Monday, October 23, 2006
A visit to Isengard
Make you the world a bit better or more beautiful because you have lived in it.
Edward W. Bok
I was worried about the weather this morning, afraid it might rain and ruin the plans I had for our destination was an outdoor destination. But the weather cleared up enough not to rain and it made the day an enjoyably cool one.
And our destination?
![[Welcome to Isengard]](/2006/10/23/boktower.jpg "Welcome to Isengard")
The Historic Bok Sanctuary which houses one of the largest musical instruments I've ever seen, the carillon (basically, a large tower with bells—this one has 60 bells of various sizes which are played via a specialized keyboard).
![[A keyboard with which to play bells]](/2006/10/23/p1010003.jpg "A keyboard with which to play bells")
![[Cutaway view of the tower—the bells are at the top]](/2006/10/23/p1010006.jpg "Cutaway view of the tower—the bells are at the top")
![[Just a sample of two of the bells]](/2006/10/23/p1010004.jpg "Just a sample of two of the bells")
The grounds around the tower are a conservatory and are well maintained, lending themselves to the serene feeling one gets when walking around the site.
![[Lush vegitation abounds]](/2006/10/23/p1010017.jpg "Lush vegitation abounds")
![[More lush vegitation]](/2006/10/23/p1010054.jpg "More lush vegitation")
![[But let's not forget the spooky trees!]](/2006/10/23/p1010024.jpg "But let's not forget the spooky trees!")
But I picked the destination simply because of the tower. As a kid I came across photographs of the place my maternal grandfather had taken, and I was always intrigued by the place and have been wanting to visit the place for years. When I decided to take a trip I knew just the place—Bok Tower.
![[Behold Isengard!]](/2006/10/23/p1010035.jpg "Behold Isengard!")
![[It's too light to be Barad-dûr]](/2006/10/23/p1010040.jpg "It's too light to be Barad-dûr")
![[“It's only a model!” “Shh!”]](/2006/10/23/p1010045.jpg "“It's only a model!” “Shh!”")
![[Of course it's pink! This is Florida after all!]](/2006/10/23/p1010050.jpg "Of course it's pink! This is Florida after all!")
What was disappointing was the music. I mean, we're talking 60 bells of various sizes, but whether it was the fact that it was 60 bells, or the player of the carillon still learning to play the instrument, the music just didn't do anything for me.
![[That's a brass door, not a gold door, but it's still impressive]](/2006/10/23/boktowerdoor.jpg "That's a brass door, not a gold door, but it's still impressive")
I would have liked to have stayed a bit longer and soaked in the environment a bit more, but The Kids … they got hungry.
Yeehaw! We're at a junction!
For the trip back home, I decided we'd take State-60 east (even though the scariest drive of my life had been along State-60, but that was at 1:00 am with 50′ visibility and a semitruck doing 100mph right behind me—that was then, this is now, in the middle of a sunny day) and at Yeehaw Junction take US-441 south all the way back home.
![[They sell good food bars there]](/2006/10/23/p1010069.jpg "They sell good food bars there")
![[Steven Spielberg must have been inspired by this truck for his film “Duel”]](/2006/10/23/p1010072.jpg "Steven Spielberg must have been inspired by this truck for his film “Duel”")
For such a small one building town it sure was noisy with all the truck traffic passing through.
Now, before the trip, I was told that US-27 was a very dangerous route to take, but I found State-60 and US-441 to be way more frightening than US-27 ever was on this trip (maybe because US-27 was two lanes each way the entire trip, whereas State-60/US-441 were two lanes total through this part of the state).
![[North shore of Lake Okechoobee]](/2006/10/23/p1010076.jpg "North shore of Lake Okechoobee")
![[The lake is around here somewhere]](/2006/10/23/p1010079.jpg "The lake is around here somewhere")
![[Ah, there's the lake!]](/2006/10/23/p1010081.jpg "Ah, there's the lake!")
As we were driving home, the weather off towards the south east looked rather ominous, although the threatening rain never did materialize.
![[The sky is getting darker]](/2006/10/23/p1010095.jpg "The sky is getting darker")
![[and darker …]](/2006/10/23/p1010097.jpg "and darker …")
Now, for this trip, I borrowed Smirk's digital video camera and took about an hours worth of footage over the past two days.
![[Me directing the video—photo by Spring Dew]](/2006/10/23/directing.jpg "Me directing the video—photo by Spring Dew")
The intent is to edit the raw footage into a video blog entry that (hopefully) will be coherent and amusing. We shall see.
Not quite in the nick of time
Congratulations!
You are now the proud owner of a genuine Tucows Squishy Cow.
I'm sorry it took such a long time to get to you—I announced the Squishy Cow giveaway right as our stock of Squishy Cows went bone dry. Thanks for being so patient!
Your Squishy Cow should provide years of entertainment not only as a desk accessory, but also as an amusing prop in your photographs and home videos.
Remember, if you post Squishy Cow photos on Flickr, please give them a tag of SquishyCow or SquishyCows so everyone can find them!
Enjoy your cow!
Joey deVilla
Technical Evangelist / Squishy Cow Wrangler
Tucows
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Way back in July I'm reading The Adventures of Accordion Guy in the 21st Century when I see this entry on getting an official Tucows Squishy Cow and all I have to do is take photos with the Squishy Cow in interesting places in Florida.
So I sign up.
And wait.
And wait.
And eventually forget about the whole thing.
But what should I find waiting for me when I finally get home?
![[Mooooooooo!]](/2006/10/23/squishycow.jpg "Mooooooooo!")
My Official Tucows Squishy Cow.
Had it arrived but two days earlier I would have taken it with me to Bok Tower.
Heck, I could have taken photos of it next to real Holstein cows.
Sigh.
