Southeast Kansas

Wow, no rest for the fast movers. My client and I drove home from Fort Worth on Sunday and then left Monday for southeast Kansas.

We stayed in Parsons Kansas which is not a big place but the Sleep Inn hotel was nice and new. Apparently a few years ago a tornado damaged the downtown area and they rebuilt / refurbished it. They fixed it up really nice, it looked great.

My client and 2 of his work associates enjoyed the unique dining downtown. One night we had supper at the “Kitchen Pass” and the second night we dined at “Ernesto’s” which is a Mexican food place. Both were very good. For breakfast we enjoyed a couple of the coffee shops downtown.

The novelty of the trip was getting to meet a one-eyed cat. I forgot what his name was but I do know it wasn’t Lucky!

Houston & Fort Worth

Once again on the company plane with Houston Texas as our destination. My client had a speaking engagement at the Houston Livestock Show. It was a great time of year to be in Houston. The weather was perfect, not to hot, not to humid. I wanted to stay for the rest of the month. The stock show location is huge and consists of the old Astrodome as well as the new Reliant Stadium, Reliant Arena and the Reliant Show Complex.

In this picture you can see the old Astrodome and the new Reliant stadium.
















Back home on the company plane for a quick turnaround and then a nice drive to Cow Town (Fort Worth Texas) to attend the TSCRA Convention.

The Texas Southwestern Cattlemen’s Association (TSCRA) convention was held in downtown Forth Worth. I always enjoy the big buildings, great food and entertainment in Fort Worth. My client and I took several guests to lunch at Cantina Laredo, a gourmet Mexican food place. The food was excellent and I recommend that you put this restaurant on your “to do list”. Cantina Laredo has several locations around the country. Click here to read more http://www.cantinalaredo.com/

One night I recommended 8.0’s for supper. It has a great outdoor dining area with live entertainment. We were there a little early so our entertainment was watching the band set up. Read more about 8.0’s http://www.eightobar.com/

Sundance Square in downtown Fort Worth is rich in Western history and lore. During the great cattle drives of the late 1800's, Fort Worth was one of the major stops on the legendary Chisholm Trail. Cowboys on the trail would visit downtown Fort Worth for some much needed recreation. The downtown area was filled with saloons, gambling parlors, shooting galleries and dance halls, which attracted a rough mix of gamblers, cattlemen, outlaws, and lonesome doves.

The area was named for the Sundance Kid who - along with his partner Butch Cassidy - was a frequent visitor to the area, then known as Hell's Half Acre. Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, well-known participants in the "Shootout at the OK Corral," could also be spotted from time to time in Sundance Square. Most of the buildings in Sundance Square date from the turn of the 20th century, and have been beautifully restored to provide a wonderful architectural view of the past. The red brick streets and lush courtyards add to Sundance Square's authentic aura.

This picture of the Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid’s, Hole In The Wall Gang was taken by a photographer in Fort Worth.















Read more about Sundance Square http://www.sundancesquare.com/


The Bass Symphony Hall is a beautiful building.















From the hotel, the convention center looks a little like a spaceship that landed in the middle of downtown.

Northwest Arkansas

This week my client traveled to Northwest Arkansas. Most of the meetings were in the Fayetteville, Springdale, Bentonville area. Springtime is just around the corner. The cool season grasses are really green and the trees are all about to bud out.















This area of the Ozarks have a lot of nice mountains and valleys. The Ozarks (also referred to as Ozark Mountain Country, the Ozark Mountains or the Ozark Plateau) are a physiographic, geologic, and cultural highland region of the central United States. It covers much of the south half of Missouri and an extensive portion of northwest and north central Arkansas. The region also extends westward into northeast Oklahoma and extreme southeast Kansas.















Although sometimes referred to as the Ozark Mountains, the region is actually a high and deeply dissected plateau. Geologically, the area is a broad dome around the Saint Francois Mountains. The Ozark Highlands area, covering nearly 47,000 square miles, is by far the most extensive mountainous region between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains. Together, the Ozarks and Ouachita Mountains form an area known as the U.S. Interior Highlands.















On the road between Fort Smith and Fayetteville we crossed over the Boston mountains. At the top, the road passes through the mountains.















The most unique place we ate was in Gravett AR. We had a great lunch at the “In Zone”. I just love this small town mom & pop cafes. Everything was made fresh.















The highlight of the travels took us through Bentonville, the home of Walmart. When we passed through the old downtown area we saw one of his first stores.















To read more about Sam Walton click http://www1.stfrancis.edu/content/ba/ghkickul/stuwebs/bbios/biograph/walton1.htm

The history part of the trip was at Pea Ridge AR. Just east of town is the site of the battle of Pea Ridge. The Battle of Pea Ridge (also known as Elkhorn Tavern) was a land battle of the American Civil War, fought on March 7 and March 8, 1862, at Pea Ridge. In the battle, Union Army forces led by Brig. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis defeated Confederate troops under Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn. The outcome of the battle essentially cemented Union control of Missouri. One notable fact of this battle is that it was one of the few in which a Confederate army outnumbered a Union army. To learn more click http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=508

North Carolina & Indiana

We flew on the company plane again (Southwest Airlines) to Raleigh - Durham North Carolina. Temperature wise it was an interesting day. 80 degrees in Amarillo when we left, 75 in Denver and then 28 in Raleigh – Durham with ice and snow on the ground. It was the most ice and snow I have seen this year. Burrrrr.
CLICK ON THE PICTURES FOR A LARGER VIEW














North of Statesville NC I found the perfect place to live - - - Harmony NC. No problems here! It’s beautiful country. Enjoy the pic’s.













The history of North Carolina goes back to our country's founding days.





















Also found a town called Apex. Given Webster’s definition of apex, this would have to be high point of North Carolina. Works for me, looks like a nice place to live.

Wednesday morning my client and I flew out of Raleigh – Durham to Indianapolis Indiana on Northwest Airlines. I was surprised to see so few people at the airport and my flight was only half full. It may have been that it was a mid morning flight and the crowd took the early flights. But it was the first time in a long time to have a whole row of seats to myself. Here is a picture as we flew over the Appalachian mountains.















Bedford Indiana is known as the limestone capital of the world, and is surrounded by limestone quarries, many of which are dangerously used by the residents for swimming. Much of the limestone used in the construction of various Washington, D.C. monuments was quarried in the Bedford area. Stone from the "Empire Quarry", was used to build the Empire State Building in New York City.

Something else interesting in Indiana, the pawpaw tree grows across most of the eastern United States as a native tree. Mature pawpaw trees produce fruits 2" wide by 10" long, looking and tasting very much like a banana. The fruit is liked immensely by most people and may be purchased at many outdoor markets in West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, etc. The pawpaw pulp has the consistency of creamy custard and may be eaten raw, baked, or used as a pie filling. The trees grow about 15' tall and have been known to produce as much as 60 pounds of pawpaws per tree. Some individual pawpaws weigh up to a pound each.
Read more - click http://ezinearticles.com/?History-Of-The-Pawpaw-Tree&id=370268


I got to eat at my favorite sandwich place this week. Schlotzsky’s makes the best sandwiches. I like the Schlotzsky’s original the best. Schlotzsky’s got their start in Austin Texas back in 1971. Funny name, great sandwich. Read more about Schlotzsky’s click http://www.schlotzskys.com/cms/about