Route 66 was once the main artery through the desert lands of the west leading to the metropolis of Chicago.
The route was dotted with only a handful of mom and pop gas stations along the way. Some still standing while others fall in decay and are now abandoned.
"Because the greatest part of a road trip isn’t arriving at your destination. It’s all the wild stuff that happens along the way.” — Emma Chase
Somewhere between California and Arizona on Route 66... A small piece of what our history once looked like.
The old phone booth stands in front of a closed / abandoned soda shop.
A reminder of the past... wooden billboards. This one was located in California along a stretch of nothingness in the sandy desert.
Rocks are a symbolism of strength and the unmovable.
These rocks, some granite, are painted by the troops that receive specialized training in the desert at Fort Irwin in California. Each rock is hand painted by units that come in and exit by the hundreds and sometimes thousands.
The training that takes place at Fort Irwin prepares soldiers for the battlefield in places like Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and other desert land countries. There is even a large city built within the 7 square miles of Fort Irwin that resembles cities in the Middle East.
Rocks seen in these photos are at the Entrance of the Fort Irwin National Training Center, which is also known as a census-designated place in the Mojave Desert. A “Census Designated Place” is defined by the United States Census Bureau as a rural area that does not have legal status and may not correspond with the local understanding of the community in the same area.
Fort Irwin is not a new base and has a 15,000 year history filled with Native Americans. During the gold rush, the land was under an encampment of Captain John C. Freemont, the first member of the U.S. Army to utilize the land. The camp was a stopping point for pioneers crossing the Mojave Desert and allowed those passing through to stop for water and rest.
By 1855 the land was part of the route that freight wagons took from Los Angeles to Salt Lake City, Utah. The Army patrolled the Fort Irwin area in the 1800's to ensure that raids and horse theft was not an issue, which it was in outlying areas.
The discovery of borax on the lands led to mining and some development.
In 1940, President Roosevelt established a 1,000 square mile “Mojave Anti Aircraft Range” in the area. In 1942, the desert land was officially named Fort Irwin in honor of Major General LeRoy Irwin, commander of the 57th Field Artillery Brigade during World War I.
A tree of twisting and turning with roots that grow deep into the desert inching along for water that other plants cannot reach.
The tree has leaves that stab like little daggers.
The Joshua Tree is named after the Prophet Joshua from the Bible. Like the tree, Joshua was known to be a man of strength. He was the leader of the Israelite tribes up until Moses died.
The trees only grow in one place... The Mojave Desert. That massive land area consists of 47,877 square miles and is the driest desert in North America.
Amazingly, the Joshua Tree can survive for up to 1,000 years.
The English name of Joshua means “Yehoshua” in Greek. The word Yehoshua means Yahweh in Hebrew and “Yahweh is Salvation.”
“Desert sky, dream beneath the desert sky. The rivers run but soon run dry. We need new dreams tonight. Desert rose, dreamed I saw a desert rose. Dress torn in ribbons and bows. Like a siren she calls (to me)”
In the song that was written by lead vocalist Bono, the desert is used metaphor for "spiritual drought".
The road was built in 1922 at the suggestion of original property owner Carl Henry. Today, the road sees about 2,630 vehicles per day, mostly by motorist just curious about the awkward brick path.
Read MoreThe Golden Gate Bridge is a massive suspension structure. The bridge in San Francisco spans one point seven miles across what is called "The Golden Straight."
Read MoreHe is originally from Los Angeles, California, but a number of years ago decided to make the move to Las Vegas because rent is cheaper. After arriving, he was unable to find work as an artist and soon lost his eye right eye.
“How did you lose the vision in your eye,” I asked him. With a breath of cool morning air he said, “I had a microscopic infection in it and before I knew it, I couldn’t see.”
We then talked about his artwork and how it is much harder for him to draw now as opposed to before due to the blindness.
I pointed at his shopping cart, “Is everything you own right there?” He looked towards the ground with a frown, “That’s it… that’s everything.”
The 59 year old wants to get an apartment as soon as possible. Until that day happens, he will live on the streets of Vegas.
"Vegas means comedy, tragedy, happiness and sadness all at the same time." - Artie Lange, American comedian
She is a lifetime teacher…
“I used to teach in Santa Cruz and later the Venice Beach area of California,” she recalled. I would imagine that she was no ordinary teacher in her time, but instead a great teacher, “I’m originally from California and I would take the students to the beach and we would write in the sand.”
In Asheville, North Carolina where she lives today, she taught at several charter schools before retiring. "I've been blessed, very blessed," she said to me.
While retired she helps people to realize their dreams and then chase them so that dreams can become reality.
Before I walked away her words to me, "Let me give you a hug, everyone needs a grandma hug!"
“There are two kinds of teachers: the kind that fill you with so much quail shot that you can't move, and the kind that just gives you a little prod behind and you jump to the skies.” ― Robert Frost
He escaped Vietnam as the war came to a close in 1975 with the help of a CBS News Chief Correspondent named Brian Ellis. 58 year old Liu Khai Trac remembers the exact date he left, even though he was only 17 at the time. Lou, as he is called by friends told me, “I think it was March 27th that I left Vietnam as a refugee.”
During the war, Lou remembers being scared. He said to me on Wednesday, “At one time I recall that the bomb shell was so heavy we had to hide under a bunk bed.” He then talked about seeing a U.S. tank heading down one of the roads in front of his house, “I saw a military tank supplied by the US – they was running on the street – now tanks don’t usually run in the city, but that’s how severe inside the city – and then bomb shell I heard.”
I asked, “Did you like the U.S. Troops?” He smiled and laughed… “As for the American Troops, I thought they were good – They good guy – and especially - they give us a little pack of cigarettes to smoke, a dollar for a soda – they was friendly to us and we was friendly to them.”
Today, Lou is homeless in Murfreesboro, TN.
“I was stabbed 9 times, didn’t feel a thing until I saw the blood running down my chest and stomach,” he told me with a drunken growl. “I’m a Marine and I’m not scared of anything,” he said while moving in closer.
He then pulled out a pocket knife in an attempt to show me what happened. “See, he had the knife like this,” he slurred while holding the knife about 5 inches away from my camera that was firmly placed to my face. The knife was too close to focus on, so I took a step back as he again told me he was not scared of anything and served in the U.S. Marines for 8 years.
With a change of subject I asked, “So what brought you to Tennessee?” He again moved in close while putting his knife back into his pocket – I could smell the alcohol rolling off his breath, “I was coming through town on a bus and the driver kicked me off, he said I was having sex on his bus – I wasn’t.”
“Last thing I remember, I was
Running for the door
I had to find the passage back
To the place I was before
'Relax,' said the night man,
'We are programmed to receive.
You can check out any time you like,
But you can never leave ...”
― Eagles, Hotel California
“I live on the streets, I’m traveling the country,” he told me. He said he was originally from California and he writes poems. “I’m deep, I think deep, I’m in touch with my past lives,” he said with a smile. "I have been reincarnated three times, do you believe in that," he asked me?
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