Tag Archives: lawn ornaments
Go Ahead Punk…Make My (Father’s) Day
Whenever Father’s Day would roll around when I was a youngster, the inevitable question arose, “Why isn’t there a kid’s day?”Every parent ever to draw a breath gave the same reply, “Everyday is kid’s day.”
Thinking back, there was a lot of truth to that statement. We did celebrate kid’s day nearly everyday, and I certainly don’t remember going out of my way to make my father’s days resplendent on any regular… CONTINUE READING >>
‘Hog Wild in Punxsutawney
Are they crazy about groundhogs in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania? You betcha. The place is lousy with them.Groundhogs adorn homes and businesses like the Baby Jesus does at Christmastime in most other places. We landed in the “Weather Capital of the World” in mid-December and found the good people of “Punxy” also know how to inflate a holiday decoration — and park it next to a giant fiberglass woodchuck. Not counting groundhogs (real, wooden, fiberglass, bronze, or welded metal) the town of… CONTINUE READING >>
The Fiberglass Menagerie
Nothing lifts the spirits of a weary traveler quite like the sight of a fiberglass colossus looming in the distance. Through the shimmering heat off the blacktop a form begins to take shape. A skyscraping Abe Lincoln, a Paul Bunyan the size of a small office building, a life-sized brontosaurus or a fish that could swallow an airliner — all have great power to inspire, or at least attract attention… CONTINUE READING >>The Great Frog Fraud of Creek County
The journey to the “Creek County Frog” is an adventure unto itself. Was it that we in the area and thought we’d drop by? Could it be that we simply ADORE frogs and just had to see a really big one in rock form? Or maybe it’s that David has a more than unreasonable affinity for crazy quirky crap. We’re pretty sure that’s it. Yeah, that’s definitely it.
The sizeable limestone amphibian lives smack dab in the heart of nowhere. The nearest settlement is Mannford, Oklahoma, home to a bit more than two thousand souls, numerous Yeti and a number of genuinely spooky characters.
According to Wikipedia, the source of all… CONTINUE READING >>
Ginormous Abe Lincoln
On the outskirts of Kankakee, Illinois, visible from I-57 but not easily accessible, is the biggest Abe Lincoln we’ve ever seen. This guy looms over Kankakee, like a midwestern Rio de Janeiro Jesus, with a view from 40 feet high. He dwarfs the Lincoln of Lincoln Memorial fame, who is a paltry19 feet from top to bottom (though in D.C. Abe’s sitting down, so we’ll call it a tie).
After winding through a few side streets off the exit, we made our way to the home of the giant chief… CONTINUE READING >>
The Second Annual Combine Demolition Derby
“Oh, we have got to see this!” It was an ad for the Hillsdale, Michigan County Fair. The entertainment for the opening night was the Second Annual Combine Demolition Derby. We could hardly stand it.
Long a fantasy of mine to demolish a ’73 Chrysler in a derby, the next best thing had to be seeing giant farm implements annihilating each other in the mud and dust of a county fair track. Veronica, who grew up outside the farming belt was a bit confused, “Aren’t combines those machines that do something or other with crops?” Oh yeah, they harvest crops, are extremely huge and this is gonna be great! Immediate Googling was needed for more information on Hillsdale and this wacky… CONTINUE READING >>
