Kentucky - Day 13 - Paducah

Kentucky Dam State Resort Park Campground
Sunday, 13 October 2019

today's route

Today I wanted to visit Paducah's quilt museum, which I'd wanted to do since I first came to the state.  But, as so often happens, it didn't quite work out that way.

It was an easy drive to Paducah, even taking the non-interstate route.  I stopped first at a U-Haul to fill up with propane.  I'm not currently using it for anything except my stovetop and my frig when we're not plugged in, neither of which uses much gas.  But I have every hope that my furnace will get fixed in the next couple of days and I'll have a chance to need more propane.  So that's done.

I took the scenic route to the quilt museum also, and that was a little more scenic than I'd expected, as I got a little lost.  But Paducah's not a big place, so I got found pretty easily, and found the quilt museum without a lot of trouble.  But it was at the museum that I did run into trouble.

I'd carefully checked the hours it'd be open, only to discover once I was there that I hadn't checked the hours on a Sunday, which this was.  They're only open in the afternoons, and I hadn't planned to spend that much time here.  On top of which, they wanted to charge a $12 admission fee, which I thought was a little steep.  And besides all which, it turns out it's not a museum of wonderful old quilts, but instead a place to celebrate modern quilts.  Also fiber arts and stained glass - various art forms.  But not what I'd hoped for.

The fact is my fondness for quilts stems from the ones my grandmother made, many of which we inherited from the time she lived with us, and one or two of which I still have.  She did different patterns, she made several using bits of fabric that my aunts remembered as being dresses they'd worn, she made one unique one for my father when he was still a baby.  I'd have paid the entrance fee to see quilts like those from the olden days.

But today's quilts are all made on machines and the ones in museums are really elaborate, like those I saw in the Quilters Hall of Fame in Indiana.  They're amazing, these works of art, but they just don't have a warm cozy feel to me like the old ones do.  Although I'm the proud owner of an unusual and fairly modern (it's almost 16 years old now) machine-made quilt that my friend Deb made for me that I love, and that has plenty of warm cozy feelings about it and that lives on my bed in all seasons of the year. 

Anyway, what with one thing and another, I ended up not actually going inside.  But the dogs and I enjoyed the grounds as you'll see here.

the sign next to the quilt square

a quilt square on the side of the museum

entrance to the National Quilt Museum

through the windows you see at right

I should have taken photos of the landscaping, which was very pleasant.  The museum occupies a city block, only about half of which was museum.  So lots of grass and plants, a moderate amount of parking, some very odd sculpture in front.  I should have taken photos.

I drove around Paducah for a while and found they have some unusual old architecture.  I was sure some of the odd-looking buildings I saw would be online, but I couldn't find any of them.  Again, I guess I should have taken some photos.  Who knew?

I saw several signs around town regarding Alben Barkley, including a historical marker near a cemetery and an Alben Barkley Drive.  Alben Barkley, buried here in Paducah, was vice president under Harry Truman.  In 1956, when he was giving a keynote address at Washington and Lee University in Virginia, he famously said, "I would rather be a servant in the house of the Lord than to sit in the seats of the mighty."  Almost as soon as he said it, he had a heart attack and died.  As far as I could tell from a quick glance at the internet, he was seen as being a good man; otherwise one might be pardoned for thinking the juxtaposition was a statement from God.

And back to the campground.  This campground, by the way, is a really odd one.  Very few of the campsites are remotely level, and the campground manager told me I didn't have to stay on the drive but was allowed to park anywhere on my site.  The site I had last night was at such a serious slope that I had to park at an acute angle to find anything like level ground.  I asked to move to another site for tonight that's much more level (relatively speaking) and is completely in the sun.  Most people think it undesirable for that reason, but I liked the solar power heating me up to start the heaterless night at a warm temperature.  It gets pretty cool by morning, even with the portable heater.