Spotted on the Roadside: We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Boat in Ocean Shores, WA

September 11, 2015 Comments Off read Pacific, Spotted on the Roadside, Travel, USA, Washington, West

Sharky’s is THE photo op in Ocean Shores, whether you want to photograph a gleeful mauling or an impending attack with your husband looking on in the background like he doesn’t even care that you’re about to be eaten by an enormous freaking shark. If you dare to venture inside the jaws, it’s full of nearly every shark-related thing you could possibly imagine, including a pretty decent book selection, one of which I purchased for a friend’s son who is an aspiring young marine biologist. What’s particularly funny about this (to me) is that the same people who are pumped to take photos in front of Sharky’s are super upset that an actual great white was found in their waters recently. Like anyone is going into the water at Ocean Shores, anyway.

Spotted on Ocean Shores Blvd in Ocean Shores, WA

Spotted on the Roadside: It’s Decorative Gourd Season, Motherfuckers!

September 4, 2015 2 Comments read Pacific, Spotted on the Roadside, Travel, USA, Washington, West

In accordance with the agreement signed by all bloggers, I am contractually obligated to celebrate the return of the pumpkin spice latte, long may it reign over inferior similarly pumpkin spiced products, such as the pumpkin spice air freshener, pumpkin spice laundry detergent, pumpkin spice lady garden freshener, and pumpkin spice heartworm pills for dogs. This particular mural was painted for Starbucks’ PSL Days commercial on the side of the DeCamp and Stratford Furniture building and is a reminder during those other horrible nine months of the year that Our Latte has not forsaken us.

Spotted on Cherry St in Burlington, WA

Spotted on the Roadside: Stonehenge Maryhill, where the dew drops cry and the cats meow

August 21, 2015 4 Comments read Attractions, Pacific, Spotted on the Roadside, Travel, USA, Washington, West

Who the fuck builds a stonehenge? Two Stone Age-guys wondering what to do who just said: “Dude, let’s build a henge or two!”

We do know who the fuck built this Stonehenge, and it wasn’t exactly a stone age guy. Sam Hill (1857-1931) was a pacific northwest businessman with a lot of klout in the area. He’s known for two large monument in Washington: the Peace Arch at the Washington/Canadian border, which was dedicated in 1921, and the town of Maryhill, named after his wife and upon which he dedicated this replica of Stonehenge in 1918. He was inspired by the supposed druidic sacrifices on the central altar of the prehistoric Stonehenge and built this replica as a memorial to the local soldiers who died in World War I, to remind the populace that human life is continually sacrificed to the god of war. Rather than replicate Stonehenge precisely, dragging large stones from the surrounding hillsides, he built his stonehenge from concrete blocks, its altar aligned with the sunrise of the summer solstice.

There are a number of huge burned out patches near the site, and a sign warns visitors to make use of their car ashtray rather than discarding them on the ground. The area knows a thing or two about fire–the original Maryhill buildings all burned down shortly after construction, much like the ill-fated nearby town of Shaniko.

Spotted on Stonehenge Dr in Maryhill, WA