One Thing Led To Another

Last night I planned to go to the genealogy museum today but in the morning I changed my mind and went to the Frontier Museum. I learned about the Oregon Trail, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Mormon pioneers seeking religious freedom.

I learned Merriweather Lewis was an alcoholic.

90 % of the Oregon Trail pioneers made it to their destination.. This is a awesome museum.

Two blocks away is the house where Harry S. Truman lived from the day of his marriage until his death. I was disappointed to read I couldn't take a tour today. Then I walked down to the NPS Visitor Center where I learned I could take a tour today. I must have read that wrong. Yesterday I bought new reading glasses at the Dollar Store because I lost mine. They came in a purple bag. When I left the Visitor Center I couldn't find the purple bag. The ranger promised to call the Truman house if he found them. The tour was great. I loved seeing the sea foam green kitchen walls that Harry painted. We weren't allowed to take any photos inside the house. He had crates of stuff from the White House and he used that wood to make book shelves in the library. Thrifty guy. I like him because he is an accountable, stand-up guy. At one time he had the highest popularity rate of any President. By the end of his term he had the lowest popularity rate. Harry had to put this fence around the house because people kept taking souvenirs from the house and yard. When a woman stole his wife's white tulips, that was the straw that broke the camel's back. I did not know that during his Presidency he did not have a Vice President. There was no plan for that. As President he added an amendment to change that. When I came out of the house a park ranger told me they found my purple glass case.

Across the street is the Nolan house we watched a video of Margaret Truman, a correspondent for CBS, interview her parents in their house. Margaret was an opera singer and an author too. She had four sons.

Another five blocks away is Truman's boyhood home. The lady out front is raking leaves because the leaves covered the steps and she was afraid someone would fall. She said she gets 300 trick or treaters! Wow!

I walked back to pick up my glass case and on my way back to the car I saw the Truman Court House. Truman was a Judge. But he never finished High School. How can that be? He may have been uneducated but he was smart. How odd that he never wanted to be President. FDR asked him 3 times to be his VP and he said no. FDR found a way to persuade him.

I saw a long line of people waiting in line. I asked why they were waiting. They were waiting to vote early. Good for them I said.

 

The Secret Diary Of Hendrik Groen

 I finished listening to The Secret Diary Of Hendrik Groen by Hendrik Groen this morning on my drive from Little Rock, Arkansas to Independence, Missouri. This was a daily diary of an 83rd year old man in an assisted living center in Amsterdam. He writes about his friends. One of his male friends has diabetes and is gradually toes and then half his leg amputated. Another female friend has Alzheimer's disease and she dies 3 days prior to his last entry. As it turns out he was in love with her which I suspected was the case. Sometimes he organizes outings for his friends like cooking classes or dinners out. Then the cook at the facility gets angry because they don't want to eat his food. Some of the staff are kind and accommodating. There are many funny moments and until I read this book I was never looking forward to the day that I have to move into assisted living.

Paris

I spent 12, yes 12 hours reading Paris: A Novel by Edward Rutherfurd. Paris is a big city so I guess it means a big book. The story starts out with Thomas working with the architect Eiffel on the right hand of Lady Liberty, specifically her thumb. Later in the story, Thomas, who also worked on the Eiffel Tower, will cut the elevator cables so that Adolph Hitler will not be able to view Paris from the Tower. He knew Hitler would be too humiliated to walk the stairs. Although long, this was a fascinating story about families, feuds, bankers and whores, and families.

 

Local Park

Today I started packing my car because I need to be on the road by 9 tomorrow. I took all the clothes except what I need tomorrow. I took all the food except that which is in the freezer and the fridge. Then I drove 8 minutes away to a  local park. It was a nice park in a wealthy neighborhood. I finished  a chapter of my book and took off walking. I saw a sign that said 1 loop is a half mile. How convenient. As I walked by the playground 2 boys were playing on the equipment while their Mom or Grandmom waited in the car. The boy who looked to be 18 months old climbed up to the top level of the equipment and fell to the ground. He started to cry. I went to him and talked to him. His brother came to comfort him and finally the woman in the car picked him up. She said he was only scared. Poor little type. I made 2 laps when I noticed this park has no bathroom. We got picnic tables and basketball courts and trash receptacles but no bathroom? Why? I got back in my car and bought gas even though I only needed 3 gallons just so I could use the bathroom. I came back to the park and walked 5 loops. I read for a while and then walked 5 more. I organized my car and walked another loop before heading home to my RV. A woman greeted me and I asked her why this park has no bathrooms. She lives up the street 

 and she said it was because they only wanted locals to use the park. She said she would bring it up at the next meeting. I thanked her. 

Pinnacle Mountain

Today I went to Pinnacle Mountain State Park. I asked the ranger if I could make it to the top. He said I could. He said the second half is rockier so even if I made half way up I'd be doing good. Did you know that state parks in Arkansas and Pennsylvania charge no admission? I wish all state parks would do that. I really didn't like it when Anoka County charged admission. People with low incomes and families need parks too! That is my right knee in the lower right hand corner. Got up to 86 today. Beautiful weather for hiking.

I saw 3 of these lizards. I think they are anole.

As I started my hike this lady with white hair admired my skirt, my hiking sticks, my shoes and my hat. We talked for 30 minutes. We were both married for 19 years. We were both vegetarians for 40 years. We both worked in social services. Our children were very much alike. I was about to ask for her contact information until she asked who I was voting for. I am so glad I didn't ask for her contact information. In hindsight, I think she was probably mentally ill. Finally I had to be the one to say I should move on. Sheesh!

This is a beautiful state park.

I didn't make it to the top. I made it a little more than half way. I sat on a rock to drink some water when I saw this rock in the tree. Someone wrote a Bible verse on it.

I was still looking at the rock when five Latino men and women came down. I told them to look at this rock. I thought it grew with the tree. They thought someone put the rock into the tree later. How disappointing!

This is my favorite view. I sat here and read 3 chapters of my book before heading down again. When I did reach the parking lot I used the bathroom and filled up my water bottle. People in Arkansas are very friendly. I ended up reading for a time before making a short walk on concrete on the Kingfisher trail that runs next to the Maumee River.

 

A Walk In The Park

Today I decided to go to a local park for exercise. This one was a ten minute drive from my place. I like Little Rock but there is one thing I don't like. Litter. Litter is almost literally everywhere. Not in my yard, of course but almost everywhere. When I walk to tell myself not to concentrate on the litter but I find it's hard to do.

A couple of guys were fishing in this stream. I didn't see them catch anything. I used to enjoy fishing and now I have plenty of time to do it. Catch and release seems cruel to me so I don't fish.

Then I  walked up to the dollar store to buy some toothpaste and a mailing envelope to send my grandgirls a couple of books.

 

Hotel New Hampshire

I read a hard copy of John Irving's book Hotel New Hampshire. I got the book at the Webster, Wisconsin library and the free shelf. His picture is on the back cover of the book and he is one good looking man with great hair. The story is about a family with five kids that grow up living in a hotel. This is an eccentric family who have a bear and a black lab named Sorrow. The bear is not too smart and was sold to them by a man named Freud who did shows at an inn in Maine. The parents worked together at the inn in Maine but they grew up in the same town. The parents fell in love. Freud tells him to be sure to graduate from Harvard and he tells her to always forgive him. After graduating from Harvard they move to New Hampshire. The father teaches English. The mother takes care of the babies at home. The father's father, Coach Bob, comes from Iowa to coach football and live with his son's family. John is the middle child. He has an older brother, a older sister, a younger sister, and a little brother. The parents are very much in love. John and his older sister are the closest with each other. There is a hero, a black football player, who saves John and his older sister. I loved this book because of the comedy, the drama, the crimes, the travel, the love of the family and the eccentric character named Freud.

 

Rain!

For the first time in 29 days rain fell in Little Rock. The rain was welcomed with open arms. I probably made a mistake planning an outside day today and an inside day tomorrow. I went to a new park along the Arkansas River. I saw no boats on the river. A few people were looking for birds. Some people were eating lunch at picnic tables. I wanted to finish my book and as I was reading rain began to fall and continued to fall until a half hour before I left. I got very wet but I had a nice walk along the river. I saw red winged blackbirds, vultures, blue jays, cardinals, Carolina wrens, Great Blue Heron, White Egret, mockingbirds, chickadees, robins and squirrels.

 

I Was Late

Today I hung out around my temporary home. After lunch I walked 4 miles in time to be home for a zoom meeting at 4 p.m. I wanted to be there on time because I completely forgot the meeting 15 days ago which meant I wasted the time of 5 students at UMD. I signed up to be a community teacher again this year. This time I have 2 women and 3 men. One going into pharmacy, 3 going into med school, and one a occupational therapy student at Saint Scholastica. My computer refused to update the Zoom app and after ten minutes of trying, I connected with one of the women on WhatsApp on my phone. She asked me if I was at the gym. I said I was outside my RV and I held the phone so they could see the RV and the yard and my yellow car. We spoke for an hour. I think we all had a good time. I was a little nervous about sharing my private health history outside but I doubt anyone heard me. The pair of mockingbirds flying in front of me was a bit distracting though. We will meet again in January. One student asked me where I will be. I said I just texted my girlfriend asking if she wanted to drive to northern California and see the giant sequoia trees. We will see how it goes. 

Fine Arts

Today I drove downtown to visit the Arkansas Museum Of Fine Arts. Parking was free and admission was free. This museum has two floors so I started at the top. I always like to start museums at the top. The staff were friendly and helpful.

This one with 3 quail was painted by Renoir.

I love Monet.

He was an excellent artist. They also had a collection of Tiffany stained glass which I also love.

 

After seeing the lower level and buying a colorful spoon at the museum store I decided to go for a walk around the grounds. There was a big park here with a lake and a bridge over the lake. But I got distracted by the building next door which was large and made out of brick and had huge verandas. Turns out it was a military museum and it was open and admission was free so I decided to go in there. I spent an hour in there looking at the displays about WWI, WWII, the Korean conflict, and Vietnam. I did not know that six hours after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor they bombed the Philippines. I also didn't know General MacArthur was born in Little Rock. He is a big hero in this town. His work made changes all over the world. He was a hard-working, intelligent, talented, strong man with great communication skills. Then I walked around the park for another 45 minutes or so before heading back to my RV to cook up some dinner.

Wildwood Park

 Today I felt like going to an arboretum where the plants are labeled. I found a doozy one about 20 minutes from here. I went to the Wildwood Arboretum. First I drove down a rocky road to a gate and parked to finish reading my book. A man came by on a golf cart and he told me I couldn't park here. So I parked in the parking lot by the lake. I walked around half of Swan Lake and then came back to my car to eat lunch and finish my book. There were fish jumping in the lake. I read a sign that said fishing must be catch and release only. They had a wooden/rope swing hanging on a tree close to the lake so I swung for a few minutes. After lunch I visited the other gardens. They had a Japanese garden and it was really pretty in there. Arkansas is in a drought so sprinklers were watering the plants so that was nice. I saw a toad on my path. I took it's picture. Then the next plant sign I read said Toad lily. They had a group of sculptures in the garden. I met a man on a golf cart applying pine mulch to a garden. I told him he has a lovely office here. He agreed. Then he said it was hot today. He was sweating. It was over 90 degrees. This is a wonderful place to visit!

Arkansas School For The Deaf

I went back to the Arkansas School For The Deaf today for my 11 o'clock tour,

I waited 20 minutes for Pamela, my tour guide, to come and get me. She thought I was somewhere else.

Pamela went to this school. That is her picture in the bottom row, second from the left.

Pamela is an excellent tour guide. She showed me everything.

This is one of the first tele-type machines.

My sign language is rudimentary. I could catch only a few signs from her.

She put on white gloves and took out the book on the top shelf to let me see information about a couple of students from the early 1900s,

I thought this was an interesting display.

I thought this was funny.

I left about noon and went to a local park. I surely enjoyed my tour with Pamela!

 

An Unplanned Visit To The State Capitol

I planned to visit a museum inside the Arkansas School For The Deaf but I didn't realize I had to make a reservation. So then I decided to walk to a local park.

As I walked I realized this was the State Capitol so I went there instead. The police officer suggested I get a guide at an office and start on the fourth floor and walk down. The women at the tour guide office suggested I start on the second floor at the Treasurer's Office. They said I would be able to go into the vault and hold some of the real money.

I asked another young man where the Treasurer's Office was and he said he didn't know. Then he said it's right here. I told him what we could do in there and he decided to come in with me. He was from Houston, Texas. I was holding 23 pounds of money! I gave it back though.

That black key has been hanging there since 1915.

A view of one wing from the fourth floor.

I had a nice visit there today.

 

Old Mill

 

Yesterday my trolly driver suggested I visit the Old Mill park in North Little Rock. Lots of other people had the same idea. It's a beautiful park but small so after I visited I walked up the road for an hour or so and saw this beautiful angel of a bird. Their necks are so beautiful. I saw it fishing but it missed. Then it flew away.

I think this is a domestic duck.

The water from the Old Mill flows into Lake Number 2 which is close to Lake Number 1. Couldn't they think of better names than these? How about Old Mill Lake?

Inside the park I walked over this bridge 3 times.

Another bridge.

Here's a turtle for you.

Part of the mill machinery.

Upstairs inside the mill.

I saw five quinceanera photography shots today. Three dresses were pink and two were red. This makes me want to be Latina but that's not good. That is cultural appropriation.

View of the old mill from a distance behind the fountain. I also saw a wedding and the bride wore a brown dress which I thought was strange until I realized I wore brown to my wedding too.

Waterfall below the road. This is a beautiful spot and the homes around here look to be super expensive.