July 24, 2009
Back at the Bismarck Public Library so Bill can catch up on photo processing. We can connect at the campground, and there are a couple of places to plug in, but he has a hard time seeing his screen outside--not a good way to process photos. So we come here. It’s a really nice library. For those people who don’t want to use their own computers or do not have one, there are many internet computers and then a few that are for database searches and word processing. It’s a very pleasant space. Spacious with good lighting. Comfortable furniture and air conditioning--this last was a big plus yesterday when it was in the mid 90s here. Today is supposed to be around 80. Not my favorite, but I can live with it, especially in July and especially when my friends from Klamath Falls are telling me that it’s been in the 90s there for several days with more to come. I miss the friends, but not the weather!
I like Bismarck. It’s very pleasant. The one fly in the ointment is that there is apparently some sort of pollen or something here that doesn’t like me. In Klamath Falls I suffered to varying degrees from some kind of allergy or sensitivity to plants, pollution or something. My ears would get clogged up and crackle, my throat would burn, I would cough and be congested. Once I left, I was relieved of these issues until we got here. And then yesterday they cut the grass at the campground. My throat burned, my ear got even worse and when I spoke, I could hear my voice echoing through my head. Then my wisdom tooth starting hurting. Don’t know what the deal is with that. I spent last night in a great deal of pain. Finally I took some Benadryl to try and relieve the pressure that was building up in my head and to hopefully get some sleep. It worked. This morning, the symptoms are back. The tooth pain is the worst, of course, and I don’t know just how that fits into everything. But surgery to remove a wisdom tooth--or I should say what’s left of it--is not an option, so I just have to hope that things ease up.
Other than that, though, we are having a good time here. The campground is nice and peaceful. The town itself is interesting. It’s like a suburb without the urb. There’s no city to speak of.
The center of everything seems to be the Capitol Grounds. That is where the North Dakota Heritage Center is--a place I highly recommend for anyone traveling through Bismarck. It’s very well done and informative and there is no admission charge. They also have an extensive group of walking trails on the grounds. We walked around this morning before walking over here. The one we were on had some sculptures, which are scattered all over, as well as different kinds of trees. There were markers set into the ground alongside the trail telling you the common name and the scientific name for the various trees. And there was a set of petrified logs that are apparently 57 million years old. Those were great--such a wonderful group of textures! Anyway, it looks like people come from town to walk on the trails. It’s a very nice place to walk. Lots of green and plenty of shade!
Last night we saw in the paper (after the fact) that the Lutheran Church was hosting a community dinner. I wish I would have known earlier so I could have gone and helped. It was good to see something going on, anyway. We are still waiting for a reply to the email we sent the clerk of the Bismarck Religious Society of Friends. When I googled them to find out where they are and what time they meet, I got two different addresses and a meeting time with one of them. Who knows whether this is accurate. We will try to get in touch by phone and if we can’t, we’ll try to go to the Unitarian Church. I am appreciating more and more the great job Jan McClellan does on the Klamath Falls Friends Church website. It contains the kind of current information that I have been looking for and not finding on this trip.
Yesterday was the day to have the gas gauge fixed. It decided to stop working as we left Butte and it was making Bill nervous. On the highway it’s not so bad because we know how far we can go on a tank of gas. But as we get into more urban/suburban driving, we’re not quite sure. It turns out that the floater had filled with gas and sunk to the bottom of the tank, so it was registering as empty. Mr. Lubester put a new one in and now we’re back at full.
