[Sketch Trip America] Episode 17: Red Oak II, the Living-History Village

Red Oak II - Part 2



 

    The family of animals followed around Sumi. She always attracted animals wherever she went. She seemed to know how to get them come to her at will. I don't know how she does it, but as long as I love Sumi, I should be able to get near animals, too. Growing up, I used to get bitten or attacked by dogs. Since I met Sumi, such things never happened to me. Therefore, it's obvious that Sumi protects me from animals, too. She is just like Tarzan in the jungle. Wait, does that make me Jane?

While I was daydreaming myself as Jane being safe from attacks of jungle animals, Sumi was still exchanging vigorous greetings with the cat. Then I noticed the turkey twins slowly disappearing behind the barn. It was clearly the sign of a suspicious activity which was about to happen. Are they going to transform now? Ha! I immediately followed them behind the barn. But, there was no sign of them anywhere but the yellow leaves fallen on the green grass. I kept searching for the trace of the turkey twins in vain. All I found was the sculpture of a fairy tale cottage in the middle of a big grass yard. I was surprised to find this space behind the barn. So I stood there inhaling the aroma of rich soil and grass for a while.

     Just when I thought to myself that turkeys didn't matter any more, I saw someone in blue shirt walking out from a tree shadow across the grass field. The same blue as the head of the turkey! And a pair of blue jean! One turkey for the top and the other for the bottom. Two turkeys put together, that's just about the size of a person! The time is 5:50 PM. It was time for castle guards to go home, and enough time for the spell to break. The man in blue shirt strode toward me just like what the animals did before. Then he stopped right in front of me just like the turkey twins.

Then he put a pipe in his mouth. Something he couldn't do while being a turkey. Pooof! He blew out a puff, then glanced at me. Is he trying to suggest that he can talk now?

"It's really nice here." I spoke to him first.

Turkey man nodded without a word. He might need more time since he just turned human.

"Where are you from?"

"New Yo…, no, I mean, I'm from Korea, traveling on the route 66." Phew, I almost died in the next scene.

"Nice trip. I live here."

"Yes, I know, I've been watching you the whole time."

"What?"

"I mean…., oh, never mind." He must not remember it when he was a turkey.

Some awkward moments passed and I spoke again.

"My name is Jingoogk."

"I'm Lowell. Nice to meet you."

"Lowell? You're Lowell?"

"Yes…?"

I'm sorry to say, but I wasn't thinking that Lowell was a living person. Why was that? I don't know. I might have thought that the story Sumi read to me was from a long time ago. 'Lowell created the village and the descendants are running it.' That's how I understood it I guess. Anyway, I was very happy to meet him in real person. I had so much questions to ask him including the work on stone pavement in the front of the village. Because I was silent in my own stupor and oblivion, Lowell walked away from me and toward Sumi who was still playing with the cat.

"Take him with you."

"Huh? Is this your cat?"

"Yes, he is, and this is my home."

"Ah, you must be Mr. Lowell Davis."

Sumi obviously knew that Lowell was alive and well. Why did I have such weird thought? Strange...

*     *     *

Fences, eaves, gallery and low stonewalls ran intricately from a house to house, front door to a garden, storage house to barn and the smithy to stable and chicken coop. Each aged more than two generations. There were someone's sculptures adorning in-between the buildings. It was the result of one man's work spanning a long time. Lowell took us into the world that was two generations before us that he revived himself. It was way before when stuff made in factories engulfed every space in our life, machines finished off creating things instead of human hands. It was the time in the world when human and nature worked hand in hand.

    Lowell gave us a quick tour of the ground and went inside a house through a low gallery and eaves. There were many drawings and paintings of villages and towns. He showed us one of the pictures and said it was the village we were in right now. We didn't see this part, yet. Does that mean there are much more to this place than we'd seen so far? I felt an urge to see everything that was here. Can we see it in time? It seemed unlikely. I tried to measure the possibilities in more realistic sense. Even if we look around until dark we couldn't cover everything. The sun would set soon and it would take more than an hour to look for a place to camp. To come back here from the campground, we would lose several hours traveling back and forth. It'd be nice to find a place to sleep within few minutes of distance. Oh a whim, I asked Lowell if we could camp anywhere on the grass or an empty lot. We wouldn't even mind the barn, either. It'd be just like in the movies.

Without hesitation, Lowell told us to stay at the general store building in the village. There's a bathroom in the back so it would be more convenient for us he said. Then, he invited us into his home and showed his artworks in the studio. He then introduced us his wife Rose. After showing us the building we would be staying, we planned to meet again after dinner. There was a small bridge between Lowell's house and the general store building we would be staying at.

 

The general store building looked just like buildings in Western movies. It looked older than a hundred years. We were completely ecstatic at this point. We not only saved a great deal of time, but were about to embark on a full 24 hours of adventure in this awesome place. Sumi was already excited about the prospect of seeing a beautiful early morning scenery. I got excited about the sunset. It would be beautiful all hours of the day and night here. Even if it rained or snowed, or rained and snowed all at the same time, it would've been great. We were so grateful to Lowell and Rose for providing us a place to stay. Now not having to go anywhere else tonight, we went straight out to explore this amazing Red Oak II until it was pitch black. 

Pssst... did you know Jingoogk's blog is also in Korean?
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[Sketch Trip America] Episode 10: St. Louis and the Melting Pot is still melting

Upon leaving the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge, we entered city of St. Louis. We briefly missed Route 66 and went a bit north somehow. The roads were terrible. There were potholes and deep cracks everywhere and this turtle back of a road went on for a good while. Sumi said looking at the map on her phone that the place of Michael Brown shooting wasn't far from here.

Ferguson is a northern suburb of St. Louis. It is a place with chronic condition of discrimination against Blacks. Recently when Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager was shot 6 times and killed by a white police officer, resulted a national outrage and protests. Also near Ferguson, a black man stole two cans of soda from a convenient store and was quickly surrounded by police officers. He then approached police yelling 'shoot me,' and the police really shot him several times in broad daylight. He also was unarmed. Someone on the street filmed the whole thing on his camera phone and I'd seen the video right before we left for the trip. Ferguson tragedy once again put American society face a turmoil stemming from deep rooted racial discrimination.
In twenty minutes or so later, we happened to drive by Forest Park, near city of St. Louis. All of a sudden, the rocky roads became smooth as if they were ironed. And unlike the northern neighbors, streets and lamps were adorned with flowers and most of passersby were whites. It was a stark difference to us as travelers that got off Route 66 briefly and drove through St. Louis from north to south.

Mom and Pop Store

Mom-and-pop store means a business that is run by mom and dad. In other word, a small, independent, family-owned business. One of the reasons Route 66 brings out certain nostalgia is because there are many mom and pop stores along Route 66. The section of Route 66 (now called Chippewa Street) that passes through St. Louis, there were two notable mom and pop stores. The Donut Drive-In that opened in the 1950's and Ted Drewes Frozen Custard opened in 1929. Perhaps, the fact that they are well and prosperous within the competition with those large franchised businesses also pique interest in people.








'Open' neon sign is lit. The friend we're going to meet in L.A. recently had a donut shop in Dallas, Texas just a year ago. It wasn't a franchise but a mom and pop store which he and his wife made all donuts themselves starting in the crack of dawn. He once told me that the people in Texas prefer donuts made in small stores than big chains like Dunkin Donuts. He believes the donuts made in far away factories can't compare in taste to his donuts made from scratch all in his store. I agree with him. He also described the scenes of his store in early mornings. When he and his wife make donuts from dawn and turn on the neon sign when it's still dark, it meant the freshly made donuts are ready. And because Dallas was so flat, people can see the light and come to buy his donuts from far away. Now, looking at the donut store that existed over 60 years and the tall sign standing above the roof, I thought that people in St. Louis also like donuts from mom and pop store and the owner of this store started to make donuts from the crack of dawn every day, just like my friend.






Ted Drewes is popular for its frozen custards. Until then, I thought custard was a bread with a cream filling. It was because of a well-known bakery brand in Korea that I thought such. It turned out the custard that I knew was just bread, but the cream filling itself was called custard. When I found this out from Sumi, I felt empty for being misinformed about custard, but was satisfied for learning it before I was dead. Puuhaha! I could only laugh a hollow laugh. Sumi expected to taste a good custard at this store, but when we saw the long line, gave up at once. I think we're not, so called foodies.






Ted Drewes' custard is supposed to be so thick that it doesn't spill when you turn it upside-down. I wondered what that meant exactly, in the world of custard. Instead of tasting it, we only gathered facts about the store being started as an ice cream truck in 1919 and now Ted Drewes, Jr is running it, then left for our next destination, Meramec Campground.






On our way to Meramec campground, Joongdeok(aka JD), the friend in LA, who used to have a donut shop in Dallas had called. JD asked, "I heard you started your trip, when are you going to get to LA?" I answered him, "We're on our way. It'll take about 10 days." JD told us to give him a ring 2-3 days before arriving in LA and I told him that we'd call 7-8 days later. After hanging up the phone, 'What a strange conversation,' I thought. Back in Korea, we used to live 5 minutes apart by walking. Now I'm telling him that it would take 15 days to get to his house to see him. And he says, "Okay, give me a call 3 days before." What a strange situation. 'America is so big,' I talked to myself, incoherently.






Meramec Campground was privately run. Basic camp site was $18 and site with electrical hook-up was $25. Usually, electrical hook-ups are for the RV's, but anyone can use it if you're particularly in need of electricity. Usually, other campgrounds are shaped in circles, but Meramec campground was a large grass field with sites scattered all over. There were many campers already there to enjoy the weekend.


Some photos of Meramec Campground.

We pick a spot under a big tree. The picnic table was moved from an area several feet away. It is all right to move tables little bit as long as it is not tied down. We like to put the table close by so we can shorten the distance between tent and table. It makes it efficient for us to go back and forth between working, cooking, and going into the tent. We weren't going to make camp fire or use barbecue grill, so we put everything even tighter than usual.

Inside of our tent. For a long trip, we've set up a few rules as below:

Tent.

We need to move to a new location every day, so we wanted to minimize the stress from having to set up and take down the tent. We had the specific needs in mind while shopping for tent. Now it only takes a minute for us to pitch the tent and another minute for taking it down. Tent is from Kelty, for 4 persons and 3 seasons.

Inside the tent.

Let's put only necessary things in the designated places inside the tent. It's faster to pack up that way, too.

Pillows.

For a good rest everyday, we should have the most comfortable pillow.  So we brought our pillows from home that we've been using.

It's nothing too grand, but we planned to keep everything comfortable and also simple. I thought it was important for a long trip such as ours.

After pitching our tent, we started to paint and write, then cooked up a spicy stew with sausages and veggies. Looking at the stew inside the pot, I suddenly remembered the streets in St. Louis.

A melting pot!

America is often mentioned as a good model of melting pot with all its different races, ethnicities, and cultures mixed together. However, to me, it was a melting pot that still hadn't been successfully melted, as long as there were flawed ideas of superiority and aversion to integrate. 

However, at Meramec campground, these people with different skin colors, races and ethnicity, were all melting away, having sweet and restful Labor Day weekend and enjoying the pleasure of camping outdoors. We were also melting together with them in good harmony and our fourth day of the trip was slowly closing down.

To go to Jingoogk's original blog in Korean --> http://blog.naver.com/hwangjinkook/220160154000

[Sketch Trip America] Episode 5: Parker Dam State Park and the Park Ranger Trio

On, interstate 84 in Pennsylvania, shortly after we began the trip, the supernova auto chart system was put in a full gear. 
"Write in 'plan' category, during this entire trip, I will drink coffee only in the mornings. I won't drink coffee while we're moving." said Sumi. 
I wrote it down as it is in the chart while sitting in the passenger seat. She's right. There's nothing better to drink than water.
"Wow, that tree looks cool!" said Sumi.
Only in 1.5 seconds, I found that single tree out of thousands of tress passing by the car window. Then, while setting focus of the lens, I twisted my torso to the right and took an ultra speed panning shot. A success! However, my back was cramping from twisting too much. I would need to find the object sooner than 0.5 second. I need practice. 

There were many things to do. I wrote down road numbers, town names that we passed, what we ate, gas stations we stopped at and the specifics such as fuel price and mileage. I also wrote our conversations, thoughts from each of us, impressions of the landscapes, stories from meeting people. I wrote down every references that would become the foundation for the travel book. We wanted to leave a record of the traces of our travel. If we put these down well enough, it would be a piece of our life history. It would be rewarding to show our children after many years- sort of like the travel book that Bilbo Baggins handed to Frodo Baggins. 






In the afternoon, we were driving through the cornfield. I heard there are wealthy farmers in Pennsylvania, and it must be true. We were driving through cornfield last two hours and would find fence or divider every twenty to thirty minutes. With trees and water in abundance, gentle hilly landscape, four seasons, and strong summer sun, anything would grow in this land. Bring Yul Brynner here and he would start growing hair.        






I once read that George Washington had illegally acquired land west of the Appalachians which were reserved for Native Americans. These days, he would've been scrutinized at a hearing by the government. He must've really wanted the land. Now I know why he fought with England so vigorously. On the other hand, we were also fighting vigorously with cornfields. It was already 8:12 PM when we arrived at our first campground.






Parker Dam State Park Campground

First one to greet us at the campground was a young deer. It was cute with white spots on the back and long legs. The cutest part about juvenile animal is that they are so clumsy and naive in their actions. This deer looked at our car and must've thought to himself at least three times. Uh, should I run away? Should I stay? My friends are gone. Should I run backward? Forward? Well, I dunno. Let's go to the side! He ran with the white tail up and hopped away clumsily. I was worried about him. Hope he takes good care of himself.






As we entered the park ranger's office, three rangers looked at us simultaneously. They were chatting before we came in and it seemed like we both needed some time to figure each other out. Maybe two seconds? but it was a long two seconds. I couldn't tell what they were thinking but my impressions of them were as follows:

'How come their arms are so thick? Did they share something bad to eat and got bloated? How are their uniforms so tight? Are there not enough large sizes? How old are they? The one with the goatee must be the oldest? By the way, is this the park office? not the mountain bandits headquarter?'

It took about 17 seconds for me to figure them out. They were all in their 20s. They were all very muscular and had enough fat layer in between so the uniforms looked tight on them. They were very friendly park rangers and we were indeed in the park ranger's office. Sooner or later, we were conversing about the Route 66 and they recommended us campsite #60. One ranger asked the other which site would be good for us, then the rest of them said, "60. 60!" It was a perfect spot with the shower facility right next to it. 











Morning of the 28th. I woke up by the fresh breeze in the wood. Wait, what is this fresh air, then, I was woken up.
Sumi left the front of the tent fly open when she went to the restroom and I could see up the trees through the gap. The tall trees surrounded the sky in a small circle. Fresh morning air is a great part of camping. Sumi and I ate the fresh air of the woods along with sandwiches and checked our next route. Indiana is next.


Also check out Jingoogk's original posting in Korean. Korean letters look really cool! 

Permalink: http://sketchtripamerica.blogspot.com/2014/09/sketch-trip-america-episode-5-parker.html

[Sketch Trip America] Episode 2: ROUTE 66 in American Culture

Not much impressed at first, though, the more I found out, Route 66 started to seem pretty interesting. Sumi began by saying,

"There's a road that begins in Chicago, goes all the way to L.A and ends in Santa Monica Pier. It's not on a map any more but very popular amongst road-trippers. A mother road, its nickname. There are many kitschy shops and places dotted along the route and crosses many old small towns and deserts. You know, the places that you won't see if you took the interstate highways? It's in John Steinbeck's book and also in the movie, Thelma and Louse. It's in so many movies actually….. and I haven't been there, yet."

What I just heard piqued my interest immediately. A road that lost its function and disappeared from a map! Therefore, the old traditions still remained and the culture preserved. Something very dramatic and mysterious wrapped around and pulled me in. Road that's not on a map…. gave a horrific feeling, also. "Do you think The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was filmed there, too?" I said to Sumi. "Yes, most definitely!"  She answered back. Ooh, that's so scary… Actually, in that movie, if it weren't for the killer with the chain saw, the road itself looks real pretty. Curious, I began my internet research. Research is a bit exaggerated. Mere typing of the word 'route 66,' so much poured out. Route 66 had become a symbol, like a legendary rock star. Simply put, route 66 was not just 'route 66'. It was "ROUTE SIXTY-SIX."

ROUTE 66

U.S. Route 66 - Constructed in 1926. From Chicago to Santa Monica, 2448 miles(3940 km.) Two lanes.
During the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, Route 66 served as a major path for those who migrated west, and stores and restaurants popped up along the route. The grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck was written from that time period. I've seen the movie version when I was little. Young Henry Fonda appears in the film. It was so long ago that I only remember the scene where farmers are riding in the back of an old truck, moving and shaking endlessly in a cloud of dust. To think that this scene from my vague childhood memory was the beginning of Route 66 history and the very starting point of American sentiment toward Route 66, seemed quite fantastic. I've never heard about the road but I actually knew it since I was young, and I didn't know until now that I knew about it all along? It was an irony that American popular culture brought about. 

 

Anyhow, this road, full of dust cloud, soon began having restaurants, motor hotels, gas stations and bars popping up alongside it. And during its peak, anyone that had to travel east to west or vice versa used this road, including truck drivers, travelers, or even Hollywood stars and rock stars. So this explains why there are so many movies and pop cultures that used route 66 as subject.

Before we go on, a pop quiz! What's in common between Elvis Presley, Nat King Cole, Paul Anka, and Bob Dylan? They are all popular singers? Right! But, there's more! They are all American? Right again! However, the real answer is… that they'd all sung about Route 66! I would love to listen to all of them some time. It would be nice to listen on the road.

All good things must come to an end. During the height of WWII, being the only road that connected the east and west except for the railway, Route 66 also became subjected to decline as other highways emerged linking the east and west. The new roads were faster and had more lanes, Route 66 couldn't compete in terms of speed and volume, being only two lane road. The lack of efficiency and decline of traffic resulted in the US government dropping Route 66 out of the road and highway system in 1985. Disposed. A death sentence. Route 66 being a 2448 miles, 3940 km of two-lane, really thin, long and winding road, couldn't have been an adequate choice for the government considering the maintenance and administrative cost. However, a blessing in disguise, the very reason the government decided to take the oxygen mask off of it, became the strength for its revival. This slow, two-lane road was a nightmare for a fast mover, but perfectly fitting for a leisurely drive, and for those who wanted to see every little nooks and crannies, a periodic combination package course for a true American cultural experience. On top of that, the vast natural wonders added attraction for those that cared less for the speed in cross-country driving. As the name got built upon, Route 66 became the subject of nostalgia and affection and legendary cross-country course for an authentic American cultural experience for foreign tourists alike.

Abandoned since 1985, many sections of the road had been disconnected. Then, twenty years later, the government announces the complete restoration of route 66 in 2003 and reinstated plans to maintain it. It is still not visible on an official road map, but through its prosperity and decline, it is marked clearly in the minds of people as the road that still holds true Americana. ROUTE 66! the road so famous, even the old metal road signs are auctioned at high prices. There is even a dance club in Bangkok called Rt 66. In Thailand? A bit random, but it goes to show how internationally popular Route 66 is and this is what I found out about Route 66 so far.

'What! everyone was driving on this road, and nobody told me about it? Man, I can't trust anybody!' This is how I felt after finding out about all this. Not a single person ever mentioned this road to me. Wait, Sumi had told me about it. Then, no one, other than Sumi ever told me about Route 66. The day after we've decided to travel on route 66, I saw next door neighbor Marc standing in front of his garage. I went up to him and told him that I would be traveling along route 66. "Oh, it's a famous road! Very nice. Have a great trip!" Marc said. See! everybody knew but me.
 
Without hesitation, I cancelled the northern route along Canada. In fact, it seemed rather silly to insist on traveling in rectangular route around the country. Besides, the world is full of rectangles, we don't need to repeat such nonsense. We don't need a perfect straight line, either. We would start from New York and get on Route 66 in St. Louis, Missouri. We would go slowly stopping in town to town, canyon to canyon and then arrive in L.A. It would probably take more than ten days. If someone asks where we're headed, we'd say that we're going to LA to meet a friend and we've been on the road for thirteen days. If asked where we are from, we'd just smile. In movies, if you say you're from New York, you most likely get killed on the spot.

 

 

The Grapes of Wrath


The more you know, the more you see. Once I knew The Grapes of Wrath was about the migration of people to the west, it seems that few pieces of puzzle have been placed in their places. That very night, Sumi and I decided to watch the film again. Based on John Steinbeck's novel. Pinnacle of 20th century American literature. A must read. These are the description for the novel. John Ford directed the film. John wrote it. John filmed it. John Steinbeck also wrote East of Eden. He wrote two famous novels. What a great writer. I looked him up some more. He wrote a play called Of Mice and men, then with the money he made from it, bought a car, then travelled to the west along with Oklahomans, or Okies. Naturally, this experience led him to write The Grapes of Wrath. John Steinbeck also travelled on Route 66. The Grapes of Wrath is an observational novel through a travel in America. At fifty-eight, he travelled the country for four months with his dog Charlie in a modified truck camper and wrote a travel book.

The film starts in Oklahoma. A poor family of tenant farmers driven from their home by drought, economic hardship, and agricultural industry changes force them out of work, sets out for California where there are supposedly fruit picking work available. The journey and the hardships in the land of hope is thoroughly depicted. There are many scenes on Route 66. They ride through dust blowing desert, stop at a diner, and sleep in campsites. The camping fee is 50 cents. They eat corn bread and beans. There's no one welcoming them. Family members die one by one and the reality is harsh, but they're still hopeful. Because there is family, and loved ones and the people that still care about others.

Maybe not finding work, but our journey to California to meet friend seem very similar to the story. Riding through desert, cooking meals, buying bread, sleeping in campsites, traveling with loved ones, and even the fact that we are packing our old Volkswagen Passat station wagon with stuff are the same. If we get to meet warm-hearted people along the way, it won't get any better than that.






 

Easy Rider



After watching The Grapes of Wrath, we were in fact feeling a little down. Route 66 isn't just about the poor migrants! It happened in the 1930s! We tried to dismiss it. Certainly poignant, but The Grapes of Wrath was a little too depressing before we begin our trip. Is there any other movie that has somewhat of a different feel of Route 66? To switch mood, we picked Easy Rider. I saw this movie when I was around twenty years old.
From the start, the movie was filled with the road racing scene with shiny chrome plated Harley Davidson. Yahoo! This is it! That! That must be Route 66! Sumi and I were shouting in excitement and we were already riding in the back of Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda. When they camped, we camped, when they were talking about America and freedom, we were talking about the same things. We were in perfect mood for the road trip. Then, they started smoking too much marijuana and LSD. Jack Nicholson joined the group later and was beat to death while camping out in the desert. The locals yelled at Hopper and Fonda Yankee faggots. And finally, a truck driver shot and killed them both on the road. We are Yankees, too. We have New York plate on our car. Sumi and I got even more depressed by the time we finished this movie. The Grapes of Wrath still had some hopes. This, everyone dies. Though, we learned couple great lessons. We need really cool looking sunglasses and if anyone asks, never say we are from New York. We'd just say we come from one place and going to another.

We were feeling even more down. To overcome this, we needed another movie. In my search, it said there are many scenes of Rt 66 in Thelma and Louise. But this can't do. As you all know, the two women drove off of a cliff and killed themselves. That would be the worst. Eventually, Sumi stopped watching in the middle of a movie called Roadhouse 66 with Willem Dafoe in it. And I moved on to The Searchers with John Wayne to see some Monument Valley scenes. But, watching Monument Valley for one whole hour proved to be too much. Instead, even though it had nothing to do with Route 66, I decided to watch Sabata with Lee Van Cleef, my favorite. Lee Van Cleef is awesome even after so many years. At last, I'm back to being excited about the trip again after three days. Hey Amigo, Che Sabata!

We are gearing up for a full prep for the trip now. We are about to pack and prepare the car. We also need to plan ahead to work on our book proficiently during the trip. Two days to departure. 

Before we depart, there may be a need for an explanation on how to set up a system for a successful sketch trip, in case anyone wants to draw or write their own travel book… I've named it "High Tech Super Nova Auto Chart Notebook System Siri."

 *Click here to view Jingoogk's original blog in Korean.