Drawn the Road Again

Author: Chandler O’Leary

  • Sailor’s delight

    Sailor’s delight

    As a lifelong landlubber, I don’t often get to see lighthouses from the side they’re designed to face. So as you can probably imagine, not only was I gleefully waving back at the folks on the breakwater—I was also practically hanging off the side of the boat to get a better look at the beacon.

  • Island beacons

    Island beacons

    You already know I’ll drive hours and hours out of my way for roadside attractions, but I’ve also been known to make some ridiculous detours and extra-long pit stops for lighthouses. As a result, I have a lot of sketchbook drawings similar to this one. I could probably keep this blog going for half a…

  • Cabled cathedral

    Cabled cathedral

    Well, I started the week with a West Coast icon—so it seemed only fitting to end with the grand dame of the East River. What I love most about the Brooklyn Bridge is how familiar it feels to me, how solid and timeless. I can’t imagine New York without it—and after more than 130 years,…

  • Spindly spans

    Spindly spans

    To continue this week’s bridge theme, let’s head north and check out a couple of Canadian feats of engineering. These two bridges have very little in common with one another—except that they both kind of gave me the heebie-jeebies. I think the main thing was the sheer distances spanned here, by two relatively skinny structures.…

  • Golden Gatekeeper

    Golden Gatekeeper

    Last week’s posts all revolved around a central theme—I liked how that idea worked out, so I hope you’ll forgive me if I run with it for awhile. This week? I’ve got bridges on my mind. And what American bridge is more iconic than the fabulous Golden Gate? I must have drawn this thing from…

  • Toast-n-trinkets

    Toast-n-trinkets

    The Friendly Toast is a masterpiece of kitsch—sort of the Wall Drug of diners (except the food is excellent!). Come hungry, and bring a sketchbook—you’ll have plenty to keep your pencil occupied while you wait.

  • Road fuel

    Road fuel

    This was a long, hard day of driving, but there was a reward at either end of it: California poppies at the finish, and Morning Glory at the start.

  • How do you like your eggs?

    How do you like your eggs?

    Whenever I’m on the road, breakfast is usually the restaurant meal I crave the most (and often at weird, non-breakfast times). And since diners are among my most beloved hangouts, that seems to fit. So this week I’ve put together a bit of a tribute to the humble diner, and will be posting sketches of…

  • We’re going to need a lot of butter

    We’re going to need a lot of butter

    Confession: I planned an entire leg of my trip around this place. Now, pretty much all of the central California coast is worth any detour, if you ask me, but when it comes to the kitsch category, Castroville’s got a permanent blue ribbon in my book. And while Giant Artichoke is not quite technically a…

  • Duck dining

    Duck dining

    A “duck” is kind of the architectural version of “you are what you eat”—at least in this case. Hey, if you’re looking for good roadside food, it’s hard to go wrong with a place that gets a blue ribbon in the atmosphere department.