Poles of Mystery!

mystery pole
Originally uploaded by sporama.

If you scour older neighborhoods around Spokane, you might see a light pole, or power pole like this - with a large red stripe bounded by two smaller white stripes. The paint is fading. Newer poles don't have these stripes.

What does it mean?

In the early 60s, was it used to mark an evacuation route for when the nukes started to fly?

In the 80s, was it to mark the route for the United Nations tanks to come down from Canada and make us all speak English instead of 'Merican?

Today, does it have some Al Queda meaning?

Or was someone just bored?

What do you think?

shrub fortress

shrub fortress
Originally uploaded by sporama.

So, you're wealthy and scared. You've created a 10 foot tall shrub fortress around your front yard. But now it's election time and you face a conundrum. How do you publicly support the candidate who supports you and your i$$ues with a campaign sign in your front yard? It's easy with a little help from a portable basketball set-up. Can you guess which party is being supported here?

Spokane Area Faithful Dwindling

Spokane Area Faithful Dwindling
Originally uploaded by sporama.

I knew that there are less and less people going to church, but I didn't know that even the Jack-O-Lantern Day Saints are seeing their numbers decrease. Perhaps the pews are empty because the sacrifice has just been made.

Before I go too far down this road, let me squash any rumors by saying this is Penelope the Pumpkin. She is up at Hidden Acres in Green Bluff (look for the signs, it's easy to find). Kids can talk to Penelope and she'll talk back! I don't know why there's a fence. I bet there's a good story about that, huh?

VULTURE BOY AND THE GEO!

A vulture
Originally uploaded by sporama.

Received a really nice e-mail from the fellow who was trawling for a housekeeper with a Geo (a few posts back). He says he secured a very nice student to clean his house in exchange for laundry rights and Geo capabilities. As a Geo driver myself, I would say that's a good trade for both parties. Another cool thing about Vulture Boy is that he is, among other things, the dreaded Doomsday Vulture! For nonspokanites (NSPKNs) - every year, we have a huge (the largest, I believe) timed footrace called Bloomsday. It's about 7 and a half miles long. Towards the end, there is a big ass, half mile hill (Pettet Drive). And perched above this hill is the Doomsday Vulture, aka Vulture Boy. He is the recipient of tens of thousands of high-fives as the 50,000 or so folks reach the top of the hill. Thanks Vulture Boy for the good words and the apt reminder of our own mortality.