Space Age Lodge & Restaurant - Gila Bend, Arizona

This was the last stop of my first day on the road. I had driven by this place about 6 months ago and had to come back and figure it all out!!! Just looked like an old, vintage motel with LOTS of character. I mean who puts a flying saucer on their roof?

And yet, there it is!

According to information they gave me at the front desk (yes, I always ask permission before I start taking photos, etc.) The motel was built in 1964/1965 (I figured older) and originally had a three 10 foot diameter satellite replicas on the roof. These were replaced with the flying saucer in a 1969 renovation. What a shame!

The restaurant was destroyed by fire in 1998 but was rebuilt. I had dinner there. Good food, great ambiance, what with all the space stuff.

Anyway, the motel exterior carries on the space age theme (I didn't get a room).

Even the pool looks futuristic, complete with a geodesic dome for the equipment

That's all for today, folks. I am thinking that I might be revising these things as time goes on, so check back if you can. I may have added something that you don't wanna miss... or not.

Center of the World - Felicity, California

I heard of this place and wondered how the heck can you call yourself "The Center of the World?" Not to get too technical, but wouldn't any point on the surface of a sphere connect directly to the "center" of the sphere, making every place the center of the world? That's just my warped thought process, but as it turns out, this place has been "officially" recognized as "The Center of the World." (I forgot to ask who designated it)

I'm not sure if I picked a good day or a bad day to visit. While there, I found out that the "Discovery Channel" was filming a segment for a "Green Earth" day program. I haven't figured out what makes the place "green." At any rate, my day included signing a release so that I could appear on camera.

So, here's the deal here... although because of the filming, it was not a "usual" day... you pay $3.00 for a "certificate" that declares the date and time you stood at the "center of the world". Once they get a few of these certificates sold... they take you into a pyramid structure....

Then you stand precisely on a dot, facing north towards a church and make a wish

The view facing the church....

The founder and mayor of Felicity (complete with sash) congratulating the host from Discovery after making her wish.

The sound girl from Discovery making her wish

YES, I did make a wish... for "whirled peas" (and you all thought I'd wish for the sound girl!!!)

Ora did not, sadly, get to make a wish. I am too cheap to pay $3.00 for a sock puppet to wish to become a real girl.... oh wait... that was Pinochio... wrong story.

I think it was a little windy for Ora!

Worlds Tallest Paper Cup - Riverside, California

Well, I gotta say.. "it's big"!!! BUT, in all honesty, not even sure it's paper. This cup is located on the property that was formerly a Sweetheart factory. It's now vacant and "For Sale". The cup sits out front with no fanfare, no placard, no nothing. This is definitely one of those things that I had to see, is out of the way and probably won't be visited much by anyone. But, heck, Ora wanted to stop by....

Roadside Woolly Mammoth - Jurupa, California

So as you drive along the 60 Freeway in Los Angeles, CA headed for Riverside, CA, you see this elephant, no mastodon, NO... Woolly Mammoth on the north side of the freeway. It certainly got my curiosity up.

As it turns out, the mammoth is part of a display at the Jurupa Mountains Cultural Center, a educational non-profit organization that has a few dinosaur sculptures on display too. Ora liked it here a lot, I think.

No dinosaurs ever lived in these parts. The sculptures are just that... sculptures. Not bones, fossils, etc. However, as Mary Burns, Executive Director of the Center told me, there WERE woolly mammoths in the area. And, in fact, they have a mammoth's tusk in the back which they are working on. It is a fossil and they painstakingly pick the dirt away to reveal the tusk underneath. Below is Mary working with a dentist's pick and a close up of the revealed tusk.

The purpose of the site is to serve educational needs of kids. So, it turns out this isn't such an "odd" or "curious" site at all. They provide a place for kids to go on field trips etc. I saw "scouts" there as well. They are only "open" I guess on Saturday, so I was lucky. The Center is within a nursery and I neglected to figure that out. There is a center full of rocks, mineral & fossils as well.

Teacher, educators etc. should call the Center to arrange visits!!! Click here to visit their website.

Ready to Go!!!

First of all, the dates on these are a day behind. Not because of any computer issues, but because I was in a place last night where I had no wireless internet... THE NERVE of the world... a place without a connection.

At any rate, I started yesterday promptly one hour later than planned, 7:00 a.m. The pics below are of my truck and how it's packed. In the back behind the driver is my sleeping bag and pad. (I've actually slept there one night now and it's not too bad... certainly not a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10... but a good solid 7 at least). All the stuff on the right is living essentials... food, clothes etc.

Next is my passenger side which consists almost entirely of electronics and maps. And the infamous odometer which turns out is pretty useless since I have discovered that it's about 25% OFF... that screws up my fuel calculations a BUNCH. I may have to get part time jobs along the way... getting 15 mpg... NOT 20!!!

And last, but certainly not least is Ora... looking relaxed and ready to go on the journey!

We're off!!!

Counting down... less than 12 hours

Just a short quick post here to say that I'm virtually ready to go... we're shooting for a 6:00a.m. blast off tomorrow (Saturday) morning.

Thanks to all of you for your support and especially for the donations!!!! I am truly amazed and humbled. (Keep 'em coming!!!! LOL)

Next post should be from the road!!!

Joe

In The Beginning: My Traveling Companion!!!

Well... she's here!!! After much thought and consideration (3 minutes is a lot, right?), I have chosen a traveling companion. She'll be with me and serve as my right hand (well... actually LEFT hand) man... woman... well... loosely... woman.

I guess the real purpose will be to verify that I'm really at the places I talk about and not just d/l a bunch of pics off the web or something. She will appear in at least one or two pics at every site. So... without further ado... ???? Here she is.... Ms Ora Lee, my companion.

I tried to talk to Ora Lee, but despite her name, she didn't really have much to say. In fact, she said nothing. When I asked her how she felt about being the truck with me for three weeks covering maybe 5,000 - 6,000 miles, she didn't look real happy?

At any rate, today is Monday and the scheduled departure at this point is Saturday, maybe Friday night. Like the entire trip, I hope, plans are not concrete and won't be throughout!!! Please feel free to comment, criticize, compliment or just be complacent... LOL... nice alliteration, don't you think?