Indiana

Gifts and Things Found Along the Lincoln Highway

December 23, 2013 by Cece

Happy Holidays Everyone!

The nomad in me never stops moving, hence my silence on this blog. After I finished the tour this fall, my husband and I took the plunge and moved 2,000 miles from Chicago to Portland, Oregon where we’ve both never lived before! We’ve been here now for a few weeks, and are spending the holidays here on the West Coast. So far my time has been great here, and I look forward to exploring the area more very soon.

But enough about non-Lincoln Highway things! I know many of you out there have been enjoying and celebrating your holiday season amidst the hustle and bustle that comes along with it. I wanted to stop and take stock of the many gifts blessings I’ve received from people along the road this year, and I wanted to share these roadside finds with you all. Below you’ll find some really neat and unique items that were given to me as well as things I found along the way. You’ll also see a plethora of t-shirts in this collection as well from across the country (when you live on the road and laundry is scarce, new t-shirts are pretty much a necessity).

Without sounding too hokey, the biggest gift of all is nothing pictured in this gallery. It will always be the new friends I made while on my journey; they now have become “old” friends to me in such a short time. They are the true legacy of the Lincoln Highway, and I feel honored to know them. You will hear more about these extraordinary people in future blog posts as well as my book about my travels. So stay tuned-this is only the beginning!

Old Lincoln Highway Sign from Iowa. It was a gifted to me by someone from the Iowa LHA Chapter. These signs hung on the original route until they were replaced by Iowa’s Heritage Byway signs a few years ago.

Being the musician I am, CD’s were a welcome gift and soundtrack for my travels. Some CD’s were given to me by complete strangers, others by longtime friends. Everything from Classical to Country Music is included in this collection.

From left to right: 1) Hand-created Lincoln Highway Miniature Marker 2) Snowflake Christmas Ornament created with salt from the Great Salt Lake 3) Piece of Petrified Wood found at Middlegate Station in Nevada 4) Ornament from Rock Springs Historical Museum 4) Root Beer Growler from Gottenburg Brewery, Columbus Nebraska 6) Tote bag from Grantsville, Utah

Detail of Handmade Lincoln Highway Marker made by Bob Owens (Jefferson, Iowa). He told me that he puts 6 coats of sand on each marker to create the desired effect.

Detail of Rock Springs Historical Museum Ornament, Rock Springs, Wyoming

Detail of Snowflake Ornament, Grantsville, Utah

Handmade Pin on antique hankerchief, made by Janet Von Toussiant of the Livermore Heritage Guild in California.

There were several books presented to me on my travels. From Art Deco Paper Dolls to the Book of Mormon, all of the books play a part in the story of the Lincoln Highway.

The two books in the back were both written by my friend and Lincoln Highway guru Brian Butko. Both were published this year to commemorate the highway’s centennial. In the front you can see some fun sheet music from the 1910’s and 20’s that was given to me by people along the way too. I just love those old song titles!

You’ll find this old-time country store along the Lincoln in between Bedford and Pittsburgh. Definitely stop and take the time to walk around the store, you never know what you will find there!

I absolutely love the mission of the Music Village, and if you are in/near the South Bend area please check them out! They are doing great things for the community along the Lincoln Highway.

When I was staying in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, this t-shirt was given to me as a great surprise from my host! I guess the road warrior in me was already shining through. :-)

About 30 miles outside of Cedar Rapids, IA, you’ll find the Youngville Gas Station and restaurant. Entirely run by volunteers, this place is a lovely stop along the Lincoln Highway.

Thanks to Bob and Joyce Ausberger not only for giving this t-shirt to me, but for inviting me to perform in Jefferson, IA for their huge Bell Tower Festival.

This wonderful shirt was a gift from the Music Director at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Laramie, Wyoming.

One of the most unique performances on my tour was to be part of the annual Rockport Dam Jam. I got to learn new music for this concert, and the players were an absolute delight to perform with.

T-shirt of the Eureka Opera House. If you are in this part Nevada, please do yourself a favor and spend the afternoon (or night) here.

Middlegate Station in Nevada is a fanstastic place to stop, walk around, and get a bite to eat.

One of my favorite finds at the Nevada Historical Society’s gift shop: A t-shirt showing all of the hobo signs and symbols.

Until then, may the rest of 2013 be merry for you all! –Cece

Absence makes the road call faster

July 28, 2011 by Cece

“Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”- Abraham Lincoln

So I’ve been fairly quiet in the blog world this month. Not because I’ve got nothing to say (my beloved, friends, and family can attest to that), but because I’ve been working on so many other facets of the 2013 concert that are hard to write about.

I’ve been pouring over hundreds of pieces of sheet music from the 1910’s, 20’s and 30’s (some of them the original publications) thinking about what pieces of music I like and would work well for buy cheap viagra online the travelogue, as well as thinking about what format to sing everything in.

I’ve figured out the format now, and am still whittling down the songs for the concert in my own music practice (finding and sight reading all of these pieces takes a long time). I still need help in finding old concert programs from places along the highway. Hopefully I can find some programs soon.

The need to be on the road exploring the highway has been growing stronger since the conference. I was trying to figure out a way to see more of the highway this year, and I found it!

At this time next week, I’ll be driving on the Lincoln Highway for the annual “Buy-Way” weekend. I plan to drive through all five participating states to check out the areas and talk to anyone and everyone I can about the travelogue for 2013.

Here’s my rough itinerary:

I will leave Chicago in the middle of next week and drive east to Pittsburgh via the later alignments of the LH route. I will drive West the rest of the week on the original alignments on the days noted below.

Thursday: West Virginia and Ohio

Friday: Indiana and Illinois

Saturday: Illinois and Iowa (ending in Colo, IA at the famous Reed/Niland corner).

I will be writing from the road as I did in June. If anyone has any recommendations of things I should see while I’m out and about, let me know. I especially want to check out old theatres and opera houses of course.

If any of you will be driving too, please let me know! I would love to see you.

Safe travels!

Final day of the conference

June 23, 2011 by Cece

Hi everyone!

Today is seminar day for the LHA conference. The speakers have all been fantastic, and I’ve learned so much.

I was asked to sing a small anthem at the end of the Keynote speech by the speaker himself, and we surprised everyone when I came up onstage. It has been videotaped, and when it is edited down, expect to see it on here shortly.

Tonight is the awards banquet at the top of Heavenly mountain, and then we’re all off! I will be leaving very early in the morning to catch a flight to a family wedding in Indiana where I will also be singing. I’ll be offline in a few hours today (wifi expires), and cialis in uk will write up something once I’m back home.

Thanks to all of the new friends I’ve made here in Tahoe this week, and to all of the online followers as well. I look forward to meeting and working with you more in the future.