"Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign..."

"Sign, sign, everywhere a sign;  Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind;  Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?"  
                                            (Five Man Electrical Band, 1970, lyrics by Les Emmerson)      

Like most who travel, we like taking pictures.  Spectacular scenery, impressive structures, man-made and natural monuments, and if you are a regular reader, you know of our penchant for taking pictures of quirky things (the Lunatic Asylum, for example.)

Signs are another favorite.  Some, like old neon signs, are artistic in their own right.  Some are iconic.  Some are clever or downright funny.  And some just make you want to scratch your head and say "huh?"

Herewith is a collection of some of the signs that we've seen and photographed both in the U.S. and abroad.

For years, on the way to the Lake of the Ozarks, we drove through the wide spot on
U.S. Highway 50 that was once the community of Useful, MO.  I suppose if you
were in need of a cemetery, this would be a "useful" sign.

Ever wonder where all of that stuff goes that the TSA takes away from you
at the airport?  It is for sale in an antique store in Eufaula, Alabama

Everything tastes better "on a stick" at the Illinois State Fair in
Springfield...and you can pretty much get "everything."

"Meramec Caverns" advertisement painted on a barn roof along I-44 in Missouri.
The practice began in the 1930's.  At its height, there were 400 such signs on
barn roofs in 40 states.  Today there are about 75 remaining.

Betty's Boots (or as the sign says, "Betty Boots"), Nashville, TN

This restaurant in Decatur, Alabama was recommended to us by
a docent at Burritt Mansion in Huntsville, and it was really good.
No, Cardinals' fans, it is not the former Redbird pitcher.

This street divides Bristol, VA (to  the left) and Bristol, TN (to the right) but
the street is actually in Tennessee.  I suppose both towns saved money by
erecting only one sign.  Wonder who maintains it?

The Ben Douc Tunnels (better known as the Cu Chi Tunnels) in the Cu Chi district of Saigon (now Ho
Chi Minh City) allowed the North Vietnamese to infiltrate the south during the war.  Today it is almost
trivialized as a tourist attraction with the addition of a restaurant, camping area and amusement area.

Wooden Indian in front of a cigar store in Wisconsin Dells. Native
Americans were traditionally used to represent tobacco stores
because Native Americans introduced tobacco to European settlers.

This one speaks for itself.  A little off the beaten path, but worth
a stop if your travels take you anywhere near Cherokee, Alabama

On historic Route 66 in Springfield, IL.  You may not
be able to get alligator on a stick here, but they claim
to have invented hot dogs on a stick.

Billboard in Nha Trang, Vietnam extols Communism and implies that everyone -
students, military, workers, the family - is happy under "the party"...

...while this billboard in Dalat, Vietnam, aims to get tourists to spend their U.S. dollars
($18 U.S.) on the big 30-item buffet for the Tet (Lunar New Year) celebration

The driveway going into the Victoria Falls Hotel in Victoria Falls,
Zimbabwe, Africa, has speed bumps and they warn you not
only to go slowly, but to go "dead slow."

Another opportunity to eat something deep-fried, in Saigon, Vietnam, makes
alligator on a stick in Illinois look pedestrian.  They were selling crickets,
fried or dipped in chocolate, but these pictures look more like cockroaches.

The El Don Motel in Albuquerque, NM, another historic Route 66 attraction

Here's one you don't see on roads in the U.S. - Elephant Crossing.
This was taken while we were on safari in Zimbabwe, Africa. 

Frisch's Big Boy restaurant in Columbus, OH.  The Big Boy franchises were operated
by a number of chains, including probably the best-known one, Shoney's Big Boy.

Gateway Sporting Goods and Bowling Supplies, Independence, MO

At Habersham, SC, a new "planned community" near Beaufort.  It doesn't say
"NO SWIMMING", but maybe that's one of the things that annoys the alligators.

In Las Vegas, Nevada, this store's "Department of the Obvious" obviously worked overtime

We saw this sign in a public restroom near the Angkor Wat Temple complex in Cambodia.
No Smoking - OK      Don't squat over the commode - OK       No showering or bathing -  OK  
But we still haven't figured out what the third prohibition is.  Any guesses?

Need a discount casket for use in the Useful Cemetery?  You're in luck,
just off the courthouse square in Independence, Missouri

A "no frills" warning, Texas-style, at Texana Park and Campground
(formerly Lake Texana State Park) in Edna, Texas

Las Vegas...we didn't go in to see what kind of "naughty stuff" they had for sale.

The iconic Las Vegas sign near the airport.  While it seems like it has always
been there, it was designed by Betty Willis in 1959 and sold to Clark County, NV

Made famous by the television show "Pawn Stars".  On TV
the shop looks pretty big; in person, it is very small and crowded.

This sign, supposedly historically accurate, was posted in the
window of a former "house of ill repute" on a street of bawdy
houses and bars called "Married Men's Trail" in Ketchikan, Alaska

We ate lunch in Mr. D'z, another of the iconic stops along
historic Route 66 in Kingman, Arizona

"Not recommended for tractor trailer trucks."  Of course not...
North Carolina 9 is reserved for Batmobiles.  (near Asheville, NC)

No name on the sign, but no mistaking what they are selling.
Out in the middle of nowhere, near Coralville Lake in central Iowa

Just a really cool sign for a shoe store in Aurora, Indiana

At the Petrified Forest National Park in northeast Arizona.  The sign is kind
of ordinary for a national park, but the "guard bird" is pretty daunting.

In Murfreesboro, Arkansas, near the Crater of Diamonds State Park.
"Come Get A Bite"

The Red Ram Motel in Ft. Scott, Kansas, just because it has a cool sign

This is at a rest area on I-10 near Lake Charles, Louisiana.  Unlike the
folks in Habersham, SC, the Cajuns feel compelled not only to show
you there are alligators in the water, but to tell you not to swim in it

The Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas is closed now,
but it had a great sign

Nha Trang, Vietnam.  We ate dinner in a restaurant on the bay, and there was
indeed, a sailing club there...the restaurant was part of the club.  What the rest
of the sign means we don't really know. 

In Bisbee, Arizona, at the Shady Dell RV Park.  You can bring your own RV
or you can stay in one of several vintage Airstreams.

Roadrunner Lounge and Steak House in Soccorro, New Mexico, now closed.
Maybe the Rent-A-Car company ought to change its name to "ACME" Rent-A-Car

Sunset Motel near Lawrence, KS...another great
old, colorful neon sign that still works

Tee Pee Motel on U.S. Highway 24 near Lawrence, Kansas

This is from some years ago, when the circus arrived in Union, MO.  Yvonne went to
watch them set up.  Here, they are getting ready to erect the colorful Big Top

In Bandera, Texas, Yvonne went into this store to buy a cowboy.
Turns out they only sell boots, hats and clothing.

All over the mid-South, you'll see signs saying "See 7 States From Lookout Mountain".
Here, on the overlook at the top of the mountain in Chattanooga, TN, this sign
directs you where to look to see TN, KY, VA, NC, SC, GA, and AL.

Not many of these theaters left, but this one near Independence, MO is
still showing first-run movies on its twin screens each summer night

This hot dog restaurant is on the courthouse square in Independence, MO.  We
can pretty much guarantee it isn't part of a chain - -at least a national chain.

The truly iconic Vegas Vic in downtown Las Vegas used to
be outside.  Now, the street has been roofed over, and Vic is
part of "the Freemont Street Experience".

In the same area, known as Glitter Gulch, the female figure has
been known at different times as "the Glitter Gulch Girl", "Sassy
Sally" (after a nearby casino of the same name), or "Vegas Vickie"

Vicksburg, Mississippi.  Most people think Coca-Cola was originally bottled in Atlanta, but it
was here.  The owner of this candy company bought Coke as a syrup and sold it at his soda
fountain until he hit on the idea of bottling it and selling it to tourists at the National Battlefield 

Wasilla, Alaska...home of the Iditarod Dog Sled Race.  Former Alaska Governor
Sarah Palin was the mayor of this town when we took this picture many years ago,
but at the time her name didn't mean anything to us.

Turquoise Tepee Motel in Williams, AZ...another of those great signs
along Route 66 from the "golden age" of automobile travel and neon.

The Winnebago Gift Shop in Wisconsin Dells, WI

The Eagles hit, "Take It Easy" says "...standing on the corner in Winslow, Arizona..."
This is the corner and, if you look at the reflection in the window, you can see that
"...it's a girl, my Lord, in a flat-bed Ford, slowing down to take a look at me."

It isn't as slow as "dead slow", but they really want you to slow down.

And so, we're going to hang a U-turn and go out and see what else we can find.  We'll be back soon with more signs and more Road Stories.