I often get confused as to when it’s appropriate to use “capital” versus “capitol.” They are homophones, meaning they sound the same, but they are spelled differently and cannot be used interchangeably. I have learned that it is a capital offense to throw things off the top of a capitol building, and the first word of each sentence and days of the week should start with a capital letter (unless you are writing in French or Spanish, but that’s another whole conversation). I was going to repeat the when’s and why’s of the usage of these two important words, but I’ll just refer you to this linkinstead. Webster does a much better job of explaining the differences than I would anyway. Rest assured, I have spelled State Capitols correctly; I’m not 100% sure when to capitalize it.
Minnesota State Capitol
July 27, 2024. St. Paul, Minnesota. We were in the Minneapolis area with our Airstream for about a week or two, so we got to see several local sites including a National Park and the state capitol building. (Maybe I’ll start a blog of National Parks, and Presidential Libraries, as these are also on our bucket list of things to see, and of course we have a book of stamps for those as well.)
The docent for this tour was probably our most knowledgeable yet. He has been at the capitol building for about 40 years, retired from his full-time job and took on a docent role to conduct tours because he loves it so much. He was on the board for the most recent renovation project; he definitely knows the building inside and out. He was able to answer any question thrown at him, except for how many stairs there are from bottom to top, as that depends on which staircase you use.
This building has a lot of marble, which resulted in a longer build time and twice the cost.
He did know how many steps we had to take on the spiral staircase to get to the Quadrica (63). Incidentally, the Quadrica only sits about half-way up to the very top. We could only go this far up.
Nothing like standing behind a horse’s butt (LOL). In 1995 the Quadrica was restored to its original 1906 appearance.
This is one of the few state capitols that continues to actively house all three branches of government: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial. The governor’s office was closed so we didn’t get to see that part, but we did visit the House and Senate wings. The viewing galleries are impressive. Our docent told us some interesting stories about their legal proceedings, which branch is more proper, and how the phrase “passing the bar” originated. I told Tim it might be interesting to sit in a state hearing in Texas sometime.
I was surprised by all the quotes on the wall referring to the sin of people, given our current political culture. But who would question a Milton quote covered in gold leaf?In the House, above the gallery, is this painting of an owl sitting on an hourglass, reminding folks to make wise use of your time. They only have one opportunity to present their case.House of Representatives, as seen from the viewing gallery.This is one of three paintings in the Supreme Court depicting the development of law. The first was when the law was given to Moses by God. This is where he told us the story of passing the bar.Senate
I hope you enjoyed this little tour of the Minneapolis State Capitol. There’s much more to see, so plan a visit for yourself and start your own passport.
“I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Romans 7:21-25a, The Apostle Paul
À la prochaine…hasta la próxima vez…until next time!
Sometime last year we decided to start visiting the State Capitols in the United States. Maybe it’s a bucket list, or a replacement for the ABCs of Touring we used to do on the motorcycles. Who knows? Either way, it will keep us occupied for quite a while if we plan to see all fifty.
We self-toured our first Capitol building while we were in Wisconsin two years ago, and that piqued my interest. Honestly, Tim might have twisted my arm at the time, as the younger version of myself would not have been remotely interested. I thought they would all look alike. Boy, was I wrong!
I don’t think I appreciated architecture much growing up. Aside, I was told at a young age that I especially detested history and geography as they were my least favorite subjects as a child, primarily due to the memory work involved (When was the War of 1812 anyway? LOL). I was lucky to pass those classes, but I wish now I had paid better attention . I do think the teacher makes a difference. My school teachers pale in comparison to some of the docents guiding our Capitol tours. Kudos to the teachers who know how to make history come alive!
At any rate, we bought ourselves a State Capitol Passport and started collecting stamps. Here is a recap of the first five we have visited.
July 24, 2022 Madison, Wisconsin. We drove to Madison where we rented a motorcycle to ride on the HOG National Superior Loop Touring Rally. That trip was our first State Capitol experience. It was a Sunday. We didn’t have a lot of time for some reason that day, or maybe we just didn’t want to follow some guy around, but we didn’t take a guided tour of the building. However, we did walk through the building and up the stairs to the top where you have a beautiful view of the city. We might go back and do the guided tour on another day.
Inside the Madison Wisconsin State Capitol, under the rotunda.
On the way up to Madison, we stopped in to see Tim’s mom, who had recently been put on Hospice. We had a no-refund on the rental so we stayed a couple of days and then planned to see her again on the way back down. Unfortunately, she died on July 27th. We got the call while we were riding to International Falls. That bike trip in the Upper Peninsula (UP) was bitter-sweet for us.
October 27, 2023. Little Rock, Arkansas. A year later we finally saw our second Capitol. I think this is when we started taking it more seriously. We stopped on our way back from a trip to the north and northeast, where we finished the Superior Lake Circle Tour and spent time in search of fall foliage, all while pulling the Airstream.
We had been through Little Rock before, and visited several of the other historic places with some friends including the “Big Dam Bridge,” the “Little Rock 9” and Central High School, but merely drove by the State Capitol. On this trip, we made a point to go inside. They told us at the front desk to be sure and visit the treasury, so we scheduled a tour of the vault.
This particular capitol has a unique experience unlike any other. We were allowed to go inside the treasury vault (after a very detailed and jaw-dropping explanation of how they built it and got it here), and hold a half million dollars. No other State Capitol allows this. As I was handing off to Tim, I dropped the stack of money and it all went crashing down to the floor of the vault. Fortunately, they have it very well packed. In my defense, a half-million dollars is heavy!
I told Tim I would have worn better clothes had I known we were going to look like millionaires in all these pictures!
December 26, 2023. Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Apparently we had nothing better to do on the day after Christmas than to go to the State Capitol. Actually, our good friends in Florida invited us to come down for a few days between Christmas and New Years, and so we did. We left on Christmas Day and stayed in Baton Rouge where we could visit the capitol the next day (Capitol buildings are typically closed on Christmas Day).
The Senator wing has some stories. U.S. Senator Huey Long was shot in the hallway in 1935. By this time he was on track to become president, but he died 30 hours after the shooting. In 1970 there was an explosion in the Senate Chamber which rocked the Capitol. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be in the building after that, but standing outside the top floor of the building was worth it.
The plaque inside the upper floor has some additional facts about the building. This Capitol is unique in that it is the tallest Capitol building in the United States. It was Louisiana’s first skyscraper. It was built in a mere 14 months from start (Dec 1930) to finish (Feb 1932), and cost about $5 million to complete. It employed many people during the Great Depression, and was championed by Gov. Huey P. Long who campaigned on a platform of building new roads and bridges and a new capitol.
On the top of the Capitol of Louisiana, tallest State Capitol. Yes, it was cold up there!
May 11, 2024. Austin, Texas. This should have been our very first Capitol visit, since we live in the state. But we just never seemed to be going in that direction since we decided to do this. In May, we were heading back from an Airstream Rally in Bandera, so we added it to our list of things to do. We finally made it there. We were impressed with our State’s Capitol! You have heard everything is bigger in Texas – even the State Capitol! The goddess of liberty stands on top, making this capitol taller than the U.S. Capitol. It is the largest of the Capitols in square footage, with a $75 million underground extension adding 650,000 square feet completed in 1993. It has been damaged or destroyed by fire twice in its history, with the 1983 renovation still standing today.
The grounds are also very lovely, offering a place to sit and enjoy the well manicured landscaping. I wished we had packed a picnic lunch. We saw a baby mourning dove fighting off a blue jay, and had to come to its rescue while we were there. Momma dove was cooing not too far away.
I learned several things about our Capitol, as well as intriguing aspects of the history of Texas, the six sovereign nations that have governed Texas, why we had our own president in that history, the Republic of Texas, the Alamo, Mexican history, African American history, and so much more than my brain can hold. We did have a guided tour this time, which includes the underground extension. The docent was very good. Tours of the Capitols are typically free, and you can usually just walk in and join one, although you may have to sign up for one on busy days.
Inside the Texas State Capitol from beneath the rotunda. This one deserves a video. The star in the middle is 8 feet from point to point. Another one is on the floor at the bottom, with the sovereign nations surrounding it. I hope the video works as it’s quite stunning!
July 6, 2024. Springfield, IL. Every time we go to a State Capitol, we know we must be prepared to climb a lot of stairs. Yes, they have elevators to some floors, but there is something about going up those majestic staircases that makes us feel regal. This one has 110 steps to the fourth floor gallery, not quite as many as some of the others we have climbed. Illinois has had six state capitol buildings, as the capitol city changed in its earlier years. This current one has been in Springfield since it was built in 1868. It’s designed in the shape of a Greek cross.
We got there just after the tour started. Security said it would be about an hour before the next one got started. We really didn’t want to wait, but we wanted to do the tour. We saw them upstairs so we “snuck” past security and joined them. It was a weekend and not very busy, so no one seemed to mind. The docent was a young guy and likely the only one they could get to work on a Saturday. He did know some interesting things, but he wasn’t very good at crowd control. One little Indian girl kept running back up the stairs at the end of the tour. He finally asked the parents to go get her.
Poor guy was a bit flustered after he stamped my passport with the wrong date (July 5). I could tell he was really disturbed by this, as if he had just defaced a rare, historic document. I assured him, “well that fits. We just saw fireworks last night so the date is perfect.” He smiled with relief.
The building is undergoing construction, so we couldn’t go in all the wings. What we saw was pretty cool, and definitely worth the stamp, but the real experience of the day was when we saw the Capitol from the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial, and walked around his historic landmark and neighborhood. Lincoln is seen everywhere in this city.
In the center of the first floor rotunda sits a statue. Sculpted by Julia Bracken, the statue represents the welcoming of people to the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893. I was kind of surprised it wasn’t a statue of Lincoln.
I’ll keep a running blog on state capitols, and share our personal unique experiences as well as some facts we learned by going there. You can only fully enjoy it by visiting in person. Maybe you can join us on one of our state capitol tours! We’d love to share that moment with you. The Capitol Passport book is a great way to keep track of our adventures! We keep ours in the glove box.
À la prochaine…hasta la próxima vez…until next time!
Children learn the number 100 at an early age, and teachers have many creative ways to help them understand this concept. Recently we had one of our grandchildren count to 100 as we made our way to a destination. By the time we got there, she was surprised to discover we had arrived, as she was “so busy counting.”
We have officially been full-time on the road for more than 100 days. We sold our house in March, and we are building another one. Well, we intend to build another one. You can read the last two house updates here and here to learn more about that story.
Lunch stop in Le Seuer, MN
On this journey, we have already traveled through Texas (we providentially left the state about a week before the hurricane hit), Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and currently we are camping in Maple Grove Minnesota, which is in the greater Minneapolis area. Between work and other responsibilities, we have participated in Airstream rallies, visited state capitols, presidential libraries, national parks, and witnessed so much of God’s scenic locations. I have made several loaves of sourdough bread, and we enjoy many homemade creations. I think I’ve finally learned how to use the convection microwave, but I have to be careful not to hit “microwave” when I intend to cook in the oven 🥴🤪😳😂. Tim’s pizza was way overcooked that night.
Every time we move from one campsite to another, we start the day with a devotion and sometimes we just burst into song. We decided to start recording these random musings, and we share a singalong with our friends. One take.
So far I’ve only been sharing these on FaceBook, but I know several of our friends do not have FaceBook anymore (including my hubby), so I will add these videos to our ministry YouTube library. They are far from perfect, but we have had fun and felt inspired sharing a few words from Scripture and song.
When we started full-timing it, Tim’s workload was at an all-time low. “Let’s go up north! Let’s visit North Dakota and Montana! Let’s go…” At the time we made these plans his company was not getting a lot of business. The owner was considering staff layoffs (not the consultants). We thought he would have plenty of time to hitch the trailer, travel and site-see.
My how quickly that changed! Almost as soon as we left Texas his company started getting a lot more business. Plus, one of the primary consultants left the company, and now Tim is taking on more of those gigs in addition to making pitches and working with new clients. He is traveling for work more, and we have been diligently planning our trips to ensure we stay in locations where there is an airport, WIFI, good phone signal, and, if possible, Panera Bread 🤪🥴. I even added that to my travel spreadsheet.
I feel like a full-time travel agent on most days 😂🤩🤪.
In addition to Tim’s travel, I have to ensure my visits with MD Anderson for treatment, scans, doctor visits, etc. fit into the travel schedule as well. It’s like when someone puts a lot of sugar in their coffee, we might say “would you like a little coffee to go with that sugar?” Well, Tim and I now say, “would you like a little downtime to go with that travel?”
Aside, I was in The Woodlands for treatment, hence the travel. I also had an MRI of the brain today, and the doctor said it was an excellent scan. They have been following some residual spots, and have determined they are simply post-treatment (post-radiation) spots. They have not grown, and she is confident I am still cancer free in the brain. PTL! 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Tim and I both experienced some travel saga related to the botched Microsoft patch. Tim had to cancel one of his onsite visits due to flight cancellations and no rental cars. I was a bit more lucky on the flight out, but now I am sitting in Starbucks at the Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, waiting to see if my flight home from treatment will be cancelled. It has already been delayed twice, so it will be close to midnight when I get home.
Home….is where we park it. ❤️❤️❤️
Each time we stop, we ask ourselves, “what did we break this time?” 😂😂We have had our share of drawers opening, hinges breaking, items flying around that we forgot to tie down, medicine and salt pouring out on the floor. No more spaghetti sauce sagas, fortunately. We’ve learned how to fix things on our own, and YouTube fills in the gaps. Tim is becoming quite the handyman!
Other pantry door. 🤦♀️ I think I forgot to slam it shut.
In the past 100 days we have done several organizational changes, to make our Airstream more livable and durable. I’ve added automatic lights in all the dark cupboards and closets. Tim laughs when I (frequently) use the word “Velcro.” He thinks it’s ironic that we have to use Velcro to hold our expensive Airstream together 😂😂😂😂😂.
In addition to Velcro and zip ties, we upgraded our kitchen in the Airstream to include three gorgeous walnut pieces. We picked two of them up in Wisconsin, and had the third shipped from a friend to Minneapolis. Below are some pictures of our latest additions.
Our new custom-built dinette table. Such a beauty! Much sturdier than the one that came with the Globetrotter, and easier for us old folks to maneuver into the back of the U-bench.
This is our custom-designed sink cover. We took out the white covers that came with the rig (they looked like the ones behind the faucet). This gives us more room to work and is beautiful as well. Matches the table perfectly, and it is food-safe for cutting.
This is our stove cover/ cutting board, also food-safe. A friend of ours is getting into woodworking, so we gave him this one to do. He did a GREAT job! It matches the walls and other woodwork perfectly. I love the walnut. It’s rich and has a nice grain to it.
We used to keep our spices behind the stove on a rack, so we measured to include those behind it. However, now we keep them in the pantry. One less thing to move. If I had realized we were going to do that, I would have had him go all the way to the wall 🤦♀️. Lesson learned. I still love it though, and I can use that little gap for my spoon rest and butter dish.
One more piece of wood for good measure. When we were picking up our table and sink cover from Tayfun (Topics Woodworks), he wasn’t happy with how the sink cover was fitting. It was just a hair too big. So, he offered to make us a new one. Tim said no, don’t waste the wood. Can you just shave this one down?
He fixed it while we waited, and then gave us THIS charcuterie board for our trouble. He’s a great guy, honest, and a master woodworker. We would definitely order from him again.
I think that pretty well catches us up. Thanks for giving me something to do while I wait on my delayed flight. I was starting to get sleepy. 🥱
À la prochaine…hasta la próxima vez…until next time!
We got our lot fit for Lot #75, and then the developer called to remind us there is an active pipeline with a 20 foot utility easement running across the front of the property. When we had originally looked at the lot, he led us to believe it was close to the road, near the culvert. As it turned out, the easement was one foot from our front door, and the walkway was on top of the easement 😳😳.
That set us on a journey of discovery.
The developer sent us an additional document from Explorer (the pipeline company) which said that if ever we wanted to do anything over the easement, including paved driveway, we had to send a proposal and they would have up to 180 days to review. SIX MONTHS! And then they could make you change your plan. We were calculating how much time the builder has to do their work, and now we are concerned they have not even started this process. Also, someone from the pipeline has to be present the entire time you do any improvements.
I reached out to my friends on Facebook, and those who have pipelines on their property (which is very common in Texas). They had a variety of things to say. One rancher in particular said he had some horror stories, as well as some not so bad stories. Our main concern was what would happen if they decided to come in and do repairs and broke up our driveway, or our walkway? Would they fix it? Would we have access to our house? How long could it take? Would they mow over any landscaping we might plant (they are responsible for mowing the pipeline easement)? How responsive are they going to be to our inquiries? So many questions raised our DefCon level a notch or two.
We decided to reach out to Explorer and ask some questions before getting too panicky. We called, sent emails, called again, tried and tried, and never could get a response. One guy finally sent an email acknowledging he had gotten the email, but that was the end of his communication. Needless to say, we were not feeling very comfortable about having an Explorer active pipeline on our property.
The builder suggested we change lots, so we started that process.
At this point we were very grateful they had not yet purchased Lot #75. It was still on reserve. The developer had gone up on their prices by about $20-30,000, so switching to another lot was going to be a challenge. Before we left Texas for our northern trip, we went back out to the property and looked at other lots. As it turned out they had just opened access to some other lots we had not seen before. Lot #84, just a few lots down from #75 but outside of the pipeline easement, was a bit smaller (1.0 acre) but it had some advantages over #75. For one, it is relatively square (#75 is a big trapezoid). Also, #84 backs up to some beautiful trees (more, in fact, than #75). It is a bit closer to the front, so they should start pinning those lots sooner 🤞🏻.
We can see progress is happening out there. Lots of heavy equipment are moving dirt around, creating retention ponds, placing culverts, etc. The roads have been graded, and it is easier to see where each lot is located (although still not accurately). We feel pretty confident they will be able to start building soon (hurricanes aside).
All that to say, we have officially switched to Lot #84. The builder CFO had to get involved because the developer wanted to increase our cost to current prices, but he did some magic and we signed the document this week to switch from #75 to #84.
We’ll keep you posted on further progress.
À la prochaine…hasta la próxima vez…until next time!
About 100 days ago we sold our house in Conroe, moved our stuff into storage, and moved into our Roam Home to begin full-time living, while waiting for our new house to be built. We are very blessed to have an Airstream that provides comfort and travel opportunities to live in while we are “homeless.”
A little background behind this decision might be helpful. We downsized in 2019 from a 4,000+ SF home to a 2050 SF home just a half mile down the road, in the same neighborhood. We loved the house, loved the builder, and loved the community. It met our needs on many levels. It was close to MD Anderson as well as other amenities, there were trees behind us, we had a nice sized yard, good neighbors, and a relatively quiet neighborhood. We thought this would be our forever “retirement” home.
Then COVID hit.
The RV Industry exploded. People were tired of staying home. Online jobs increased, which expanded opportunities. The whole world was buying RVs and moving into them at a pace greater than the market could support. We made plans to travel places the motorcycles couldn’t go, avoid hotels, and bought the last Airstream on the lot. After a year of trying to do both, we let the bikes go and Airstreaming became our priority. Each time we would hook her up and go on a trip, we started thinking about how we could store her closer to home when we weren’t in it.
Things were changing in the world, as well as in our own neighborhood. The trees started coming down between our home and the interstate, the road noise got louder and louder, multiple families (and their cars) were moving into the same house just three doors down, our family was growing and making our home feel a bit too small, and we wanted to have our Airstream on property with us. The only way to get around all of these issues was to look for some land where we could have some space between us and the road noise, a bit more elbow room between us and our neighbors, and a big enough lot where we could build an RV barn and keep the Airstream on property. An added bonus was a slightly bigger house and yard for when the family comes to visit.
We reserved a 1.24 acre lot (#75) in an acreage community called The Manors in New Waverly Texas (it’s about 15-20 minutes from our former home). It’s a High Meadows development; we toured their other properties containing multi-million dollar homes, and felt very good with how the final developments had turned out. The developer “promised” they would be ready to sell us the lot within a couple of months, but it’s taking a bit longer for them to get there. This is their first time developing in Walker County, so it’s going a bit slower than they originally anticipated. (For example, surprising to us is the requirement to have fire hydrants in Walker County, which are not required in Montgomery county.) That was a bonus in our eyes. We signed on the lot before they were pinned, while roads are still in the dirt phase.
After reserving the lot, we had to find a builder. We signed a contract with Gracepoint Homes, after interviewing many, many (did I say many?) builders over several months’ time. It’s been quite a process! This all took place before we sold our home in Conroe. My caveat for moving forward and selling the house was this: we choose a lot and builder first, so I don’t end up without a home or a home to move into 🤪🥴.
We chose Gracepoint for several reasons, not necessarily in order of priority.
First, they had the best price for a quality product. We picked one of their floorpans, which saved a ton of money, and then customized it to our needs. They are a custom home builder, so we could change anything we wanted (within reason). The next possible builder was $40K more expensive and their home was smaller by 300 SF. It was a no-brainer.
Second, Gracepoint offered a program where they bundle the house and land, meaning we don’t have to do the closing on the property or get a loan until the final product is complete. No other custom builder was offering this option. That was such a blessing, considering we were homeless and travelling until the house is built.
Third, we like the builder. They have a good reputation even with other builders. They are easy to work with, respond to calls and emails, and Tammy is always friendly when we talk with her on the phone. They seem to be genuinely advocating for our best interest.
This is our first time being one of the first, if not the first, to build a house in a community. Honestly, it scares the bejeebers out of us. It took a very long time to make this decision because of the potential risks involved. At the end of the day, the homes are so far apart we don’t feel like other owners’ home construction will be that big of an issue. We prayed about all the options and felt very confident this was the right choice, so we signed on the dotted lines.
We put our house on the market and within less than a week we had a contract for $20,000 over our (already high) asking price. Two weeks later we closed and had completely moved out. That very quick timeline, the purchase price, the builder bundling the loan, and other pieces were further confirmation we are doing the right thing. We feel very much at peace with this decision.
So, what’s the status on your house? How is your house coming along? When will it be done?
I fear this blog is already getting too long. You’ll just have to read the next one for a status update. 🤪🥴😂😂😂
À la prochaine…hasta la próxima vez…until next time!
