The book by Sandra Gurvis is the kind that gives a person who loves taking random road trips a chance to dream.

Why, for example, would I want to visit New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art when I could see the Museum of Bad Art in Dedham, Mass.? According to Gurvis, the highlight of the bad art collection is a painting called "Pauline Resting," which, at $6.50, was the museum's most expensive acquisition. Pauline is described as a somewhat kinky-looking reclining nude wearing boots. A later artist used a marker to give Pauline underarm hair.

I'd drive an hour out of my way to see the world's largest nut in Old Lyme, Conn.; the U.S. National Tick Collection in Statesboro, Ga.; the Museum of Questionable Medical Devices in Minneapolis; or the National Museum of Funeral History in Houston.

Remember when Clark Griswold wanted to drive out of his way to visit the world's largest ball of twine in the movie "Vacation"? Well, I would join him. Yet, according to the Web, there are three world's largest balls of twine. You would think folks could figure out the biggest.

And who wouldn't want to visit Gas, Kansas; Peculiar or Tightwad, Mo.; Good Grief, Idaho; or Toast, N.C., all spots listed in an amusing book titled Passing Gas by Gary Gladstone?

Why would you eat at McDonald's or Taco Bell when you could grab a mesquite-barbecued hamburger served with cheese and a grilled green chili, like the one I enjoyed recently at Yum Yums in Tularosa, N.M.? The restaurant looked a little sketchy from the outside but I don't believe I've ever enjoyed a burger more. You should have seen me trying to fit myself into Yum Yum's restroom that was guarded by a doughnut rack.

Many years ago, my family took a trip through the Midwest. Much to my wife's chagrin, we stopped for free ice water and a bison burger at Wall Drug in South Dakota. This massive establishment, a square block filled with jackalopes and all sorts of kitsch, is advertised throughout the world. I could have spent the better part of the day there shopping for trinkets if not for the increasingly angry looks I kept getting from my wife, who was offended by just about everything in the store.

I love everything about driving the older parts of Route 66, especially some of the classic old motels still standing in places including Flagstaff, Ariz., and Gallup, N.M. Besides, where else can you stay these days for $17.95 a night, cable included?

The saddest thing about the modernization of America is that such treasures have been lost to interstate franchises. In our rush to drive faster and see more, why is it that too often we see less?

Shortly after eating at Yum Yums, visiting Smokey the Bear's grave and exploring the UFO museum in Roswell, N.M., I found myself in a Kmart parking lot in Artesia, N.M., where a touring carnival had set up shop. You might visit the greatest theme parks in the world and never find happier kids or more interesting characters than the people I saw that windy night.

I crave such experiences, which is why I love to take obscure road trips on America's back roads.

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Contact Tom Wharton at wharton@sltrib.com or 801-257-8909. Send comments to livingeditor@sltrib.com.