That's not an aztec red convertible in the background

Now that I'm back in OH, I can post some pictures. To the right is the Battle of Blue Licks monument mentioned in the novel. The entrance to the park is right off of 68, and my first thought was, this is a perfect stopping place for a pedophile. It has a remote feel to it. I was told that the foliage was not as developed in the late 1940s and that the property consisted of perhaps 11 acres, so it was a very different place than the resort park it is today.

I really enjoyed my visit - particularly to the Pioneer Museum, where I paid 2.40 more than Humbert paid for Lo. 

gentile history?

From the front page of my current location:
"You'll discover that classic elegance and southern charm are not just a part of our gentile history but rather a pleasant description of the facilities and services you'll find here."

GENTILE?

I'm wondering if it truly is a typo. Is there a phrase, "Churches nearby" in the description of the hotel in my AAA guide?

Destination: a granite obelisk in KY

Today I drove from OH to The Battle of Blue Licks National Monument Park, which is in Mt. Olivet, KY near Maysville, KY, but NOT in Blue Licks, KY.

I should have pictures to post, but I thought I'd be able to insert the memory card into the computer - a computer engineer who shall remain nameless - he knows who he is - told me I could do so, even though I said I didn't think the card was the correct size for the slot. So, I left my usb cable at home. You'll have to wait for shots until I get back to OH.

The drive was beautiful - particularly 68 West and 460 West, which I took to get to Louisville. The roads undulated through some of the most beautiful countryside I've seen. The greens were incredible. It's so amazing when you note the different ways nature defines color. A box of crayolas doesn't adequately capture the experience, but it's probably the closest analogy I can make.

I wish I had more energy to type, but I am hungry so I will end this post quickly. I hope to post more about the trip later tonight.

Future Itinerary

I will be visiting the following sites: The Battle of Blue Licks National Monument, Lincoln's birthplace, Mt. St. Helena, Mission Dolores, Russian Gulch State Park, and Magnolia Plantation. I hope to schedule my NM trip soon as well.

Once I'm on the road, the posts on this site will increase.

I also continue to think about how to organize and present my work both on the Web and through scholarly articles. Currently I am writing a piece that offers an argument about Mesker Zoo and the novel rather than merely telling the history of the zoo and its connection to Lolita. Once I have a formulated argument, I'll post something here.

Going back in time on Rt 50 East

 

My trip to IN and back was a lot of fun and useful for my project. As I posted the other day, I wanted to take a road or two that HH might have driven, so I chose to head on 41 N. I need to learn a bit more about that road's history, but given what I saw along the road, I assume it was around in the late 40s in some form or other. I've been looking at ebay trying to locate old maps to help me pinpoint highways, etc. The picture here shows a place I saw along 50 East. I went back after passing it, because I thought it was a nifty shot. It's next to someone's house, so I felt a bit odd pulling in and taking the picture. Clearly this is a collector's display and not something that was there years ago.

Rt 50 is called the loneliest highway and I can understand why. I enjoyed the drive immensely and was often distracted by the beautiful scenery. I did become a tad nervous when I first was on 50 after being on 41, because I did not see anywhere to fill up my tank. I had less than 1/4 left, and I wanted to be sure that didn't become a concern. I stopped at a BP station near Washington, IN I believe.

Town names are fascinating as well. There's a lot of repetition from other states, so you get the sense that perhaps you've been to a place but of course you haven't. For example, I went through Salem, IN. Didn't see any witches though.

I almost stopped for a tour at Baden Springs, but I was cold, wearing shorts, and needed to keep moving. I didn't quite get to the new French Lick, IN hotel/casino. They were advertising on the radio for a big job fair to be there next week.

I'll post mileage, costs, etc. later. I just wanted to write a few thoughts and post this picture. I'll post another later. Thanks for checking in. b 

Take 41 N to 50 E to 150 E to 56 W then head 56 E to 135 N to 50 E to 275 N to 75 N and what do you get?

HOME.

I promise to write more about my drive tomorrow. Please check back. I'll post some interesting photos as well.

On the road again...

Today I leave Evansville, IN. Rather than take the same roads back to OH, I'm going to head on 41 N and then onto RT 50 East. I'm choosing 41 N because I believe it would be the sort of road that HH would take. Given the order of sites in the novel, he probably headed north after the Zoo. I'll also try to take some pictures, but the weather may be uncooperative.

I can almost picture

Humbert Humbert peering down on Lolita and her coevals from this perspective. 

Trying to impress the lady

The peacocks pictured here provided quite a show right before I left the Mesker Zoo. I noticed that they both were displaying their feathers and prancing back and forth as well as ruffling some feathers at the base of te fan. Then I saw why: you can see (just barely) the presence of a female about 5 feet behind the peacock on the left. This part of the zoo had an exhibit that you could literally walk through - with only a wire fence on either side that would easily allow anyone to join the animals. After hearing the noises some peacocks were making up in the trees (I saw a peacock on top of a building earlier in the day), I don't think anyone would try such a thing as I assume the peacocks were sounding the alarm that I was walking along the Mesker-Zoo-sanctioned pathway. 

I did not eat at a chain restaurant for dinner...

instead I went to The Jungle Restaurant pictured to the right; it's located on Main Street. I cruised downtown taking pictures and passed the place (as well as some other restaurants). This seemed the most appealing perhaps because it reminds me of Jungle Jim's. 

I visited Donna the Hippo today...

at the Mesker Zoo. I also saw the infamous Monkey Ship, took lots of pictures, and accomplished some useful research in the education center thanks to the assistance of several staff members. Right now I am blogging from Panera, or I'd be uploading a teaser picture or two. I had a great day at the Zoo, and even if I weren't working, I would have enjoyed my visit. When I first arrived at 9am, the Zoo was empty and storms threatened. I took some quick pictures and video of the Monkey Ship and then went inside briefly before exploring the Zoo.

It was wild to feel like the only person at the Zoo (there were probably 3-5 people that I saw while walking around). The animals seemed calmer, and I felt as though I were intruding by looking at them. I was especially touched looking at the various primates.

I saw two hippos, lots of tortoises, some turtles, many birds (in the Kley building), two grey wolves, a tiger (who looked a bit cramped in his cage), horses, Axis deer, lemurs, gibbons (who were singing!!!), peacocks (more on them later), bald eagles, owls, snakes, frogs, bats, ostriches, other primates, and lots of things I'm probably forgetting.

When I took pictures of the Monkey Ship, no children were there, but it indeed is a bumper boat park for children. HH could look down from a slight hill overlooking the bumper boat park and hear the voices of children at play.

I'll do some driving around this evening, take some more pictures, and head out tomorrow morning. I may take Rt. 50 back, which means a longer trip, but I'm thinking it might be the sort of highway HH would drive. We'll see. More tonight.

I could be anywhere...

I am sitting in a Panera, which has free WI-FI. I'm looking out on the corner of Burkhardt and Rt 66 (also known as the Lloyd Expressway). I can see a Staples, a McDonalds, a CVS, a Wal-Mart, and a Home Depot. If HH were writing his narrative today, what sorts of observations might he make about the generic quality of small cities such as Evansville, IN? This could be a corner almost anywhere in the US. What makes it unique? Nothing that I can see from my pov.

HH's "itinerary" has a Whitmanesque catalog-like quality to it that I love (although HH is no Whitman in his love for the US). Were he writing his narrative today, I think he'd talk about "thousands of McDonalds" rather than "thousands of Bear Creeks, Soda Springs, Painted Canyons" (157). There's something here that I want to write more about.