Bill's Library

Today I drove 20 minutes into downtown Little Rock to visit the William J. Clinton Presidential Library.

Here is his limousine.

A replica of the Oval Office. There is a picture of George Washington on the back wall on the right.

Here is Bill's saxophone. He played in a band in high school in Hot Springs.

White House table setting. Lord, would I love to be invited to a White House dinner.

Bill's office. If I paid $16 dollars I could have gotten pictures of me at the desk answering the phone and signing a bill.

After finishing in the library I walked around for an hour. Here is a view from the President Clinton bridge over the Arkansas River.

Here is the view from the other side of the bridge. Clinton was not perfect but I thought he was a good president.

 
 

Arboreteum

Yesterday I left Kansas City, Missouri and drove south to Little Rock, Arkansas. The weather was quite warm (over 90 degrees) but I had a nice drive. The entire ride was beautiful but my favorite part was the 20 miles before and after Branson, Missouri. So now I am staying here in this RV in a quiet neighborhood in Little Rock. The rent was very cheap.

I spent most of my day at an arboretum in Little Rock. I got there about 10:30. I walked around until 1. I had lunch. I read my book for an hour. I walked for a half hour. I read for a half hour over and over until I left at 4:45. I heard Carolina wrens, blue jays, crows, red bellied woodpeckers, a pileated woodpecker, and a barred owl. I saw a tufted titmouse.

Here are two views of the Maumelle River that flows into the Arkansas River which flows into the Mississippi River. I think I saw a kingfisher but I'm not 100% sure.

 

The Librarianist

 I just finished listening to a delightful book called The Librarianist by Patrick deWitt. The librarian is Bob Comet and his story is told bouncing back and forth between his boyhood years, his middle ages, and the autumn of his life. The story starts out after he retired. One day in a 711 store near his home in Portland, Oregon, he finds a confused older woman standing in front of the soda refrigerators silently. He tries to help her. Eventually he finds a tag on a lanyard around her neck that indicates she wanders from an assisted living home. He decides to bring her back. Once there he gets a tour of the place from a female administrator. After going home and thinking about it he decides to volunteer at the assisted living center. That decision changes his life for the better.  I liked Bob. He had some melancholy in his life but he also had joy and fulfillment.

Kansas City Museum

Today I spent most of my day in or around the Kansas City Museum. This was the home of Robert A. Long who earned his fortune milling yellow pine logs in Louisiana. He lived here with his wife and his two daughters. He was a church going, teetotaling family man. This mansion contains some of the family belongings but also art exhibits, music exhibits, Native American belongings and information, a billiard table, a place to play chess or checkers, and a cafe with food and drinks and alcohol. There is information about the neighborhoods in Kansas City, the railroads, the cattle processing, and the history of floods. Robert Lang had two daughters. His second daughter became a great equestrian winning races in the United States and overseas.

Robert Long was a generous philanthropist. He had millions and millions of dollars. Before he died he had given nearly all of it away to people in Kansas City. 

After the museum I walked around the neighborhoods for a couple of days. Kansas City is known for it's fountains.

 

Headshot

 I read the debut novel by Rita Bullwinkel called Headshot. This book occurs in present time over a weekend in Reno, Nevada. Girls have gathered here with the coaches and families to compete in a series of 8 boxing matches. Each chapter is about the match between two girls. The author writes about their motivations, their thoughts, and their family situation. Two of the girls are cousins. Sometimes the author will write about their future occupations, their future families, and even their deaths. I am not a fan of violent sports but I did enjoy this book.

The Capitol Building

While eating my almonds and apple, I walked 30 minutes through town to the state capitol building. I got there at 1:25 and a tour was starting at 1:30. The tour is supposed to last 90 minutes but it lasted almost 2 hours. Our tour guy had a lot to say.

A view of the inside of the golden dome from the inside. No expense was spared on this building. Quality materials last longer.

This picture was painted in Europe and turn into 8 sections and reassembled here.

Rubbing her toes is supposed to bring good luck. I rubbed her toes on the way up and they way down.

The senate chamber.

This library have 5 floors of books. And they have a card catalog. Everybody needs a back up in case the computers go down. If I lived in Iowa I could borrow books here. Most of them are law books.

This book here in the glass case was written by and printed by Ben Franklin himself. Crazy to think Ben had his hands on this.

Most of our group walked up the extra 91 steps. Here I am looking down onto the glass floor on the bottom.

That flag and badge and eagle are actually hanging on wires strung across. The flag is actually hanging down in the middle a little bit like a hammock.

Abraham and his boy, Tad. I had a wonderful day today.

 

Des Moines Arboretum

Yesterday I drove south from Siren, Wisconsin to Des Moines, Iowa. Boy Howdy! This land is dry. Iowans haven't had any rain since August. Farmers are scurrying to harvest the soybeans before they get any dryer. I could see dust rising in the fields for miles away. I have never been to Des Moines before. This morning I stopped at an arboretum which was a 15 minute drive from my hotel. I spent a couple hours there. Lunch looked too expensive so when I was done here I put a handful of almonds and an apple in my pocket.

The water features inside and outside are attractive. I saw fish and frogs in the water.

A ponytail palm tree. This is the largest one I have ever seen.

 

In this shot I am sitting outside on a marble bench under a waterfall.