Arkansas strikes me more like an ocean of green cut by a few paths of asphalt than anything else.  The rolling forest covered hills are like a rolling sea before the storm.  Every mile looks similar to the last and even the shortest trips seem long against the monotony of Nature.  So different than California where man influences the majority of the scenery, this area is almost an acronym to the diversity of nature as it has simply repeated itself over and over again with a simple format, rolling hill covered with trees.

 

My sister and brother moved out here 12 years ago and have had their good and bad times with business and early marriage Kari and I have, all the while their relationship has been the strength that makes them successful.  I don't know what it is about the first 10 years of the first marriage; finishing it up myself it seems intent on stressing every inch of the financial aspect of life and emotional aspect of life.  How you deal with those first 10, I imagine, determines if you will stay together for the next 50.

 

Pulling up to the house I find myself somewhat envious, a single story ranch home with 3-car garage, surrounded by trees only one neighbor as far as the eye can see.  The only sounds as we shut the door on the truck is nature, somehow loud in it's own way, the house now only two years old somehow fits neatly in it's age old surroundings of old oak and maple trees, that as I mentioned looked nothing of the breeds I'm used to.  Heidi is still at work, expecting us to be in about 2 hours later, which is when we would have arrived if we stayed to our original schedule and speed, but Adam is home waiting for his crew to come back from the latest job.

 

  Adam and Heidi had dogs before they had my niece Hailey, Tank and Sassy are two pure bred bulldogs, each weighing about 70 lbs and standing less than one foot at the shoulder they are like waddling bricks.  Slow but persistent they feel me out and determine that they don't need to lock their jaws around my calf, and we get along well for the rest of the trip.

 

Heidi calls and is disappointed she wasn't home before us to greet us at the door.  Of course she's wondering why we didn't call, but the reality is Dad just got a cell phone for the first time a day before the trip and he still is hesitant to use it. She soon arrives and I'm reminded of just how striking my little sis is, at least one of us got the looks.  Heidi has always been the pretty one, thin with a great figure and a smile that lit up the room, her fine blond hair well kept and now shorter than ever before just above shoulder length.  I've never been good with dates, but I know the last time Heidi and I saw each other was before she had Hailey I think when Kari and I lost our first child, Madison, to Meningitis.  Somethin' about funerals and weddings bringing family together, regardless seeing her again was striking and somewhat disturbing at the same time. The first thing I really notice is that my Sister is a Mom now, I don't know what it is about giving birth, but that experience changes women in a deep sense that is difficult to explain.  My soul fights an inner conflict between thinking of my "Dorky" sister when we were kids and meeting this apparently strong woman, wife and mother before me, the change is unexplainable.

 

This is of course Wal Mart country and it's evident in every area of North Western Arkansas life, or NWA as they called it.  This is a different country filled with executive level positions, Orange County Like restaurants, and Banks.  Oh yes, the banks.  One of the first things you may notice driving through town is the up cropping of banks in this area.  Built old world style where the strength of the bank is directly proportionate to the quality of its construction and materials in its foyer.  Unlike what I'm used to with the simplifying of the importance of an actual bank, replaced by ATM's, Grocery store banking centers, automatic deposit, and online bill pay, it's an unusual instance that one would take a trip to an actual brick and mortar building named 'bank'.

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 As I mentioned earlier Wal Mart has required that all vendors wishing to sell their products through them must maintain an executive branch office in NWA, this has led to the construction of several executive level office building and strip malls or office centers.  Many of them are still empty because the deadline for the vendors to have an office there has not expired yet.  This influx has also brought to this region things not found in most of the state. Sushi, for one I was not expecting, further I was not expecting it to be one of the options at the local gas station, along with auto insurance, a convenience store and a car dealership.  It doesn't really matter, Sushi isn't the food you go for when you're in the south anyway, and I can tell you one great thing about going anywhere in the world, it's the new opportunity to tickle your taste buds.  And in the south it's Barbeque and Catfish.

 

So of course the first place we go to is a Mexican food place.  Nearby Fayetteville is home to Tyson chicken, and Wal Mart has created a lot of construction and labor positions in its development so there has been an influx of new citizens to this part of the country.  Most are 'new' citizens to the U.S. coming out of southwest Texas, NM, AZ and California there's an opportunity for them to work and own their own home as outlying areas still have very affordable homes, besides you can still purchase lots with utilities in some of the best areas for as little as 5,000 for a 1/4 acre.  The food was good, the 48-ounce beer was better and we don't get to the Barbeque until the next day when I meet my sister at her branch for lunch.

  Adam and Heidi deliberate on the place for a minute, but once decided we head over.  The parking lot is overflowed and there's some talk about going somewhere else but I'm somewhat insistent on the place where the locals pack it to the gills on a Thursday.  There's something about getting a 1/2 pound of pulled BBQ pork and hotlinks on a piece of plain bread with a side of coleslaw that just makes everything seem right.  And even though Adam said the service and portions weren't as good as he remembered from last time, I couldn't remember when I had such a good sandwich, it must be the air.