On Sunday, I took a drive on Route 66 to Arcadia, Okla., to check the progress of POPS, the bigger-than-life convenience store envisioned by Chesapeake Energy CEO and Route 66 fan Aubrey McClendon.

The above photo is the 66-foot-tall pop bottle and straw, which will be swirled in LED tubing when it’s finished. I spied the bottle at least a mile away in the daytime; heaven knows how far it will be seen at night.

Below is the store itself. The exterior structure is nearly done. POPS is scheduled to open in summer 2007. Based on what I saw, I reckon it will meet that time-frame easily.

Next in Arcadia, a tag agency already has moved into the new Windmill Shops development on the town’s east end. I’m not a big fan of strip malls. But the architecture here evokes the look of an old-time, small-town business district, which is a nice touch.

Finally, I saw workmen installing new windows in the old Tuton’s Drugstore building, a block north of Route 66.  They told me the regal but long-frazzled structure is being renovated and will be converted into a library.

The Tuton’s building was built in 1916-17, and is on the National Register of Historic Places. I’ll try to call someone in Arcadia on Monday to provide more details.

For a town of fewer than 300 people, Arcadia is seeing a lot of exciting activity lately.

American Road magazine is going to have a live Internet chat at 8 p.m. EST Jan. 14 with Michelle Thompson, the woman who recently cycled Route 66 to raise awareness of oral cancer and raise funds for her stricken brother.

To participate or read the comments, you have to go to this site, then click on the “Live Chat” link in the upper right corner.

American Road didn’t mention this in its e-mail about the event, but I will. According to the magazine’s forum:

AMERICAN ROAD Magazine would like to assist in Michelle’s valiant efforts by allowing individuals to subscribe to AMERICAN ROAD and have a portion of the proceeds donated to the Oral Cancer Foundation.
You may do so via the following links:

US Orders:

https://americanroad.magazinemanager.com/su…rce=OCFDonation

Michigan State Orders - including MI state sales tax:

https://americanroad.magazinemanager.com/su…onationMichigan

Washington State Orders - including WA state sales tax:

https://americanroad.magazinemanager.com/su…ationWashington

Canadian - including shipping charge:

https://americanroad.magazinemanager.com/su…onationCanadian

Foreign Orders - including shipping charge:

https://americanroad.magazinemanager.com/su…DonationForeign

Also, on Thompson’s Web site, there are a bunch of photos from when she finished her 2,400-mile ride and embraced her brother.