Salem 0 Miles
"Applause is a receipt, not a bill."
~Dale Carnegie
Oregon did quite a few things right for our Capitol tour today. We parked in a close handicapped stall (thanks to my father-in-law), no meter, and walked right into the building. That's right. Great parking, front entrance, no strip search. Awesome.
Two cool statues adorn the outside, one called "Lewis and Clark led by Sacajawea" and "The Covered Wagon''. Other statues on the grounds honor the first governor, the circuit riders who brought the gospel to the West, and remnants of the previous Capitol building.
If you've followed our Capitols' tour, you know many states built Capitols, burned them down, then built limestone and marble edifices. Oregon, in an attempt to one up everyone, burned two, in 1855 and 1935. Then they built their current place, of Danby Vermont marble, Montana Rose Travertine, and other marbles.
This building looks much different than other Capitols, as it features a clean look outside, and Art Deco decor inside. The rotunda isn't super tall like many, but looks very nice. Wide stairways with no handrails (horrors!) give an open look to the building. And if you need a handrail or elevator, they can accommodate that too.
The Governor's office features a worker bee at a desk and I always test them with, "Is the governor in right now? Because I want to talk to him." She responded with a very pleasant no, in a non-confrontational manner.
Oregon's advantage over other capitol's was their tour to the top. If we could find a guide, we could go to the top and see the Oregon Pioneer up close. He's bronze with gold leaf, 8.5 tons, and twenty-three feet high. And we enjoyed the same view of Salem that Mr. Oregon pioneer does every day. 121 steps. My mother-in-law was the motivator for going up, as she led the way. And she's older than me.
The rest of the day we toured Salem, the Willamette College and river, and way too many shops. You get Mom and Quilter Girl together and it's like two drunks ditching an AA meeting.
What a wonderful day. Sunny and warm Mr. Sun doing his thing, spring waking up shrubs and trees everywhere, and the in-laws making a 250 mile trip just to see us. We are truly blessed.
And now, shopped and blessed, Quilter Girl!
Today's quilt store was the Quilted Forest in downtown Salem. They had a different selection of wonderful fabrics, there must be millions of different quilt fabrics out there because each store is its own wonderland. I did find a great wine fabric for California plus a couple of sale half-yards and a really great baby quilt fabric. Then we found the little town of Independence just down the River Road from Salem with a great thrift store. I found 5 shirts to add to my collection, but will send them home with my mom to pick up with the Hawaiian shirts she has collected for me. At $1 a shirt that is a lot of fabric for very little money. I am getting so close to home it is hard to restrain myself, it is only a week and a half. Kevin still thinks I need to get rid of something!
QG
Tomorrow we're off to Bend and/or sister, Oregon. See you there.
2 comments:
Question: You've mentioned Mr. Sun several times on your tour, but not once have you mentioned Mrs. Sun. Did she run off with the Man in the Moon or something?
Mr. Sun is single. Hadn't you noticed? Did you skip out in science class? Hate to scare you, but there's no woman in the moon either.
KP
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