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Almost One Tenth As Old As America

Slow Miata to Texas

Miata World ’99 Revisited

Thursday, July 10, 2025

Getting the Shot at Miata World ’99 in Dallas


Back in February of this year I took a photo album from 1989 off the shelf and scanned the photos I liked. I then used them to create five separate posts of content out of it.

Today I jumped ahead a decade to 1999 and scanned some images from the photo album of our trip to Dallas to a national Miata event. Most of these photos aren’t nearly as scenic as the 1989 ones. If you are new around here you might assume that all that Roadside America stuff from the recent April-May-June trip was something new, au contraire, I’ve been making road trips “meaningful” that way since the end of the last century. Postcards also played a crucial roll in this trip as well. See the – Slow Miata to Texas Tour

The Big Chicken in Marietta, GA has been there since 1963 and has survived near misses with the wrecking ball. First was in 1974 when Kentucky Fired Chicken bout the place from the previous owner and the Colonel himself didn’t like it. And then again in 1989 when KFC wanted to move it to a different restaurant. It’s still there and better than ever.
Cornerstone Inn in Cullum, Alabama. It was obviously his wife’s pet project, but she had since past away leaving the widower to keep it going. His customer service was very subpar for the Inn, but I’m speculating that he needed to keep going to supplement his Social Security. We skipped the breakfast for fear of what it might have been.
Elvis Presley Birthplace in Tupelo, MS. There was a planned stop for later that day at Graceland in Memphis, but neither of us was a big enough fan to want to pay to get in.
Ave Maria Grotto in Cullman, AL is the work of one man, Brother Joseph Zoettl, a Benedictine monk who created 125 miniature replicas of famous houses of worship from around the world.

Old Union Bridge in Mentone, AL was moved here in 1972 from Lincoln, AL and this might be the first of “Miata on a Bridge” series.
A Texan and Me in Grapevine, TX. This is another one of my favorite things, sitting down next to a statue and pretend to chat it up.
Southfork, where Jock and Miss Ellie Ewing raised three sons: J.R., Gary and Bobby.
Luckily, Parker, TX, where Southfork is, was right on the way to Dallas.

Dinosaur World in Beaver, AR was started in 1967 and closed 6 years after we visited in 1999. The statues were pretty much laughable. They look liked they were modeled after children book’s drawings.
Dinosaur World, besides the unrecognizable dinosaurs it also included the incongruity of cavemen killing a buffalo.

Tagged: Blast From the Past, Miata, Postcards, Road Trip, Roadside America, Slow Miata to Texas

Slow Miata to Texas Day 14

Tuesday, May 28, 2019
AIKEN, SOUTH CAROLINA
Famous for its tree-lined streets and their names, Aiken abounds in flowers most of the year.
Bill,
Day 14 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Decatur, AL to Aiken, SC. 412 miles. A really long day in the saddle and mostly on the dreaded Interstate. OZ is a wonderful place, but there is no place like home. There is no place like home.
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC
Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903
Tagged: Blast From the Past, Miata, Postcards, Road Trip, Slow Miata to Texas

Slow Miata to Texas Day 13

Monday, May 27, 2019
Greetings from ALABAMA
1. The birth place of Helen Keller, Tuscumbia. 2. Big Spring Park, Huntsville. 3. Wheeler Dam, North Alabama.
4. Vulcan, Birmingham. 5. Dock Scene, Mobile. 6. Bunker Tower, Anniston. 7. Denny Chimes, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. 8. Azalea bushes in full bloom. 9. Noccalula Falls, Gadsden.
10. State Capitol, Montgomery.
Bill,
Day 13 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Memphis, TN to Decatur, AL. 215 miles. Today’s highlight was dinner 300′ up in the Renaissence Tower overlooking Wilson Dam in Florence, AL. Good thing the view was spectacular, because the food was so-so. Got to see the lock system go through a cycle for a barge heading down stream.
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC
Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903
Tagged: Blast From the Past, Miata, Postcards, Road Trip, Slow Miata to Texas

Slow Miata to Texas Day 12

Sunday, May 26, 2019
The Pyramid soars into the sky 32 stories (321), rising out of the Mississippi Delta like a great shining diamond. It could hold 200 million gallons of water. Its base is as big as six footballl fields. The interior height, 280′ from the floor to the Observation Deck above, is greater than the exterior dimension of the Astrodome or Superdome.
The focal point of this stainless steel wonder is The Pyramid arena. This 22,500 seat sports and entertainment complex hosts a vast array of major touring family shows, concerts, sports and community events. The Pyramid is proud to be the home of the University of Memphis Tiger Basketball.
Bill,
Day 12 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Eureka Springs, AR to Memphis, TN. 315 miles. Long day, but we wanted to see the Triple A Memphis Redbirds play the Albuquerque Dukes in Tim McCarver Statium. Last time we were here we saw Tim Raines play for the Double A Memphis Chicks (1979.) This is the last year for Tim McCarver Statium as next year the team moves downtown to the new 14,000 seat “Autozone Park.”
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC
Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903
Tagged: Blast From the Past, Miata, Postcards, Road Trip, Slow Miata to Texas

Slow Miata to Texas Day 11

Saturday, May 25, 2019
FLAT IRON BUILDING – Downtown Eureka Springs, Arkansas
The Flatiron Building, destroyed by fire many years ago, was recreated in 1985, and today has glamorous specialty shops on the lower floors and luxury lodging accomodationson the top. The photo was taken from the Basin Park Hotel, in the heart of historic downtown Eureka Springs.
Bill,
Day 11 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Hot Springs to Eureka Springs, AR. 195 beautiful back road miles. If I thought Jefferson, TX had a lot of B&Bs…this place seems as if every home in town is a Bed & Breakfast. Every business downtown is tourist related. Out on the “strip” there are several large music theaters.
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC
Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903
Tagged: Blast From the Past, Miata, Postcards, Road Trip, Slow Miata to Texas

Slow Miata to Texas Day 10

Friday, May 24, 2019
NIGHTIME FALLS ON HISTORIC HOT SPRINGS
The sun sets as another day is slowly fading away in historic downtown Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas. The last breath of sun shines on the old Army/Navy Hospital (1933) in the upper left as the lampposts light up the historic district waiting on nightfall. Some of these historic buildings date back as far as 1912 (Buckstaff Bathhouse.)
Bill,
Day 10 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. McAlester, OK to Hot Springs, AR. 198 miles via the Talimena Scenic Byway. This was one of the first highways designated as scenic by the U.S. Forrest Service. Maybe we will get to see it next time. We were either high enough to be in the clouds or low enough to be getting poured on by those clouds. Hot Springs is an interesting place, we’ll come back when it isn’t raining.
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC
Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903
Tagged: Blast From the Past, Miata, Postcards, Road Trip, Slow Miata to Texas

Slow Miata to Texas Day 9

Thursday, May 23, 2019
INDIAN TERRITORY – OKLAHOMA
In 1834, 70,000 Native Americans in over twenty tribes were forced to leave their land and relocate into Indian Territory, reserved by the U.S. government. Located west of the Mississippi River, much of Indian Territory is in today’s Oklahoma. By 1907, the remaining Indian Territory became part of Oklahoma.
Bill,
Day 9 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Day 4 of 4 of “Miata World ’99.” Didn’t win the new car last night, but I did win a door prize of leather seat covers. And at brunch this morning I won a $10 gift certificate, so I can’t really complain. Spent a couple of hours at the speedway this morning as we tried to line up 400 cars for a photo on the finish line. Dallas, TX to McAlester, OK. 175 miles. The wind really does come sweeping down….
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC
Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903
Tagged: Blast From the Past, Miata, Postcards, Road Trip, Slow Miata to Texas
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sturgeon’s law

"Ninety Percent Of Everything Is Crap"
Derived from a quote by science fiction author Theodore Sturgeon, who once said, "Sure, 90% of science fiction is crud. That's because 90% of everything is crud." Oddly, when Sturgeon's Law is cited, the final word is almost invariably changed to 'crap'.

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1) You will never find a more wretched hive of scu 1) You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. 2) Who is this guy? I don't remember him at all. Maybe the puzzle's artist?

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