Monday, February 29, 2016

Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Michelangelo, the artist not the turtle, observed that "a true work of art is but a shadow of the divine perfection." Does that apply to this snapshot of Geographically Yours? [2016]

Sunday, February 28, 2016

San José del Cabo, Baja California Sur, Mexico

A surfer dude must have gotten a little too frisky with his last surfboard, giving rise to a new species. It doesn't look like there is much room for a brain; though in this day of artificial intelligence, who cares? [2016]

Saturday, February 27, 2016

City Centre, Gibraltar

Bib overalls on the streets of urban Gibraltar? Where's the farm? Maybe he just disembarked from a cruise ship for a few hours. Not too many cruise lines allow you to bring your pet rabbit on board, though. [2015]

Friday, February 26, 2016

Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Cincinnati's Metrobot accepts Tweets, makes calls, and swallows big screens, all in the interest of drawing people into the Contemporary Arts Center. Hope he doesn't scare them away instead! [2015]

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Columbia, South Carolina, USA

Oh, lovely Rita, meter maid, where would Columbia be without you? For an answer to that question, you might consult (a) City Center Partnership, (b) Matthew Kramer, (c) Paul McCartney, or (d) Sgt. Pepper. And, from each you might get a different version of reality. [2016]

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Chester, Illinois, USA

When you have a famous cartoonist, E. C. Segar, as your favorite son, you don't waste the opportunity to use the forces of localization against the forces of globalization. Placelessness may be setting in all over, but not in Chester, Illinois. On practically every corner, there is a character from the Popeye cartoons. Do you recognize this one? [2015]

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Leesburg, Virginia, USA

It's Michelangelo moonlighting as a security guard for Meadows Farms. From up there he can issue an intruder alert immediately. What is his weapon of choice? Nunchucks, of course. [2014]

Monday, February 22, 2016

Waterloo, Illinois, USA

What's a big blue bear doing outside the Monroe County Courthouse on a sleepy Sunday afternoon? Perhaps he escaped from a nearby elementary school. Perhaps he is starring in the next Toy Story. So long Buzz Lightyear! Animalia are taking over. [2015]

Sunday, February 21, 2016

Fernandina Beach, Florida, USA

The geography of the Atlantic coast between Florida and the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay was perfect for pirates, with many (a) nearshore islands and sheltered hiding places, and (b) offshore merchant ships heading to Charleston and points north. Now, that history is perfect for place promotion. [2008]

Saturday, February 20, 2016

Alexandria, Minnesota, USA

 
Was the birthplace of America in Minnesota? Big Ole says 'YES'! In 1362, someone in his party of Viking explorers inscribed the story of their expedition on graywacke. The runestone was discovered in 1898 and has become one of the legends of American folk culture. [2012]

Friday, February 19, 2016

La Cross, Wisconsin, USA

Gottlieb Heileman passed away on this day in 1878 here in La Cross. Until last year, more than two decades after the Heileman brewery went bankrupt, Gambrinus still stood outside the plant proclaiming himself to be not only the King of Beer but also its the inventor. Perhaps someone can tell us whether he has returned to the landscape. [1991]

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Paddy Run, West Virginia, USA

"The eagle has landed." Mission complete. It may be the Mountain State rather than the Moon, but that doesn't diminish the accomplishments of a great artist in de-flighting the eyes. [2014]

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Racine, Wisconsin, USA

If this were New Jersey, she would be pumping your gas. But, here in Wisconsin, she just guards the pumps. Don't approach too closely, though. She's wearing an Elizabethan collar, and that means she bites. [2006]

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

New York, New York, USA

Now, there's an electrician's electrician, fully equipped to deal with any wiring problem. How did he get his start? By installing rabbit ears on TVs in the 1960s. [2010]

Monday, February 15, 2016

Auburn, Nebraska, USA

Another blogger said it best: "big guy with the puppy-like face, frosty mug of root beer, and giant oreo sandwiched in a hamburger bun." The restaurant? Dairy Sweet. Nephew? Big Boy. [2008]

Sunday, February 14, 2016

Jonesville, Michigan, USA

Scarecrows have left the garden patches of rural America and come to the cities. Now, they help us celebrate fall with straw while standing tall for us all to see. Is this what public art has come to? [2008]

Saturday, February 13, 2016

Norfolk, Virginia, USA

A tiger has escaped from the Virginia Zoo, which is right across town. Guess he liked Town Point Park better than Lafayette Park. Of course, he would: Town Point is tonier. [2014]

Friday, February 12, 2016

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Pancho came down from his high-latitude home to spend the winter months with his cousins, the sea lions, in Cabo San Lucas. He might just stay: looks like he found a job. [2016]

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico

It's not easy being green. Is this (a) Kermit the Frog, (b) The Grinch, (c) Mike Wazowski, (d) Shrek, (e) Señor Frog, (f) Oscar the Grouch, (g) Gumby, (h) The Incredible Hulk, or (i) none of the above? [2007]

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Gyeongju, South Korea

It's not easy being green. Is this (a) Kermit the Frog, (b) The Grinch, (c) Mike Wazowski, (d) Shrek, (e) Señor Frog, (f) Oscar the Grouch, (g) Gumby, (h) The Incredible Hulk, or (i) none of the above? [2012]

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

His fellow minions have been assembling for several weeks to get ready for today's festivities. It's Fat Tuesday, a.k.a., Mardi Gras. Lent begins tomorrow. [2011]

Monday, February 8, 2016

Marble Falls, Texas, USA

Perhaps there is no more ambiguous word in the food lexicon than BAR B QUE: How do you spell it and what does it mean? Sometimes you simply have to judge by location. Since this is Texas, you are likely to find something quite different than in North Carolina. Time to go in, man. [2015]

Sunday, February 7, 2016

Sioux Falls, South Dakota, USA

Check out that waistline. For someone carrying around a spare tire (or two), she seems awfully svelte. When it comes to the hips, though, it's a different story. [2007]

Saturday, February 6, 2016

Yulee, Florida, USA

That's not the real King Kong. He's either a pretender or the cartoon version who starred in The Mighty Kong in 1998. Like his flesh and blood relative, though, he does well selling cars. [2008]

Friday, February 5, 2016

Burlington, Vermont, USA

King Kong has been on the big screen since 1933 and has starred in a dozen films. Did you ever wonder what he did in between pictures? Here's your answer. Yes, there was a long period of unemployment after King Kong Lives debuted in 1986. [1995]

Thursday, February 4, 2016

East Point, Georgia, USA

"The muffler man, the muffler man. Do you know the muffler man, who lives on Berry Drive? Yes, I know the muffler man, the muffler man. Yes, I know the muffler man, who lives on Berry Drive." [2015]

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Dallas, Texas, USA

He survived the destruction of an entire planet, Planet Hollywood, in 2001. He survived the closing of a entire "festival marketplace" in 2006. Still, this dragon seems happy to be surrounded by so much Dallas history: lots of  industrial-era warehouses and factories awaiting re-purposing in the West End Historic District. Hope he survives that, too. [2007]

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Roxboro, North Carolina, USA

Two is a fitting number for the second of February: obviously partnered, obviously friendly, obviously patriotic, obviously evangelical, obviously mechanical, and obviously not at all interested in whether the groundhog saw his shadow today. [2015]

Monday, February 1, 2016

Schellsburg, Pennsylvania, USA

Recognize him from your childhood storybooks? He's the Pied Piper of Hamelin, and he will lead a parade of fanciful creatures through the coming monat. February is the oddest month of the year, and in leap years it's even odder. So, get ready for a procession of oddities, many as pied as he is. Pied? Perhaps multi-hued, perhaps cunning. [2010]