Mark Twain

I wanted to spend Thanksgiving with my dad in Mangum, Ok.
I left Minneapolis that Friday about an hour and a half after the demo.  Thought it would be a good idea to hit Dubuque, Iowa on the way through. Apparently, this is a very scenic route along the Mississippi River. I think it is probably much more scenic during daylight.  Of course, it was dark by the time I got on the road.  The stars were great though.  By the time I got to Dubuque, It was a little after midnight, wasn't feeling the vibe, so I just kept going. Spent the night at a roadside park.
     The next morning, I continued on, stopping at a random exit at Iowa City for some breakfast.  Next to the restaurant was the best re-use of an abandoned box store that I have seen.

Studio Arts Building for the University of Iowa. Everything but a Glass shop. I took a look around at the galleries - there was some fantastic work. Jewelry by Youngjoo Yoo was right up my alley. Very inspiring. There was also a display of drawings and ceramics by Katherine Teesdale. All of the work revolved around birds. She had a bowl of little ceramic birds with a pile of little slips of paper that read:
"Bluebirds of Happiness
Please take one of these little bluebirds to keep in your pocket. Whenever you feel worried you can rub your bird and let it take all of those feelings away!"
I have a beautiful little bird that now travels with me.
    I meandered on into Missouri, took a random right hand turn and found myself at the birthplace of Samuel Clemens.  Mark Twain Memorial Shrine.  I visited the shrine they have there - didn't realize until then how much I feel connected to him.  The funniest part about it is that I didn't plan to go there. It just happened. Right at the appropriate moment. This is where I would set up camp for the night. Watched the sun go down over the lake & rested.

I will say it was pretty cold that night.