Friday evening informal car show as seen July 8 in Aurora, Colo. (Doug Hill)
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he middle of summer is a traditional time for summer vacation. Within those days of free time, it’s almost inevitable that there will be some road trips. Rather than just speeding through from point A to point B, there are intriguing clues to life now and in the past — if one takes the time to stop in small-town middle America and look closely.
Brick streets, pioneer fence posts made from stone (because there were few trees) and carefully cultivated wildflower gardens are worth more than a fleeting glance from a car window.
Also, baseball games are underway anywhere you go. America’s pastime, after all. Evening thunderstorms popping up are better than a Fourth of July fireworks show. Meanwhile, old cars both pampered and abandoned dot the landscape.
After nearly road trippin’ 2,000 miles across five states, it was good to be back to Norman’s arts, music and home.
Early 20th-century architectural details as seen July 11 in Salina, Kan. (Doug Hill)
Nature and Science Museum diorama seen July 10 in Denver. (Doug Hill)
Section of petrified tree seen July 10 at the Nature and Science Museum, in Denver. (Doug Hill)
Brick wall as seen July 7 on Main Street in Goodland, Kan. (Doug Hill)
Wall of a car parts building as seen July 7 in Goodland, Kan. (Doug Hill)
Body shop as seen July 7 in Goodland, Kan. (Doug Hill)
Late 19th-century limestone fence post as seen July 7 in western Kansas. (Doug Hill)
Summer storm approaching Norman, Okla, June 26. (Doug Hill)
Newly completed public art project seen June 26 at Lion’s Park in Norman, Okla. (Doug Hill)
Garden as seen June 13 in Stilwell, Kan. (Doug Hill)
Main Street as seen Sunday afternoon, June 12, in Belton, Mo. (Doug Hill)
Junior high-aged baseball players as seen June 11 in Fayetteville, Ark. (Doug Hill)
Norman art walk musicians play June 10 at the Santa Fe Depot. (Doug Hill)
Doug Hill earned a double-major undergraduate degree in English and East Asian Studies from the University of Kansas and a master's in human relations from the University of Oklahoma. He's been a freelance journalist and photographer in central Oklahoma since 1997.
