And One More Walking in Visalia* Post

This is an enormous empty lot in Visalia, and I took the photo because I am astonished that it is green! It rained in September and October, something that doesn’t always happen around here. See those enormous trees in the distance? Valley oaks, quercus lobata, the largest oaks in the country (or the world? I forget). They follow waterways through town, just like they do in Three Rivers; that is Mill Creek over there.

I even spotted wildflowers in the lot—morning glories are actually an invasive weed.

Those car places aren’t always boring.

Are buildings ever built with rounded corners any more?

An alley full of succulents? Yeppers. I wonder if it is profitable. I saw it there about 6 years ago, so maybe it is.

I saw the sign for Component Coffee Lab, a place I have heard about but never knew where it was. Looks as if they rent one place to do their roasting, in another, not far away, tucked into a walking alley, is their very cool coffee shop. It was full of people on devices, with plugs available by every seat. Their logo of 3 circles is too subtle for me to understand, and their back entrance could use some landscaping, but everything else was excellent.

What is this?? I didn’t walk right up to it, but saw it when I was in the back of the coffee place on a street parallel to Main Street. What is the significance? That is where Foreign Auto Works was when I first discovered them in 1983. (More oaks along Mill Creek).

*Visalia, population 146,000, is the county seat of Tulare County, about halfway between Bakersfield and Fresno, California’s flyover country. No one knows about it, no one cares, but we feed the world. Might be more helpful to know it is about halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, each about 200 miles away. But really, no one cares, and I like it that way.

More Walking in Visalia

If you’ve been hanging around here on the internet for awhile, you know that Trail Guy and I drive old vehicles. The reason that we are able to keep them running is due to Mark at Foreign Auto Works. Mark just sold his business to Frank, and we will continue going there. However, before Mark vamooses in retirement, we had him do final oil changes for us. I’m his longest customer and I will really miss him.

I dusted the odometer so you can read it more clearly.

Hence, time-kill in Visalia, which I used to go walking and exploring downtown. The first part of the walk is full of auto places: repair shops, tires, transmissions, detailing, used car lots, new car lots, smog checks. When I got through those parts, I paid attention to architecture and other details.

Remember when buildings were made pretty, just because? Compared to buildings in older cities, particularly in the East, this is probably considered a nothing-burger. But I happen to think it is classic.

This part of Main Street connects all the automotive shops to the retail shops and restaurants. For awhile, it was full of antique malls; now there are empty buildings, a gym or two, and some mysterious unknowns (I didn’t linger). Visalia has tried to keep the trees going along Main Street, and as you get closer to the retail part, there are speakers up high on the lights, playing a variety of music. I heard some classical, I heard some Neil Diamond. I wonder why they think music is important walking along the sidewalks.

I stopped in Pacific Treasures, a business that was new when I worked in downtown, 30+ years ago. Now it is one of the few I recognize, and it was a real treat to have a visit with an old friend from elementary school who has worked there for many years. Great store, full of merchandise, so full that I almost developed a twitch. Got it under control, and bought some basil olive oil. My friend said they stock it because I asked for some. Ahem. I asked 9 years ago, and haven’t stopped by since asking. (They could have called, but they probably haven’t had any trouble selling it.)

There’s an old sign. Really old, older than me, prolly older than Trail Guy. The restaurant is no longer functional. Maybe the downtown Visalia organization wants them to leave the sign for nostalgia’s sake.

I love this sort of tile detail. This would prolly cost a mint to have done on a new building.

One more walking in Visalia post ahead.

Pencil Reminiscing, Part Three

It was thrilling to see my art come off a printing press as notecards. It was exciting to sell them to stores, and the ideas started piling in.

After Tulare County Landmarks and Mineral King Scenes, it was time to move to the city:  Visalia Landmarks was hugely popular in the stores, which are now all closed.

I just trotted all over Visalia with my camera, taking photos without giving it a second thought, never asking permission, just excited to be out gathering new material for pencil drawings to be turned into little packages of notecards. It was fun to think of what to draw, fun to photograph it, fun to learn about and write up a description for the back, fun to be on my own figuring out how to do these things.

This was all done in the days of film cameras with its accompanying wait for the pictures to be developed. During that era, the magical and mysterious fax machine appeared, and we had no idea of email, cell phones, digital photography, the internet with all its huge changes to our lives. Pencils (and erasers) were all I needed.

Main Gallery

A new art co-operative gallery will open in Visalia on November 1, 2010. The address is 209 W. Main Street and there are 23 very fine artists participating. It is a privilege to be showing with these folks, some of whom I have known for many years. Our plan is to be open in November and December, and then re-evaluate. The space is large, well lit and in the heart of downtown Visalia. (For those of you familiar with Visalia, it is in the same block as Brown’s Shoe Fit Co. and a few doors east of Pacific Treasures and Gourmet, same side of the street.)