I’ve got some friends that insist that Texas is ugly. We’ve gone back and forth on that point until I’ve simply given up; an anti-Texas bias (i.e. jealousy) is nearly impossible to overcome. We may not be able to agree that there is some beauty in the Lone Star State, but surely we can agree that Texas is, at least, interesting.

On a recent drive from Victoria to Arlington, we made our way through Rosebud, Texas, which is 38 miles south of Waco on Hwy 77. It’s likely that you haven’t heard of Rosebud (I hadn’t), so I’ll tell you that it has a (2009) population of 1,319 and a median household income of $26,635, and would correctly be considered “country.”

My introduction to Rosebud was a “welcome” sign, placed by a disgruntled member of the community. I had already seen the “60 mph ahead” sign and had started to slow when my attention was grabbed by this: 

Even though I was already at 60 mph, that sign suggested (correctly) that I better slow it way down. So, I pressed the brake until I was creeping along at 30 mph. I finally arrived at the 60 mph sign, then the 45 mph sign, then I spotted him partially hiding behind a tree in a shade darkened alley, pointing a radar gun at me. Even though I was already creeping along at 30 mph in a 45 mph zone, I got a butterfly in my stomach. Probably because I was going so slow. I also had an internal smirk going. Probably because I felt like I beat him at his game – even though it was with the help of an anonymous Good Samaritan.

I immediately suggested that we should go back and get a picture of that warning sign (above), so I pulled into the car wash to make a u-turn and as I turned back to the street, I saw him coming. Not for me, I hoped, as I quickly reached for my camera so that I could take this shot:

A few cars behind me someone didn’t heed the warning,  and they would soon realize the error of their way. After the traffic cleared, I made my way back to the warning sign, giggling all the way.

Thinking there must be an interesting story here, I stopped at a local business and asked about the sign. “Oh, a guy that lives here was always getting a ticket when he came into town, so he posted that sign.” I asked if it was controversial in any way. “No, it’s on private property, so there’s nothing they can do. And there’s one on both ends of town. It’s just part of living here.”

As we continued on through town, and before we reached the southbound sign, this is what we saw:

So, driver beware: There’s a speed trap 38 miles south of Waco on Hwy 77 in Rosebud, Texas. I saw it, but thankfully avoided it. If Texas ain’t pretty, it certainly is interesting.