FedEx was “born” in Little Rock

According to Max Brantley at the Arkansas Times:

It is the 50th anniversary of the incorporation of FedEx in Little Rock. Fed Ex now celebrates its anniversaries pegged to its move to Memphis in 1973, when it was lured in part by a promise of a Memphis airport expansion and $6 million loan. The rest is transportation history. Memphis is the logistics hub of the nation and has the second-busiest airport in the world. Governing magazine in 2010 called Memphis’ decision to lure the fledgling enterprise perhaps “the single most important economic development decision made in any major U.S. city in the past 30 years.” Which could also be said, in reverse, about Little Rock.

Actual operations didn’t start until after the move to Memphis.

Federal Express officially began operations on April 17, 1973, with 389 team members. That night, 14 small aircraft took off from Memphis and delivered 186 packages to 25 U.S. cities from Rochester, New York, to Miami, Florida. Though the company did not show a profit until July 1975, it soon became the premier carrier of high-priority goods in the marketplace and set the standard for the express shipping industry it established.

0 comments
america, american history, arkansas, now that’s cool!, tennessee

Stumped

Halfway through a post-COVID trip to Colorado, we were stumped by the combination lockbox that contained the key for the Airbnb we were renting for our next stay.  We rolled the thumbwheels to the proper combination—multiple times—but it wouldn’t open for us.
Airbnb house key lock box
Since we couldn’t get in, we needed to contact the Airbnb hosts.  Unfortunately, cell phone reception is minimal or nonexistent in that area.  The nearest town is about 5 miles away so that is where we headed to try to contact the hosts, Anu and/or Gana. Anu responded to my message immediately! (Note: this is the first time we’ve used Airbnb so the site and messaging were new to us.)
Airbnb messages
Anu tried to explain what we needed to do, but it seemed that we had tried everything she suggested. Both she and Gana were, separately, in Denver so wouldn’t be able to make it to the house for quite a while.  I told her we’d go back to the house and try again.
Once we were back, Karen went on the porch, tried the lockbox, and had it open before I was able to see what she had done.
Four days later after a very pleasant stay in a wonderful mountain setting, we were supposed to put the key back in the lockbox.  It was only after I had it open that I realized it was a different box than what had given us fits.  Anu had mentioned that they might need to but she had also said that no one else had had a problem with it.
I plan to post more later about our stay in this Airbnb home where a glacier-fed stream runs through the property.
Fall River

This is cross-posted at Haw Creek.

7 comments
bonk!, colorado, life, mountains, stream, travel, Travel Photos

Warmer, heat, & shots

RQVT3788

All of our snow is gone. It doesn’t last long here once the weather warms up.  We would have been stuck here for about a week because of it, but being at home during COVID is the norm, so I can’t really say we were stuck here due to the weather.

I actually shoveled snow for the first time in forever.  We don’t even own a snow shovel so I used a regular flat blade shovel.

Our heat pump had gone out during the coldest, snowiest days.  We have the fireplace and plenty of seasoned dry firewood as well as several modern safe space heaters so staying warm wasn’t an issue.

We had a call in for heating and air techs to come out at the end of that week so I shoveled a pathway to and around our old heat pump.  By old, I mean ancient and obsolete.  We had it originally installed in the mid 1980s to replace the previous unit.  We had several repairs to the unit in recent years, but this time weren’t terribly surprised to be told that it was to the point that it could not be repaired, that repair parts were no longer available for it.  The techs told us they would let the office know and that they would call us on Monday about ordering a new unit.

I know that a lot of people say you should get more than one quote on a purchase like that, but we’ve been dealing with this company for years.  In fact, they installed the unit that was being replaced.  When they called on Monday, their price was in the ballpark for what I researched, so I told them to go ahead and order the unit they had come up with.  It came in on Wednesday and they installed it on Thursday.

While they were here, birds were still flying to the bird feeders in that area.  The birds have been going absolutely crazy the last few days.  Some of them are really selfish little buggers, flailing their wings and pecking at other visitors to the feeders.  Most of them have been new to us — pine siskins, which have a highly variable winter migration pattern.

We’re scheduled for our first COVID shots on the 4th.  It’s a bit of a drive, but all of the local lists are full up for weeks.

6 comments
arkansas, around home, covid, critters, life, weather, wild life, winter

Winter weather—snow & cold

January 17, 2021 West-central Arkansas, two snow storms and very prolong subfreezing temperatures

Our backyard.

This week has been one for the record books, for sure, across much of the United States.  Millions have lost power and water, especially across Texas, most of which is on its own electric grid separated from the rest of the United States.  Snow and extended subfreezing temperatures are widespread, including many areas where the utility infrastructure is not designed for this kind of weather.

I lived for about 5 years in the greater Houston Texas area.  While some winter days were chilly, and we had rudimentary natural gas heaters, I never saw temperatures much below the 50s that I can recall.  The only jacket that I had was a windbreaker.

We have had a total of about 11 inches of snow between two storms and our temperature has been below freezing all week—it’ll probably have been 9 days of subfreezing temperature before it finally gets above freezing.  The lowest we’ve seen is -3°F, I believe.

…and next week is supposed to be in the 60s!

6 comments
america, arkansas, around home, landscape, life, photography, weather, winter

Bent’s Fort

Royalty-free images by Mike1 — No. 145 of over 1200 images

Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site, near La Junta, Colorado, September 5, 2018

Bent’s Old Fort – History and Culture2

Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site preserves the resources associated with the Bent–St. Vrain trading empire, which radiated from Bent’s Old Fort into what is now Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Nebraska, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, and Missouri. The fort solidified one of the most important and last established trading cartels in the Rocky Mountain West.

William and Charles Bent, along with Ceran St. Vrain, built the original adobe fort on this site in 1833 to trade with Plains Indians and trappers. The fort quickly became the center of the expanding holdings of Bent, St. Vrain & Company, including Fort St. Vrain to the north and Fort Adobe to the south, along with company stores in Taos and Santa Fe. The primary trade was with the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians for buffalo robes.

For much of its 16-year history, the fort was the only major permanent white settlement on the Santa Fe Trail between Missouri and the Mexican settlements. The fort provided explorers, adventurers, and the U.S. Army a place to get needed supplies, wagon repairs, livestock, good food, water and company, rest and protection in this vast “Great American Desert.” During the war with Mexico in 1846, the fort became a staging area for Colonel Stephen Watts Kearny’s “Army of the West.” Disasters and disease caused the fort’s abandonment in 1849.

Bent’s Old Fort was an important point of commercial, social, military, and cultural contact between Anglo-American, Native American, Hispanic, and other groups on the border of United States Territory. The fort served as a point of exchange for trappers from the southern Rocky Mountains, travelers from Missouri and the east, Hispanic traders from Mexico, and Native Americans, primarily from the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Comanche, and Kiowa Tribes.

Today, Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site features a reconstructed version of the 1840s adobe trading post. Archeological excavations and original sketches, paintings, and diaries were used to replicate the features of the fort, which was reconstructed during the country’s bicentennial and Colorado’s centennial in 1976. The architecturally accurate, reconstructed fort and its historic setting allow visitors to “step back” in time to learn about and reflect on the westward expansion of the United States.


Post Endnotes

  1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
  2. History & Culture – Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site

Series Notes:

  • This image is also shared as public domain on PixabayFlickr, and Pinterest.
  • Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
  • Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
  • All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.
0 comments
american history, colorado, history, parks, public domain, royalty free, sky

Backlit

Royalty-free images by Mike1 — No. 144 of over 1200 images

Backlit daffodil in west-central Arkansas Ozarks, March 13, 2018
Backlit daffodil in west-central Arkansas Ozarks, March 13, 2018

What is the difference between daffodils and narcissus?2

None. The two words are synonyms. Narcissus is the Latin or botanical name for all daffodils, just as ilex is for hollies. Daffodil is the common name for all members of the genus Narcissus, and its use is recommended by the ADS at all times other than in scientific writing.


Post Endnotes

  1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
  2. Daffodil FAQs – The American Daffodil Society

Series Notes:

  • This image is also shared as public domain on PixabayFlickr, and Pinterest.
  • Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
  • Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
  • All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.
0 comments
arkansas, photography, plants, public domain, royalty free

Lincoln on Rushmore

Royalty-free images by Mike1 — No. 143 of over 1200 images

Abraham Lincoln on Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota, August 22, 2007
Abraham Lincoln on Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota, August 22, 2007

Abraham Lincoln on Rushmore2

The construction of Mount Rushmore National Memorial took 14 years, from 1927 to 1941.

A few hundred workers, most of whom were miners, sculptors, or rock climbers, used dynamite, jackhammers, and chisels to remove material from the mountain. A stairway was constructed to the top of the mountain, where ropes were fixed. Workers were supported by harnesses attached to the ropes.

The irises of the eyes were sculpted as holes. A cube of granite was left in each to represent the reflection highlight thereby making the appearance of the eyes more realistic.

Construction began on October 4, 1927. In 1935, Borglum appointed Italian immigrant Luigi Del Bianco as chief carver.

Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln’s head was the most challenging because of his beard, but his head was completed on the far right of the cliff. Lincoln’s face was finally dedicated on September 17, 1937, which was the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of the United States in 1787.


Post Endnotes

  1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
  2. Construction of Mount Rushmore – Wikipedia

Series Notes:

  • This image is also shared as public domain on PixabayFlickr, and Pinterest.
  • Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
  • Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
  • All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.
0 comments
america, american history, history, parks, photography, public domain, royalty free, south dakota, summer

Backlit Ozark Daffodil

Royalty-free images by Mike1 — No. 143 of over 1200 images

Backlit Ozark Daffodil, West-Central Arkansas, March 7, 2018
Backlit Ozark Daffodil, West-Central Arkansas, March 7, 2018

Narcissus2

Narcissus is a genus of predominantly spring flowering perennial plants of the amaryllis family, Amaryllidaceae. Various common names including daffodil, narcissus and jonquil are used to describe all or some members of the genus. Narcissus has conspicuous flowers with six petal-like tepals surmounted by a cup- or trumpet-shaped corona. The flowers are generally white or yellow (also orange or pink in garden varieties), with either uniform or contrasting coloured tepals and corona.

Narcissus were well known in ancient civilisation, both medicinally and botanically, but formally described by Linnaeus in his Species Plantarum (1753). The genus is generally considered to have about ten sections with approximately 50 species. The number of species has varied, depending on how they are classified, due to similarity between species and hybridisation. The genus arose some time in the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene epochs, in the Iberian peninsula and adjacent areas of southwest Europe. The exact origin of the name Narcissus is unknown, but it is often linked to a Greek word for intoxicated (narcotic) and the myth of the youth of that name who fell in love with his own reflection. The English word “daffodil” appears to be derived from “asphodel”, with which it was commonly compared.

The species are native to meadows and woods in southern Europe and North Africa with a centre of diversity in the Western Mediterranean, particularly the Iberian peninsula. Both wild and cultivated plants have naturalised widely, and were introduced into the Far East prior to the tenth century. Narcissi tend to be long-lived bulbs, which propagate by division, but are also insect-pollinated. Known pests, diseases and disorders include viruses, fungi, the larvae of flies, mites and nematodes. Some Narcissus species have become extinct, while others are threatened by increasing urbanisation and tourism.

Historical accounts suggest narcissi have been cultivated from the earliest times, but became increasingly popular in Europe after the 16th century and by the late 19th century were an important commercial crop centred primarily in the Netherlands. Today narcissi are popular as cut flowers and as ornamental plants in private and public gardens. The long history of breeding has resulted in thousands of different cultivars. For horticultural purposes, narcissi are classified into divisions, covering a wide range of shapes and colours. Like other members of their family, narcissi produce a number of different alkaloids, which provide some protection for the plant, but may be poisonous if accidentally ingested. This property has been exploited for medicinal use in traditional healing and has resulted in the production of galantamine for the treatment of Alzheimer’s dementia. Long celebrated in art and literature, narcissi are associated with a number of themes in different cultures, ranging from death to good fortune, and as symbols of spring. The daffodil is the national flower of Wales and the symbol of cancer charities in many countries. The appearance of the wild flowers in spring is associated with festivals in many places.

read more


Post Endnotes

  1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
  2. Narcissus – Wikipedia

Series Notes:

  • This image is also shared as public domain on PixabayFlickr, and Pinterest.
  • Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
  • Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
  • All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.
0 comments
arkansas, photography, plants, public domain, royalty free, spring

Ozark Purple Iris

Royalty-free images by Mike1 — No. 141 of over 1200 images

Ozark Purple Iris, West-Central Arkansas, May 2, 2018
Ozark Purple Iris, West-Central Arkansas, May 2, 2018

Iris2

Iris is a genus of 260–300 species of flowering plants with showy flowers. It takes its name from the Greek word for a rainbow, which is also the name for the Greek goddess of the rainbow, Iris. Some authors state that the name refers to the wide variety of flower colors found among the many species. As well as being the scientific name, iris is also widely used as a common name for all Iris species, as well as some belonging to other closely related genera. A common name for some species is ‘flags’, while the plants of the subgenus Scorpiris are widely known as ‘junos’, particularly in horticulture. It is a popular garden flower.

read more


Post Endnotes

  1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
  2. Iris – Wikipedia

Series Notes:

  • This image is also shared as public domain on PixabayFlickr, and Pinterest.
  • Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
  • Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
  • All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.
0 comments
arkansas, photography, plants, public domain, royalty free, spring

Early Spring Crocuses

Royalty-free images by Mike1 — No. 140 of over 1200 images

Early spring crocuses, West-central Arkansas, March 3, 2018
Early spring crocuses, West-central Arkansas, March 3, 2018

Crocus2

Crocus (English plural: crocuses or croci) is a genus of flowering plants in the iris family comprising 90 species of perennials growing from corms. Many are cultivated for their flowers appearing in autumn, winter, or spring. The spice saffron is obtained from the stigmas of Crocus sativus, an autumn-blooming species. Crocuses are native to woodland, scrub, and meadows from sea level to alpine tundra in North Africa and the Middle East, central and southern Europe, in particular Krokos, Greece, on the islands of the Aegean, and across Central Asia to Xinjiang Province in western China.

read more


Post Endnotes

  1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
  2. Crocus – Wikipedia

Series Notes:

  • This image is also shared as public domain on PixabayFlickr, and Pinterest.
  • Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
  • Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
  • All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.
0 comments
arkansas, photography, plants, public domain, royalty free, spring

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