More signs

Just some random signs that I found either amusing, depressing, or that I documented as an inside joke for family......

Isn't this a bit of an oxymoron?  I mean, how can the fabrics be both "designer" (implying high fashion) and "bargain" (meaning cheap)?  Guess it depends a bit on how old the fabric is........

No offense, but I like my bed to be more comfortable than a bunch of logs.

Up until not too long ago, this business was doing quite well.  The little town it's in doesn't have a lot of industry, so to lose this business was probably something of a blow to the town.  The header on the sign - "Career Opportunities Available" - made me especially sad.

Being familiar with Chicago, when you hear "Palmer House Hotel", you tend to think of the grand hotel downtown in the Hilton brand of that name.  Not a 3-story brick-clad building in a small town.  Do you think they're maybe trying to use the name to their advantage?

These last two are for family and friends.........

Rural America

I was recently on several trips through the Midwest, and snapped some everyday pictures of "stuff" I found interesting.

As backstory to these first couple - I ran into some construction (in summertime - shocking!!), but decided I didn't want to follow the marked detour.  I have a GPS, so I can just follow my nose (with its added guidance) and get where I'm going.  Well, that was fine and dandy until the only available road had the following sign:

Now, I've been on worse roads, and I've been on better roads.  But this was little more than an area that didn't have any grass growing on it:

(Yes, one of those sets of tracks are MY tire tracks).

A short time later, I spied these guys hanging out at the side of the road.  Who's checking who out?

This last one for this series will date me.  However, I remember traveling quite a lot as a kid as my parents both liked to vacation away from home, and we didn't always take the "beaten path", which is probably - in part - why I happened to be in this place.  In those days, the railroad and electrical line right-of-ways often paralleled each other.  While this picture doesn't really do it justice, this was one of the most intact examples of that which I have seen in a long time:

The basic crossbuck-style sign, the poles complete with glass insulators and line still strung, and the warm summer breeze just took me back to those trips.

June 2012 mileage summary

Monthly summary – June 2012

Driving miles – 4683

Flying miles - 0

Nights in a hotel – 9

Days driving at least 100 miles for work – 11

States visited (unique to 2012) – 0

Canadian provinces visited (unique to 2012) - 0

Year to date summary (thru 6/30/12)

Driving miles – 17828

Flying miles - 2110

Nights in a hotel – 44

Days driving at least 100 miles for work – 43

States visited (unique to 2012) -14

Canadian provinces visited (unique to 2012) - 1

Room Oddities

The last in this series about hotel rooms and loyalty rewards is ending with a couple of oddities that I have spotted the I have not been able to fully identify the function for, or even the identity.  Here they are, for your consideration and comment:

This work of art was left on my bed, fashioned out of two towels.  Based on the up-curl of what might be the trunk, I kind of assumed this was an elephant.  (Sorry - didn't take a profile picture).  If this were an elephant, however, the curled parts at the top look more like ram's horns, so maybe it a ram with a congenital nose defect.  What do you think?

In another hotel, I was going around the room checking the setup, and when I got in the bathroom I found a glass-enclosed walk-in shower, complete with showerhead, soap dish, and controls - just as you would expect.

Then I looked down and found this - a tub spout not 4" off the floor of the shower, complete with its own soap dish.  In a walk-in shower with the typical low-lip edge to hold the water.

Frankly, I am at a complete loss on this one.  Any ideas?

Room Upgrades

However, of all the benefits that come with being a frequent guest at certain hotel chains, the complimentary room upgrade has to be the best.

Your typical hotel room has 1 king- or two queen-sized bed(s), a dresser/TV stand combo (which may also include a microwave and/or small fridge), a chair or pull-out couch, a work station, a closet, and a bathroom.  If you are lucky enough to be chosen to be the one to stay in one of the unused higher-end suites as a function of your chain loyalty, you will receive a suite with several rooms, more overall space and amenities, and which is usually set away from stairways, elevators, vending machines, and entrances.  This enhances the experience by being much quieter than other rooms.

Sometimes, these suites are intended to be used for meetings or business entertaining - a conference table and chairs, larger wet bar and food serving areas, and separate bathrooms for the "business" side of the suite and the bedroom attached.  Not much fun, but you do get a lot more space and can work on larger projects - if you have the time, energy, and project to work on.

Other times, you get a suite that looks something like this:

Entering the suite through the large double doors, you have a coat rack and mirror table on the left, wet bar with fridge below to the right, two chairs in a small sitting area, and a glass-topped table and 4 cafe chairs out by the window.

Reversing that shot, you can now see the TV in the sitting area, and the arrangement of the table more clearly.

Panning slightly left from the last shot, you can now see the double door entrance to the bedroom area.

From the other side of the bedroom, you can now see the king-sized bed, chair, workstation, and part of the dresser (with TV atop)at the left.

As you turn around where I was standing to take the picture of the bedroom above, you find a whirlpool tub, separate room with the toilet, and a large shower.

All for the price of a standard king-bed room - and being away from home an awful lot.