Some people take funny pictures of their cats. I have labbits. My labbits like movies, books, cooking, traveling, and general mischief. This blog is dedicated to my Labbit and anyone who loves labbits as ridiculously as I do.
At the end of our trip we went to visit some extended family, who live in a cute little place on one of Arkansas's many lakes. Nightie night, Arkansas!
I didn't get around to taking pictures of my food much on this trip, but suffice to say it was a LOT of fried things, mostly fish, shrimp, and some assorted chicken and potatoes. One time we ate at the best Mexican place I've ever been to, which was right next to our motel in a random town in Missouri on the way back - I still dream about those tacquitos.
That's all for our mini vacay! Thanks for joining us!
Further up the sides of the valley and deeper into Hot Springs National Park, you can drive around and come to a bunch of different overlooks, from which you can see the entirety of Hot Springs below.
Another odd thing I like is graffiti - this overlook is understandably a popular place to propose marriage as evidenced by lots of couples' jottings.
The one above no longer flows, but modern versions of these little springs pipe hot and cold water out for people to drink or store up.
Tunnel spring is just cool looking - inside is a murky little cave of water and greenness. It looks like some kind of big labbit-eating monster might live there - evidently, because Mini Me wouldn't go near the bars.
And here we are at an actual hot spring! If you look closely you can see steam rising off the pool. It's quite warm! This particular one runs down into the valley, creating a fun - hot! - waterfall.
Even in such a lovely setting, Mini Me did not want to take a bath. Good thing, because pretty sure labbits aren't allowed in park pools.
The sign next to the falls cautioned us not to climb there - it's very slippery and steamy! - but further in you can climb up winding stairs and paths into the lush wooded hills and go up to the Promenade, which sounds more exciting than it actually is - it was where you would go strolling to show off in turn-of-the-century resort society. Now it's a cool little park with a long tiled pathway which overlooks the valley that is Hot Springs.
Okay I don't know about you, but i LOVE kitsch shoppes! Especially on vacation!
I was super excited to see an authentic coin-op Zoltar! Nearby you could buy tank tops, mermaid fountains, stamped pennies, and jugs to collect the hot spring water.
The spring water flows out of fountains and taps all over the town, some cold, some hot, so that residents and visitors can collect it and use it for drinking - free of charge! I don't know why that blows my mind, but it does. The water is indeed good - it's not extraordinary or anything, but tastes a lot better than bottled water, and has no weird tastes that tap water can end up with.
One of the bathhouses was fixed up and converted to the park visitor center, so you can see what a functioning bathhouse would have looked like around the turn of the century. It's a rather cramped, maze-y place, like a cross between an old hospital and a social club!
The water from the hot springs that occur naturally in this random bit of Arkansas was billed as a cure-all, and people would bathe in it, get all sorts of health treatments, and even drink it to cure whatever ailed them. You can see the torturous-looking metal tanks that one would sit in for a full-body steam, and changing rooms (for men and for women seperately). Mostly it seems people felt the effects of a healthy exercise retreat plus unusually high levels of aspen acid (what is in Aspirin) in the water, not to mention hobnobbing socially.
The area became this resort town that welcomed the who's who of turn of the century rich and infamous, including gangsters like Al Capone. He may have hung out in this enormous men's bath atrium, with the copper fountain and stained glass roof (why did the men get the cool bathing area? Not fair). Apparently people back then were not shy about hanging around socially in various states of undress amongst their same gender peers.
Next stop - Hot Springs AR, where I was born long long ago! I was 1 year old when my family left, so I don't remember any of the cool stuff there - now I've made new memories I guess!
This is bathhouse row - a literal row of giant, oppulent bath houses from the turn of the century, which were built to capitalize on the hot springs health craze that swept American high society (and organized criminal society) at the time.
Outside the Clinton Presidential Library ... there's an entire wing suspended over the Mississippi river!
We had a terrific lunch at Forty-Two, a fahncy cafe inside the library (underneath the suspended part) - amazing fried catfish, club sandwich, and truffle mac & cheese!
Afterward we went outside to get a better look at the Chihuly installed on the reflecting pools outside - don't those red spires look cool there? I wish they'd keep them there forever. We also checked out the old railroad bridge that's now a biking/walking path, which scared me a bit (I hate heights) but the view is great!
It's no secret, my favorite part of going to the Clinton Presidential Library was the special exhibits of the work of glass artist Chihuly. One room had a giant spotless black field on which a garden of amazing twisty plantlike sculptures were mounted. Another room had a collection of interlocking spherical glass pieces, which look a lot like sea creatures and shells, along with the artist's sketches. And in the large main hallway there was an enormous blue-and-green tower of swirls that nearly reached the second floor!
Mini Me kept wanting to climb around on them, but breaking a Chihuly is probably a sure-fire way to get kicked out (possibly of the entire state).
Mini Me's been promoted to White House Chief of Staff!
Well, in Clinton's recreated cabinet room anyway. We visited the gigantic William J. Clinton Presidential Library Museum on our way around Little Rock, since I still live near and regularly visit the Herbert Hoover one. It's much bigger!
The library part is the collection of Clinton's presidential papers, which are kept in a rather unique set of shelves that also serve as the building's support pillars. The blue boxes (actually perfectly TARDIS-sized for Mini Me ...) are removable in case anyone needs to look at some bit of paper from Clinton's administration. The rest of it is a detailed museum of Clinton's life, presidency, and all kinds of cool stuff.
Mini Me's favorite things were the elaborately painted eggs from an Easter celebration in the 90s. My favorite thing was probably the giant windows and the amazing view!
Why did the Beatles cross the road? They were following the labbit!
Early in our trip, we stopped for lunch at a small Arkansas town called Walnut Ridge, which has a strange little connection to the best band in history. It commemorates about two days back in the early 60s when the Beatles attempted to sneak off for a relaxing weekend at a dude ranch nearby, but word quickly got out that they were arriving and leaving from the town's small airport. The town has never gotten over its piece of Beatlemania, and has several rock-related little shops and this nifty Abbey Road statue.
I especially enjoy the background - I have no idea how they made it, but it has amazing texture and all kinds of fun things hidden in it, including the titles of all the songs on Abbey Road.
Labbit discovered New MS Paint on my work computer and made this informative drawing depicting the trip we took to Arkansas a few weeks ago. (Real photos soon!)
Will Labbit survive the Curse of the Black Angel??
In case you're not up on obscure local paranormal legends, the Black Angel of Oakland Cemetery in Iowa City (where I live) is pretty much our paranormal landmark. Much of the background and particulars of the curse can be found here. Suffice to say there is some bad energy around this statue, and it's best not to touch it, look in its eyes, or (as I heard from another source) even leave flowers. Labbit and I kept our distance, but it really does have an imposing beauty to it, and I can't help but adore it in the same macabre sort of way I like old cemeteries.
The cemetary is sprawled out on rolling hills tucked between Iowa City's older residential streets. It's far from deserted - it's nicely taken care of, and groundskeeping vehicles whirred by all the time. But it's also beautiful, peaceful, and not really that scary, at least in the daytime.
It was a nice day, but VERY windy - Labbie stopped by a flower-shaped birdbath and hung on for dear life. The wind gusts that crest over the hills of the cemetery were a bit much for him, so he rode in my bag for some of it.
I was really excited to find the grave of one of my favorite artists, Mauricio Lasansky, and his wife. It had this really cool sculpture on top - you couldn't miss it if you were an art freak. Lasansky is primarily known for his expressive prints, which you can find sprinkled around Iowa City, which was the artist's home for many years.
The older parts of the cemetary are my favorite. Gravestones and their accompanying stonework just seemed more beautiful from back around the turn of the century - plus I love all the weathering, cracks, and moss that show their age ... and how the oldest stones start to sink and tilt like they're floating on an ocean of earth.
Labbit was having so much fun, he hopped out of my bag and tried to wander off. You can't take your eyes off them for a second ...
This is as close as Labbie would get to the statue, which is probably smart. It stands toward the middle of the hill on one edge of the cemetary. It's not easy to find - I drove around a few different times on may way home from class trying to find the road that borders that side of the cemetery before I finally found it. You can get into the cemetery through a variety of routes, but there is a dead end (ha ha) right down from the Black Angel, which is a good place to park.
It may be macabre to some people, but wandering around a cemetery is a fun afternoon in my book.
We must visit Rochester cemetery next - I used to go there in high school in drawing class. It's even older and more overgrown, which makes me arty sense tingle.
Where did Joker and Mini Me go over spring break? I'll give you a hint ... rust is good!
In case you aren't familiar with the show American Pickers ... it's a big deal here in Iowa ;) Antique Archaeology is a sort of antique/resale company based in La Claire, IA, which the History Channel turned into a show chronicling owners Mike and Frank's adventures in picking (aka driving around buying cool old stuff and reselling it) America. Of you love old shit, motorcycles, or cars, you gotta check this place out!
The place started as a little blue barn stuffed full of awesome old stuff, and has since expanded with a new building (erected last year - it's not in the show yet), which is kind of a gift shop/motorcycle museum. Last month me and a couple of the labbits decided to check it out.
I really don't know much about motorcycles, even from watching the show, but the ones in there are pretty damn sweet!
Can't you just hear that engine rev?
Er - well not so much on this one. Mini Me's favorite thing in the shop was this totally "roached out" 100-ish-year-old cycle, which he got to ride for a little while. I remember the episode where they picked this one up - I like how Mike and Frank sometimes buy stuff that's just cool looking, not necessarily useful or re-sellable, just to preserve it, like this guy.
I liked seeing this awesome welder's mask - it was one of my favorite things I saw on the show recently, because it looks like some kind of steampunk diving helmet (which is what they thought it was originally). The photo didn't come out so great, but it was fun to see in person!
I had to get photos of the rusty Statesman that's been sitting in front of the Picker's lot for years, next to the iconic white picking van! And then Joker decided to pose next to it - well, on it.
More habits of the wild brabbit the lives in our woodpile ... (we know it's the same one cuz of the small ears) Apparently he enjoys birdseed, at least in winter when there's not much else to eat. That or the brabbit wants to be a bird. Cardinal is not impressed.
Yeh ... Labbit and I are big fans of the the most interesting man in the world ...
Anyway, the other night discovered Blue Bunny makes these teeny labbit-sized tubs of ice cream, complete with a little spoon (and my dinky everything-is-expired corner grocery store actually sells them!) Nom.
