WEEKEND TRAVEL - West Plains

Okay.. so this isn't really a travel type article but I had to make a trip to West Plains on Saturday. Never thought about taking pictures. Just doing what I needed to do and get home. I had things here to do before the sun went down. 

To get a better scope of West Plains, you can visit WestPlains.net

I love spending time in the Visitor's Center. I get turned around direction-wise when it comes to West Plains but you'll find the VC on your right as you're coming into town on Hwy 63 from the west (Springfield/ Willow Springs)  They have some great displays including a pants suit previously owned by hometown country girl, Jan Howard and a rhinestone suite by the late Porter Wagoner, also from West Plains. You'll see those HERE

I'll never forget the first time Bob and I went to West Plains. We'd not moved here yet but had purchased the house. We were looking for some building supplies. We stopped at the local fire station for information. Their directions to where we needed to go included Porter Wagoner Blvd and Jan Howard Ave.  You know you're in a small town when....

Finally, the 14th Annual Library Chili Cook-off was held at the West Plains Civic Center. This is a big fundraising event for the local library and the great programs they offer. Dr. Julie Hart of Hart Family Eyecare is the reigning Chili Queen! She's our optometrist and one of the sweetest ladies you'll ever meet... and I guess she makes a mean bowl of chili!


For the rest of this month I'll only be posting on Monday's and Friday's. I should be back up to speed and able to bring some Ozark history posts back in. Wednesday posts will only run if I have Ozark books to review and Thursdays... well, we'll see where my mind wanders.

Hang with me. You know we don't move real fast around here :-)

WEEKEND TRAVEL

A couple of weeks ago, Bob and I made a trip to West Plains. He was meeting up with a guy to buy a generator and I needed a few things from 'the evil store' as we've dubbed the big Box Store. We always spend more than we intend when we walk through those doors. But I'm getting better.

On this day, storms were to the south and west of us. I was struck by this cloud formation. All of the clouds seem to be sprouting up from the ground like mushrooms.

Over the course of about 45 minutes the clouds went from the single plume...

to having a smaller friend. They soon joined to form a circle of sorts.

And finally, I loved the brush strokes of this formation. One of the ladies on a crafting thread I belong to thought this one would make a lovely scrapbooking background. I agree.

You can keep sight of where you are going while still enjoying the beauty around you. 

WEEKEND TRAVELS

One of the 125 bases for Air Evac Lifeteam is located in West Plains, Missouri. The new office building was completed in 2015. We drive by this display often on our way to Hirsh's Farm Supply or one of our favorite restaurant options.

The flags and helicopter are the cornerstone of their parking lot. I am always awestruck by the flags. Last week, the flags flew at half mast. I'm not sure why. I thought perhaps they may have been in tribute to the many fallen police officers over the previous couple of weeks. However, when we drove past the Sheriff's Dept, their flags were not at half mast.

One of the items on my Photography Bucket List is to take a night shot. I just never remember. Maybe tonight.