Wyoming Breezes

Brenda and Marilyn Prairie Museum of Art and History Colby, KS 2015 A couple of weeks ago, I shared a post about playing Jacks at recess , and several readers also remembered playing the game with their friends. Another game that I played often as a child, both at school with friends and at home by myself was Hopscotch.  The diagram painted on the sidewalk leading to the prairie school at the museum in Kansas was quite different to the one that my friends and I played. The diagram we used was like the one below, but with much larger blocks.  Our diagram was not painted on the sidewalk: we drew it in the dirt with a stick. We didn't number the boxes because everyone knew the sequence.  I remember have some favorite stones for playing hopscotch. The perfect stone was flat and about the size of a fifty cent piece. Anything bigger would probably not reach the upper blocks.  We would practically fly through the boxes after we picked up our stones, turned, and hopped ...

Moon Marble Company Bonner Springs, KS August 2015 Last summer's trip across Kansas included a stop at the Moon Marble Company in Bonner Springs, KS.  We attended a short demonstration on how hand-made marbles are formed. It was interesting, but not at all what I expected.  marble-making demonstration Moon Marble Company August 2015 The demonstration area consisted of a small section of bleachers for spectators to sit and watch an employee melt a glass rod and form one small marble. The gift shop in front of the demonstration area was packed with replicas of vintage games, marbles, and trinkets. Yes, it was a tourist trip, but a fun stop, too.

Sod House Prairie Museum of Art and History Colby, Kansas August 2015 The sod house on the grounds of the Prairie Museum of Art and History in Colby, Kansas was built on site by volunteers. I was particularly interested in the exhibit because my maternal grandparents built and lived in a sod house . I always wondered what sod houses might look like on the inside and was surprised when I walked into the display house. kitchen area of the one-room sod house Colby, Kansas August 2015 The display home was cozy and inviting. I'm sure the depth of the windows is due to the thickness of the sod walls. While the display house had wooden floors, I assume many of the prairie homes had dirt floors. bedroom section of the one-room sod house Colby, Kansas August 2015 The sod house on display was one room and had few furnishings: a single bed, a bookcase, a trunk, a small dining table and chairs, a cook stove that also heated the house, a small pantry cabinet, and a wash...

unique towel dispenser Dodge City casino Dodge City, KS August 2016 Hmm, are you beginning to wonder if I'm obsessed with bathrooms?  Here's another unique feature that I spotted in Kansas. Be honest, have you EVER seen a towel dispenser like this? Note that's so unique it needed an identification label attached directly behind it. Other unique Kansas bathrooms:     Lucas, Kansas     Manhatten, Kansas

Mouthwash Dispenser Chick-fil-A Manhattan, KS August 2015 I was surprised to find this dispenser in the women's bathroom in the Manhattan, Kansas  Chick-fil-A restaurant. Have you seen dispensers like this in your area?

Marilyn & Brenda Oz Winery Wamego, KS August 2015 The Oz Winery is just down the street from the Oz Museum and was a welcome respite from the heat. wine list We purchased a flight of three wines that we wanted to try from their selection, and then selected some bottles of our favorites to be delivered when we arrived home. Since we still had several days of travel and did not want to expose the wine to the intense heat inside and outside the vehicle, we opted to have the wine delivered. The wines have clever names like "Curl Your Stockings," "Surrender Dorothy," "Yellow Brix," "Drunken Munchkin," and my favorite - "Squished Witch." I ordered two bottles of "Squished Witch," two of "Witch Gone Good," and one of "Auntie Em's Prairie Rose." As I drink this wine, I will be reminded of the fun that we had sampling and of all the adventures of our trip.

new movie poster Oz Museum, Wamego, KS August 2015 Remember when the Wizard of Oz was aired on television every March? I can't begin to count the number of times that I rushed through my chores and into the house so I could watch it. I had no idea that over half of the movie was in color because we didn't have a color television until the early to mid-1960s. Scarecrow Visiting the Oz Museum in Wamego, KS was a real treat. It is a small building and packed with memorabilia from around the world. Most of the main characters were on display in separate areas: Tinman Cowardly Lion replica of Dorothy's ruby slippers The Dorothy and Toto display looked a bit forlorn, so I'll show you the replica Ruby Slippers that were on display. It was fun to visit this museum and to relive some childhood memories. Do you have memories of watching The Wizard of Oz ?

Bowl Plaza Lucas, KS August 2015 Be prepared to be amazed at the artistry that we found at Bowl Plaza in Lucas, Kansas. While researching places to visit on our trip, Brenda discovered that Lucas was known not only for the Garden of Eden but also for Bowl Plaza, one of the World's Most Artsy Public Restrooms. Since the Garden of Eden attracts over 10,000 visitors a year, the town (population 400) realized it needed a public restroom, and you really have to see this yourself to appreciate its beauty. Yes, I actually believe this restroom is beautiful. When you park in front of the building, you will notice a large roll of toilet paper that is unrolling toward the building. The "paper" becomes the sidewalk. The front of the building represents the tank on a toilet complete with a handle for flushing. The mosaic design is the lid. Note the arched benches on the side represent the toilet bowl, but look what's inside the toilet bowl. . . This sculp...

Garden of Eden Lucas, Kansas August 2015 Driving northeast of the church last Wednesday's post , we arrived in Lucas, Kansas home of one of the most bizarre things I've ever seen: the  Garden of Eden . Garden of Eden Lucas, Kansas August 2015 S.P. Dinsmoor built a "log cabin" out of native limestone with the intent of creating a tourist attraction. The main floor was designed to entertain visitors, and he used 3,000 feet of oak, redwood, and walnut to create elaborate moldings and baseboards. No two windows or doors in the "cabin" are the same size or style. He and his wife lived in a walk-out basement, which was probably a good thing because the stairs to the upper floor and basement were narrow and extremely steep. S.P. Dinsmoor carved his name above the door of his limestone log cabin in Lucas, KS Dinsmoor, the artist and social commentator, spent the years between 1907 and 1928 creating the Cabin Home and the Garden of Eden. He locat...

The Basilica of St. Fidelis "The Cathedral of the Plains" Victoria, Kansas August 2015 One of the highlights of the trip for me was visiting this gorgeous church. It towers above the small town (population 1,214 in the 2010 census) and has an amazing history. It is 220 feet long, 110 feet wide at the transepts, and 75 feet wide at the nave. The ceiling is 44 feet above the ground and the towers rise 141 feet. The seating capacity of 1,100 made it, at the time of its dedication, the largest church west of the Mississippi. Construction of the Cathedral began in 1908 and was completed in 1911. The exterior is constructed of native limestone, quarried seven miles south of Victoria. Besides collectively contributing $132,000 for the building, each parishioner was required to haul 6 wagonloads of stone, so large families easily hauled 70 to 80 loads of stone to meet their obligation. Each stone weighed 50 to 100 pounds and engineers estimate that the people hauled and dres...