"From the Desert to the Sea, to All of Southern California." - Jerry Dunphy

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Saturday, October 31, 2009

Phone Rat & the Cemetery


Phone Rat was back here in Ohio a few weeks ago for his bi-yearly visit. We covered a lot of ground in 10 days. We visited 6 states and drove about 2,200 miles. One of the great things you see here in the Midwest are old cemeteries with old fashioned headstones. Phone Rat and I drove to Michigan to see the grave of his cousin who passed away last year. We drove north on M19 to a small cemetery called the Memphis Cemetery, which out in the country just before the town of Memphis Michigan.

The cemetery is across from a large open field surrounded by large trees which were just starting to show fall colors. Phone Rat took pictures of many of the old grave markers. I wish I could post them all. To get a feel for the area you can view the cemetery from Google Street View.

Driving through all these Midwest states you get an authentic feel for the country, its people and its land. I witnessed that when we drove back to Ohio in 2006 but it is good to get a refresher course. Even though I am here in Ohio I still have a California, Los Angeles attitude that sometimes forgets there is more to our country. If you have never driven through the Midwest you would not believe the amount of corn you drive by. It seems a crime to use it to fuel cars and not feed people, but that is the conservative in me.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

There are some really cool cemeteries in New Orleans, and about 10 years ago, my girlfriend and I went searching for her grandfather's grave up in Cambria (central California). It was quite a trek, but we eventually found him. He was still dead.

So, what's our fascination with final resting places? I'm not really sure, and I'm in no hurry to see my own.

Bob Walance

Carey A, Wilson said...

I have always wanted to go to New Orleans, the cemeteries must be great. Old cemeteries are fascinating because of the headstones which give an air of individuality to the person, new ones are just slabs in the lawn. I see my final resting place everyday when I open the frig and see the Miracle Whip Jar.