Blog Archives

frozen cadillacs, 1

I’ve been to Cadillac Ranch a handful of times but this was the first time I’d been there when it was snowing. In fact, I went there specifically because the snow had started to fall while I was in town.

Cadillac Ranch
Bushland, Texas
photographed 1.18.2025

…and then there’s this

Holy hell. You may recognize me over there, the second from the right, because for the most part, I still am exactly that fashionable.

near Earth, Texas
scanned family photo – date unknown

boot/cross

There’s about a quarter mile of fence that’s decorated (if that’s the word?) with boots and bicycles. It’s all wired there, so it seems permanent.

And other than that, all I know is that the Google street view, made in July 2024, does not include them, making them a relatively recent addition to roadside mysteries.

near Quitaque, Texas
photographed 12.29.2024

“…the quintessential cowboy”

I looked up Clifford Jackson Taylor after I made the photo but before I wrote this post, and here’s what I learned.

He went by Jackson and was a cowboy, working on ranches across the United States and in Australia. He was a member of the Western Ranch Cowboys Association and was professional bronc rider; he appeared in two seasons of the reality show “Ultimate Cowboy Showdown.” In 2023, he was competing in the WRCA-sanctioned Estancia Valley Ranch Rodeo in Moriarty, New Mexico, fell during a bronc ride and later died, according to a report from the Floyd County Hesperian-Beacon. He was 33 years old.

His grave is here, in a tiny country cemetery that’s down a dirt road.

Grey Mule Cemetery
Hall County, Texas

photographed 12.29.2024

spring, a few months away

The wind blew the next day, steady and strong, to scatter these seeds to ensure new plants come spring.

Caprock Canyons State Park, Texas
photographed 12.29.2024