Money and might can only accomplish so much. Sometimes, creativity and boldness count. But I guess that's the lesson of Fayetteville's North Carolina's Airborne and Special Forces Museum, isn't it? The boldness of the design, the daring scope of its collections. Daring. -Make no mistake, real men were behind this museum to real men. No puffery. No posturing. Damn, what a cool museum.
If you have a son who could benefit from seeing heroes and heroic deeds, this place is a must for your fall road trip calendar. -Fayettesville's a very nice surprise too. Home to a great downtown with some pretty good restaurants. -Pay off the Little Lady with the promise of a great meal after accompanying you through the museum. -However, you may be surprised at how interested the Right Lady (yours!) may be in learning about this rare kind of bravery.
9 comments:
Ah, Fayette-nam, it brings back memories of my days in the SF. Just a young E-3 with new jump wings and a beret. Every weekend I'd run for that main gate, and to this day I don't know why. I remember my first tattoo, and having mama-san serve me a huge bowl of rice with a colorful pile of nonsense on top that smelled like twice boiled cabbage and hot dogs (that is where I learned to love Tabasco), but it was otherwise a sad town. I was especially hard on the truck stop rejects that you'd meet in the local bars - most no more than 18, and all looking to marry guys like me. I made it clear that I wasn't looking for a relationship that lasted anymore than 15 minutes, but most of this women had been dragged half way accross the globe by some other rock kicker, and they just wanted to keep living in the land of the PX. I should have been a Marine.
Apparently you have not been to the National Museum of the Marine Corps at 18900 Jefferson Davis Hwy in Triangle, VA? That, my penny loafer and repp tie wearing friend, is a real museum. Heck, even the "anonymous" G.I. Joe from Ft. Bragg wants to be a Marine.
Anon 2:45 and Mr. Puller,
I would guess that both are equally good given the subject matter of both museums.
I'm thinking of opening a museum devoted to brave deeds done while wearing penny loafers and a repp tie. I tried to help a guy being dragged behind a golf cart once at The Virginia Gold Cup. Kind of. Ok, I threw a beer can at him as he flew by.
tt
Are you from Virginia or NC, Mr. Trad? I can't quite tell, but I'd really like to know.
Curious,
Good question. I hope that I don't expand on this too much. Let me first say that I admire both states but if the question was "Are you a Virginian or a Tarheel?" I would answer that I am a Virginian by birth, heritage, temperament and philosophy.
However, after years of sweat and tears, I believe that I now belong in North Carolina.
Robert E. Lee was a Virginian. He seemed like a nice man. Did you know he'd been offered a spot on the winning side at the onset of the Civil War?
Curious,
There are many, many more qualified to speak on Robert E. Lee than me. I think that it is bittersweet to think of Robert E. Lee as a 'nice man.' I believe that he was nice man. A very nice man.
He also did and led thousands and thousands to do very hard, violent things. -How to reconcile? Your heart can. I know that mine can.
Once this dichotomy is understood, you are on your way to becoming a Virginian!
You also seem like a very nice man, Mr. Trad. BTW I have lived in both Virginia and North Carolina (I like the Old Dominion better, but that's mostly because of the easy access to top-notch fireworks and Virginia ham). As for General Lee, I would never find fault with any man who fought for his beliefs - personal, national, or otherwise. That said, General Grant also seemed like a nice man (but that's mostly because he liked bourbon as much I do). Do you like dogs, Mr. Trad? If so, what kind is your favorite?
Curious,
First, it must be pointed out that selecting the right dog is very important because some dogs are good, nice dogs while other dogs are mean, bad dogs.
Just kidding! All dogs are great. We had an awesome Golden Retreiver
for years named Alex growing up. -Hard to beat a Golden. He was named after 'Alex' from the Stroh's Beer commercials. Remember Alex? -Of course you don't you young whippersnapper.)
Unfortunately, now that I am in an apartment, my favorite type of dog is like my favorite type of sailboat. ---Someone elses!
tt
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