’s probably not the original name anyway.  The framework is what’s most interesting.  It looks like either a basket of laundry or a big bowl of popcorn.  Or else I’ve been looking at way too many old signs lately:

More signs from Memphis.  An example of what I call “Neon Extensions” signs (with separate neon bits that are mounted off the face of the sign itself). This one has both a bell and an arrow (now broken):

No sign of a hardware store in this strip mall.  Glad they left this hammer alone.  Green is a very cool and unusual color choice:

I was looking for a “fist & thumb” sign elsewhere today and came up dry.  Then elsewhere, I came up with this.  So they must’ve been used by a chain.  A chain of what I have no idea.  I guess the thumb is used like 1950s bulb pointing arrow:  this way to the whatever-it-was store:

This one I liked a lot.  Appears to be old just nicely kept up:

Last stop of the day was at the Dixie Memorial Pet Cemetery in Millington, TN.  It wasn’t too exciting for me since what I look for are old grave markers with real photos and unique, touching inscriptions.  This was more modern and generic.  No photos and mostly just pet’s names/dates.  However, a couple things “got” to me.  There was a special section just for Memphis police dogs.  This was just part of the group:

And this marker had me gulpy and weepy.  I don’t believe in heaven or an afterlife — but if there is one, I do hope someone will throw balls for my dogs til I get there:

About half the day was spent wrapping up NW AL. Vast distances between shots and a late start. The rain was pouring and the sky was pitch black for at least the first couple hours when the sun should have been out. The weather continued to be mixed — rain with brief periods of sun. I hear tomorrow should be way better which is great since I have tons of stuff planned in the Memphis area.

This afternoon, during a sunny break, I found a big field for the dogs to cut loose in. There were some big hay bales and I thought I’d get you a group shot. I got Fixie and Grem up there and Nik and Grip were about to join them. Just as I was hoisting Grip up, Fix and Grem hopped down. Which was very unusual. I quickly saw why: ants. Thousands of them. Poor Fixie ran immediately off to the van which always has the big door open. She wasn’t coming back out for nothing. Licked at her feet for almost an hour afterwards and kept shooting me those “When are we going HOME?” looks. Grem must’ve been bitten just as badly but she’s not one to dwell on such things. Never licked at her feet — much more important things to focus on. I found out later that these were fire ants. And upon Googling now, I guess I should’ve been far more concerned: “Fire ants may cause serious allergic reactions and anaphylactic shock. Watch for excessive swelling, hives, trouble breathing, fast breathing, weakness, pale gums, vomiting, diarrhea and collapse.” Other sources say the bites can even result in death. Jeez. Fixie seems perfectly fine now but she’s probably going to be a bit reluctant about the next family portrait.

This photo gives you an idea of how my day began. I always shoot neon flame signs — even modern ones.  I believe this was in Muscle Shoals, AL:

This guy was definitely in Muscle Shoals.  I think he might be one of these guys — but missing his lower body:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/agilitynut/2311088057/

Another Muscle Shoals stop.  My first true donut stop of the trip (the modern Krispy Kreme place the other day didn’t count).  I got three donuts.  And they are gone.  I do share them with four dogs though!  May I recommend the maple frosted with pecans.  They have four fillings which you can choose from and they fill your donut to order.  Also you can choose between peanuts or pecans as your topping.

I don’t know what the deal is with this sign in Florence, AL.  There was no Pepsi plant nearby but there was a sign shop so I suspect it’s theirs.  This thing is huge and revolves.  It’s on an enormous pole and impossible to miss:

Trowbridge’s Ice Cream Bar is in downtown Florence.  It’s been there since 1918.  Not open on a Sunday morning but I shot through the glass for you:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/trowbridges-ice-cream-and-sandwich-bar-florence

This sign is on North Wood Avenue in Florence — hence the cute faux wooden plank for the sign:

This sign is from Russellville, AL.  Looks like a reworked oldie to me – or, more likely, a nicely done replica:

The King Drive-in is also in Russellville:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Drive-In

Another drive-in from Alabama — the Blue Moon Drive-in is in Gu-Win (between Guin and Winfield).  I’ve seen other old screen towers with living quarters and offices — even one with retail space — built into the lower backside.  But this one takes the prize for multiple units:

Last stop in AL was in Northport where I encountered this giant hammer sign:

There were several stops in MS but it was all “meat” (website-worthy) and no “potatoes” (blog material).  But I’m sure I’ll have lots of TN & MS stuff for you tomorrow.

I made a lot of progress today.  It really helped to hit Birmingham on a Saturday when there was basically no traffic whatsoever.  So now, just a bit more Northwest AL tomorrow and then on to MS.  Hopefully, I can bang through that state in three days as well.  We’re officially around the bend — just past the halfway point of this trip.  It feels like I’ve been at this a month already.  I think it’s all the rain and killer goals I’ve set up for myself each day.  Plus I’m still a little stressed about the key situation.

The weather was even more beautiful today than yesterday.  I didn’t get the dogs nearly as much exercise as they would’ve liked.  Will have to make it up to them tomorrow in some more rural-ish areas.  It’s also time for another oil change — passed the 6,000 mile mark for this trip today. 

Lots and lots of signs for you today so let’s get to it.  I already uploaded a bunch to Flickr but still have lots of “lesser” signs for the blog.  For those of you that are interested in such things, here’s the order of my nightly “homework”:
* check and answer emails; respond to Flickr comments
* crop & tweak photos for Flickr & blog
* upload photos to Flickr
* write the blog post

So that’s why I don’t get to bed til well after midnight and the blog posts will always be a rough draft.

Aha!  So that sign that I posted for you last night from Selma was not unique.  There must’ve been a chain that used these.  What chain though?  This one was in Sylacauga:

Sylacauga calls itself the “Marble City”.   According to their website, the city is constructed on a solid deposit of the hardest, whitest marble in the world.  Many famous buildings around the country have been faced with it, including this mid-century bank:

A massive sign from Talladega — still in business:

A colorful Masonic sign from Anniston:

The rusty crusty Van Thomas sign was looking extra nice in the sun:

This “Lounge” sign is in Pell City or just a hair north of it:

This painted wall sign in Birmingham appears to be authentic:

Another wall ad in Birmingham.  There are still uniform shops in the building:

Three “rusties” from Birmingham:

I really like this one a lot.  The delicate hand over the razor wire.   Is the hand holding a business card?  It would help to know the original use of the sign I suppose:

And lastly, I’m drawing a blank about this one which is west of downtown.  Was this a Jack’s restaurant?  Hopefully, Mr. Hollis or another Birmingham-er will identify this place: