A “handsome” gathering of scalawags and hooligans. Can you tell who is the Captain?

The location was Granite Falls, Washington, hosting their annual Railroad Days, held the first Saturday in October. As we entered the town we noticed an odd vehicle on the side of the road. Somehow it looked like a ship of some kind. Then we saw (and heard) pirates leaving the “ship”, having a great time as they ambled down the sidewalk and entered a bar or grill.

Later the vehicle, an amphibious Duck, drove by us as we were parked on a side street. That was my chance to go see what this bunch of scalawags was all about. I walked with Pirate Steve, aka Fingers, as the raucous crew made their way to the local American Legion bar. Steve told me that this bunch of pirate dressed holligans were in fact the Seattle Seafair Pirates.

The…

New Orleans is a remarkable city with seemingly unlimited visual scenes. Here are some photos that we took during our first day in The Big Easy.

New Orleans is celebrating it’s 300th birthday during 2018.

For some reason, only mules are used to pull the carriages that drive around the town.

The window display at Rev. Zombie’s Voodoo Shop.

Above ground tombs in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1. Only tour groups are allowed into the cemetery to help control vandalism

Bourbon Street in New Orleans, known for music, food and revelry. Note the famed balcony iron work in the background

Driving through northern Ohio we stopped at a small store for a travel break, Maj spotted not only an antique road grader but a tall monument topped with a proud eagle.

This is the inscription on one of the four panels below the obelisk:

IN GRATEFUL MEMORY OF THE
VOLUNTEERS FROM HUNTINGTON
WHO OFFERED UP THEIR LIVES TO
PRESERVE THE FEDERAL UNION
IN THE
GREAT AMERICAN REBELLION

The oldest soldier listed here as mortally wounded in battle was 24

The other three panels are adorned with the names of the local boys who volunteered, where they were killed in battle, and how old they were. Reading these names, the date when their final battle occurred and the location where they were is quite striking. Brings home the impact of the American Civil War.

Sher

While Sher and I were driving around Vincennes looking for interesting things, we spotted the steeple of a large church.  We parked, got out and went up to one of the historical information signs. Then we looked to the right and wow, there was a huge structure that looked like a monument you’d see in Washington, D.C.

What we were seeing was the George Rogers Clark Memorial. The monument honors the 1779 victory of General George Rogers Clark over the British at Fort Sackville, on the Wabash River in what is now Vincennes. This was a hugely successful campaign during the Revolutionary War and led to the United States claiming the Northwest Territory from Britain.

Detail of the monument inscription

Francis Vigo, with the Wabash River behind

The State of Indiana built the monument in 1933 and President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated it in 1936. The site was turned…

One of two pylons on Indiana side of the bridge.

This bridge carries U.S. 50 Business across the Wabash River from Vincennes, Indiana to Lawrence County, Illinois. The east end of the bridge is in the George Rogers Clark National Historic Park. At this entrance to the bridge you will find two large pylons made of granite, each with a raised sculpture depicting  a Native American Chief.

The bridge is what is called a deck arch design, and has two traffic lanes and wide pedestrian walks on each side of the roadway.  It was opened to traffic in September, 1933, the same year that the George Rogers Clark Memorial was completed. President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated the monument in 1936.

View from the George Rogers Clark Monument

Wabash River walk, Illinois is on the other side of the river

Parked after crossing the bridge

This was one of the attractions…

We were on the way from Columbus to outside Cleveland for a family gathering when Sher reached across me with her phone in hand. I rolled down the window, and the below picture is the result. This is at the intersection of US 224 and Ohio 28.

This is one of the many displays that are part of the National War Memorial Registry. These cannons honor the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Mexican-American War, Civil War and the Spanish American War. Too bad we didn’t have time to stop.

The clock tower on Starbucks Headquarters in Seattle

Credit: https://www.rd.com/article/hidden-detail-starbucks-logo/

Seattle is home to the Headquarters of the famed coffee company Starbucks. Having one of the most recognized logos in the world is a great part of the company’s success. The logo is a stylized Siren, not a Mermaid. Like many company logos, the Starbucks logo has also changed looks over the years. The head of the Siren is also found peeking out from the top of the clock tower of the headquarters building. Check out this Reader’s Digest article for some fascinating history of the logo and the company.