Stuart Day 12

Carthage Diner

A precious moment!

Rambo!

A new baseball cap

Having had the night to reflect that we had taken the Downstream Casino almost to the point of financial collapse, Steve decided to rub salt in the wound by investing a further dollar; unfortunately, we had to waste precious time while he found a machine that required a stake of less than $5. Eventually he did, and the casino was saved when his dollar bill was lost at the single press of a button. We headed off for Carthage (64836), where the first battle of the Civil War was fought. A lovely town with wonderful homes and a town square straight out of 'Back To The Future'. We parked in the square and approached the most impressive county courthouse just as a prison van disgorged its contents - young men in hooped prison suits in handcuffs and chained to each other round the ankles. Breafast in the retro Carthage Diner was a delight - it was clearly a meeting point for the elders of the town, who engaged us in lively conversation as their members came and went. Curiosity then attracted us to the Chapel of Precious Moments, which we expected to be a religious movement. In fact, Precious Moments was conceived by an artist and is a brand of cards and figurines featuring angelic children - the ultimate in American schmaltz. The grounds are beautifully tended and peaceful and the 'chapel' features murals of the angelic cherubs. As we left, the whole place was somehow summed up by the smallest dwarf I have ever seen concluding his gospel concert by singing 'God Bless America' to a desultory audience of half a dozen people, including an elderly Amish couple. On to Springfield Missouri (65807)(we shall also be going to Springfield, the state capital of Illinois). Interesting place, famous for the Bass Pro shop, the largest outdoor (huntin', shootin', fishin') shop in the world. Amazing place. We then took a detour up to the Ozark Mountains. Drove through pretty rolling farmland, dotted with Baptist churches and extracts from the Psalms on placards along the roadside exhorting us to repent. Steve has returned his winnings to Downstream! At this point, I thought a night under canvas was inevitable, but we eventually booked into the Sleep Inn in Camdenton (65020). We then undertook a couple of strenuous but enjoyable hikes in the Ha Ha Tonka State Park and look forward to more tomorrow.