The City

While walking around on the sidewalk I came across this guy who was waiting by a garage, having a cigarette.

Downtown Houston

From my walk through downtown Houston. I've been checking out the downtown area a few times now and it's fun. Not a lot of great stores or anything, but it's great for people watching.

No Piñatas

There are not too many signs like this in Michigan. I find myself constantly surprised at the differences between Texas and my home state. To me, the 1,300 miles or so between the states doesn't seem like much, distance-wise. It's the differences in everything else like weather, culture and food, that surprises me.
An oddity about this photo is that the tilde is over the 'i' in 'pinata' on the sign. However, when I look it up, the tilde is over the 'n'. I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be over the 'n'.

A man and his horse

During a parade in town.

Bayou

I've been shooting mostly film so when it's processed, I'll have some of those up. These photos are from the Bayou Wildlife Park in Alvin, TX (just south of Houston). After visiting here, it'll be difficult to go to a zoo since this was so fun. Once you pay admission and for a bucket of food, you drive up the road further to the parking lot. However, in the meantime animals welcome themselves inside your vehicle to get the bucket of food. It's more like a contest to see how much food you're left with by the time you reach the parking lot. Those pellets are like cocaine for animals. We had ostriches and llamas chasing my Subaru up the drive. This is a common eland (native on the African plains, I googled it), and shortly prior to taking food from Moni's hand, it drooled on me through the sunroof.
The other photo was inside a barn on the premises. Hopefully the live animals outside don't get a look at what goes on in there. Those stuffed critters looked like they were from the '70s with about three inches of dust on them.

Market

At a local market over the weekend.

Sunk

Another photo from Galveston. This house was where a road used to go through and it was completely turned around from it's original position.

Galveston

Today Monica and I drove to Galveston to take a look at the wreckage. This was a fridge that was sitting in some sand on the beach.

MLK Parade

Houston had two Martin Luther King parades yesterday, however, I spent most of my time at the downtown one. It was 73 degrees and I became sunburned because my pale Michigan skin wasn't prepared for the sun's Texas-in-January rays.

Hope

This was an off-the-beaten path photo taken in Hope, Arkansas where time slowed down quite a bit. I passed a sign on the highway that said Hope, AK was the birthplace of Bill Clinton so I decided to check it out. To me, it was like being transported to another world. I wasn't as concerned with Bill Clinton history as I was in soaking in some of this small town's allure.

Happy Holidays

I knew that Christmas didn't equal snow-covered ground in all parts of the world. However, that still didn't prepare me for seeing a 'Happy Holidays' sign near cacti shortly after crossing the Texas state line.

Memphis

I made it to Texas last week and internet was hooked up today. It feels good to finally be connected and in the know. The warmer temperatures are so strange. It's nice now but the summer is going to be roasting.
Memphis was the first city I stopped at on the way down. It was actually Elvis' birthday but by the time I got to Memphis and achieved my goal of eating some dynamite ribs, my party shoes were tired. So the next morning I drove to Graceland and to the place where Martin Luther King Jr. was shot. The Elvis souvenir was in a gift shop a short distance away from Graceland. Quite creepy. After seeing the sites, I continued on my way.

Pity the Fool

Not a very exciting photo. This is going to help me make it to Houston without too much hassle. There will be no hassle because I downloaded the Mr. T voice for my navigation so according to Mr. T, I'm going to "get there in one piece!".
Other things Mr. T says...
"You better turn left, don't make Mr. T jump out of this machine and get you!"
"Turn right in 100 yards...fool!"

Charlevoix

Driving around in the back country near Charlevoix.

Stacey

I'm an only child, but before I was born, I had a sister named Stacey who was lost. She is, and always has been, the voice in my head that tells me to appreciate the beauty in my surroundings and to see places that she never had the chance to.
My dad showed me this photo of Stacey today and said he took it while she was walking around in the yard, amazed at how the dandelion seeds fall from the plant when they're touched.