Friday My Town Shoot-Out: Signs.

This weeks theme, thanks to Si, was amusing or interesting signs. Difficult challenge, Si! Apparently we aren't too clever with our signage around here. However, I did not come up totally empty handed.

Sometimes shooting my town is rather challenging because the roads are pretty busy - after all it is tourist season! So I would like to introduce you to my assistant, and guest photographer this week, Liz. My daughter took most of these photos for me out of the car window while I played chauffeur! Someday (a looooong time from now) she will chauffeur me around!





My husband thinks this is really goofy - a "Welcome to Westport" in someone's yard. I think it is friendly but wish it was outside of the ugly chain link fence!



Here is the official "Welcome to Westport" sign. Both of these signs were made by chainsaw carvers. We used to have a chainsaw carving festival but the carvers thought our town was running a catering company, as I like to say, and the festival is no longer.


A reality of living near the ocean is the possibility of a tsunami. We have signs all over town advising people of the direction to evacuate. Our local school is an official "assembly area". If the real deal were to happen (we have had 3 false alarms in my lifetime) I would not stop at the school unless I had a death wish as it is barely above sea level. If I had to guess I would say....2o feet above sea level. Head for the hills, people!


On to brighter topics...I just noticed this street sign near my parents' home and thought it was clever. I wish that were my street's name. I live on a street named after a boring, ugly tree. And I am a beach bum, or at least I was on Wednesday when it hit 93 degrees here!



One day, my kids and I were toodling around and noticed this new sign that had popped up. This place used to be for sale, as is every other house in the area, but I'm guessing it has sold and someone plans to show off their remodeling skills. Or maybe they left out the "out" part of the sign. Either way, it cracked us up.


Speaking of cracking up, someone at this house has a sense of humor. Gotta love the airmail. However, they can't spell. Never heard of "New Yokr" before. At least they spelled "Olympia" correctly. A few months ago I about had a fit when a giant DOT sign hanging in the nearby town of Montesano, WA read "Olmypia". People, it is our state capitol, can we not spell it correctly? Do they not have spell check in the road sign program???!!! I was happy to see it corrected the last time I drove through.

So here's a sign that I pass on my way to and from work and I was so excited to photograph it. However, when I pulled up in front of it for my assistant to get the shot I was so disappointed to see that they had taken the funny part down. Just the day before there had been a sign underneath that read "chicks $3. FREE ROOSTER". I chuckled every time I passed it. Guess someone finally took them up on the offer.

There are at least 4 of these signs around:

My daughter is very excited about this one. She is the only one in our house that likes oysters so she gets to go with her Poppa (my dad) to the oyster feed each year.

Here is another annual event that gets me excited:

This festival is my favorite and I think the sign is awfully clever. There were a few photographers there with some spectacular work. One of them had amazing local shots of pelicans and beautiful sunrises. Another had captured hanging basket reflections in water drops. I have lens envy. Seriously. I need a zoom lens and I really want it before fall sports start!

Enough whining and on to the winery...

I think this place is just adorable and so is their sign. Gotta love the lighthouse, which is a little tasting room! Everything is better "By-the-Sea" if you ask me.

Well, thanks Liz, my little photographer in training. You are a real trooper. And thanks to all who visit our little town via cyberspace. Hope you enjoyed your stay!