right on bro!

Left Clarksville at about 10 yesterday morning, after stopping at a local Wal-Mart for apples, water, and

gas. East on I-40, and then I decide to skip the directions to stay on a major highway and take Route 7

south at Russellville. I’m rewarded with a beautiful drive through the Ouchita National Forest, which

rivals New England for its foliage. By now the sun is trying to peek through the clouds, and there’s only

a small layer of fog settled over the countryside that’s burning up.

A bit over two hours later, I’m in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Hot Springs bills itself as the “Boyhood Home

of President Clinton,” but I didn’t see anything Clintonesque on my drive through, except at today’s

planned stop - McClard’s BBQ

restaurant, just outside of downtown. McClard’s is an old-school restaurant, described by Bill

Clinton as his favorite BBQ place, and it is indeed packed. The walls are lined with celebrity photos

(including multiple ones with the President). I sat at the lunch counter and ate a chopped BBQ beef plate

- best beans I’ve ever had.

I drove downtown after that, which is undergoing a revitalization of sorts. On one side you have a number

of shops & restaurants; on the other, old bath houses of intricate design that are being renovated. Not

really sure how the baths worked but I guess that was the point behind the town’s name.

After that, I added an unplanned stop to my trip: the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in Little

Rock, which was an hour’s drive northeast and located on the banks of the Arkansas River. They were still

taking down the bleachers from the dedication ceremony, so the park and parkings lots were closed and

everyone had to park on the other side of the freeway. The museum was open (admission $7) and contains,

umm, history and a bunch of stuff from the Clinton era, including copies of old speeches, archives of his

daily schedules, gifts from dignitaries, a pretty cool replica of the Oval Office, and

href="http://www.rightonbro.com/photos/view.php?gid=7&phid=17">this important letter from a very important

person on an important subject. It was pretty cool. Also I noticed that the opening of the library

didn’t keep this guy from his

favorite fishing hole.

By then it was dark, so I drove to Memphis for the night’s stop. Originally I was planning to stop for

the night at the casinos in Tunica, but I’m casino’ed out. So I ended up booking a room right on the

Tennessee-Mississippi border, near Graceland, which is where I am now. Last night I drove to Beale

Street. It’s 2 blocks of bars and clubs, all with huge neon signs, and most with live blues bands. They

close off the streets, and when they do, you can buy beer in a plastic cup and walk around with the beer.

Which is what I did for an hour, and then I went back to the motel and went to bed.

New photos are online now.

Note: There will be no updates until either Monday night or Tuesday - I think I’m going to be staying

somewhere where there’s no telephone lines.