Thursday, August 30, 2007
Rock Me Gently. . .Not
Friday, August 17, 2007
You Want Me to Climb Where?!
These are pictures from the outside portion of The City Museum in St. Louis. And, yes, that is a real plane on the left. If you ever find yourself in STL, you MUST go!
Remember that day as an older kid when you realized that the monkey bars were pointless, because your feet now touched the ground? Problem solved! This is a playground for adults (and supervised kids) - look, they use bouncy balls to create an adult sized ball pit. Fun, fun! The inside has various odd sights, contraptions, overpriced snacks, and a store selling weird items you'll never need. Like shoe soles - not the whole shoe, just a sole - and you find yourself wanting to buy something for the sheer novelty of it all.
All cameos by my friends pictured in this blog (in this case Nick and Jen) are entirely without their consent. I love you guys, too!
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
Curb Your Elephant, Please
I spent some time in St. Louis this summer and it was unlike any vacation I've ever taken.
It was slow and leisurely.
I didn't rent a car, telling myself it was the environmentally friendly (and cheaper) thing to do. Waiting for a bus on a streetcorner in the blazing midwestern sun and oppressive humidity, you find yourself mumbling, "A lesser person would say this sucks". As the sweat trickles down the valley of your back to absorb into the waist of your jeans, you find yourself chanting mentally, "I refuse to be a lesser person!"
Actually, it wasn't that bad (except the time I got off a city bus at what appeared to be the other end of John's street only to discover the street cleaved in two by a flood resevoir/ditch and had to walk a couple miles out of my way). During a few particularly downtrodden and/or unusual moments, I did have flashbacks to Kerouac's "On the Road", but I consider the whole experience a lesson in perspective. In a car, I would've spoken to fewer people. In a car, I wouldn't have gone through the same neighborhoods. Or corn fields for that matter.
And speaking of Union Station (doesn't every major city have one?). . . the one in STL combines a mall and a hotel. Outside there sits a coy pond with paddle boats and a couple more restaurants, including a Hard Rock Cafe (remember when you thought the Hard Rock was so cool as a kid?). Anyway, the building is old and looks quite grand in some places. Case in point, here is a photo of one of the stairwells complete with marble walls, brass railings, wood doors, and stained glass.
Another randomly cool building in St. Louis.
I like the Hippos, too, because they manage to look graceful while swimming. Does that somehow explain the prevalence of hippo cartoon characters clad in tutus? You know, put them in the right situation and even they can be elegant. Should I be gleaning some sort of "ugly duckling" lesson from this?
And now for the stars of tonight's show, the unsung heroes of zoos the world over. . .
Drumroll, please.
I give you THE MAINTENANCE CREW! (AKA "The Shit Slingers")
As I watched them tackle their duties in the elephant area, I had the overwhelming urge to ask them, "Exactly how much feces does an elephant generate each day?"
Yeah, I know. . . completely dumb of me.
I shall leave you with that little thought. The next post will tackle The City Museum. Don't worry, its not what you are probably thinking.
Toodles!