Roadside Attraction

Anytime I drive out of or into the Lone Star State I try to stop at one of the Texas Travel Information Centers at the border where I load up on pamphlets and unload my bladder.  Yesterday, as I was heading back from some business in Oklahoma, I noticed much more than the usual amount of cars joining me along I-35.

The dark red decor of many of the cars, as well as the cooler weather, reminded me what time of year it is and that this weekend is the annual Texas/OU game at the State Fair.  I was unprepared to celebrate but the folks at the Travel Info Center in Gaineville were ready to go.  And a lot of people joined them, like the Frank Buck Zoo:

They even brought one of their friendliest snakes to greet the visitors.  I didn't catch his name so I mentally named him Snakesy McSnakes-a-lot.  I also never got clarification on whether he was rooting for Texas or OU but he probably didn't want to be controversial so I guess we'll never know.

Rumpy’s Little German Bakery & Deli was also one of the many other booths there and were handing out some of their tasty treats.  Nothing gets a crowd to your table like some good grub.  It got enough of my attention that I'll definitely stop there the next time I'm in Gainesville.  There was also a lot going on outside, including a mini-car show:

There were plenty of nice specimens on display, some with their engines exposed, some not, and some with owners that would be more than happy to pop the hood for any interested gear head travelers.  The one that caught my eye was this was this sweet little '66 Mustang:

Notice the tray on the driver's side window with the prop Whataburger meal?  It's a great little touch that reminds people what side of the Red River they're on. 

It was an interesting surprise to see such a brouhaha at one of my regular travel stops but it was time to hit the road.  You never know what you'll find along the way.  Enjoy the game!

Dallas-Opoly is Kind of Lame

At some point, on a birthday or at Christmas, you have probably received a themed version of Monopoly from a well intentioned relative.  Regardless of your varied interests, there is most likely a version of the popular board game meant to stuff your stocking.  To further our speculation, you probably opened it once, maybe even played it, and then put it on the shelf reserved for things you never touch.

All that preamble is to bring up the topic of "Dallas-opoly," which I found at Walmart recently.  Admittedly, expectations were high.  Perhaps too high to live up to.  Upon cracking open the box here is a professionally photographed marketing picture representing what I found:

The upside includes that all properties have been renamed as Dallas locations (with the exception of the Mesquite Rodeo which is included for some reason).  For example, the famed locations of "Boardwalk" & "Park Place" are now Reunion Tower and Fair Park.  Here's a look at some of the deeds:

Great shout-outs to locations in the city but other than the names, that's about it.  No location pictures, or specific information is added to the game and they all seem to be arbitrarily assigned to groups.  Additionally, the traditional "Chance" and "Community Chest" cards are replaced with "Contingency" and "Big Fun" cards.  Many of them aren't Dallas-specific but here's a sample that are:

My final complaint, and biggest disappointment, is the game pieces.  The totally generic tokens include a hand (maybe for Big Tex's hand?), a star (Lone Star, ok I get it but c'mon), a heart, a cowboy boot and a cowboy hat.  Sure, some of these can be related to Dallas but you can't tell me that most of these don't show up in Houston-opoly or even Sante Fe-opoly. 

There are surely better choices that specifically relate to Dallas and even though no one asked me I decided to make suggestions:

Making the pieces Reunion Tower, the Woofus, the Dallas Zoo Giraffe, the Pegasus, the Chapel of Thanksgiving and Big Tex would have gone a long way towards saving this game.  I can only hope that the makers of "Dallas Scrabble" and "Dallas Candyland" are taking note of this.