The King and Ike

Today I was a tourist in my own hometown.  I spent this morning and afternoon with my lovely parents touring the Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum.  I spent the first 18 years of my life living in Abilene, and today, two weeks away from my 33rd birthday, was my first time visiting the main attraction of my small hometown.  Originally my interest was finally piqued due to an Elvis exhibit being on display at the Eisenhower museum as part of the Smithsonian Institute Traveling Exhibition Service.  I remember hearing the dramatic voice of Elvis playing in our house growing up and both my parents singing along.  I remember Moody Blue on blue vinyl.  When I think of Elvis' music, it always put me in a good mood, my foot always starts moving, my body dancing, and my off key voice singing along with every word.  When I heard the exhibit Elvis at 21 Photographs by Alfred Wertheimer was going to be on display I knew I had to go, and I had to go with my parents.  I was not disappointed.  This exhibit consists of photographs taken by Alfred Wertheimer as he spent a week with Elvis in 1956.  The pictures are moving, emotional, moments captured of a man who was changing the landscape of music at the time.

While I went for the King, I was also swept up in Ike mania.  The library has a display of the building, construction, planning, and fundraising necessary to make the library a reality.  This was made more interesting to me because I went through the exhibit with my parents, and my dad was on the construction crew that built the Presidential library.  He pointed out the areas he worked on could describe the pictures in more detail, make it more interesting to me, someone who knows absolutely nothing about construction.  It was also interesting to see letters written by those who had been asked to help in the in the fundraising and strongly opposed the building of the library due to Eisenhower's beliefs. There's also a great exhibit of Mamie Eisenhower and her fashion.  She was a real fashionista of her time!   We spent two hours just on the museum and library, and also visited the chapel.  We could have spent two more hours really looking, reading, and taking in everything.   All in all, a really wonderful way to spend a Saturday.