Another Old Street Sign

I have posted pictures of various types of street signs found around the city of Houston in the past. Still, there was one type that used to grace the curbs at many intersections that I haven't had the chance to photograph. Then, in a thread on the Houston Architecture Info Forum, I found that a member called "isuredid", placed one he had taken. So, here it is.

I don't know the history of these blue and white mosaic signs, but they must have had standard tile layouts for every letter and digit, as they always were very consistent. I cannot imagine road crews today taking the time for such curbside artistry, but I have always enjoyed these signs as a piece of how things used to be done. They are much more interesting than the standard signs you typically see nowadays.

Next time I get down to Houston, I hope to catch some of these on my own, but in the meantime, thanks to isuredid for this one.

Where Is This?

Map of the Denver area from Google Maps

I remember a game that used to appear in Readers Digest, where you got to see a little bit of a road map, and the object was to figure out where the place on the map was located. So let's play a little version of that right here.

Click on the map above to get a larger version, but notice that I have circled three town names in red. They are Thornton, Denver, and Aurora, three city names in the Denver, Colorado metropolitan area. However, this is not a map of Colorado. There are a couple of good clues to get you started however if you look closely at the map.

Once you think you have it figured out, go the the comments for this post to see the answer. Don't peek until you have given a real effort at figuring it out.

Griff's Hamburgers

Today, I decided to try out a long time favorite of people I have talked to around town . . . Griff's Hamburgers on South Broadway in Denver. Griff's apparently was a chain that disappeared many years back, with a few remaining locations still in business on their own. The one in Denver is located on South Broadway, and while the building is typical of an old burger joint, the hamburgers have a wonderful taste that you don't get in your typical burger fare. From the article on Wikipedia linked above, it appears the largest concentration of remaining Griff's are in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

So to start our Griff's experience today, we loaded up the Santa Fe with me, the lovely spouse, the oldest son and his wife, and the grandchildren and headed over to give Griff's a try. I have meant to do this for years, but for one reason or another, never got around to it.

The LS and I each had the Number 2 Combo (no, not THAT number 2), which was the cheeseburger, fries and Coke. Fast service, and while the burger was nothing special to look at, it definitely was a tasty treat.

I also have heard that there is a Griff's still operating in Arvada, Colorado just to the northwest of Denver, as well as others in various towns. If you want to give them a try, and there is one near you, I suggest you do so. Who knows how long some of them may be around.

Even Sweeter in Sugar Land

The Associated Press is reporting that 5,000 gallons of sticky, sweet molasses spilled from a tanker truck on to Texas Highway 6 at the Southwest Freeway (US 59) in Sugar Land yesterday afternoon. What could be a more perfect place for molasses to spill than a place named for sugar?

This particular intersection is one I have been through countless times. In fact, below is a photo of the intersection that I posted a while back on this very blog. I used to frequent a coffee shop at the corner to make use of their wi-fi connections while visiting my parents in nearby Houston. Sadly, The Coffee Groundz closed this location. I guess they, like many small businesses, just couldn't make a go of it.


Intersection of Texas Highway 6 and US 59 Southwest Freeway in Sugar Land

Chicken Fried Bacon

Americans are known around the world for a lot of things, but healthy food isn't one of them. We love our high fat, high sodium, high cholesterol food, and our poor hearts be damned. We will batter and deep fry anything at all. One restauranteur in Snook, Texas was noodling around in the kitchen, and came up with what has to be a quintessential Texas idea. Chicken Fried Bacon. Yep, take big strips of bacon, dip them in batter, and drop them into a vat of boiling fat. But of course, that isn't enough. You also have to have a big side of cream gravy to dip them in.

Truthfully, I'd like to try an order of these. But I also am slightly afraid of the consequences. Do they supply a defibrillator with each plate? And by the looks of the owner of the restaurant, he has probably had his share. If I want to try them, I may have to get down there before he drops dead!

I looked on Google Maps, and found that Snook is only about 14 miles southwest of College Station, a place I have gone through many times in the past. I guess that just one order wouldn't hurt, so maybe my next trip to Texas will have to include a stop in Snook. If I dare!

The video above is a segment from the television show Texas Country Reporter, which I saw on the RFD TV network.