Destination: Virginia

Another Casualty of the Down Economy: Rest Stops

And the people of Arizona are pissed off. From the New York Times:

Arizona has the largest budget gap in the country when measured as a percentage of its overall budget, and the state Department of Transportation was $100 million in the red last fall when it decided to close 13 of the state’s 18 highway rest stops.

But the move has unleashed a torrent of telephone calls and e-mail messages to state lawmakers, newspapers and the Department of Transportation deploring the lost toilets—one of the scores of small indignities among larger hardships that residents of embattled states face as governments scramble to shore up their finances.

Other states have closed rest stops, too, including Colorado, Georgia, Vermont and Virginia.


Pulitzer Finalist Takes Road Trips to Wawa, Sheetz

Hank Stuever spent part of his summer traveling to the competing convenience stores throughout the mid-Atlantic, “a local sort of road trip, a mini-mart epic.” His story about it is odd and kinda brilliant. He writes about Wawa vs. Sheetz: 

It’s even a toss-up to which one gets stranger as the night wears on. They come into the Sheetz on Prince William Parkway in Dale City in the darkest of night, and poke-poke-poke at the made-to-order menus on the touch-screens. Touch the picture of the sandwich you want. Touch the picture of the kind of cheese. Now touch the pictures of lettuce, the pickles. Now touch the mustard, the ketchup. The touch-screen system is not merely there to impress you. “We used to do it where you fill out a paper form and leave it in the basket, but people got smart and realized the paper at the bottom of the basket comes first, so they’d stick theirs in at the bottom and then you get problems,” Stan Sheetz says.

Also: “You would be shocked how many people can’t read and write.”

I also love this comment on the piece from JOKR715: “Finally, a fluff piece I care about!”


Eight Great Road Trip Stories

Eight Great Road Trip Stories Photo by Nicholas_T, via Flickr (Creative Commons)

To mark World Hum's eighth anniversary, we've collected from our archives eight favorite travel stories that heed the call of the open road

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The Carter Family Fold: The Most Joyous Place in the World

The Carter Family Fold: The Most Joyous Place in the World Photo by Jenna Schnuer.
Photo by Jenna Schnuer

Try as I might, I’ve been having trouble pushing off the gray cast that seems to have settled over my brain. Damned economy. But, over the last few days, thanks to trips of days past, there’s been some relief. I’ve been clicking through my mental View-Master® (and my photos) to temporarily step back into some truly happy moments.

I’m convinced that if I keep building the stack, it’ll topple the gray. One surprise stop on my magical mood-bender tour came in Hiltons, Virginia, at the Carter Family Fold. Part of the Carter Family Memorial Music Center—owned by the first family of country music—the Fold hosts a weekly old time and bluegrass music show.

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America the Accessible

America the Accessible Photo by Rick McCharles via Flickr (Creative Commons)
Photo by Rick McCharles via Flickr (Creative Commons)

Fifteen years ago, when nobody else was really servicing the community, writer Candy Harrington ditched traditional travel writing and launched Emerging Horizons, a travel magazine for people with disabilities.

“Back then most of my friends and colleagues thought I was a few fries short of a happy meal for making such a drastic change,” says Harrington. Silly colleagues. Other travel magazines come and go but Emerging Horizons is still running strong, and Harrington also writes books, articles for magazines and websites, and a blog on the subject.

We checked in with her to find out about the state of accessible travel in America—and some of her favorite accessible travel adventures around the 50.

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The Distance Between Then and Now

The Distance Between Then and Now Photo by Frank Murray.

How far can you go without extinguishing the thrill of a moment? On the 50th Anniversary of "On the Road," Bill Belleville reflects on a pivotal road trip of his own.

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