wacky tacky: nitt witt ridge

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Monday, February 24, 2014

Chow Time: Tio's Tacos

I used to laugh derisively at self-righteous celebrities who would tout themselves as "spiritual" rather than religious. The subtext always read that, in their enlightened transcendence, we plebeians had been left behind in a fetid miasma of simple faith. As I mature (at a pace slower than any approved by modern developmental guidelines), I find in myself the ability to experience the spiritual, outside the confines of religion. In situations quite devoid of church-sanctioned sanctity, I feel a genuine sense of peace. In places quite unexpected, I feel a connection to the Divine. I mean, imagine having a spiritual experience at a taco shop!!!

"Bienvenidos A Su Casa."
Tio's Tacos #1 Mariscos y Centro de Frutas Naturales (est. 1990) - Riverside, CA

Like a modern master filled with the spirit of Grandma Prisbey, Sam Rodia, and Art "Der Tinkerpaw" Beal, Martin Sanchez began Tio's Tacos as an expression of his culture, his history, and his faith. Proving that wacky tacky isn't relegated to history or high finance, Sanchez weathered an unsteady economy and the uncertainty of the food-service industry to build this mecca of wacky tacky, turning a sidewalk vendor's cart into a chockablock city block in less than twenty-five years. Seemingly founded on the principles of family, food, and thrift, this Mexican-restaurant-cum-folk-art-installation transforms what most would describe as garbage (think tin cans, broken bicycles, car parts, empty bottles, used toys) into a fantasy land of mermaids, myth, and pop culture. Here, enveloped by the embrace of highly-personal artistic expression, Mr. Tiny was feeling downright holy!

The ever-evolving landscape of meandering gardens, oyster-shell footpaths, mosaics, and
statuary are highlighted by grand-scale figures - mermaids, acrobats, spacemen, and more.
We're guessing that Popeye's tin-can-lid bell-bottoms all came from canned spinach - recycling at its best!

Many of the giant figures are cleverly built around the trunks of the property's many towering palm trees.

Lest you think that we are overstating the grandeur of Sanchez' work,
I've included Mary, who stands at six-feet tall, for scale.

The technique of binding castoffs with chicken wire
is as surprisingly-genius to me as it is to Betty Boop!

If there is one thing I appreciate far less than a spiritually-superior celebrity, it is a movie quoter. Why did it take so long for Austin Powers' "Yeah, baby!!!" to go away? Well, in a further admission of my own reluctant maturity, I have come to realize that this prejudice is an example of me disliking a quality in others that I exhibit all too often. I frequently quote movies; it's just that the movies I tend to reference are generally greater than fifty years old (or at least movies set in a bygone era). When walking the grounds of Tio's Tacos, only one thought came to mind, a quotation from A Christmas Story. Like Mr. Parker faced with the major award of that infamous leg lamp, the only words I could utter when faced with the awe-inspiring wonder of this taqueria were, "It's, it's, it's...it's indescribably beautiful!"

But I guess my sense of spirituality wasn't too misplaced; Tio's sprawling grounds also include a chapel built of
bottles, mirrors, statuary, and assorted recycled material. We were particularly fond of the picture mosaic dome.

Out of everything, my real obsessions were the bottle-glass walls that caught the light beautifully
both inside and out. I really fell in love with these walls - call it a harlequin romance!!

Reminders of Sanchez' faith and his native state of Michoacan abounded.
I felt like heavenly signs were everywhere.

I guess it is at this point where I should say that there are also plenty of signs at Tio's Tacos of a far more secular nature - "Cuidado: Suelo Mojado," "Do not leave children unattended," "We will not be responsible for any damages or accidents that occur," "Photographs taken for commercial purposes are prohibited." Just so readers and Tio's management are aware, as of publication of this post, wacky tacky and Mr. Tiny remain entirely unremunerated for any of our activities and adventures (although we wouldn't necessarily turn our noses up at an offer....).

We're just here for FUN!!!

And real fun can be found in some of Tio's more sophisticated offerings.

We spent so much time wheeling around the grounds on our pint-sized trikes that we almost - almost - forgot to eat. We made our way into the actual restaurant, past a three-dimensional, marine-life diorama and the jewel box of mouth-watering aguas frescas.

We left so little time to eat that we both ignored the house recommendations and just panic-ordered the taco salad at the counter. We were given the obligatory chips and salsa, which incidentally is the best part of any Mexican restaurant meal, and were sent to get our aguas frecas. I opted for guayaba (my favorite) and Mary spent an inordinate amount of time sampling juices and having a custom-blend concocted that included chia seeds (I warned her that the side effects of ingesting chia seeds include an unexpected green mohawk sprouting up at inopportune moments).

There are many dining areas from which to choose;
we chose to eat near the chapel. A fiddle player
followed us to add a little musical accompaniment to
our lunch. He and Mary make a handsome couple, no?

There is definitely nourishment for the body and soul at Tio's Tacos #1 Mariscos y Centro de Frutas Naturales. It may seem a hackneyed phrase but one man's trash is certainly another man's, namely Martin Sanchez' treasure. Tio's Tacos is his gift to the City of Riverside and to this wide world of wacky tacky lovers!

Tio's Tacos #1 Mariscos y Centro de Frutas Naturales

3948 Mission Ave

Riverside, CA

(951)788-0230

tiostacos1.com

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Magical Mystery Castle

"Stop." "Beware of Dog." "Danger, High Voltage." There are many signs in our world that simply cannot, and should not, go unheeded.

"Mystery Castle."
This is definitely one of them.

And this one.

This one, not so much...
(Source)

There are physical signs that we see with our eyes and then there are signs of the more spiritual variety - signs that are less prohibitive and more a call to action. What action would you take if you came down with tuberculosis? Well, I guess the answer these days is relatively easy - seek prompt medical attention for an extensive course of antibiotics. In the 1930's, the answer often involved a major change of scenery, especially for an arid, desert clime. Diagnosed with TB in the early days of the Depression, Seattle-based Boyce Luther Gulley, saw a sign. Leaving his wife and daughter behind in their secure, if all too humid, home town, Gulley set out for the breadth and breath offered by Phoenix, AZ.

Mystery Castle - Phoenix, AZ

Left with just his thoughts, a dearth of materials, and the inspiration of the mystical western winds, Gulley decided that his call to the desert was the opportunity to fulfill a promise he made to his daughter; he would build her a castle. Gulley's castle, is essentially the sister castle to California's Nitt Witt Ridge. Built of found objects, recycled materials, and a weird cement slurry that included a heaping helping of goat's milk, Gulley's dream castle took many years to build and ended up with eighteen rooms and thirteen fireplaces (a particular point of pride for the tour guides). Upon its completion, and the owner's death, Gulley's wife and daughter were notified that the home was finally ready for them.

The Mystery Castle gained national fame when it was featured
on The January 26, 1948 cover of Life Magazine. The article,
entitled "Life Visits a Mystery Castle" actually gave Boyce's
dream manse a name that stuck. The young woman pictured,
is Mary Lou, the daughter for which Gulley built the home.

Shortly after the Life article's publication, the Mystery Castle was open for daily tours given by Mary Lou who continued the practice until her death in 2010. The castle continues to operate tours as an official "Phoenix Point of Pride" under the auspices of a trust/non-profit that maintains the facility.

Many of the windows, transoms, and sidelights were
made of glass, refrigerator-storage dishes that Mr.
Gulley was able to buy by the truckload for pennies
on the dollar.

The kitchen

Operating without modern utilities until the 70's, 80's, and 90's (they were added over time), living in the Mystery Castle required a distinct level of dedication and a strength of character uncommon among most people faced with soaring temperatures and terminal illness.

Filled with artifacts, the Mystery Castle is part tourist attraction, part museum.
Included in the collection is this original suffragette china. According to our
tour guide, this service belonged to the wife of Arizona's first governor; she made
good on her threat to serve every meal on these dishes until women got the vote.

The Gulley's home and its contents are the very spirit of wacky tacky. As I mentioned, it was the home of a single, "art" loving, desert dweller. Subsequently no efforts to change, move, or restore have been made, leaving the home exactly the way it looked at the time of her death. There is almost too much wacky tacky that it distracts from the original structure.

An abundance of life-size dolls inhabit
the rooms of the Mystery Castle.
How does one even accomplish something like this?
Wouldn't you be afraid that at some point it would come to life
and switch places with you, making you the life-size doll?

A not-so-subtle nod to the provenance of some the castle's
more broken-in furnishings, the House of Joy brothel.

An installation by Mary Lou Gulley.
It is amazing the accomplishments than can be made with a soft-bodied
ballerina doll, a shaky hand, and a permanent marker.

The best times of the tour were those when we caught a glimpse of Boyce Luther Gulley's original concept. Seeing past the four-foot, chocolate bunny statues and the cat decoupages to the stone mosaics, the Mexican tile, the skylights, the repurposed train tracks, the dumb waiter, the cantilevered, spiral staircase, was the chance to see through Gulley's visionary eyes. All of these "trash castles" have to built by someone who is equal parts genius and madman; it is that delicate balance that fosters the perfect environment for the finest in wacky tacky.

It really is a southwest castle!

Amazing tile

At the time of construction, this lookout point on the second floor's patio, was said
to frame the entirety of the Phoenix skyline. Today, it captures but a small portion.

A wonderful, wire-wheel window.
Gulley drove his Stutz Bearcat all the way from Seattle to Phoenix and
used many of the deconstructed vehicle's parts in the castle's construction.

Taking a page from the world-famous Winchester Mystery House,
the Mystery Castle is a mini-labyrinth of staircases, archways,
meandering pathways, and columns.

The chapel contains a Victorian-era organ that is said to
have once belonged to Phoenix's black widow (known
for marrying miners, poisoning them, and then keeping their
fortunes). The legend surrounding the organ was too much
for Mary Lou Gulley to resist.

This was my favorite room. Traditional, Native American rugs,
primitive stained glass, stone/adobe walls, beamed ceilings,
antique chandelier, and the skeleton of a saguaro cactus (around
which the room was built).

A beautiful round window surrounded by native
stone - another use of the refrigerator dishes.

Mary in "purgatory," the area of the house between the chapel and the cantina.

The coolest part of the tour was the trap door - guarded by a menacing, metal alligator.
Following his instructions, Gulley's wife and daughter waited until exactly two years
after his 1945 death to brave the alligator. Upon opening the door, they found two $500
bills, the deed to the property, gold, and a Valentine's Day card that Mary Lou
had given to her father when she was a child.

Every door at the Mystery Castle is like the famed trap door; there is a surprise and a treasure behind each one. If you're ever in Phoenix, be sure to follow the sign and pay your respects to this living example of folk/outsider art, vernacular architecture, and human ingenuity. What began as one man's sickbed promise tuned into a wacky tacky wonder for all to enjoy.

Mystery Castle

800 E Mystery Castle

Phoenix, AZ

(602)268-1581

*Tours are offered Thursday through Sunday at a cost of $10 per person.

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Don't be a NITT WITT! Or in this case, do!

High atop a hill on California's central coast stands a monument to man's ingenuity and his appreciation of beauty. Years of design, desire and dedication went into the creation of this historic and oft-visited structure. Made without the employ of a professional architect or legitimate construction equipment, Nitt Witt Ridge is known as "the poor man's Hearst Castle." Constructed mostly of rebar, cement, Pismo clam shells and other salvaged materials, Nitt Witt Ridge was the home and artistic expression of Art "Der Tinkerpaw" Beal - Cambria's first and most forward-thinking trash collector and arbiter of wacky tacky. Nitt Witt Ridge is not only the best thing about Cambria, it is really the only reason to stop! It may sound hackneyed, but for Der Tinkerpaw, one man's trash was truly another man's treasure.

Nitt Witt Ridge

Nitt Witt Ridge is a California State Historic Landmark. As such, one might think that funding is available for maintenance and preservation. Unfortunately, this is not the case and the current owners rely on the $10 tour donation for the upkeep of NWR.