PEACE
ON THE ROAD
Boom!
Ooooohhhhh, Aaaahhhh
September
15, 2012
Whenever
I travel along the road I am fascinated by the different types of
geology that is exposed by the highway cuts. I am not about to try
to say that I know a lot about what I see but never the less I am
interested. We have traveled recently through a lot of limestone
formations. Some of it has been very solid, some very broken, and
some extremely bent and twisted. There have been highway cuts that
have exposed numerous limestone stratifications. When I see bands of
dark rock every few feet or less I wonder it there were volcanic
eruptions that caused the layers or some other event, perhaps a
flood. At one camp right by our step I found a beautiful fossil in
the limestone that was used as a camper pad. I have to believe that
there are many more fossils that could be found in every road cut.
While that might be true the vast majority would be so common as to
of no interest to any fossil collector.
It
was May 22, 2011 that a very powerful EF-5 tornado went through
Joplin, Missouri. While I have seen areas that have been hit by
tornadoes never have I seen a swath of destruction like I saw there.
The rubble that was left for the most part has been taken away
leaving huge areas devoid of any building above the foundation.
While the old hospital is still being razed in one location a new
hospital is being raised in another area It is heart rending to
still see many twisted signs that are the only item that marks a
business that no longer exists. The trees that are left are missing
most of their limbs but are still struggling to be green and grow.
While there are many buildings that are being constructed in both the
commercial areas and housing areas there are many more spaces that
are waiting for someone to build and heal the scars. There are also
indications that a lot of the businesses have been able to rebuild.
In fact we ate in one restaurant that had been heavily damaged and
had taken five months to reopen. It looked great but they said most
of the old posters and decorations had been destroyed. We had quite
a story from the waitress. Her parents home was one that was lost to
the tornado.
ONE
MOMENT OF THE N F A EXPO DISPLAY THAT LASTED AT LEAST THREE HOURS
The
main reason that we went to Joplin was to see the 2012 National
Fireworks Association Expo. It happened that it was on our route
toward Mission, Texas and was scheduled when we could be there. We
went to three nights of the show. The emphasis was to showcase
manufactures and wholesalers products. The name of a product would
be given and a single shell would be fired. Each dealer was given
about fifteen minutes for their showcase so there was little time
between shots. We went two nights for that and saw an unbelievable
show each night. I was unaware that each shell could have from 1 to
300 plus effects. These were shells that they said were available
for sale to any person. The last night of the fireworks was beyond
belief. It went on for at least three hours. First they had the
single demos by several promoters. Then there was a competition
between two companies for a trophy. Following that was the finale
that lasted over a half hour. Picture a football field (race track
actually) with fireworks going off at each end and the middle and off
the concrete seats on the far side. Then think of 8, 16, or 20
shells going off at the same time. The booms could be felt
physically and a lot of the time it was so bright it was like
daylight. There were shells exploding to the right, the left,
straight ahead, up above us and I think some even went over behind
us. It was lightly raining ash and pieces of paper down on our
heads. Purely amazing. Regular fireworks shows will be
anticlimactic. Still I bet when we go see one we will still say
Ooooohhhhh, Aaaahhhh, just
like all the other kids at the show.
ENTRANCE
TO THE PRECIOUS MOMENTS CHAPEL CENTER
I
am sure that I have a memory that dates back to before an event
happened. I am sure that people had told me about visiting the
Precious Moments Chapel in Carthage, MO back in the early '70s. The
land for the chapel was not purchased until 1984, so maybe I really
remember people talking about the figurines that Sam Butcher
designed. For sure more recently I have been told that a visit to
the chapel was very worthwhile. They were right. The chapel is
filled with paintings and stained glass windows that depict
“teardrop-eyed children” that show a scene from the Bible. The
artwork shows how a small child might see the stories that they have
heard read by parents or teachers. In the outside areas there are
many sculptures that carry on the theme of the chapel and numerous
fountains and walkways. It is a very pleasant place to visit and
walk around and enjoy the serenity of the area.
ROUTE
66 DRIVE-IN CARTHAGE, MISSOURI
I
must have been an underprivileged child when I grew up. My parents
did not have a television till I was in college. No, I did not miss
anything by not having a TV at my home at all. To see one it was
necessary to go visit the neighbors. I did that with my Dad to watch
The Saturday
Night Fights
and the Lawrence
Welk Show,
Name That
Tune,
and some others. Those were good times. I must remember reruns of
Route 66
with Todd and Buz because I did not have a TV of my own until I was
given one by my in-laws about 1965 after the show ended in 1964. I
always liked the idea that they traveled across the country,
supposedly on route 66, in a Corvette. I still love that car. That
lifestyle fascinated me, I wanted to do it. Now I do live some of
it. Route 66 was opened in 1926 from Chicago to Los Angeles. It was
the first totally paved road in the US. I have always felt that it
was special to drive on parts of the “Mother Road”. While it's
not possible to drive the full length any more I think it would be
great to take a trip on all of it that is left. It
would be wonderful to stay in teepee motels, eat at highway diners,
buy gas at small stations and visit attractions that were built to
serve the motorist of the 30's and 40's but most of them are long
gone. Even the drive-in theater I saw was nearly lost. Of the
original 6 it is the only one left. I can travel bits and pieces of
Route 66 and try to imagine what it was like years ago.
We
are now in the 42nd state of our travels, Arkansas. Neither Erma nor
I have ever set foot in this state as far as we know. There is a
lot to see if we have the time. How much time we spend and how much
we see depends some on the weather, some on how tired we get and
other factors of which we may not even be aware. We may be able to
see some Civil War sites and museums and if things work out maybe
even hunt for some diamonds. To determine when and where we go is a
good life.
Till
Later This Is Doug Of
PEACE
ON THE ROAD
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