 |
| 159th and Oak Park Avenue, c1952 |
"What town are we in?"
"We're on the edge of Tinley Park, and Orland Park. Tinley is on the left, and Orland.... "
"It's ugly. This is so damn ugly."
I looked around, and I could not disagree. Mile after mile, on either side of this four lane divided street were strip malls, auto dealerships, and fast food joints. It was an assault on the senses that is repeated over and over again throughout the United States. I tried to explain to Mark what had been there, that how when I was a boy this street was a two lane rural highway bordered on either side by picturesque farms. When I was a kid you would drive into our town on a pleasant country road. There was very little development outside of the town borders, maybe a tractor dealer, or the garden store on the edge of town, but not the dull crap that is there now. The quaint little town I grew up in does not exist anymore. Instead of corn fields and cow pastures, houses and more houses march off to the horizon. Mark was not impressed.
"It is so damned ugly." And this is coming from a guy who grew up in the Bronx, and New Jersey. The old, original core of our town is still there, all made up to look as though it is still the quaint little town. They have put up antique looking street lamps, and brick planters. It's sort of like putting too much makeup on an old farmer's wife.
I found that the rest of the country is pretty much the same. As we made our way from Chicago to Florida on interstate highways, I noticed that each and every interchange looked like a platter of hors d'oeuvres, with giant toothpicks in them represented by the hundred foot high signage. Each and every motel, gas station, and fast food joint had to have one of these massive signs. It was hard to tell the difference from one town to another. That is until Mark started jonesing for a Culver's Butterburger. He spotted that sign from two miles away.
Just so you know. The beautiful little church was Trinity Lutheran, and was burned down in 1965 by vandals. On the upper left hand corner was a place called Jardines motel and restaurant. I ate there often in my teen years. The only thing still there in the photo is that cemetery.
ReplyDeleteTrinity Lutheran was rebuilt. Our neighbors, the Grays , went to church and school there. I remember Jardines. It's still there although not Jardines it is Aurelios and the original motel /restaurant is now a...strip mall! 159th for the duration of my life has always been overbuilt and ugly.
ReplyDeleteLove d'oeuvere's with toothpicks bit. I'll never look at those clusters of fast food places the same again :-) I also avoid Orland Park like the plague. It is U-G-L-Y!
ReplyDeleteWell that sucks. The closest Butter burger franchise is in Ohio.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, Culver's Butterburgers. Can you spell Diabetes?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.elviradarknight.com/diabetes/culvers.html
Best item at Culvers....sliced prime rib sandwich with grilled onions!!
ReplyDeleteHow the hell did I miss that. Now I have to wait until I'm up north again. We don't have Culver's down here, no White Castle either. (not that they're comparable.)
ReplyDelete