DAY 6 & 7: Erie, PA -> Auburn, MA -> Standish, ME

Well the long journey has ended again: another 3,400 miles on the old Gnomey Tripmeter. Even those who love to roam need a little time to recharge their batteries. So I will be here at the lake for a while. Happy trails one and all!

DAY 5: Elkhart, IN -> Erie, PA

Well SOMEONE forgot to charge the camera battery last night, so I am forced to be photographed in crappy cell phone format. Took a detour over the border of Michigan (why does it feel like sneaking into Canada?) and on one side of the street you are welcomed back to Ohio, and the other Michigan. 
A stop at this neat little park in Michigan which was once a hide out for Al Capone—now it has these rustic looking bridges which are actually made of cement to look like wood.

Then back on the road, destination Erie! for beer, wings and Heather. Ahhhhh, perfect end to a long day on the road.

DAY 4: Grinnell, IA -> Elkhart, IN (418 miles)

How odd to be in Colorado one day and Indiana the next! Well without aid of an airplane of course.

But before we got to Indiana, I stopped off to pose with an original Lincoln Highway marker (the first American transcontinental interstate started in 1913, which went from New York to San Francisco and later became much of I-80) here in Dekalb, IL. Ah motoring history, the gnome's favorite subject in School for the Roaming Arts!

DAY 3: Brighton, CO -> Grinnell, IA (752 miles)

My quest to cover America continues! Today a stop on the way out of 'colorful Colorado' to salute the Pony Express. Tall ho pre-Postal Service mail carriers!

DAY 2: Beaver, UT -> Brighton, CO (615 miles)

Ah yes, much better. Here we go, majestic mountains! Sweeping mesas! America!

We head through southern Utah today and then chug chug chug up the mountains in Colorado... what is this white stuff! And why is it so cold and windy!

Here I am on photo op with an abandoned coal chute.

Guess who's back!

Yes, it is I, the Los Angeles Roaming Gnome, back from hibernation... well almost. We have set out again on a cross country journey, but katt has once again taken up all of the front seat. The nerve. So we set off up the 15 again and... *YAWN*, I must have drifted off there for a moment. See, we've done this route 3 times this year already. I'll be in my sleeping bag until we get somewhere new and interesting.

Oh hello, Beaver, UT! *titter, titter*

Day 7: NM->AZ->CA, Getting My Kicks on Rte 66

Ah yes, our final day on the road, finally!
Stopped at a few roadside rests on the infamous Rt. 66 (here katt and I check out the saddest one of the bunch from a safe distance) Not much going on in this close to the interstate anymore, everybody's just go!go!go! these days.

Another successful road trip and now we're home safe and sound. After almost 6,000 miles in 2 months it's time to hibernate and rest up, just in case a gnome-napping occurs. Nice travelin' witchya!

Day 6: AR->OK ->TX -> NM

Another stop to sight-see, here we are in Conway, TX at the "Bug Ranch"... not as populated as "Cadillac Ranch" (and less likely to get shot at) or as frisky as the "Bunny Ranch" but just off the highway and no long lines!

Day 5: Kentucky->Clarksville, AR

Time for a little sight-seeing and history: a stop in Park City, KY at the site of Bell's Tavern. It was constructed by slave labor, but was never completed due to the onset of the Civil War. It was a stage stop for lines that brought visitors to Mammoth Cave when first promoted. Famed in U.S. and Europe for elite patrons, cuisine and magic peach and honey brandy for "Joy before the journey's end," until it burned 1860. Civil War doomed completion of a new tavern begun by grandson, Wm. F. Bell, and his stepfather, George M. Proctor. It is said that there was a curse put on some men at the tavern and the legend goes something like this: two men were arguing over which side would win the Civil War... North or South. They were drunk as usual and both men started quite a fuss in the Ol' Tavern.Later that night, one of the men came back with a couple of his friends and decided to burn down Bell's Tavern. Little did these men know that in the kitchen, an elderly woman was cleaning up for the night. The local townsfolk said that the elderly woman was a witch, but the men did not believe in the local folklore. They decided to kill the elderly woman and leave her to burn with the building. One of the men snuck into the kitchen and hit the elderly woman on top of her head. He used the blunt-end of his gun to do this. So, while the place was burning, the men saw the old woman trying her best to get up and escape the raging inferno. She was not dead yet! The old woman saw the men and yelled out a curse from her blood-stained lips... "Three men... Three wells Down, down you will fall Into the mouth of Hell!" While the elderly woman was cursing and burning, one of the men pulled out his gun and shot her dead. The three men watched the blames burn high into the night. One of the men felt the ground shift underneath his feet, but paid little attention to this. For he, like his friends, was interested in watching the place burn down to the ground. Suddenly, a huge deep hole opened up and swallowed one of the men. The other two saw what was taking place and started to run in different directions away from the Tavern. They tried to get away, but to no avail.Another hole swallowed the second man and finally the third man went down. Just like the old woman said in her curse The three wells are still there. Some of the locals say, if you listen close... you can still hear the men yelling, screaming for their lives... forever screaming in Hell!

Shepherdsville, KY: Gnome & Katt Go To White Castle

After missing the opportunity to be photographed eating some fine hot wings in Erie, PA (for the 4th consecutive time, I slept thru the whole thing!) we're heading SW to Kentucky... Here at our hotel for the night, there is both an all night liquor store AND an all night White Castle. What a country!

January '09: Goin' Back to Cali!

Well I have had quite enough of this snow, so I am getting back in the buggy and heading back to California. Where will I land next? Stay tuned!

The Holidays

Ah yes, everyone's favorite time of year.... I'm not enjoying this snow! I am not a Snow Gnome!










Next I settle into my holiday work as a tree-topper: A gnome's gotta earn a living some how!

D.C.: November->December

After a lovely stay in the District of Columbia, it is now time to move northward again. But before I go, I decided to check out the White House Christmas tree. Here I am with my friend Robinson's Mom.