Cockroach Hall of Fame
They’re not exactly superheroes, but roaches are considered pretty indestructible. And, though I’m not quite sure how, they must have something in common with athletes and entertainers because in the Dallas, Texas, suburb of Plano, there’s a hall of fame and museum devoted entirely to them.
The Cockroach Hall of Fame was established by a pest control specialist named Michael Bohdan, who we can only assume couldn’t get enough of his work—or at least enough of those crispy pests most of us would just as soon never see again. But if you share Bohdan’s apparent fascination with the roach, chances are he’s put together a hall of fame and museum you’ll want to see.
Even if you’re not a fan of roaches, you may want to make a trip to the Roach Hall of Fame. As LegendsofAmerica puts it, “Featuring dead bugs dressed as celebrities and historical figures, this just might be the one time in your life that a cockroach puts a smile on your face.” And, of course, along with more dead cockroach celebrities than you knew existed, you’ll have plenty of opportunity to learn about various living versions of the cockroach.
Carhenge
If you’ve been wanting to go to Stonehenge but find the air tickets a bit pricey, what about going to Carhenge instead?
Created in 1987 by artist Jim Reinders and located in Alliance, Nebraska, Carhenge is a collection of 38 cars painted grey and mostly standing on end in a manner resembling Stonehenge.
If you think making an automobile version of Stonehenge was easy, think again. The Huffington Post reports: “The effort was no small feat: 35 of Reinders’ family members and friends rescued cars from nearby dumps and teamed up to build the structure, which meant burying some cars, trunk down, 5-feet deep in the soil.” Apparently, many people appreciate the effort of Reinders and his helpers because The Huffington Post continues, “Today, the memorial is a weird, all-American road trip destination with more than 80,000 tourists pulling off of Country Rd. 59 to snap photos of the vintage vehicles in the middle of a wheat field.”
Once Gene Roddenberry, creator of Star Trek, wrote that Captain James T. Kirk was from Iowa. The super-small town of Riverside needed a theme for its yearly festival and the council thought, “Hey, why can’t Kirk be from our town?” and wrote Mr. Roddenberry to ask if it could be so. They received an official letter with his permission, and with that, Riverside became “The Future Birthplace of Captain Kirk.” A tiny, former beauty salon became the birthplace; a sad wooden plaque saying so is in the backyard. [Apparently they wanted to make a nice statue, but Paramount, which owns Star Trek, wanted $60,000 in licensing. So the wooden sign won’t be going anywhere soon.] The city also holds an annual “Trek Fest”, celebrating all things Star Trek.
Ronny: Great explanation. I appreciate the info.