Flying saucer and a pink elephant

What day would not be complete if you didn't happen to see a flying saucer sitting in a field along I-55 just outside of Livingston, Illinois. After a quick exit and a ride back through town I came back to the saucer. Turns out to be an original Futuro home and as the web site says the Futuro house was designed by Matti Suuronen. Its design encapsulated the distinctive themes of 1960's Utopian architecture; mobility, increased leisure time and new materials. Residents of Tampa will recognize the distinctive shape. The 2001 Odyssey adult entertainment club on Dale Mabry Highway has one at their establishment. The saucer I found is empty but was once was a house until the Racoons got to it. The web site http://www.futuro-house.net/ says there are only 6 know homes left. Don't know if the one I saw is one of them. Bye the way, Zirky thinks it is a space ship sent by his planet Zirkonion friends to save him from this earthly life. But I wouldn't believe him since he's a plastic frog after all.
Along with the saucer is a 30' pink elephant and no I was not drinking and a 30 or so foot Harley Davidson Guy. (The statue began life as a Muffler Man who used to stand outside a muffler shop. Along side the The Pink Elephant Antique Mall is a giant Twisty Treat Ice Cream man who is claimed to have had a part in a 1990 Julia Roberts film called Flatliners. Anyway that was what i was told by the shop owners. If you are ever in Illinois and traveling along I-55 at exit 37, take some time and grab an ice cream and look over the collection. The owners are great.

I thought my day was complete with unusual things until I came across a Dutch
Windmill along side a back road outside the town of Industry,Illinois. Seems as it was part of a Tourist camp from around 1927.

I gotta say that Things have changed in the farm land since I was last here. Gone are most of the small farms with pigs, cows, some corn and replaced with thousand acre corn and bean operations with no fences as far as you can see. The equipment has gone from the small John Deere tractor to monster machines with more electronics than Best Buy.
Check out the photos. I'll be back in a couple day when I hit the road again heading towards Texas.

Day 2 and what a day it was

I guess if things go wrong it should all happen on the same day. Since I have a navigator and copilot named Zirky I defer all responsibility and accept no blame other than letting a small brained plastic frog take command. This was my day...Someone left the fuel switch in the wrong position and instead of having a small amount of reserve gas, the bike burned the every last drop 1/2 mile from an exit and gas. Needless to say the frog is also blamed for stopping the bike on the uphill not downhill for an easy coast to the station. The day was saved by Robert, another biker on the way home from work who stopped and took me to the station and back for a round trip of about 5 miles. He Would not take any payment, only a promise I would help the next stranded biker I saw. On the bright side I did however miss all the rain showers.

The next minor screw up was a fat frog finger punching the wrong destination into the GPS resulting in a scenic tour around Tennessee. All Zirky would say in plastic frog talk after my ranting was, #$@*# *&%, which is pretty strong language for a frog.

In spite of the above listed frog caused problems I did see some pretty cool places and sights.
Managed to make it to Lookout Mountain in North Georgia, Ruby Falls and Rock City. Now Rock City is that place that used to be advertised on barns around the nation. Well Rock City really isn't much. A local advised me not to waste the money, I did however make a photo of a Rock City souvenir. The craziest thing I found is a place called Sam's Tree House. (see photos) It's multi level conglomeration of a house, airplane, helicopter and submarine. According to info I found on the web it also features a submarine prop from an 1960's Elvis movie. It is supposed to be owned, built and lived in by Sam Edwards, author and adventurer, former aid to President Jimmy Carter. The airplane is a bedroom. There is also a den, library, kitchen. He has to duck under the branches to get around in his home. It was also featured on a network TV program on unusual homes. No one was home or maybe Sam just didn't want to get involved with a guy with a pet plastic frog.

Off to Illinois tomorrow and meet up with my cousin Judy and her husband Jim. I may not get through the door after she reads about my misadventures.
CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS.

First Day Out

I made it through the first day of riding. What was I thinking! Leaving Tampa at 7 a.m. with 476 miles on the first day out sounded OK but about half way through I said to myself, Self, this ain't too bad, until my butt chimed in and over-ruled my first thought. It took me a total of 7 hours 26 minutes of traveling time and a grand total of 8 1/2 hours total time. I am writing this standing up.

I managed to dodge rain the entire trip with just a few drops hitting me. Overcast all day and on the cool side.

I didn't see much along the way as I took the interstate. One big billboard I did see said
"What in Hell did I miss"? I'll try to find out what the hell that meant.
Traffic was unremarkable except for Atlanta. At least one million cars going bumper to bumper at 15 miles over the speed limit and me right in the middle. Maybe that sign was suggesting something. This was on a Sunday afternoon. I don't even want to see it during Monday rush hour.

In the future I'll eliminate Atlanta as a favorite place to drive. In comparison, Saigon and Paris seemed like a country drive.

Anyway, Zirky (my plastic frog traveling companion) are checked in a hotal so all is well here in beautiful downtown Kennesaw, Georgia.

I'm off for Paducah, KY in the morning. Not as far as today and maybe I'll see something worth writing about.

Aug 29th - Heading Out

It's Saturday and I'm all packed up with everything loaded but the big-screen TV. It seems as I just might have too much stuff, but I'll let you know. Tomorrow is Sunday, August 29 and I have about 400 miles ahead of me to my first stop in Kennesaw,Ga. That's my goal and here are my hopes...it's cool, It won't rain, I haven't forgotten something important, I won't run out of gas and 400 miles on the bike will be a piece of cake. Tomorrow night I'll check in and and let you know if any of the above came true so stay tuned.
I hope to make a few photos to add to the slide show you see on left of this post.

Mike

it's about time I did something I've wanted to do for years. I'll be 70 in September and that long-distance solo motorcycle trip I've thought about for years is about to happen.

I finally got to the point of being retired, having a very understanding wife and with most of my friends split on "Go for it" or "You are nuts!? Which ever side you fall, I'm ready to leave Tampa for the Midwest and my old home town of Alexis, Illinois where I spent a lot of my youth on my Grandfather's and Uncle's farms. When I left there in 1960, I never looked back (something I'm sorry for now) as I went off to the Air Force planning to return when my hitch was up. I never made it back as that hitch lasted over 23 years followed by a career in photojournalism in Florida lasting another 25 years. Can't wait to seeing my cousin Judy after a few decades. After the midwest it's on to Fort Worth/Dallas area to see my three Daughters and my Brother.

I plan on taking some back roads that might lead to nowhere but that's why U-turns were invented. Whatever I do or find, I'll report back.