Family entertainment

The major weather cool-down this week has made us feel like doing a lot more outdoor activities. On Sunday, we walked about five miles total - from our house to downtown and all around. We even discovered a few streets we had never seen before. We took lots of pictures and had a very nice afternoon. It's days like that when we remember why we decided to call Eureka Springs "home."

The only complaint we share with some of the other locals is the lack of family activities. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of things to do, but we would enjoy more planned events geared towards families with children. Currently, many families drive to Branson for family shows, but we would like to see something closer to home. During the summer months, there is a "drive in" type movie event held on Sunday nights in a parking lot on Main Street.

During the winter, there is a serious lack of things for families to do. My husband and I are actually in the process of brainstorming with some city officials for ideas of a possible regularly scheduled family event held in the Auditorium during the off-season months.

Buzzards

A few residents of Eureka Springs have a flock of buzzards roosting in their neighborhood, so the city council came up with a rather controversial solution. They decided to shoot sonic cannons to scare the buzzards away. Well, the first time the cannons were used, the buzzards just moved to a different neighborhood. Some other birds got scared away too, along with other small animals. Now, they are talking about sounding the cannons again, even though it didn't work the first time. What??

What do they think will happen this time? What will probably happen is the buzzards won't be scared at all and will just stay put, while all the other birds leave so all we have around here is buzzards. Won't that be nice? Not!!

A City of Neighbors

We've lived in Eureka Springs for 6 months as of today. I already know all of my neighbors, have made some good friends, and recognize a lot of people whenever I go to town or the market, or wherever. Living in a small town definitely puts you in a different frame of mind. My husband put it aptly when he said, "It's not a small world anymore, it's a small town." Whenever I go out, I wonder who I will see that I know - whereas, if you live in a large town you are surprised if you see someone you know. It's very comforting, like one big family. Everyone is always willing to help whenever you need it also. For example, since we only have one car, we have needed rides a couple of times and someone is always willing to assist us.

I know more of my neighbors now than I have ever known any neighbors in past cities. Even as a kid, we knew about 50% of the neighbors on our block, mostly because I was friends with their children. But now, I can honestly say I personally know 80% of the people in my whole neighborhood (including 3 cul-de-sacs and the main road) and I have met most everyone else and know where they live and what they drive. It is very easy to tell when people are having visitors or there are tourists driving through the neighborhood. I'm sure all the neighborhoods in town are like ours in this way, and that is why the crime rate is so low here.

One problem with small towns...

...is the lack of jobs available to local residents. Since Eureka Springs has a tourist-based economy, many of the hotels, shops, and restaurants are closed for the winter season. This leaves many people scrambling for jobs to make ends meet. Many locals have to work two jobs in the winter and some just can't make it and have to move away.

This is the fate of a good friend of mine and I am very sad about it. This is such a neat place to live and many people come to live here just because they love the town so much. But sometimes a lack of money forces them away from their dreams.

Eureka in the morning

This morning, I was trying to get to the Post Office as soon as it opened to mail out holiday packages to our relatives. During the week it opens at 8:15, so that's what time I headed over. When I got there it was closed, and I found out that on Saturdays the PO is only open from 10am to noon.

Since I had the kids with me and didn't really feel like going home and coming back two hours later, my daughter suggested we walk around downtown. This is one of her favorite things to do since she is so outgoing and likes to meet people all the time. The weather is very warm today, so I thought it sounded like a good idea too. So we walked around town waiting for the PO to open. All the shops downtown open around 10am also, so it was very quiet and nice.

We walked to Basin Park so the kids could get a close-up view of the Nativity and the other decorations there. On our way back up to the PO, some of the shops started to open and it was really nice to see all the shop owners preparing for a big shopping day. You really can get a sense of all the different types of people that live and work here. It's nice to have such a blend of styles all working together.

Another cool thing about small towns

I find it really neat that I am constantly running into people I know around town. Since I usually have some time on my hands, it's nice to be able to stop and chat with people that I run into that I know - or meet new people that I don't know yet. But I could see how it could be tough if you were in a hurry or if you had a "scuffle" with someone and you ran into them at the Post Office or Library or something.

Today, while dropping off books at the library, I waved as my real estate agent drove by, congratulated the librarian on her chorale concert I had attended last weekend, and spent a while talking to my good friend who had stopped by to check her email on the library computer. Just in the course of one outing, I saw three people I knew! This happens all the time around here and when you are in a new town trying to meet new people it is great!