Outtakes.

I have had a few days back in Ontar-I-O to regain my bearings, as well as to hibernate a bit (though I watched a couple of suns set, and a few stars dance, while learning about blogging in Malaysia). Just in time to return from vacation and face the hordes of weary, post-labour day souls turning up their collars to fend off the small teeth of fall. Self-sharpening like Ginsu in preparation of the w----- to come. I love this time of year. I can smell it, touch it, taste it. And best of all, I can feel it to my core.

A few additional photos from the trip south this past week.

Huntsville, Alabama: Beauty is all around, waiting to be found. A piece of graffiti I found written on a white board that had been affixed to the red brick wall. Just seemed poignant as I poked around alleys in an otherwise empty downtown Huntsville looking at the architecture and details on the buildings.

Near the Kentucky/Tennessee border: Did I mention that it rained? Hard? I believe that this storm 'benefited' from the effects of Tropical Storm Ernesto threatening south and east of here. It was wet. Very wet. And this was when the visibility was still relatively good.

Tennessee: From the category of signs gone wrong (or "Signs gone Wild!"?), we first have the "Polk Motel", which -- yes -- is named for one of the country's former Presidents. I'd still think they could have named something a bit more prestigious for him. At least a Suites. An Inn, perhaps? With a motel, there are just too many jokes (or pokes!) to be made.

Alabama: That said, however, taking the cake are the Alabamans? Alabamians? (Yes, just looked it up; that's the correct offering for you trivialists.). Really, this one writes itself. And it's in the south, no less. Was there no thought put into that one? I can imagine the bank officer sitting there reading the business plan, snickering. With the number of strip joints I had seen advertised along my route, I would have been pretty disappointed to have pulled in here thinking it was somethign else and instead found that it was a 'Restaurant supply' store. At least it wasn't a carpeting depot.

Huntsville, Alabama: The store fronts (which were actually mostly lawyer offices) were really beautifully done with leaded glass and ornate designs.

Huntsville, Alabama.

Huntsville, Alabama: A pigeon decided he wanted to be a part of this one. The buildings were so neat that I found myself looking skyward during most of my visit. At least there was nobody around to relieve me of my wallet when I was there because I was doing more craning than, well, a crane.

Huntsville, Alabama: Which direction next? A few weeks until the next road trip, this one, however, only inter-province. Will be joined by a co-pilote this time, though!

Day Two, p.m.

Alas, no photos from this afternoon. There would have been some nice ones, too. I can picture them in my mind. Battery issues. Or battery owner issues. I was too worried I'd forget to take the battery with me if I recharged it last night. And it would have really looked out of place in that room, which hasn't changed much since Nixon was in power. Wish I had risked it -- there was some neat stuff out there today. Oh well, live and learn. Tomorrow, we begin anew.

12:24: 1,513.6 kms.
What’s Playing: Pulp, This is Hardcore

13:24: 1,630.3 kms.

13:42: Back off the highway looking for the Turkey Creek Outlets. Disappointing. Didn’t even get out of the car. They look just like the big boxes set up back home, just more plentiful. Money scurrying, quickly gathered and crammed back into my pockets.

14:08: Knoxville! Wild man’s back at it again, off the highway looking for the University of Tennessee. Go Vol’s. There are tents set up all around this city with signs advertising “Revivals”. I don’t think I’m going to stop here. Or there. Oh, there’s the university. In between, I also saw the World’s Fair park, replete with big, gold dome and ran over my share of bad, bad streets. Have you not heard of grading, folks? Driveways should not drop vertically to the street. Not good for the shocks. Or the bumper.
What’s Playing: Coldplay, Parachutes

14:31: More gas. $2.679 a gallon for a total of $21.89. With some clever guesswork, I managed to pull into a gas station directly beside the street that leads into the university. And almost got into an accident in the process (sorry to the guy who’s likely still cursing Canadians everywhere). Funny enough, UT is not located on University Avenue, but on Volunteer. It’s a good thing I have a fondness for orange. Bright orange. Everywhere. The university is still bustling with students.

UT gets high marks for the efficiency of providing free visitor parking (from an attended booth, no less) and maps. With the size of campus, the allotted 45 minutes of parking was hardly sufficient to see everything, but it’s a great gesture. And I got to park next to “Peyton Manning Pass”. Cute.

15:16: There’s an old street car on wheels making its way up the road in Knoxville. It’s too early to brag, yes, but I have found my way back across town to the highway on the first try. Confidence can be the great equalizer. Okay, is there toilet paper hanging from my shoe? There’s got to be something.

15:24: 1,718.3 kms. 31 degrees.
What’s Playing: The Postal Service: Give Up

15:48: Oneida/Hunstville, TN. Absolutely delicious juxtaposition of a xxx outlet strip mall falling literally under the shadow of a hundred-foot-tall cross.

16:05: Kentucky!
What’s Playing: Interpol, Antics

16:24: 1,833.9 kms. 27 degrees.

16:29: Scary moment as a dump truck decides to merge into my lane. This time, it’s not his right-of-way. Had to drive down the shoulder in front of a construction zone to avoid becoming gravel for the offending beast.

17:24: 1,953.1 kms.
What’s Playing: Bob Dylan, Greatest Hits

17:35: Lexington! Off-roadin’ it again, this time for the University of Kentucky. I had been drafting quickly behind a car from Ohio so that I could make up some time and get to the UK bookstore before it closed. Then another car from Ontario came along. Obviously a veteran of the 401. Hello, new drafting partner. One of the first places I passed in Lexington had a giant donkey painted on the side of the building, with a sign that read “Big Ass Fans”. Don’t believe me, check out the website. The houses here are incredible. I’m seeing a theme developing: there’s money in the south. Damn.
What’s Playing: Split CD: Cat Power, The Greatest; Camera Obscura, Let’s Get Out of this Country

UK is a more modern-looking university, with mostly red brick buildings. It’s cooler out, despite the humidity. I can’t believe how much branded merchandise there is at these American schools. You can get almost anything with the school’s logo. And even the UK Marching Band has its own field. But as hawd as ah looked, I couldn’ fahnd Ashley Judd anywhea (workin’ on that southern accent). It’s a shame, really. Would’ve topped off a fine, fine day. It was nice to see, though, that even in Lexington, there is indeed still a student ghetto.

For the second time today, I have successfully navigated across a university city to re-find the highway sans map. Mom would be proud. It turns out that Lexington isn’t a one-horse town, though. It’s also home to Transylvania University. Can you imagine the looks you’d get if you had a medical degree from there? You don’t have to worry – it’s a small, liberal arts school. That goes by the short form, Transy. Glad they kept the ‘s’ in. I know, I know, like they haven't heard it all before. Just not here.

18:24: 1,988.4 kms.

18:44: 2,000 kms!

18:51: The horse farm to end all horse farms – thousands of acres divided with nice white fences. Not right beside it: Elmer’s.

19:02: Rain. Must be approaching the Ohio border. Oh wait, yes indeed I am.

19:24: 2,076.4 kms.

20:20: Certainly does not describe my vision right now. Bleary and tired. The end of the day was to have come sooner, but I got lured into going to the Nike Factory outlet beside the hotel. Dammit. I don’t need new basketball shoes, but I love them. And they’d normally be $200, but they’re on sale for $40. And they’re nice. And they fit well. And, dammit, they’re purple. At least there’s free wireless here and, an added bonus: free hot breakfast in the morning. Then it will be homeward bound. Wrapped up at 2,078.7 kms. tonight, reflecting a total of 792.6 kms for the day. And 13 hours out and about. More seeing of the sights, though. Good day. Now, good night.

Day One, p.m.

12:01: 640.6 kms.

12:11: Nice little welcome centre in Kentucky. Free maps! And literature. Whoo hoo, paraphernalia! Oh, did I mention maps? It’s a little muggier, having climbed to 26 degrees.
What’s Playing: Led Zeppelin, Box set, disc two.

12:59: Gas stop number two in Carrollton, Ky. The terrain has become much hillier and is very green. Gas is $2.519 a gallon and came to $17.77. Lucky sevens! Where’s Vegas? There seems to be a big business in the “flag car” industry out here. There are so many trailers with “Oversized Loads” (and this has nothing to do with the obesity rates in this country) as people seem to be moving their houses on large trucks quite a bit. Not quite trailer homes, but…

13:01: 718.8 kms.

13:30: Louisville!

14:01: 827.8 kms. The rock at the side of the road is red and it has climbed to 30 degrees for the first time today.

14:20: Hodgenville, KY, birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. I had no idea he was born here.
What’s Playing: Pet Shop Boys, Discography


14:46: Oh goodie, the rain has returned. And we have now apparently entered the Central Time Zone. So it’s now really 13:46, but I’m going to stick to EST for consistency. A lot of caves in this area, but it is pouring too hard to really see the road, so no spelunking for me today. Driving rain? Not quite the rain for driving. It is, in fact, blinding, particularly when passed by a large truck. It’s actually quite harrowing. The car in front of me actually just surfed off the road and I have felt myself lift onto the top of the water a couple of times. There has to be a good inch to two inches of water on the highway and it is blowing hard. At times, I’m having to drive by shadows of trucks in front – I cannot even see their lights. There are no shoulders to speak of here, so it’s not safe to pull off. Wouldn’t be safe anyway because nobody would be able to see me. So much for seeing the country.

15:01: 915.7 kms.

15:28: National Corvette Museum.

15:47: 1,000 kms! at Scottsville/Franklin, KY

15:55: Tennessee!







Really nice welcome centre in Tennessee. And yes, more maps. Everything’s bigger…in the south? Yay, normal-sized urinals. Yes, these are the things that amuse me.
What’s Playing: Rogue Wave, Split CD: Descended Like Vultures and Out of the Shadow

16:01: 1,012.6 kms. Today has been a fine, full palette of gouaches in a stunning array of greys. Perhaps it would be more appropriate to describe it as watercolours, all blended together instead. Grey either way. Oh, and wet.

17:01: 1,084 kms. Traffic has been really heavy around Nashville and its Batman-like Bell South tower. Grey, but not raining too much at this point. Woo hoo, though, everyone seems to be going to Knoxville or Chattanooga, so the road’s actually clearing up in my direction. A way down the road though, still more end-of-day traffic.
What’s Playing: Killers, Hot Fuss (though I just heard Nickelback on local radio. Hurriedly changed it. Phew.).

17:24: Misty rain still, but could that be – wait a second, brace yourself, no – yes! It is the sun!

17:31: Yes, this is juvenile. Yes, he’s a former President. But the Polk Motel? Good thing his first name wasn’t ‘Quick’. Or “Harry”. Or definitely, Richard.

17:38: First sighting of a confederate flag of the day. Would not be the last. Also saw a quail or pheasant along the side of the road, pecking away at the tarmac. Tasty. The surroundings have been pretty green most of the way down, but there has not been very much water. Apart from the rain, smart ass.

18:01: 1,189.1 kms. Just passed a place called “Boobie Bungalow”. I kid you not. Yikes.
What’s Playing: Sam Roberts, We Were Born in a Flame

18:10: Second directional blunder of the day (not too bad all things considered). I missed the exit I was supposed to take for Huntsville, thinking I didn’t have to exit while still in Tennessee. Oh well, not a major miscue, just need to circle back. A couple of times. Seems to be the way. Once back on track, it’s a neat drive through the country. And the sun is out and – get this – finally, blue sky. The clay at the side of the road is really red.

18:59: Huntsville!


19:01: 1,271 kms. Stopped to wander downtown Huntsville until 20:00. What an absolutely gorgeous city. The highlight by far of the trip. It’s old and every building seems to be historical. And historical in the real sense of the word, rather than just being old. All of the buildings seem to have been converted into spaces for lawyers. They are everywhere. Pretty much every second building. Lots of money. Oh that’s right, lots of lawyers.

Details, big and small, not overlooked in Huntsville.


It’s dead downtown at night though, with only a couple of restaurants open and nobody milling about. Lots of great architecture to look at. The frescos are stunning.


Above: Entrance to a private club. Below, yes that does mean the sun was around for a bit today to be able to set. Sunset over Huntsville. Ah, good sigh.

The homes, too: something else.


I found a Super 8 hotel and decided to stay in the room that time forgot. Not the best room I’ve ever stayed in, but with the amount of time I’ve spent on the road today, it’s welcome nonetheless. Free Internet and a King-Sized Bed. Good news. Went for southern bbq for dinner after looking a number of places. Dreamland Bar-B-Que Ribs, just up the street. Styrofoam plates and plastic utensils. The paper towel roll rests on the table. And they bring you white bread and a (Styrofoam) bowl of bbq sauce to dip it in as a warm-up. Not environmentally friendly, but okay. Pulled pork sandwich (with pickles on it) and coleslaw for dinner. Spicy. The place smells like smoking meat. And I mean that in the very best of ways. Tax and tip: $10.

Final kilometre tally for the day: 1,286.1. On the go for more than 15 hours. The car was wheezing, wanting to protest when it came time to drive back to the hotel.