# Interesting things near where you live or work **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 1, 2010, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648 "2010-04-01T21:03:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2010, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/61 "2010-04-06T16:12:48Z")
I work in downtown Chicago so you name it. The closest most interesting place would probably be the [Civic Opera Building](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civic_Opera_House_(Chicago)), since my office is actually in it. I live in the Rogers Park neighborhood and right around the block from me is a really nice looking house designed by \*\*Frank Lloyd Wright \*\*. Didn’t even know it was there for the first year I lived in the area. Just north of where I live is the only [Baha’i House of Worship](http://www.richard-seaman.com/USA/Cities/Chicago/Landmarks/BahaiTemple1.jpg)in the country, which is an incredibly beautiful and impressive place to visit. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2010, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/62 "2010-04-06T16:24:15Z")
[Cole Younger](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cole_Younger) is buried near my office. The Younger brothers rode with the Jesse James Gang. ---
**Author:** ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2010, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/63 "2010-04-06T18:23:15Z")
All within a few miles of home and work: [Monument of States](http://www.flickr.com/photos/apelad/sets/72157601105128058/)- it’s also the burial site of the creator of the monument. Ever seen [Bait Shop](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1176725/)? It’s filmed in Kissimmee along the shoreline of Lake Tohopekaliga, which is a short walk away from the MoS. There’s also [Grissom Funeral Home, Crematorium and Playground](http://www.grissomfh.com/dm20/en_US/locations/48/4819/overview.page). Yes, a funeral home with a playground in its parking lot-- an unusual idea, but it makes sense for many grieving families with young members. Lastly, there’s [Gatorland](http://www.gatorland.com/), the “Alligator Capital of the World”; it’s really neat to view during this time of year, as everything is either mating or hatching. ---
**Author:** ![MacSpon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@MacSpon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacSpon)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/64 "2010-04-07T02:20:26Z")
A few years ago, I lived about a block from Weta Digital. And there used to be a lot of vehicles with _really interesting_ signage parked outside, sometimes. 🙂 Swordsmiths were among the least of them. And, yeah, at least once during the filming of LOTR I looked out the window and saw a crew wheeling a huge piece of stonework down the street on casters. ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/65 "2010-04-07T02:31:22Z")
I’m a ten-minute walk from The Arch and Busch Stadium in St. Louis. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/66 "2010-04-07T05:07:56Z")
The Panama Canal. My office is right at the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. [This view](http://images.world66.com/br/id/ge/bridge_of_the_amer_galleryfull) is pretty much what I see from the front entrance of the place where I work. I can see the waiting area for ships in line to enter the canal from my apartment window. ---
**Author:** ![bartleby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bartleby/32/10491_2.png) [@bartleby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bartleby)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/67 "2010-04-07T11:30:18Z")
> [@Theodore\_Striker](#): > > I live about 3 minutes away from the BBJ, right there in Monroe, and came into the thread specifically to mention it. Prior to the erection of the statue, the church had a giant neon lined and ultra-bright sign right off of the highway that I thought was tacky. Apparently understatement is not the strength of the Solid Rock Church. > > It’s really a shame, because Monroe itself is a nice little small town, and most people see that hideous thing and associate it with the city. like pot bellied pigs running around all over the place? ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/68 "2010-04-07T12:14:45Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > The family on “Full House” (see the picnic at the end of the [theme song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ul2QTLpasDs&feature=related).) Ah - thanks. I never watched “Full House”, so I wasn’t familiar with the reference. ---
**Author:** ![Theodore\_Striker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Theodore\_Striker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theodore_Striker)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/69 "2010-04-07T13:04:30Z")
> [@bartleby](#): > > like pot bellied pigs running around all over the place? To be clear, that was Lemon Twp, not City of Monroe, hahahaha. Anyway, the best part of the newspaper story was the one cop laughing at the other getting bit by the pig. ---
**Author:** ![Theodore\_Striker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Theodore\_Striker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theodore_Striker)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/70 "2010-04-07T13:05:50Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Ah - thanks. I never watched “Full House”, so I wasn’t familiar with the reference. You didn’t miss anything, it may have been the worst popular sitcom ever made. ---
**Author:** ![newcomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e5b9ba/32.png) [@newcomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcomer)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/71 "2010-04-07T13:22:00Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > The Panama Canal. > > My office is right at the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. [This view](http://images.world66.com/br/id/ge/bridge_of_the_amer_galleryfull) is pretty much what I see from the front entrance of the place where I work. > > I can see the waiting area for ships in line to enter the canal from my apartment window. Great view! As I type this, if I turn my eyesight for just a notch to the left… I see [this](http://huzefa58.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/toronto27s_cn_tower1.jpg). And a bit more to the left and I see [Toronto Island Airport](http://torontoist.com/attachments/toronto_david/20080818airportcomplaints.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/72 "2010-04-07T13:36:33Z")
Probably a bit of a cheat, living in the _Athens of the North_, but: I live 5 minutes away from the main Edinburgh Fringe venue, on the same street. J. K. Rowling, Ian Rankin and Alexander McCall Smith all live nearby. The coffeeshop where Rowling wrote Harry Potter is a short walk away. I also live virtually next door to Rebus’s police station. The cliffs where Hutton founded modern geology are directly behind my flat. You can still see his axe marks in places. The Royal Mile crosses the bottom of my street: on one end is Edinburgh Castle, on the other is the Scottish Parliament and the Palace of Holyrood, the Queen’s residence in Edinburgh. The list of eminent scientists, authors and philosophers associated with this city is too big to recite in full. The most famous are probably Adam Smith, James Clarke Maxwell, Robert Napier, Alexander Graham Bell, David Hume and Sir Walter Scott. ---
**Author:** ![newcomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e5b9ba/32.png) [@newcomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcomer)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/73 "2010-04-07T13:42:06Z")
Forgot about place I live… on the side of a not so steep hill in Toronto suburb whose top plateau used to be native burial grounds… ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/74 "2010-04-07T14:18:11Z")
Within a 6-mile radius of my home are: [ul] [li][The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum](http://www.alplm.org)[/li][li][Lincoln’s Home](http://www.nps.gov/liho), where Abraham Lincoln lived for [sub]mumblemumble[/sub] years[/li][li][Lincoln’s Tomb](http://www.illinoishistory.gov/hs/lincoln_tomb.htm)[/li][li][The Lincoln-Herndon Law Office](http://www.illinoishistory.gov/hs/lincoln_herndon.htm), where Abraham Lincoln practiced law for [sub]mumblemumble[/sub]years (can you believe I’ve never set foot there?)[/li][li][The Susan Laurence Dana House\*](http://www.dana-thomas.org/), a stunning example of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture[/li][li]The site where the [Donner Party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donner_party) set off (at least, initially)[/li][li][Santa Ana’s Leg](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Ana%27s_leg#Redemption.2C_dictatorship.2C_and_exile) (can you believe I’ve never seen it?)[/li][li]A number of other attractions of varying interest, including Route 66 attractions, historic buildings associated with Illinois history and/or culture, etc.[/li][/ul] \*I refuse to call this house its official name, The Dana-Thomas House. For a number of years, the Thompson Publishing Company used the building as a factory to produce books. To me, this insults the home. Once it was restored to its former glory, you could never tell that it was used a factory for decades. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/75 "2010-04-07T14:29:31Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > I’m about 5 minutes walking distance away from the grandstand and start/finish line of a quite well known motorcycle street-racing cirtcuit. I found it somewhat amusing when I was there and noticed that it is very conveniently placed next to a cemetery. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2010, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/76 "2010-04-08T13:52:16Z")
I’m essentially across the street from the National Archives. ---
**Author:** ![ThisSpaceForRent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisspaceforrent/32/345_2.png) [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2010, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/77 "2010-04-09T02:31:18Z")
> [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](#): > > I’m a ten-minute walk from The Arch and Busch Stadium in St. Louis. You must live pretty close to me then… I live here…and HAVE found my thrill a time or two at “Blueberry Hill” My bakery-cafe is a block west…I live a mile west of work. > **[Toronto City Housing](https://www.ucityloop.com/)** > > This site is reliable in terms of providing tips for buying real estate properties in Canada. Be in the know by clicking on the link. [QUOTE=HeyHomie] Within a 6-mile radius of my home are: [/QUOTE] That’s where I grew up!..never saw 'the leg" either! What are me missing? tsfr ---
**Author:** ![MTCicero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@MTCicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MTCicero)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2010, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/78 "2010-04-09T02:54:15Z")
> [@bartleby](#): > > i work right down the highway from [this](http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/9786) monstrosity… Howdy, neighbor! Isn’t it great living near the Solid Rock Church ([http://www.solidrockchurch.org/](http://www.solidrockchurch.org/)), a megachurch that was (purportedly) funded with oceans of drug money? Actually, it’s in the news today ([http://tinyurl.com/ycyy9la](http://tinyurl.com/ycyy9la)). Getting a bit of a touch up I see. Oh dear lord. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2010, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/79 "2010-04-09T03:01:27Z")
> [@newcomer](#): > > Forgot about place I live… on the side of a not so steep hill in Toronto suburb whose top plateau used to be native burial grounds… Any chance that might be in Mississauga? I once played a round of golf at Mississauga Golf Club, where my host pointed out the native burial mounds that dotted the course. As I recall the local rules from playing our round, a ball landing on a mound was deemed lost and could not be played or retrieved, owing to the need to respect the sacred land and the mound’s occupant. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648/80 "2010-04-09T16:09:52Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > I’m essentially across the street from the National Archives. Neat. In the early 1990s I worked for the Smithsonian on the Mall and had an office in one of the turrets in the Arts and Industries building that was reached by a spiral metal staircase. Coolest office ever! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/interesting-things-near-where-you-live-or-work/534648.md?page=5)