Pine Bluff's Log Truck Accident

There used to be a big ugly piece of "artwork" at Main and Barraque in downtown Pine Bluff.  The story I heard was there was some kind of art contest and Pine Bluff wanted to do something modern. So, of course, they hired some LA (Los Angels, not Louisiana) "artist" to come and pile up a bunch of telephone poles.
 
It seems that these "artists" like for people to criticize their work.  I guess if they get paid, it doesn't matter to them.  I just can't understand why people pay for this stuff.
 
Fortunately, it has been torn down.
 
In sharp contrast to Pine Bluff's terrible "art," here is a picture of a true masterpiece.   
 

Trip to St. Louis

Last week, Steph and I went to St. Louis. Here's a quick description of our trip:

Monday the 21st - Day One: We drove up from Little Rock, checked in to the hotel and went about an hour and 15 minutes west on I-70 to Hermann, MO. There, we visited Stone Hill Winery, and ate supper at The Vintage Restaurant. We spent over $100 on several bottles of some of the best wine we've ever tasted. We first got to know Stone Hill Winery when we went to Branson.

Tuesday the 22nd - Day Two: We went to the International Bowling Museum and the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum. After that, we toured the Anheuser-Busch Brewery. Later, we saw the Cubs beat the Cardinals.

Wednesday the 23rd - Day Three: We spent quite a while looking for a Cubs shirt in downtown St. Louis. Then, we went to the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. We started out at the Old Courthouse where the Dredd Scott case started After that, we went to the Museum of Westward Expansion where we saw a really neat documentary on the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Then, we went on to the Gateway Arch. That night, ESPN broadcasted the game. We saw the Cardinals beat the Cubs.

Thursday the 24th - Day Four: We started off by going to Grant's Farm. The admission was free, but parking was $6. Unfortunately, they MAKE you take a 20 minute tram ride from the parking lot to the main part of the farm. The line for the tram was long and moving rather slowly. But, after that, everything was real nice. We spent $1 on a little bottle of milk to feed the baby goats. Also, we fed some camels. Later that day, we went to the St. Louis Zoo. As always, it was great. Their bald monkey is still there, and they had a neat penguin and puffin area. It is also free to get in, but costs to park. This time, $8. Still, that's not a bad price at all. That evening, we saw the Cardinals shut out the Cubs.

Friday the 25th - Day Five: We visited the St. Louis Art Museum. SLAM.org. You gotta love that. I was reprimanded for pointing too closely at "Interior of St. Peter's, Rome" by Giovanni Paolo Panini. The museum was very nice. I don't think I'd ever been to it before. They had a wide variety of art, from ancient Egyptian (c.a. 2600 BC) all the way up to modern art of today. Especially interesting was the exhibit on the Art of the Osage Indians. Since we went on Friday, our admission to that exhibit was already paid for. On our way home, we stopped in Tunica Mississippi and ate supper at Fitzgeralds Casino. All you can eat crab legs for $12 apiece isn't bad at all. And the crab legs were pretty good.