Springfield Day 2

Another day, another blog post from not-so-sunny Springfield, IL. Actually, the sun seems to be peeking out as I type this, but it's definitely not the sunny and 62 predicted for today. Yesterday was similar. Where's Gary Lezak when you need him?

We spent yesterday morning in the archives. They had a little bit of a rough start to the day - a housekeeper had watered a plant as a favor, but it had just been watered on Friday, so it leaked water all down the card catalog. The archivists were pulling out cards and hanging them to dry as rapidly as they could, and employees from other areas came to help (or gawk at the damage). It's a pretty quiet building, as you could imagine, so it was very exciting for a few minutes. Luckily, the cards were the only things potentially damaged, and those are easily replaced - no actual manuscripts were nearby. Today we were able to take a picture of Jeremy and I by the catalog for posterity. They have fun up here. :)

Jeremy researched for several hours and then we went out on the town. We ate at a fun local restaurant called the Garden of Eat'n which serves salads and sandwiches and organic food. Then we went to see the Lincoln Home. This is the only National Park in the state of Illinois. They have Lincoln's home set up as it would have been in 1861, and have several other neighborhood houses preserved as well. Several are used as offices now; notably Senator Dick Durbin works out of a home here. If you're interested in what we saw, click Lincoln Home and you can get more information.

Next, we went to the Lincoln-Herndon Law Office. As you probably know, Lincoln was a successful lawyer and not-so-successful politician before he was elected President. The office where he had his last partnership is set up similarly to how he would have had it, even down to the trash bin. (Don't worry, I did get a pic of that!). We talked with a historian there who was very interested in Jeremy's project, which was an added bonus.

We took in Bennigan's for dinner last night (side note for John: there's no Bennigan's in Lawrence so it doesn't technically break the vacation rule). Jeremy ate a "horseshoe" there which is considered a Springfield specialty. This thing is basically a heart attack on a plate. There was toast, then hamburger, then bacon, then fries, then cheese sauce over the whole thing. I stuck with a french dip which was marginally more healthy. I'm not sure my cardiologist would have been a fan of either meal, but hey, we had a salad at lunch, we've walked lots of places, and we're on vacation. :)

We capped off the evening with a tour called Lincoln's Ghost Walk: Legends and Lore. I would highly recommend this if you're ever in the area. Garret, our tour guide, was exceptionally knowledgeable about Lincoln history, the paranormal, and the Civil War, and was entertaining to boot. I kept thinking Jeremy would stump him with questions, but Garret was well-prepared... I guess Jeremy will have to ask tougher questions next time. Here's that website if you're interested too: Springfield Walks

Jeremy's now finishing up his final day of research in the archive for this trip. He seems to have just scratched the surface of the available materials here, so I'm sure he'll be back. If you know of people wanting a houseguest in Springfield, let me know! :) Today we are planning to head out, probably back to Lawrence but we've been tossing around the idea of stopping in St. Louis too. On tap this afternoon: eating at Robbie's for lunch, touring Lincoln's tomb, and possibly checking out the Old Capitol building (however, that's probably something we'll save for next time).

Whether it's early tomorrow or late tomorrow, at some point I'll be reunited with my camera cord, and you'll get to actually see what I'm describing!

And on a final, totally unrelated note... One year ago today I was having foot surgery. If you want to reminisce you can check out this post.
In tomorrow's post of pics, I'll post one that I took of my foot today, 100% healed except for a scar. I am so thankful for Dr. Laha's expertise, for Jeremy and Mom and Kristi taking good care of me, for health insurance that paid for most of it, and for a generally speedy recovery from such a painful condition. I am also very thankful that this St. Patty's day does not involve general anesthesia or scalpels of any kind!