Books at a Crab Shack...?Now many of you might not be convinced that a Crab Shack is the place to find "books." Well, you're probably right. But I was determined to scope out some sort of textual object on my first night in old Louisville, escaping the wretched heat and humidity in the wooden hillside dinner spot called "Joe's Crab Shack." Not being a crab specialist, I didn't realize it was a restaurant chain, but that's fine. The food was tasty, and the drinks slaked our thirst. The Crab Shack was quite a happening place, and as you can see from this photo, it had a rather interesting theme: a baseball playing shark, suspended from the ceiling above the bar! After an exhaustive search for books, including a look in the gift shop, the only books I could find were phone books at the end of the bar. Not what you'd call exciting.
Even if the book-sightings were less than adequate, the deep fried maritime pickings were a tasty evening treat. Exhibit A: a strand of calamari-stuff. Hmmm..."squid as text?"
The only other book-sighting on the Ohio that afternoon was in the office and gift shop of one of the steam paddle boats docked along shore. It was yet another momentary escape from the heat. Jumping into the super-air conditioned tight cabin space of the boat, I found a fridge stocked with cool soda pop, touristy t-shirt displays, and a few shelves of books about boating history on the Ohio. I snapped this photo above. And below, we have the back portion of the boat, the massive paddle wheel. For those interested, this boat is the Belle of Louisville, a 95-year-old steamer, which you can find more information about on the following website:
http://www.belleoflouisville.org/
There might not be a lot of bookish selections for those visiting the Louisville waterfront, but its a pleasant place to walk, get a drink, and enjoy a bucket of seafood...if you like that sort of thing. If not, you can take a river tour on the Belle and enjoy an evening cruising the Ohio, Kentucky style.
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