Maumelle COE, Little Rock, Arkansas
So the men took the gifts…silver…and Benjamin. They hurried down to Egypt and presented themselves to Joseph. When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, “Take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and prepare dinner; they are to eat with me at noon.” ~ Genesis 43:15-16 My first thought? Joseph must have a large dining room to be able to feed so many at once. But that’s the cook in me coming out. Those of you who have some knowledge of scripture – – did these verses bring to mind any New Testament lessons? I immediately thought of when the prodigal son returned (Luke 15:11-32), and the father was so filled with joy at his son’s return that he had the fatted calf killed and a party ensued. I imagine this is similar to Joseph’s thought. But I wonder what the brothers are thinking? Do they sense a party? Or doom? How do you react to good fortune? Are you a glass half-full, or a glass half-empty person? Are you Eeyore or Winnie-the-Pooh? Do you live peace-filled in the moment, or do you immediately turn to negative thoughts, even when all seems well? God would have us rest and trust in Him.
We woke up this morning to no power. It went off at some point during the wee hours before we got up. We have backup batteries, but by the time we got up, they’d run down to where all we could use was a light or two. The entire campground was out and apparently there’s no one to call. If there’s a host, we don’t know who they are because there’s no sign identifying them.
No power means running the laptop on battery. No power means no heat (thank goodness it’s not 39⁰ today!). No power means keeping the frig closed. No power means the same as what you have to do when you have no power.
We have a generator, but it makes some noise, so out of courtesy to our neighbors, we didn’t run it until after 8 AM.
We planned a day in Little Rock, so we were hoping the power could come back on before it was time to leave. It did. Just in the nick of time. By the way, I looked up the origin of that phrase. It was very interesting, but very long, so you can do your own research if you’re curious. Sorry! I will, however, try to pique your interest by telling you it began in the 15th century as “in the pudding time”. 😊
Have you ever actually held a half a million dollars in your hands? We did! And to be quite honest, it didn’t look like that much. Hundred dollar bills in stacks of $100,000, and we held five stacks. Well, mostly Blaine held on to it. I just laid hands on it. It felt very strange and a little uncomfortable being able to do that!
Where did this take place?
At the Arkansas State Capitol!
And there’s a ladder sitting there which will be explained later.
After passing through security and listening to the woman at the information center tell us where to go and what to see and do, we began our self-guided tour of the awe-inspiring, very quiet place.
I don’t know why we felt so uncomfortable . . . like security was gonna swoop down on us at any moment.
Pretty cool though!
Even standing under it, we couldn’t fathom that the chain is seven stories long!
Wonder how they change the light bulbs and/or clean it?
I’ll show you the bronze doors in a bit.
As you can see, there’s a whole lot more in there!!
Isn’t our Creator amazing to give us eyes to distinguish that?!?!?
but once we got upstairs, we could walk around the gallery.
One of the staff we were specifically told about, was Richard. Richard is responsible for polishing the huge bronze doors – – every day! She didn’t say how long Richard’s had this responsibility, but he was at it when we arrived, and still at it when we left an hour later.
We were also told to be sure to check out the Old State House Museum. It was the original capitol building and is the oldest standing state capitol building west of the Mississippi. They actually started building it in 1833 – – three years before Arkansas even became a state! Due to money issues, it wasn’t completed until 1842, but beginning in 1836 after achieving statehood, the governing bodies still met there. In May, 1861 all but one delegate voted to secede from the Union, and until 1863 it was the seat of Confederate governance. In September, 1863, Union forces captured Little Rock. By 1911, it was in sore need of repair, and the ceiling was even falling on the meeting delegates. They talked of repair, but felt they had outgrown the building anyway, so work began towards a new building at a new location. In 1947, they decided to make some restoration and repairs and turn it into a museum, which opened to the public in 1951.
The floors and stairs creaked like an old building. 😊
The statue on top was removed at some point when the roof was deemed unfit to hold it.
It was never replaced.
There were several rooms of exhibits, some holding fascinating finds, but we felt they could do more with the place. Perhaps money is an issue.
The sign says it’s a vintage sauna from the early 20th century.
It has a lead-lined lid, enameled headrest and two thermometers.
Maybe to show how people used to live?
Bet that was quite the project!
There were actually quite a few, but I only took pictures of a couple.
There desks and other things piled and shoved off to the right.
It looks old-fashioned to us.
What is it they say? Everything old is new again!
But then again, it’s a campaigning dress, not an inaugural gown.
Then again, I was married in 1978 and peasant gowns were definitely in.
and I was watching him on the TV screen on my side. : )
No wonder they used large boats and trains!
We’d been told to poke our heads into the Capital Hotel down the street, so we did that. Pretty amazing place also! It opened in January 1877.
It contained some of the finest amenities of its day, including gas lighting, indoor plumbing, and a magnetic annunciator. It quickly gained rave reviews, with many guests comparing the structure to the Palmer House in Chicago. The Capital Hotel had even begun to host many prominent political luminaries, such as President Ulysses S. Grant. In fact, legend stipulates that the hotel’s unusually large elevator was modified to allow Grant to take his horse up to his suite. Over the next few decades, the Capital Hotel exchanged hands several times. Among its most flamboyant owners was Henry Franklin Auten, who significantly transformed the hotel’s appearance with a $250,000 renovation in 1908. While the cast-iron façade remained intact, the entire first floor lobby was brilliantly reconstructed into its present form. All the while, the Capital Hotel remained at the center of Little Rock’s social and political life. Yet, the hotel eventually fell into disuse when the city’s entire downtown area experienced economic stagnation in the mid-20th century. Fortunately, salvation arrived in the late 1970s, when architect Ed Cromwell and a group of investors began working to restore the Capital Hotel back to its former glory. Taking some three years to complete, the hotel opened its doors once more on Christmas Day of 1983. A member of Historic Hotels of America since 2018, the Capital Hotel continues to offer its guests unrivaled access to the historic core of the city. ~historichotels.org
For $230/night, you can have a room with a queen-sized bed and black-out curtains.
Oh! And a bathrobe and slippers are also included. Not sure if you have to give those back or not . . .
It’s why we only peeked into the lobby.
By now we were hungry and had no plans. We figured we’d just walk around and find a place – highly unusual for us who plan nearly everything!
When what to our wondering eyes should appear, but a sushi restaurant! It was excellent, and healthy and light.
Yummmmmm!!!!
But then, we saw a woman carrying a box of donuts walk by our window.
Hurts Donut was two doors down. We walked in and were so awestruck at the marvelous and gigantic options, we had trouble deciding! Blaine settled on an Oreo cheesecake, but I couldn’t decide, so I chose my old standby favorite – Boston crème. I have to tell you, if we ever visit one of these places again, I’m going for the strawberry cheesecake because Blaine’s Oreo one was fabulous! But so was mine. So much for a light and healthy lunch . . . .
Most were some flavor of cake donut with various icings and “sprinkles” on them.
Oreos must be popular because several had flavors of Oreos on them.
Now remember, this is lunchtime.
I wonder what they do with all these at the end of the day?
We’d read about visiting the Junction Bridge, so that’s where we headed.
We thought it was pretty amazing to see!
It wasn’t just a bridge, it was a Park, and part of that Park was a sculpture garden. It’s always fun to see what people create and the names they give their pieces. 😊
This one is titled “The Ties That Bind”
It was time to check out the Old Mill at T.R. Pugh Memorial Park. Significant for its place in Hollywood history, which is why it’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but it’s just plain and simply a gorgeous small Park.
The Mill was built in 1933 and was never intended to be a working mill, but rather a prominent landmark in hopes of attracting development. (see information in next paragraph) And then in 1939, Hollywood came to town and the Old Mill found itself featured in the opening scenes of “Gone with the Wind”. It is thought to be the last standing structure from the film. No one knows (or remembers) why the producer chose it.
One other thing of note (besides the beauty) is that sculptor Senor Dionicio Rodriguez (1891-1955) designed the bridges, benches and the Mill itself. He was so secretive about the process by which he produced his work that no written plans or mixture formulas exist. His secret techniques are so detailed that tree species can be identified. One thing they do know – he applied this secret technique using only ordinary kitchen tools.
This is the “wood” that’s inside the mill.
No sunlight, no fading.
Last, was an attempt at a faster-paced walk for a few miles. We chose to explore a small part of the Two Rivers Park and Bridge, asphalted walk and bike trail.
And when we got back home, take a look at the trailer parked here! Definitely customized and well photographed, as we saw others walking by taking pictures too. 😊
We’re short on time here, only staying five days, so tomorrow we’ll take a long day trip over to Hot Springs.