Friday morning, Stephanie and I headed up to Fort Smith Arkansas. It was a long trip, but we enjoyed the road. The weather, for the most part, cooperated. We hit some rain between Nacodoches and the Oklahoma border, but that was about it. I was originally concerned because in checking the weather all week, it looked like we'd be driving through some thunderstorms. When we first got into Oklahoma, I was pretty disappointed. The first leg of our trip through Oklahoma was boring and not very attractive. In fact, we barely noticed we had crossed the border. There was a tiny sign welcoming us to Oklahoma. Gee....thanks. Did Oklahoma not realize that Craig AND Stephanie just entered its land? Where was the red carpet???
About 45 minutes into our drive through Oklahoma, the state made up for the less than thrilling entrance. We entered the Ouachita National Forest. Talk about a gorgeous drive! We drove through rolling hills and mountains covered in trees. The road had only two lanes; one going each way. So, the rest was all for the eye to enjoy. After navigating through the turns and broken highways, we made it into Fort Smith, Arkansas. The odd thing about crossing that border was that our crossing took place on a small road in the middle of a neighborhood. There was a tiny sign informing, but not thanking us that we had left Oklahoma and entered Arkansas.
We started to navigate our way through the city to find our motel, but it wasn't necessary. There's really only one road in Fort Smith that you need to know...Rogers. We were heading up the street and there was the Days Inn just like in the picture. Only in the picture, you didn't see its surroundings. Our motel wasn't in the most attractive setting. We were nervous and apprehensive at first, but it turned out to be okay. I think the only problem we had all weekend was the sexy hunk of a man in a Speedo on the second floor. It was nasy!!! I couldn't quite figure it out. We were in Arkansas. There is no Eurotrash in Arkansas. I know it's wrong to pigeonhole Speedo wearers into that category, but I don't care! It's justified.
There wasn't much to do in Fort Smith. There's the mall, which is on Rogers. It was just okay at best. When a clerk at a hat store in the mall found out we were from Houston, he couldn't believe we were in that mall. He informed us that he knew how awesome our malls were. Heck yeah!!!! We soaked in some local culture. There's the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Rogers, and Wal-Mart...that was about it.
Saturday morning, we asked the girl at the front desk where we should have breakfast. She suggested Benson's Grill, a local diner on, you guessed it, Rogers. This had to be the cultural highlight of the weekend if not the year. First, we walk in and the cigarette smoke escapes through the door celebrating its freedom from the captivation it had withstood. We started to sit down, but I saw an ashtray on the table. So, I assumed it was the smoking section. You know, a no smoking section in a restaurant is about as effective as a no peeing section in a public pool. It eventually makes its way over. Well, it turned out that the entire restaurant was a smoking section. Our waitress behind the diner counter was even smoking. Not on her break! Now this place was full of locals. The customers knew the workers and vice versa. There was a couple smoking, of course, and enjoying some coffee and conversation. She along with her man, a strapping man with an American Flag bandana on his head who although he looked 70 was probably in his late-30s to early 40s, decided to run to the store to get something for her stomach and more cigarettes. Our waitress asked them to pick her up some cigarettes in exchange for her protection of their coffee. The couple returned, but had picked up the wrong brand for our waitress. She non-chalantly tells the other waitress that she's going to bum a cigarette. The other waitress explained the terms, or consequences if you will, of the cigarette loan. She exclaimed, "You do and I'll kick your butt! That's my last one!" Well said. You speak for all of us. Now, our new local friend who did not work at the diner but returned with the wrong cigarettes was an entrepenuer. She posed the question, "You know those bumper stickers that say, 'Git-R-Done'? " Of course, everyone acknowleged their witnessing of said bumper sticker. She continued, "I oughta make a bumper sticker that says 'GOT-R-Done,'." to which everyone agreed. She went on to ask, "And you know those stickers that say 'Cowboy Up'?" Of course, everyone involved in the conversation had seen it. To which she added, "I should make a sticker that says, 'Cowboy Down'." Inspired, one of the waitresses added, "How 'bout 'Cowboy DONE'?!" Believe it or not, the food was really good. Believe me we were nervous. When I pray to God thanking Him for our food, I usually request something to the effect of "let it be nourishing to our bodies." In this particular case, I pleaded with the Lord, "PLEASE let it be nourishing to our bodies." God was listening and we didn't have any problems.
After breakfast, we checked out a casino in nearby Oklahoma. It was pretty depressing. Rows of slot machines were panhandling. We lost a grand total of six bucks in fifteen minutes and left. With the cigarette smoke in the casino, we probably took in a carton's worth of second-hand smoke. Tomorrow, we're planning to make the trip to Walgreens to buy second-hand nicotine patches. We admitted that we have a problem and that is the first and most important step to recovery. The wedding was really nice. It took place in this beautiful southern house in Historic Downtown Fort Smith. Now, while the house wasn't on Rogers, downtown was. Have you ever noticed that every small town has an "Historic Downtown"? As Stephanie pointed out, of course it's historic. The rest of the town was built around it. After the wedding, we decided to get some dinner. The choice for the evening...The Pig N Pepper on Rogers, which incidentally had a big paper mache bull outside. It was, as you've probably figured it out, barbeque. It was really good! They had some incredible barbeque sauces. After dinner we drove to a nearby mountain in hopes of watching the sunset. While we didn't get to see the sun set, it was a really nice drive.
We made our way home Sunday. It was a rough drive, but only because I was so tired. It had been a long weekend and we didn't get much sleep. We were ready to get home and see Roscoe. Now, if you read my first blog, I spelled his name Rosco without the "E". After posting the blog, Stephanie informed me that she bought him a new name tag and added the "E". So now he is legitmately named after Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles. When we got back into the Ouachita National Forest in Oklahoma, we decided to take a detour for a scenic drive. It was amazing. We went into a camping and picnic area that overlooked the valleys. It was the perfect way to cap off the weekend. Stephanie and I did not want to leave. We hope to return soon to camp there.
We finally made it home. When we left the apartment on Friday, the A/C was out. We were relieved to come home to a new unit which was cooling the apartment wonderfully. We then returned the rental car and picked up Roscoe from Linda who did a gracious and wonderful job of taking care of our boy. Thanks Linda!!! So, if there is nothing else you take from this blog, remember that if you're ever in Fort Smith, Arkansas, Rogers will get you anywhere!


"The end of our journey impended. Great fields stretched on both sides of us; a noble wind blew across the occasional immense tree groves and over old missions turning salmon pink in the late sun. The clouds were close and huge and rose." On the Road by Jack Kerouac