Photos: The Road Home (the last photos; the Museum of Oil and The Tree That Owns Itself)

[thehefner]

The Texas town of Kilgore is home to a plot of land that used to be called "The World's Richest Acre," having produced over 2.5 million barrels of oil in the 60's. So of course, it figures that Kilgore should also be home to a Museum of Oil.

The Museum is made to look like a turn-of-the-century town in the midst of an oil boom, with statues of men drilling in the muddy streets to animatronic (man, there were a lot of animatronics in this trip) people inside of the recreated pharmacy, blacksmith forge, barber shop, and bank.

















Actually, the Bank teller wasn't animatronic. Unfortunately. As it sensed my approach, it suddenly activated, and an actor's face projected on a blank mannequin proceeded to tell a story that I was too freaked out to hear.







There was one more of these eerie abominations, enacting the plight of the average working man.





The story of Oil itself was told via animatronic puppet show that was charmingly just slightly over Chuck E. Cheese quality.





I left Kilgore to continue my journey Eastward, but by this point, I'd pretty well stopped stopping anyplace for pictures. Part of it was the lack of anything to see. Part of it was the lack of interest. I was getting lost in my own thoughts, my own fears about Selina, about what I'd have to do once I got home. I could no longer enjoy my travels like before, and yet I was afraid to reach my destination.

These are the last four photos of my road trip before arriving back in DC. First, this one from I forget where. The South, definitely. Possibly Louisiana?





And finally, in Athens, GA, The Tree That Owns Itself.







Or rather, the Son of The Tree That Owns Itself.







That wraps up the photos of my travels, but the story is not yet finished. I'm working on a big Monologue post, one which may well prove to be the basis of my next show, exploring the real reasons behind this trip, the goals I made, and what happened upon my return to DC. Hope you dig it.

I'm still trying to figure out what to call the new show. Henchgirl favors THE ROAD TO NOWHERE, but a part of me is considering THE HEFNER TRAVELOGUES.

Comments

[kiffie.livejournal.com]

You could always combine them--

THE HEFNER TRAVELOGUES: THE ROAD TO NOWHERE.

...too bad-movie-sequel?

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

After THE HEFNER MONOLOGUES: HOW HEFNERIAN, I think I should be simpler with my titles.

After all, not all of us can be Werner Herzog and get away with stuff like THE BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANS.

[kiffie.livejournal.com]

And I suppose long titles are harder to put on t-shirts.

[shadowlongknife.livejournal.com]

Animatronic people always give me a vaguely uneasy Westworld vibe.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

And weirdly, the majority of these displays seem to have been made within ten years of WESTWORLD to boot.

[sara-lakali.livejournal.com]

Ooh. I have been to the Museum of Oil in Kilgore. It was there that I saw the creepiest thing ever: photos of oil well fires with the great billowing clouds of smoke and the faces in the smoke.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Holy heck, I don't even remember those!

[sara-lakali.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I guess it's like finding shapes in the clouds, but the fact that people can see so many faces in each photograph (I'm pretty sure one pic had around 100 faces that people had picked out) was freaky.

[surrealname.livejournal.com]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Emge_Pilato_Foree_2006.png

I'M RUNNING THIS MONKEYFARM NOW, FRANKENSTEIN

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Fucking awesome.

Re: I'M RUNNING THIS MONKEYFARM NOW, FRANKENSTEIN

[surrealname.livejournal.com]

That is EASILY my new favorite mullet.