Pop's in Arcadia is one of Oklahoma's newest Route 66 landmarks. We visited the Jetsonian convenience store back in 2007 and wrote about it for
Oklahoma Modern.
And earlier this week Pop's was even featured on the NBC Today Show.
Let's look in!
Labels: architecture, travel
We were recently passing through Cushing, Oklahoma hunting down
modern architecture. We were detoured from our mission when we spotted a pair of huge clothes hangers!
They were hanging out (ahem) in front of the Town & Country Dry Cleaners.
To witness this exotic site in person rush to the corner of North Cleveland Street and Oak in beautiful downtown Cushing. If you're traveling along Highway 33, look for OK-18 and turn south. It's only three blocks off the main highway.
And easy on the starch.
Labels: travel
Infill Development: a newspeak phrase to describe teardowns in older neighborhoods.
I'm yet to hear a good argument on why someone can't come to Midtown Tulsa, bulldoze a rotten, out-of-code, unsafe house and build a brand new beautiful home.
- Comment on Tulsa World
Nobody is complaining about the former.
And everyone is waiting to see the latter.
The majority of teardowns result in oversized McMansions being crammed on to lots fit for homes half their size. No matter what your idea of beautiful might be, the location of a home is inherently part of its appeal.
I'll never understand why someone moves to a neighborhood, then commences to undo everything that makes that neighborhood desirable.
Labels: life, tulsa
Aren't infatuations wonderful? Name most anything and I can show you someone who collects, studies or shoots at it. So to is the case with bridges.
Last week some folks attending our
Precious Moments Tour up in Osage Beach, Missouri had invited us to come ride with them around Oklahoma City. One of their recent destinations they mentioned was Oklahoma's longest one-lane bridge. I'd never really considered it before, but someone must measure such things.
Later that night I called home to Tulsa and mentioned this conversation to Jackie. The next morning I had an email with a link to a page about the Wanette-Byars Bridge built in 1902.
The reason it's such a long one-lane bridge? It's actually an old railroad bridge over the Canadian River that was converted for automotive use. Learn more on Wikipedia.In the process of tracking down this not-so-elusive bridge Jackie discovered several sites that can only be described as portals for, you guessed it, Bridge Geeks. Who knew? Well... guess I could have guessed (see first paragraph).
But we found a wealth of information provided by these intrepid spotters of spans.
Finding historic, unusual or defunct bridges close to home is really quite easy. And interesting. We browsed for older bridges close by and found several interesting examples- mostly the metal girder style that's shaped like a camel's hump (turns out "camelback truss" is actually a type of bridge). One unique design that caught my eye was a bridge south of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma (see photo below) that sported two inverted triangles for supports. Pretty soon we were taking notes and loading up the motorcycle for an excursion!
Exploring historic bridges can be fun because they're usually in rural areas- the type of place you might go for a Sunday drive anyway. The history these bridges reveal can tell you a lot about a community, the landscape or the road that passes over them. It's also interesting to see the engineering of these older contraptions, something hidden by concrete on most modern bridges.
Make your next day trip a bridge tour. Here are a few links to get you started...
Bridge HunterLists historic bridges all over the U.S. Use the map to search by state (there are currently 1495 listings in Oklahoma incidentally) or by county or by type of bridge. Most listings include photos and map links.
Oklahoma BridgesWes Kinsler has been cataloging the bridges of Oklahoma since November 2000. Along with photographing historic bridges and maintaining the website, he is also a founding member of the Oklahoma Highways Group. Notable sections of this site are the Bridges by Highway and the Field Guides page that you can download and take along on your travels.
Spans of TimeA dry but informative site is the product of an Oklahoma Department of Transportation project called the Oklahoma Historic Highway Bridge Project. The site offers photos of early bridges in Oklahoma and the 171 bridges identified as candidates eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Bridges are listed mostly by type so it can be difficult to use as a reference- but it's fun to browse.
Labels: cars, motorcycles, travel, tulsa
What's cuter than a Mini?
How's about a Mini pulling an Airstream trailer? It's not a total fantasy- although it's not available Stateside. Last week BMW unveiled its "mobile living" concept at the Salone del Mobile in Milano.
Here's what BMW's press release says about it:
“
The collaboration was underpinned by a passion for design and an eye for detail shared by all three brands. Mobility and the interaction with nature provided a twin-pronged focus for their endeavours. The world of watersports and the yearning of surfers for absolute freedom and harmony with their surroundings offered the perfect inspiration for the design study.”
Okay, so that must be German for "It's cute."
In addition to modifying the Mini Cooper S Clubman to haul a caravan (that's Yurrup for trailer), the Airstream was extensively tweaked by fashionista Fritz Hansen. The result is a trendy trailer with modern furnishings and a motorized wall that tilts out. My favorite detail is the shelving made from surfboards.
Pretty cool travel accessory.
Labels: cars, tech, travel
Last week some folks attending our Precious Moments Tour up in Osage Beach, Missouri had invited us to come ride with them around Oklahoma City. One of their recent destinations they mentioned was Oklahoma's longest one-lane bridge. I'd never really considered it before, but someone must measure such things.
Exploring historic bridges can be fun because they're usually in rural areas- the type of place you might go for a Sunday drive anyway. The history these bridges reveal can tell you a lot about a community, the landscape or the road that passes over them. It's also interesting to see the engineering of these older contraptions, something hidden by concrete on most modern bridges.
What's cuter than a Mini?
Okay, so that must be German for "It's cute."
