2009 Aug 22 | South Dakota (Pickler Mansion)


I think I'll stay far enough back from the trailer so if those fall down they don't end up on my hood.



No front desk staff? Sure, I'll sit up here and act like one for a while.



$1167 for the frames? Yeah, I that's just a slight pricing mistake.



Either their parrot or ferret chewed up their glasses. I wasn't quite sure which exactly it was, but then again, it doesn't really matter. Unless they have some sort of of a "repair if parrot, but not if ferret, destroys your glasses" warranty.



I'm terrified of shredders, because of both my tie and fingers.



I heard about a free screening of The Goods, so I grabbed a few passes and we went to it. The only problem is you have to stand in line for a while if you want to be guaranteed a spot, so you have to decide if an hour or two of waiting is worth a free movie ticket.



There was a group of people behind us that were super-organized about these things. They all knew each other, knew all different websites that had free passes and other freebies, and would save tickets for each other and such. This guy took it a little too far, though; he snuck in a cup in his sweater to get free refills on it.



It was pouring rain one day leaving clinic, but someone left out a bunch of garbage bags by the exits, so people could throw them on like ponchos.



I didn't want my head to get wet, though, so I borrowed this baking tin to use as a makeshift hat on the run to the Jeep.



I accidentally grabbed one of these that smelled like roses. It was extremely strong and actually I hated the smell. So I had to buy some strawberry ones, which is what I wanted in the first place, to cover up the smell of the rose one.



This is a really small sign, so I wonder how many people sit here yelling at the speaker trying to order food.



I grabbed some kolaches from this place for the front desk staff. Their sign says they have all different kinds of kolaches, but they only had sausage ones. I wonder if it was too early in the morning and they just hadn't baked the other ones or if they simply don't make them at all.



Oh, hey, fuses. I've lived here over a year and never knew that was there.



At the airport, there is always a big line for McDonald's, but nobody ever eats at the Italian place. I felt sorry for them, and usually Italian food is pretty good, so I tried it. Unfortunately, it was horrible.



I kept grabbing different packs because they all seemed stuck together, and I didn't want whatever was making them stick together all over my bag. After about four of them I realized it was a "buy one, get one free" promotion.



The airport was a little cold, so I went and sat at this gate to read for a bit before our plane left because it was sunny.



The plane left a little late, but we arrived really early. I wonder if we had a really strong wind or if the pilot just flew fast.



A neat table and comfy couch.



A banner in the Aberdeen airport. Hmm, I don't know of any place in Aberdeen that looks like that.



The woman at Pizza Hut gave us just a few extra napkins.



I used to love rolling around on these.



I love the hamburgers and fries at Mr. Bob's Drive Inn.



And the turtle sundaes are the best.



The prarie dog town outside of Mobridge.



I love looking for neat rocks at the beach.



I don't think we have enough junk food in the camper.



Bright green and yellow crops.



I loved Jon Gruden as a coach. He was always angry, which fit in well with the Oakland Raiders vibe.



I don't think it's possible for the dog to stand any farther forward.



A little convenience store on the river.



There was nobody there, so we just left money for what we got on the counter. I don't know if there's tax, though, so we left a little extra just in case.



Ah, construction in South Dakota = one-way roads.



At least she has a chair and a cooler.



A little bakery we went to.



Driving farming equipment to the next field.



Not again.



I think a flag person could be one of the best jobs ever if the weather's nice.



So this is how they get those little tags on the road. I always assumed some sort of machine did it, not a guy hanging off the back of a pickup.



I've never received a letter at the beginning of construction before.



Grandma and I went to Faulkton to see the carousel.



Aw, we're here too early.



An interesting house.



While eating at the local cafe we noticed a sign for the Pickler Mansion.



So we decided to go check it out.



This girl is the tour guide. The woman at the cafe overheard us talking about going there and called her to let her know she would actually have some tourists today. It looked like they only get a few per week.



The kitchen.



The living room.



The original room in the house.



The library.



The music room.



Some really iffy ladder / stairs to go up to the flag room.



A room with a really nice view.



The toy room.



The porch.



That's just ingenious.



Half of a giant thunder cloud.



And the other half. This is my favorite thing about the midwest: being able to see storms roll across the prarie.



Sunset.



We ran into Aberdeen one day when it was cold and rainy. Gotta love thrift stores and 20-cent books.



Honestly, who pays $25 for a book? They're free at the library.



Some seats Dad and I found in the movie theater that were much more comfortable than all of the others.



Another common South Dakota activity: passing farm equipment on the roads.



Dad and my rock, on which we fell exhausted after chasing after a deer for miles in waist-deep snow. Nothing had ever felt so good; it felt like the most comfortable couch on earth after that.



A sunrise across some sunflowers.



And looking under the railroad bridge.



Perhaps giving the dog a toy to chew on that she can tear up and leave tiny peaces of all over wasn't the best idea.



Dad and the dog out looking for treasures at the river.



Their booty.



Pretty butterflies on pretty flowers.



I guess this is the "as seen on TV" corner.



One of Mobridge's movie stores went out of business and the other had a fire, so the only place to get movies was at this kiosk.



Ooh, the wind died down and it's warm outside.



Which means perfect weather for water skiing.



A pheasant we scared up at the campground.



Aw, the old candy store with the neat old guy who calculated your total by hand an a piece of paper is now a sporting goods stores.



My new shoes.



A picture of a picture Mom took of a necklace she wanted me to look for at the Minneapolis airport.



This is the place, but they didn't have it any more.



Some neat clouds.



Liz, who I ended up talking to for quite a while on the plane. We had a lot in common, including that we're both planning on going to Austin City Limits. I even gave her some tips on buying a ticket.



These clouds were really close to the plane.



And that plane is awfully close, too.



Downtown Houston in the background, with I-59 and the other plane



And I even made it back in time to play volleyball.