Sunday, April 30, 2017

When History Gets Rewritten

Hello from the hills!  Our little bluebird friend and his mate aren't nesting in our box, after all.

 I had witnessed them being run off/bullied by a pair of robins so I think that's why they decided to nest elsewhere.

They still use our birdbath, though, so we see them nearly everyday anyway.

Do you like to go on riverboat rides?  We do, and most of my side of the family does, too, so we recently got together and rode the Memphis Queen III as part of a monumental birthday celebration for our oldest brother who lives north of Memphis.  He reached a monumental age, that is. ;)

The tour was billed as a 1 1/2 hour historical tour...  Well, it seems history took a detour once we were on the boat.  We were told that the city of Memphis was founded by someone other than Andrew Jackson, John Overton, James Winchester and a group of investors that did actually get it started.   I had heard that in some places in our country history is being changed according to who is in charge there now, but it was kinda weird hearing it for myself.
A view of Memphis from the riverboat.

I don't like giving a bad review to any tourist attraction, but this time I must because instead of going up or downriver the boat just went around and around in about a one and a half-mile circle while the tour guide put his own spin on the history of Memphis for an hour and a half.  I'm going to give this riverboat ride a D, and that's only because it didn't sink in the Mississippi River while we were on it.  O.o
A view of the Bass Pro Pyramid.

After our trip, Goodman and I were both sick for a while, but it's good to be back in our neck of the woods anyway.  A few years ago I planted a wisteria vine at the base of one of our maple trees, and it finally bloomed this year.  

I'm hoping  it will someday look like this one that we saw in the big city a while back.  Wisteria had completely covered the branches.

Hope you're having a great Spring.

This post is shared at Saturday's Critters.

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30 comments:

  1. Linda at To Behold The BeautyMay 1, 2017 at 12:34 AM

    Love the little bluebird, Toni. Sorry the riverboat ride wasn't all it could have been, not to mention the weird history lesson. I wonder if the narrator had recently transferred from another location and forgot to change his spiel. Your wisteria vine is looking promising.

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 1, 2017 at 9:03 PM

      Thank you Linda. I'd like to believe it was a mistake, but since certain people have been in office in Memphis a lot of history has been changed. Have a great week.

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  2. JaneMay 1, 2017 at 1:11 PM

    Sorry the riverboat tour wasn't as nice as you hoped, Toni. Been collecting older history books to have for my grandchildren, I became alarmed by history being rewritten when my sons were in H.S.; no mention of John Adams, Patrick Henry, et.al., but politically correct spiel about the first person shot in the American Revolution was a black man and stuff about the founding fathers being slave owners, and this was almost 20 years ago. Thank you for the kind words, you left. I purposely deleted the comments section so people wouldn't feel obligated to leave a comment, didn't want anyone to feel like I was fishing for a compliment. But thank you for taking the extra effort to do so! Have a lovely May!

    Hugs
    Jane

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 1, 2017 at 9:09 PM

      It was very smart of you to collect those older history books, Jane. I wish I had done the same, but we homeschooled so the history was from a Christian source and reliable. It's disconcerting to know this is going on in our country, but we have had it better than so many other countries at that.
      So glad you stopped by. :)

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  3. Danette BartelmayMay 1, 2017 at 3:25 PM

    I would love to go on a Riverboat ride!
    Sorry your last one was a "D" though...
    Oh how I would LOVE to grow Wisteria!!!
    Such a romantic flowering vine.... Ahhhh.....

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 1, 2017 at 9:11 PM

      Hi Danette! It's lovely to hear from you, and if I had an extra wisteria plant I'd send it on its way to you. I'll check around the yard for a volunteer. Thanks for stopping by. :)

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  4. JESMay 2, 2017 at 6:31 AM

    Yes, I notice that about history too! It depends on the source these days... And it also seems the popular thing is to find rubbish on the founding fathers and take away their Christian values... Very sad... I have never been on a riverboat ride but would love too. They remind me of Tom Sawyer every time I see one.

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 2, 2017 at 10:20 AM

      JES, our history being rewritten is bad, but the biggest disheartening thing for me is that folks have lost all respect for the sacrifices some have made for the country to remain free. Our founding fathers would be ashamed of the state we're in today. Thank you for visiting.

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  5. SandraMay 2, 2017 at 9:41 AM

    Yes, I so agree with you about the History being rewritten to suit those who tell it.
    Crazy!
    Cute bird :)

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 2, 2017 at 10:21 AM

      Thank you, Sandra. We really enjoy our bluebirds. Thanks for stopping by.

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  6. Our photosMay 2, 2017 at 4:46 PM

    Very nice. I love the riverboat !

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 2, 2017 at 7:53 PM

      Thank you! We usually love a good ride on the river, but this one wasn't fun at all. Thanks for stopping by.

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  7. Lady LocustMay 2, 2017 at 7:38 PM

    I've never been on a riverboat but have been on a catamaran in the pacific. I don't think it's quite the same though 😜 Maybe one of these days. . . And oooohh I love wisteria. Happy spring.

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 2, 2017 at 8:05 PM

      Lady Locust, I've never even seen the Pacific Ocean so your catamaran outing sounds like quite an adventure to me. This was our second ride on a riverboat as we reserve these excursions for special birthday celebrations. Thanks for stopping by. :)

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  8. AlhanaMay 3, 2017 at 9:37 AM

    Sorry to hear that trip wasn't as good as you were expecting! We don't have riverboats here, not like those at least in places where the river is wide enough to allow sailing, but we do ride a catamaran for about 30 minutes to visit a tiny island off the coast, which is the smallest inhabited island in Spain. :-)
    Btw, I always love to read about your bluebird visitors. They are pretty interesting little fellows!

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 3, 2017 at 11:26 AM

      Thank you, Alhana, we love those birds, too. I would like to ride a catamaran, but we never see them in our area. We have many rivers in our state so there is usually a riverboat in cities that you can ride just for fun, not for travel.
      Hope you're having a great Spring. :)

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  9. kathyinozarksMay 4, 2017 at 9:23 AM

    sorry about your riverboat trip I would have been very unhappy as well and too many seem to want to rewrite our history-sad for sure
    we love our wiseteria one has climbed up into our maple tree-very cool have a good weekend

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 4, 2017 at 8:24 PM

      Hi Kathy! You must have native wisteria, that's even better.
      Thanks for stopping by.

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  10. Brenda Kay LedfordMay 4, 2017 at 1:35 PM

    I hope you are feeling better now. Sorry your trip wasn't as much as expected. I always enjoy reading about your bluebird visitors. The wisteria is very pretty.

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 4, 2017 at 8:26 PM

      We're just fine now, Brenda, and I'm glad you enjoy the bluebirds. Thank you for your comment.

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  11. LeaMay 6, 2017 at 9:14 AM

    Love the Bluebirds!
    We go to Memphis quite a bit as we live in north Mississippi. We have been thinking of taking the Memphis Queen riverboat ride, but after your review, I think not.
    Have a great week-end!

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 6, 2017 at 9:34 AM

      Thank you, Lea I enjoyed your shots of the Kingbird.
      Thanks for stopping by.

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  12. ElaineMay 10, 2017 at 7:09 AM

    Love the bluebird. I just took a painting on fabric class and painted a Western Bluebird instead of the original bird. Love them and don't see them much. As a former public school teacher and counselor-I am appalled at the one sidedness of everything. So glad to be out of it. Also so glad that you and I might be neighbors on the other side:)

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    1. magnoliasnteaMay 10, 2017 at 5:19 PM

      Hi Elaine! A fabric painting class sounds very cool. I'm going to pop over and see what you've been doing. Thanks for stopping by.

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  13. eileeninmdMay 14, 2017 at 10:44 AM

    Hello, I love the pretty bluebird. Sorry your riverboat ride was not all that was expected. I would enjoy the scenery though. I was away for two weeks and I am so sorry to be late commenting and visiting your post. Thank you so much for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Sunday, enjoy your day and new week ahead!

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  14. Marilyn @ MountainTopSpiceMay 16, 2017 at 4:43 PM

    Those bluebirds are so beautiful! I am sorry they were bullied out of their place to live! And I can understand your frustration with the tour guide and his twisted opinion of history! And to go in circles, and not really do any touring, oh that would be really disappointing! I have never been on a riverboat, that would be fun to do under different circumstances! Hugs to you today :)

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  15. Betty J. CrowMay 20, 2017 at 2:26 PM

    I enjoyed the bluebird shots. They are one of my favorite birds. Wish I could lure one in to my back yard. Good to know about the tour. I had actually thought about taking it next time I go through Memphis. Think I'll skip it. :)

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  16. DiannaMay 24, 2017 at 6:27 PM

    I cannot believe how long it has taken me to get that scrapbooking project finished and back to reading blogs. I have never been on a riverboat. I do like land a great deal though. :) I am sorry that you heard for yourself just how different history is now being portrayed. Can you imagine how mixed up the kids are when it comes to history of this country? Thank you for giving the riverboat a D and I loved your reason for not giving it an F! hahaha Hugs to you!

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  17. Brenda Kay LedfordMay 31, 2017 at 2:42 PM

    I love your bluebird photos. Your posting about the flag and Memorial Day was great, too.

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  18. GordonJune 6, 2017 at 2:58 PM

    I love that little Bluebird, its a smart looking bird
    All the best, Gordon.

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Thank you for your comments!