Jim Dailey

Old Friends …

Robert Browning wrote: ” come grow old along with me, the best is yet to be”.   How fitting for a group of guys taking a yearly trip to ski country for thirty four years.  No doubt this group looks  demonstratively more “mature” than thirty plus years ago but also let there be no doubt the joie de vivre persists, the enthusiasm, the energy and the bonds of friendship are stronger today than ever.

As in previous years this one was filled with time on the slopes, card games, relaxing happy hours and delectable gourmet meals prepared by three of our very own.

All was perfect … Perfect for four days and then email messages from airlines … Email messages indicating our flights had been cancelled because of heavy blizzard conditions in the Denver area.    So, as I write this blog entry, we sit in a hotel near the airport enjoying more time with friends but hoping ” stranded in Denver ” soon becomes a safe flight home to Little Rock and our families and friends in Arkansas.

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In 1865 Charles Ludwig Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) published a book entitled “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”.  In 2011 another Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland opened to the public in Bentonville, Arkansas … a small Northwest Arkansas city and home to the worlds largest retailer, Walmart.  

Yes, on November 11, 2011 ( 11-11-11 )  Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art opened and since that date more than a half a million visitors have toured this world class museum “free of charge”.

On January 29, 2013 Alice Walton was honored by the Arkansas State Parks, Tourism and Recreation Commission.  

Pictured below are members of the commission with Alice Walton shown holding the framed resolution thanking her for her monumental gift of Architecture and American Art to the citizens of Arkansas, the United States and the World.  Clearly everyone has heard of Walmart and in the years to come, thanks to the individual generosity of Alice Walton, the world will come to know Crystal Bridges as well.

Crystal Bridges features world class Architecture by Moshe Safdie plus world class American Art like Durand’s “Kindred Spirits” in a beautifully landscaped natural setting with walking trails, gardens and sculpture.  To walk along the creek or trail or leisurely stroll inside this unique museum is in fact a walk thru Alice’s Wonderland.

As a former Mayor with the instilled love of cities, I could hardly let the opportunity pass to have my picture in front of Kerry James Marshall’s “Our Town” … as much a statement about social issues as a masterful work of art. 

One final editorial suggestion and thought:

We are blessed to have this gift from Alice Walton.  Each Arkansan should definitely visit and experience the gift.  In addition, each Arkansas should write a personal note of Thanks to her at Crystal Bridges in Bentonville, Arkansas … I hope you will do so.

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My First Visit to Albert Pike Forest and Campground:

One can hardly arrive today in this beautiful Ouachita Mountain setting along the Little Missouri River and not think about that tragic night in 2010.  It was a night when rain was predicted, maybe even flash flooding but not a surge that would raise the river level over 20 feet in just a couple of hours taking with it, campers, cars, cabins and costing 20 individuals  their lives.

My friend, Bryan and I had planned a backpacking trip to Albert Pike for some time … two weeks ago we made the trip, drove to Albert Pike, loaded our backpacks and headed downstream for a day of exploring and camping in this incredible wilderness area.  I must say there now is something “reverential” about being in this place … amidst all this natural beauty but also  “reverential” in a respectful way of remembering those who lost their lives that night. In a way this has become hallowed land.

Side note … Who was Albert Pike?

I had to check this out.  Without spending a lot of time on it, suffice to say he was a significant Arkansas figure in the 1800’s.  He was a lawyer, a Confederate General, a poet, a Masonry Leader and newspaper owner/journalist.

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5:30 AM …  Father and Son at the Gym

If one will simply take the time to look around, local heroes abound.  Yes, they do and not surprisingly they do in the most normal, unassuming, everyday episodes of life.  No doubt the most notable, those that garner media attention, usually involve some heroic or super human act … pulling someone out of a burning car or home, administering CPR to a heart attack victim, subduing an out of control airline passenger plus the most recent heroic acts in the all too many high profile shootings in our schools.  In no way do I wish to take anything away from these heroic acts.  However, this blog entry is about the more mundane … the person who helps someone open a door, the one who holds the elevator door, the individual who picks up a piece of paper on the sidewalk as he or she walks by …  the dad who each day at 5:30 in the morning helps his son hone his basketball skills at the local fitness center.

Admittedly, I’m a fitness nut normally to be seen each morning at 5:30 AM for my daily workout.   For the past five or six years I have seen a father/son combo practicing basketball at my gym.  I have literally watched this  young man grow from a thin eleven or twelve year old into a handsome, muscular teen.  I have marveled at the consistent, to me monotonous, regimen of this twosome.  Shot after shot from every position on the clock and every distance, from dribble and shoot to dribble and shoot with dad defending.  Shooting with the left then the right hand and then, left/right, left/right all over again.  Today dad had his son seated in a stacking chair … once again shooting shot after shot after shot, changing position and shooting shot after shot again. 

I don’t know their names or if the young man is now a top notch basketball player on a team or not.  One thing I do know is that he is learning life lessons … lessons about determination, about discipline to accomplish what he wants and about the importance of having someone who cares to be there with you as a mentor, a teacher, a coach … and as a FATHER.

I cannot imagine a more perfect choice for Local Hero then this Father/Son Basketball duo.

Oh … by the way, He did make the shot !!!

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Christmas is Family and Christmas is Friends …

A Christmas Story…

Every Christmas season has its story … let’s recap 2012, a Christmas most will remember for years to come … certainly our family.

The lead up was pretty familiar.  There were the Christmas Lights and decorations which I always love and hate to see come down.  There were the shopping sprees … sometimes fun and sometimes stressful and, then of course, the monumental task – for some – of wrapping all those many gifts.  There was the rush to Christmas Mass, the delicious home cooked meals, the countless photos, gift exchanges and meaningful pauses to remember family members no longer physically present.  Without a doubt, this first Christmas without Mom … Ellen Dailey … was different to say the least.  The true power of family was ever present and the definition of “Family Unit or Unity” was never more manifest than this year.

Mom had always made each of us smile and feel special, mostly with her gracious loving warmth but also with the $100 dollar bill that seemed to consistently find its way into each gift. My sister, Kathy, continued the tradition this Christmas with cash surprises.  The true meaning and loving memory of mom was not lost in the form of Ben Franklin.

Now for the really unusual and memorable event. Beginning around noon on Christmas Day at Kathy’s home … moisture in the form of rain, then freezing rain and then slush and finally between 10 and 12 inches of new snow falling Christmas Night making Little Rock look like a place in New England or Colorado rather than Arkansas.  That was the beautiful part !!! In addition to the city wide snow, Little Rock suffered one of the largest power outages and with it some of the most devastating tree damage in our history.

If you’ve followed my adventures in the Ozarks decorating a Charlie Brown style live tree, you will appreciate the picture below.  My good Friends, JC and Gwen Goodin presented me with My Very Own authentic Charlie Brown tree.

With all the blessings, with all the friends, with all the family … and … with my own Charlie Brown Tree, how could I ask for more?

Happy New Year and God Bless each of you in this new year.

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