Too Tall Texans

For the road lovin' kind, here's a little (pardon the pun) trail to take if y'all are ever out in West Texas. Lookee here at these fine Texas roadtrip specimens...

Tex Randall
Canyon, Texas's "Tex Randall" stands at 47 feet tall and weighs 7 tons (must be from all the brisket). He's been a Canyon resident since 1959. A long period of deterioration was worsened when a semi crashed into his left boot, and the cigarette, which he held in his left hand, was shot out of his hand like a heat-seeking missile and plum impaled a green love bug, making it look like the proverbial olive in the martini drink (I made up this last part, but it sounds about right, don't it?). The boots, by the way, are Tony Lamas.

Address:

N. 3rd Ave., Canyon, TX

Directions:

Just south of US 60 and just west of N. 15th St., on the southeast corner of N. 3rd Ave. and N. 14th St.

Golden Tornadoes Cheerleader
Not to be outdone, the women folk have one of their own in Lamesa, TX. Standing tall outside a store on Highway 87 in downtown Lamesa, TX. She's about 20 feet tall and we're not about to talk about her weight being women are a tad touchy about this. She wears the cheerleader outfit for the Lamesa High School, the Golden Tornadoes. Originally, she stood taller at 22 ft because of her bouffant, but with the changing times come the change in coiffure. At the moment, she still clings to her 1960s flip hairdo like a bitter divorcee out of The Last Picture Show. The high heels are a fine touch. Must've bought them at that Prada store down in Marfa.

Address:
310 S Dallas Ave., Lamesa, TX

 

Directions:

In downtown Lamesa, TX, on Business 87. In front of the Reid Bethel Tire Company.

Jack Ben Rabbit
Don't worry animal lovers, We got something for everyone in Texas! Even wascally wabbits! Built in the 1960s, he's eight feet tall and is named "Jack Ben Rabbit." The carrot-vore is located in front of the Ector County Independent School District Administration Building in downtown Odessa. The plaque there includes a recipe for Jackrabbit and Dumplings. And, it's PETA approved!

Address:
N Sam Houston Ave., Odessa, TX

 

Directions:

North of I-20 in downtown Odessa at W. 8th St. and N. Sam Houston Ave.
(P.S., That's not my kid)


On a side note for you book worms, Thalia, Texas is in this neck of the woods and is the place in several of Larry McMurtry's novels. His home town is Archer City, 80 miles from Thalia.

Now, who says Texas ain't inclusive!

Prada Plants One in Texas

Prada Marfa

The building mimics a Prada store…but, out in the backside of the West Texas desert. I’ve driven out that way, so I know what I’m talking about when I say there ain’t nothing out there but lots of sand.

The sculpture is meant to look like a Prada store, with minimalist white stucco walls and a window display housing real Prada shoes and handbags. There is no working door; it's locked.

Just don’t tell that to them Texas gals with the ten gallon bouffants ‘cause it won’t stop ‘em. They’ll stampede right through those doors like the bulls of Pamplona.

The shoes start at more than $500 and the price of purses easily climb into four figures. Marfa now has some braggin’ rights because Texas does not have a Prada store anywhere else. So, stick that in your craw and smoke it, Dallas!

To be sure, the Prada Marfa sculpture will provide countless hours of conversation for motorists driving through West Texas like: "What the hell is that?!"

Some of the locals have suggested that Prada Marfa isn't a sculpture at all, but a time warp, kinda like a wormhole for rednecks – to transport those who break into the building out of their dreary hillbilly lives and into a more modern & progressive life of dreariness. One has to admit that even though this is an implausible crack-pipe theory, it has a certain charm (think of a Twilight Zone episode: Deliverance meets Breakfast At Tiffany’s).

The Marfans (i.e., citizens of Marfa, for you Ivy League types) commissioned a protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright to rework the sculpture in a way that would reflect the eco-sensitive, environmentally-safe, green-friendly consciousness of the 21^st Century. Take a look-see below.

I think it befits the sign of the times, no?