October Morning

Purple fall asters... my absolute favorite.

For those of you who read my previous post:

Zack is here to stay!
(Zack continues to be camera shy, have to work on that.)

...and Miss Kitty has come out from hiding!

Esperanza or Yellow Bell in full bloom.

Everywhere I go around home, Gertie goes.

She does not want to miss out on whatever I am doing.

Gertie

Gertie is taking a few minutes to smell the mint

while keeping me company as I photograph 

what is blooming in our back yard.

Wild Mexican Petunias

I am so-o-o bad at remember in the names of plants,

so if it isn't labeled it's because I've forgotten its name.

(Ellen has told me these are Wild Mexican Petunias, I love it.)

Beauty Berry Bush

Calla Lillis look better now than they have all summer... thanks to cooler temps.

Artemisia and various cacti

Before we left on our trip to GA & FL at the end of August

I severely pruned the artemisia.

Now it is coming on with a vengeance, I suppose

I need to prune the rest of it in the front yard

and maybe it will come back stronger & more lush, too.

The house on the right in the distance was newly
built by neighbors who were burned out in the
fires Labor Day of 2011.
We have three families who are rebuilding and returning
for this we are grateful.

Meet Zack...

This is Zack!

When the G-man & I returned from our Arkansas trip Tuesday night

I could barely wait until the next morning to pick up Gertie

at Best Friends Kennel.

When I arrived there on Wednesday morning one of the women was very sad

because she had just been received a call that one of 

their long-time customers died the evening before. 

The wife of the gentleman wanted to find a home for Zack.

I asked what kind of dog & was told a little black Schnauzer.

Zack came out and was happy to be out and about again.

He had been in the kennel off and on for about 4 or 5 months

because the gentleman would come home from the hospital

and then a few days later have to return, so back to the kennel Zack would go.

Gertie met Zack and they seemed to get along just fine

in the few minutes they were together.

After a quick call to the G-man to see if we could "try out" the dog,

the three of us, Gertie, Zack & Cheryl, were on our way home.

This little fellow is so smart and he absolutely loves the G-man

(well who wouldn't love him).

Zack has settled in just fine. When the G-man sits in his chair

Zack immediately jumps in his lap... he is a man's dog.

The only problem that has arisen is with Miss Kitty.

She is not happy at all & just doesn't want to be around the patio

where she usually likes to hang out.

I'm hoping that she will soon adjust... she did have a 

period of adjustment when Gertie & I came into their lives.

As some of you on Facebook know, I had a terrible night on Wednesday.
I couldn't stop thinking of all the reasons why we don't need another dog,
experiencing sadness for the loss of Zack's master,
and wondering how I can get Miss Kitty to accept a new family member.
Miss Kitty had such trauma because of the Labor Day fires in 2011
and she is just getting over it.
She's been so skittish of sounds of workers & big trucks in the neighborhood
and she has settled back in when I bring home a new animal.
Thursday morning and today dawned bright, beautiful & cool which
gave me a more upbeat perspective on all my concerns.

The funeral for the gentleman was at 2 PM today & the kennel owner
went to it and the woman immediately wanted to know if she'd
found a home for Zack.
Now she wants to give us his bed and favorite toys
and is so glad Zack has a wonderful new home.
It's difficult to find a home for an eight year old dog,
but I hope he will be happy here (I think he is)
and that he will have a good life.

You'll probably be reading more about Gertie & Zack in the months to come.

Photos may be a problem... he didn't like seeing the iPhone or the camera

pointed in his direction... I wonder what that is all about?

Scupture Garden at Crystal Bridges

"Yield", Aluminum by Roxy Paine, American born 1966 at entrance

As you can tell I have fallen in love with the town of Bentonville, Arkansas.

This is very unlike me who is usually drawn to the desert southwest,

but this town is exceptional.

"Love", fabrication date 1999 by Robert Indiana, American born 1928

 This is the museum that Alice built

in the town that Sam put on the map.

Now that may not be literally so, 

but it appears that way to me.

"Stella" (2009), Bronze, edition 10/30 by Andre Harvey, American born 1941

In just the short time we were there it seems that the Walton family...

the owners' of the Walmart empire...

has made this the vibrant town that it is.

"Shore Lunch" (1999), Bronze, edition 5/9 by Dan Ostermiller, American born 1956

The town square is a lovely, small square where people

gather to sit, play music, and attend the Farmers' Market.

On Saturday in the early evening we had supper

in a restaurant on the Square.

This Saturday was the town's homecoming weekend

and many, many of the young people, dressed to the 9s,

were in the Square having their photos taken by friends and parents.

"The Tortoise"

 "The Tortoise and the Hare" (2009), Silicon Bronze, by Nancy Schon born 1928

Before we left on Monday afternoon, the G-man and I walked

around the Crystal Bridges Sculpture Garden. 

It was a delightful morning for a stroll.

"The Hare"

Overlook at Crystal Bridges

As we walked the Crystal Bridges Art Trail 

we came to an overlook where one can sit and enjoy

the view of the museum.

While we were sitting there several people came by

for a respite from their walk & to enjoy the view.

Whoops???No info...

This was the last sculpture before we walked into the museum

to view the 20th and 21st Century Collection.

I took photos of some of the art from that period on Monday

and I had taken some photos of work from Early American

through the World War II era on Sunday.

I'm sure I shall be posting more about the town and 

surrounding area in the days to come... I am so pleased to have 

found this little gem of a town in Northwest Arkansas 

on my very first trip to the state.

The Architecture of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art

Main entrance to museum with an aluminum tree sculpture overlooking the area

 Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is the vision of Alice Walton, daughter of Sam Walton the founder of Walmart and Sam's Club. The museum houses Alice Walton's collection of American art from Early American artists to Contemporary American artists.

Looking down on the main gallery

Part of the park area surrounding the museum

Looking toward the lobby & Restaurant Eleven

The "pool" between the bridges.

Alice's Purpose

Alice Walton learned about the history of America through art. She began collecting at an early age and this grew into her life's work. The exhibit covers American art from the early years of our country through contemporary times. Alice wanted to have a place where all people could come to see this incredible collection free of charge. 

Not only is it free to go to the museum, but it is free to walk the grounds and trails that surround the museum. The museum is open 11 to 6 daily except for Tuesday when it is closed. The grounds and trails are open daily from sunrise to sunset.

Detail of the roof interior

Eleven Restaurant

Another roof detail

Looking toward the auditorium from restaurant

Bridge to "The Light" exhibit

Looking inside out.

Everywhere "nature" is invading the museum

The library area at base of the ravine

Looking up the ravine

"Horse" just one of the beautiful sculptures

Looking across the pond to the restaurant

Moshe Safdie, the Architect

Moshe Safdie, the Architect of Crystal

2005 - 2011~The Building of Crystal Bridges

 The museum design is all about light and how it enhances the art. After years of contemplating and searching Alice learned about Moshe Safdie, an Israeli born architect who moved to Canada as a youngster.  is a world renown architect who designed the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum in Israel, the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, the Telfair Museum of Art in Savannah, GA, and now the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR.

Not your local Walmart store

The photos below are of the Museum Store. As you look at these photos you must realize that all of this is from the huge fortune of the Walton family... the family whose business went from Walton's 5 and 10 in Bentonville to the worldwide empire of Walmart and Sam's Clubs. The items in this "store" are not your typical items found in your local Walmart.

Inside the Museum Store

Woodwork & pottery by local artisans

Art literature

Beautiful lighting in the store

Photo "multiplied".

Oklahoma City National Memorial

On our way from Lubbock, TX to the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas

the G-man and I spent a night in Oklahoma City.

It was my first trip across Oklahoma 

and I discovered that it is a beautiful state.

The main thing I wanted to do in Oklahoma was to visit the site

where the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building once stood.

The place is now known as the 

Oklahoma City National Memorial.

The building was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995, 

which killed 168 people, including 19 children all under age 6,
and injured more than 680 people.

Half of the building collapsed seconds after the truck bomb detonated. 

The remains of the building were imploded a month after the attack, 

and the Oklahoma City National Memorial was built on the site.
(From Wikipedia.)

The Oklahoma City National Memorial
was dedicated by President Clinton on April 19, 2000,
exactly five years after the bombing.

This plaque explains how the Memorial is arranged.

The bombing would remain the most destructive act of terrorism
on American soil until the attacks of September 11, 2001.

We arrived at the Memorial at dusk.

The sky was partly cloudy and the light 

shining below the clouds gave a somber feel.

I did not expect to be so emotionally moved by seeing this.
It was gut-wrenching to walk around the reflecting pool.
There were people sitting, walking, standing within their own thoughts
perhaps about people who lost their lives, were injured,
or like me, who was so taken by the way the Memorial was designed
as a reminder of the terrible event and of the horrible loss.

The tree in the top photo is the survivor tree, an American Elm,

that overlooked the bombing, the demolishing, and

finally, the construction of the Memorial.

Above and below is a photo of the reflecting pool, 

the Field of Empty Chairs, and a part of the 

Oklahoma City skyline.

This photo is looking toward the east gate where the

time of 9:01 is embedded into stone.

On the west gate the time of 9:03 is engraved.

The small chairs represent the 19 children under the age of 6 

who were killed in the bombing. 

One hundred sixty eight died that day and this

beautiful space is dedicated to those who died,

were injured, and for the city and state that

suffered this atrocity by a madman, a misfit

who was angry with the federal government.

"We come here to remember

 those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever.

May all who leave here know the impact of violence.

May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope and serenity."

In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin

In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is a fascinating book, easy to read with wonderful character development. Part of the research is from from letters written by the Dodds, Thorton Wilder, Carl Sandburg and a host of others. Ambassador William Dodd and his daughter, Martha, were prolific writers of letters and diaries of their adventure beginning in 1933 from whence much is gleaned about the Nazi party, the officers, and the German people.

William Dodd was a historian and professor who took the post as U.S. Ambassador in Berlin. He was not President Roosevelt's first choice; Mr. Dodd was about 5th down the list, but was excited to accept the position for several reasons. One, he thought this would offer him a higher stature in his field and he thought he would have time to work on an ambitious history of the South that he had begun.

Ambassador Dodd was a man who believed in living simply and within his means which was a departure from most ambassadors who were independently wealthy and did not mind using their own money to have an opulent lifestyle. Although Dodd was quite different from most ambassadors he spoke German fluently and knew the country rather well as he had studied there as a young man. Martha, on the other hand, was quite taken by the richness of the people around her, of the Nazi officers, and other wealthy people in which she came in contact. She was a notorious flirt and in denial as to the true nature of what was taking place in Germany in 1933.

Dodd was sent to Germany by President F. Roosevelt with the mission of encouraging the German government to repay a large debt owed the United States. He also wanted an ambassador who could negotiate the "Jewish problem or question" with the Germans. Roosevelt was appalled at the Nazi treatment of Jews and was aware of the violence that was taking place in Germany.

The journey of the Dodd family in Germany was interesting to say the very least. The Third Reich came fully into power during Dodd's tenure in Berlin. Ambassador Dodd walked a tightrope while in Germany and Martha traveled and made the rounds with people from other embassies as well as high ranking Nazi officers.

The Garden of Beasts is an amazing look into the early era of Nazi rule and the effect it had on the Dodds and on the friends they made in Germany.



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