The Good Badass Samaritan

It was Friday, already scorching hot, and the sun’s heat shimmered on the highway ahead. My car, Erifnus Caitnop, pointed her nose toward Columbia, and we both looked forward to some rest after a grueling week on the road. By … Read More

The Bridge to Nowhere

I was running late. Hannibal was still an hour away. So I took a short cut. My Pontiac was making good time on the backroads, slicing down straightaways that squeeze between flat soybean fields, fallow before spring planting. Oncoming cars … Read More

When Harry Met Elvis, Sorta

“Give me the Elvis.” I hadn’t expected to encounter food fit for the king. Not here, within a wedge shot of so much history. But that’s what makes the journey so rewarding. I finished my Elvis, a peanut butter sandwich … Read More

Paradise found!

Almost everybody has a mental image of paradise. I took a picture of it. If you look closely, you’ll see the spirit of John Milton. Or maybe that’s Milton Berle. Truth is, nobody knows for sure.

Signs of global warming

Quaint. Nostalgic. These painted ladies sat like Loreleis beckoning heroic Pontiacs and Mustang stallions to gorge on their drug of choice, their deadly tailpipes weaving a sweater around Mother Earth.

Ray’s Diner

It’s hard to overlook Ray’s Diner. On Broadway in downtown Excelsior Springs, Ray’s low-slung exterior shouts the words “Ray’s Famous HamburgerS” stretched across the diner’s face in mismatched hand lettered fonts over an awning that screams in candy cane colors. … Read More

It goes through Saint Louie

Here is a historic highway, a narrow concrete time capsule, complete with ghosts of gas stations pumping out charm and skeletons of roadside diners serving up simpler times. Route 66 is all attitude: Freedom. Adventure. Kicks.