Getting to Chicago

We relocated to Michigan City, Indiana where we will leave the coach while we spend a few days in Chicago for a law conference Jerry is attending. We are near the shores of Lake Michigan and found the pattern of the sand on the dunes of the nearby park intriguing. In appearance the trees look like they are growing from slanted walls. Actually the land is swamp-like from the many rain storms that have continued all spring.

Our first stop in Chicago was at the Museum of Science and Industry. Jerry admired Craig Breedlove’s car that set the land speed record.

We both found the trip through the coal mine excellent. We did not know Illinois was a coal mining state; wonder if that’s because we have not heard of accidents there. The docent detailed the safety features that we assume have kept these miners safe.

Train travel is delightfully shown on a model that seems to travel from Chicago to Seattle. It is a model train builders dream.

The museum building also was of interest thanks to the book "Devil in the White City". The building was part of the 1893 World’s Fair and is the only building to remain. Anna Lee found the book a perfect lead in to the architecture of Chicago and Jerry is equaling enjoying the book. Thanks Pat for loaning us the excellent read.

New Salem to Springfield

Beyond the Lincoln Museum are places where Lincoln actually lived. His first home was in what is now New Salem National Historic Site. There is only one original building as the owners carted off everything when the down died and the residents moved on (quite a commitment to recycling). The store Lincoln owned with his partner and his home have been recreated along with most of the other buildings of the original town.

Docents provide excellent history on the town where Lincoln first failed at several careers and then found his calling as an attorney.


After election to the Illinois legislature, Lincoln and his new wife Mary bought a home in Springfield. That homesite, including the original homes of his neighbors, is a National Historic Site also.

On our tour of his home, which was donated to the state by his only surviving son Robert, we saw the Lincoln’s actual furniture while hearing about the lifestyle of an up and coming political figure. This item is a stereoscope (an early version of the ViewMaster) that Lincoln bought as a gift to his sons.

Our appreciation and respect for Lincoln was enriched by all we saw.


The stained glass art of Louis Comfort Tiffany is on display at the First Presbyterian Church where a kind pastor let us in off hours to admire the works. One of the windows, of an angel, was originally in a building for the Chicago World’s Exposition in the 1890s. The family pew of the Lincoln’s is in the entry of the church.

The Lincoln Library is a lovely marble-halled building where we spent a couple hours deep in research assisted by a wonderful librarian (aren’t they all?). This picture was painted by Gilbert Stewart and is deliberately unfinished.



We enjoyed the convenience of the campground at the state fairgrounds.

While we found the town of Springfield rather small and uninspiring, the monuments to Lincoln and his time are outstanding, making the town a highlight of our trip.

Lincoln Museum and Library

When the Lincoln Museum and Library opened in 2002, all the articles raved about how excellent the exhibits were. Well, they were so right. The first thing visitors start with is an outstanding holographic movie “Ghosts of the Museum,” telling of Lincoln and others who have stories to tell 150 later. Next there is the story of Lincoln’s Eyes, telling of his humor and sorrow and of how he changed in office.
We walked through his cabin then, seeing the first family posing in front of the White House, we entered.



Inside, we watched Tim Russert introduce the candidates for the presidency of 1860, heard scathing attacks by critics, heard a docent describe the Civil War in four minutes, visited a cabinet session, and saw Lincoln laid to rest in the capitol. The entire experience was poignant and educational, a good blend for a museum.

Jerry was not interested in joining the Lincoln Herndon Law firm when he saw its limited space on the third floor above the post office and a dry goods store.







The Old State Capitol still has the seats of the legislature awaiting occupants. In a corner office near the Governor’s Office, Lincoln prepared for going to Washington as president.


He received many office seekers and many gifts, one of which was a large wooden chain carved from a single log by a man in Wisconsin.




Restaurant review time. We dined out in Springfield. The capital of Illinois has 111,000 residents and is old in appearance. It does have a few nice restaurants. The two we enjoyed would fit in at home. Augie’s Front Burner made up in flavor and presentation what it lacked in skilled service. Our seafood dishes were very good. The 125-year-old Maldaner’s has better service and still good food. The onion soup and goat cheese salad were excellent.

Land of Lincoln

We are truly in the Land of Lincoln and memorials and tributes to him are everywhere. We plan to visit as many of them as we can. We started with the Oak Ridge Cemetery where the Lincoln family is buried. His tomb celebrates his life with small bronze works and is a somber, respectful place of rest.

The burial chamber is decorated with flags representing the states where he and his family lived as well as a Presidential Flag placed there in the 80s.



In addition to the Lincolns, the cemetery is the place of rest for many citizens of Springfield. There are also memorials to Illinois soldiers who died in the Civil War as well as WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.



As we stood near the more recent memorials, a clock chimed the hour and the soft sounds of patriotic music filled the air. It was all quite moving.

Tiptoe through the Tulips

We return to Pella, Iowa for our third time in a year. This photo blog tells you why.

The Zap Truck

While driving along the straight and boring highway, one looks for diversions where they can be found. This little Zaptruck and its companions were in a truck stop in Iowa.

Answer to the Photo Quiz

We awoke yesterday morning thinking we were back home in Sacramento and the month was February. Visibility was 1/4 mile. Fortunately the fog lifted enough for us to continue east.

Once upon a time there were two brothers with too many fishing lures. Eight years later, 1969, the brothers built a 50,000 catalog store in Sidney, NE. Today, they have stores all over the US. Brother Dick and Wife Mary satisfied their dream and built a home just off the main street in downtown Sidney. Proud of their business and of their fishing and hunting lifestyle, they proceeded to decorate their “ home of someone with taste in his/her tuches and more money than brains (as our friend Saul described it). Dick and Mary Cabella now live there but have promised to donate the house to the town for a museum someday; that will be worth seeing.

Mystery Building

Today we are offering a photographic quiz. While driving around Sidney, Nebraska, we came across this fantastic building. We were told to revisit it in the evening to see it lit up. We are asking all of you what it is: museum, art gallery, upscale clothing boutique, church, civic building. Send us your answer. We will reveal its story and the names of any of you who figure it out in our next entry.

Back to Wyoming

A volunteer at the Wyoming Welcome Center said the “tree” on I-80 in Utah was built by a man who found the drive boring and wanted to add something fun along the way.

Saul, a Sacramento friend, found this explanation.

http://www.utah.com/amusement/metaphor_tree.htm
Swedish artist Karl Momen created the 87-foot high tree between 1982-1986. He financed the project himself to bring bold color and beauty to the stark, flat, salty landscape. The sculpture is made of 225 tons of cement, almost 2,000 ceramic tiles and five tons of welding rod, and tons of minerals and rocks native to Utah.
Also called the "Tree of Life," the sculpture is located on the north side of I-80 about 95 miles west of Salt Lake City (25 miles east of Wendover).

A broken hose and a school bus/rock encounter changed our plans for staying in SLC, but we did enjoy the drive through the red and yellow hued mountains. Upon entering Wyoming we found a small herd of American bison. A sign explained the difference between bison and buffalo; buffalo being non-American. I still would like to know the difference between the large ones and the small ones (not age, but species).























We have returned to Anna Lee’s childhood home Rawlins where she again thanks her parents for getting her out of town.

I 80 gets longer and longer

We told you about getting additional travel support from some local critters. Well, disappointedly, the sheep proved unreliable. First they ate some of our plants, then they abandoned the area to find better pastures. They did provide hours of entertainment while they munched and meandered behind our yard.


We are now headed east on long and boring Interstate 80. The mountains of California and Nevada retain their coats of snow making the ride actually rather nice. Some of you have wondered what Anna Lee does while Jerry drives. Among her many activities in the navigator’s chair are crossword puzzles, knitting, leafing through magazines, studying maps and tour books, changing radio stations or cd book discs, napping and fetching water or coke. For about an hour each day Jerry gets to “relax” while Anna Lee drives.

After a pleasant night at our usual accommodations at the Winnemucca WalMart, we headed to Utah and to the Great Salt Lake.


There is an intriguing sculpture on the side of the highway, no sign, not even a place to pull off and really look at it; but it does offer a delightful diversion on the straight road. Anyone who knows more about this please let us know.

Meeting with Friends

The bonus part of our time in Oregon has been time with friends. Our first encounter was a surprise. We met fellow Springfield residents Clair and Tom during our first play. We went out for dinner together at Omar’s where we enjoyed delicious steaks, chicken and fish and stimulating conversation. Our acquaintance grew to a sharing of a love of theater and travel and we hope to repeat the performance in the future.

Our friends Ann and Jerry from Oregon joined us for the weekend. We drove all over improving the economy of Jacksonville.


Jerry and I had scoped out Jacksonville the day before.







We visited, among many places, the Pioneer Cemetery where we found a Jewish section, much to our surprise.



We also visited the surprisingly excellent Crater Rock Museum in Central Point.
In the evening, with intense competition, the women bested the men at the game of Wildfire. Competition to continue later this summer.

Ashland

Wow. Theater in Ashland is exciting and challenging. We have completed our-five-plays-in-three-days experience. As always, we enjoyed plays ranging from comedy to tragedy, classic to contemporary. We told of the first play in our previous entry. The presentation of Hamlet, taking place in modern times, was outstanding. Even though the play is so familiar, we discovered dialogue we had not been aware of previously. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof included the raw dialogue of Williams earlier versions and was emotionally engaging. Pride and Prejudice was a delight. Darcy was dark and brooding and the teenagers in the audience fell in love with him (but he is no Colin Firth). Our last play, Well, would take pages to describe as the actors were themselves as well as their characters repeatedly in this play about being ill and being well. We will leave Ashland satisfied with all that we saw and ready to return for more later this year.


One reason for our trip to Southern Oregon is to explore new places (the main reason is always the plays). Seeking a photo op of a covered bridge

we found one of those serendipitous bonuses, the Butte Creek Mill.


It is the only operating water-powered mill west of the Mississippi. Owner Bob Russell gave us a thorough tour of the mill. He and his wife rescued the structure and its jumbled contents from decay. It is now on the National Register of Historic Places.

Next to the mill is a general store with shelves filled with products ground at the mill, such as pancake mix.

A lifelong collector, Bob now has shelves to display his antique containers. Next door, he can continue collecting antiques for his antique store.

Snow & More Snow

I know most of you will remember from our last blog that our winter began with snow six months ago. We started with snow on our way home from New York, lots of snow in the Poconos. We got snowed in in Salt Lake City, more snow in Winnemucca, and, even, a once in a decade floating of flakes outside our home in Rocklin. Today we drove through the snow of Shasta County and the beautiful white mountains. Cold enough to snow here in Ashland. (Alright easterners, I know you have had a miserable winter).

We went to our first play of the 2010 Ashland season tonight, the Pulitzer Prize winning Ruined. It told the story of rape, mayhem, and tragedy in the Congo. Powerful, captivating, horrific, and outstanding drama.

On the Road Again

We have been enjoying a wonderful six months in our brick and mortar life in Rocklin, but it is time to set out on the road again. We are doing what boaters call a “shake-down” cruise, getting the kinks out of the RV and us.

We will spend a week in Ashland, Oregon, seeing plays, touring sites, dining well and visiting with friends. For those of you who don’t know of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and enjoy theater, Ashland is home to a Tony Award winning company that puts on not only Shakespeare but also contemporary plays. We are scheduled for five plays in three days, a normal load for most OSF attenders. We will tell you more during the week about the area to entice you to join us.

Long trips require a lot of planning and work, but none of it could happen without fabulous friends who take care of things at home. We are very fortunate to have people who ease our concerns as we travel. However, this year we decided more help was needed so we “hired” additional support. We hope they live up to expectations.