Let it be known that my instinct on this matter was right on target; $2.50 DiGiorno’s individual pizzas are no competition for “Not Phil’s” $2.50 slices.

$2.50, photo by smalltowngirl

Growing up, I’d ride on my dad’s tractor while he bush-hogged the fields on our property or on my grandparent’s farm. His tractor is parked permanently, but the Eckert’s tractor in Belleville, IL is still up ‘n runnin’ (as a real small town Missourian would say).

Here I am, bringing The Funk on a hayride across the river from the home state. I think the driver’s raised index finger is indication that I’m the #1 Funk.

Actually, I’m pretty sure his raised index finger has absolutely nothing to do with me, but I’m going to continue to pretend that it does.

Next up is a photo of @Versadave and myself reenacting American Gothic. Dave gets all the credit for the idea and for the photo. Thanks Dave!

Fun stuff, right? I’m telling you that there’s funk and beauty and groove anywhere in this world. You can seek out the beauty and the groove, and all you have to do is invite her, and The Funk is sure to follow.

MO=1; NYC=0 (cause The Funk is right here in Southeast Missouri).

***

Check out @Versadave’s #stlappletweetup write-up and photos here.

Growing up, I’d ride on my dad’s tractor while he bush-hogged the fields on our property or on my grandparent’s farm. His tractor is parked permanently, but the Eckert’s tractor in Belleville, IL is still up ‘n runnin’ (as a real small town Missourian would say).

Here I am, bringing The Funk on a hayride across the river from the home state. I think the driver’s raised index finger is indication that I’m the #1 Funk.

TractorGFunk, photo by @mdhugo

Actually, I’m pretty sure his raised index finger has absolutely nothing to do with me, but I’m going to continue to pretend that it does.

Next up is a photo of @Versadave and myself reenacting American Gothic. Dave gets all the credit for the idea and for the photo. Thanks Dave!

American Gothic 2009, photo credit @Versadave

Fun stuff, right? I’m telling you that there’s funk and beauty and groove anywhere in this world. You can seek out the beauty and the groove, and all you have to do is invite her, and The Funk is sure to follow.

MO=1; NYC=0 (cause The Funk is right here in Southeast Missouri).

***

Check out @Versadave’s #stlappletweetup write-up and photos here.

You’ll notice that there is a mobile home in the background of this drive-through coffee shop. Fittingly, Espresso to Go is actually a metal shack. Here’s to small town life.

Shack, photo by smalltowngirl

Through the window, photo by smalltowngirl

Ste. Genevieve, Missouri is among the small towns I’ve explored that has a few murals to brag about. The close-up of the guy in the window is great. Check out his missing eye and bubble gum nose…

Bubble gum nose, photo by smalltowngirl

I like think that if this little girl could talk, she’d be saying,  ”Ugggh, PLEASE dude.  Get the gum out of your nose and put your eyeball back in. SEEEriously, dude, uggggh.”

Annoyed and Disgusted, photo by smalltowngirl

And this guy was like, totally inspired by me, trekking around rural Missouri with my camera. Only he’s tall and I’m short, and he’s a dude and I’m not, and he’s got dude hair and I’ve got girl hair. Oh, and I’m pretty sure this mural has been around since before I trekked about Missouri with my camera.

But otherwise, totally and completely inspired by me.

Inspired by smalltowngirl, photo by smalltowngirl

My favorite Ste. Genevieve mural though is this one. I love how it isn’t clearly framed at the edges, creating a real sense of three dimensions.

Ste. Gen Mural, photo by smalltowngirl

New York City still takes the cake where art is concerned, but I think Ste. Genevieve’s murals are evidence of the valiant effort rural Missouri is  making to stay on the cultural maps. Nice work, home state. Nice work.

NYC=1, MO=0.5 (Yes, I’m now scoring in half-points. You got something to say about that?)

My trip back to Pittsburgh last weekend was for a wedding. Before heading to the reception, our alumni crew met to share a case of our favorite grad school beer, Yuengling. Beer in Styrofoam cooler in bathtub = classy, I know.

Classy. photo by smalltowngirl

When we arrived at the reception, we found tiny bottles of Heinz ketchup as favors.

Heinz. Photo by smalltowngirl

The weekend quintessentially Pittsburgh, even down to the road signs along the road to the day-after-wedding BBQ. The right-hand turn is like a road sign in any other city, but the sign on the left is pretty nearly as Pittsburgh as it gets.

Say What? photo by Martene

By far the most absurd thing the entire weekend was sitting at a stop light in McKeesport, looking at the driver next to us, and realizing that he had a rooster sitting on his shoulder. Unfortunately, we couldn’t snag a picture in time, but there are four witnesses to the rooster-sighting. What a strange town. I <3 you, Pittsburgh.

Friends. photo by someone....not sure who

Whoever put this sticker on this trash can gets extra points for making me laugh on an otherwise rough morning:

Dirty. Photo by smalltowngirl

Ste. Genevieve is a truly beautiful and historic town, but the part of Ste. Gen I’d like to share with you this morning is just a simple store front window with my reflection in it; a little piece of a place I hold dear to my heart (literally, since I wear a necklace with a pendant of the Brooklyn Bridge most days).

If you look closely, you can see reflections of Ste. Genevieve’s downtown just below an image of the Brooklyn Bridge and New York City.

Brooklyn Bridge - Ste. Gen style, photo by/of smalltowngirl

Today I leave for a weekend trip to Pittsburgh, where a close friend of mine is getting married. Twelve hours in the car today doesn’t leave much time for talking to twitter friends or reminding people that a new post is up, so do a smalltowngirl a favor, and pass this link on to your friends!

Farmers Market, photo by smalltowngirl

The vendors had beautiful produce, not limited to squash, zucchini, apples and peppers. I’ve written previously about the Farmington Farmers Market, but I was more impressed by the Washington County market than I was by the Farmington Market.

Washington County Farmers Market, photo by smalltowngirl

My favorite vendor was a Washington County farmer who taught me something I didn’t know; that green peppers eventually turn either red or yellow if left to grow long enough. Who knew?

mulit-colored peppers, photo by smalltowngirl

***

The Washington County Farmers Market is held from June through October. On Saturdays, the market is held from 7:30 a.m. to noon at the Washington County Court House, and on Wednesdays the market is held from 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the County Health Department.

MilliGFunkyCorn, photo by the Independent Journal

You’ll note that I’m in good company with my corn on the cob. (Willie Nelson Dude’s braids were fake, by the way. They were attached to the bandanna. I was disappointed.)

Photo scanned from the Independent Journal, Washington County Missouri’s local paper.