DAY #3 - JUNE 12, 2021 - PADUCAH, KENTUCKY - SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS - TRUTH, JUSTICE & THE AMERICAN WAY - 278-MILES ( 1,020 -MILES)

(Springfield, Illinois)I spent the night in Paducah Kentucky and after coffee I was on the road by 8:30 a.m. I was on the road for only a couple of minutes when I crossed the Ohio River into the Land of Lincoln. I had planned to make a really Quick Stop in Metropolis, Illinois, the small town just across the river from Paducah. Metropolis is the Home Superman and this small town has embraced the character created years ago by DC Comics. I had originally planned to make only a quick stop at the Superman Statue in the Town Square. But my quick photo stop turned into a stop that lasted more than an hour. In addition there is also a statue of Lois Lane and several murals on the building throughout downtown. There was even a Superman Museum and I ponied up the $8 for the self-guided tour. It was worth it and I enjoyed it. I enjoy Metropolis, walking around talking to the people about not only Superman but about southern Illinois Politics. I found out that the people of Southern Illinois and the people of Southwest Virginia are not too different in their political thinking. Like us Virginians who re basically sick and tire of Northern Virginia, and Richmond imposing their way on the rest of us. The People of Southern Illinois are likewise sick and tired Chicago dictating to the rest of the state. Anyway, I spent the better part of an Hour in Metropolis before heading up to a couple of smaller Museums that I wanted to visit Only to find that they were Still Closed Due to COVID. I am not sure what is going on with Illinois and COVID. Some places you go into and nobody is wearing a mask and all is pretty much normal. But other places people yell at you to stay back and put on a mask. I stop at a store in Springfield and before I could set foot in the door some woman yell "Don't come any Closer, stay back." So I don't know what to expect here in Illinois, I am beginning to think the Quicker that I get out of this state the Better I will be. There is a lot of history in Illinois but Right now it appears that many sites are still closed. After Metropolis I more or less made a bee-line for Springfield to visit some of the Lincoln Sites. But the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum was closed and it was too late in the day to Visit the Lincoln Home and Historical site. So, I head up to Oak Ridge Cemetery where I spent the rest of the afternoon at the Lincoln Tomb. The tomb is in the center of a 12-acre monument site. It is constructed of granite from Biddeford, Maine and has a rectangular base with a 117-foot tall obelisk. At front of the tomb is a bronze reproduction of Linclon's head by sculptor Gutzon Borglum, the same man that carved Mount Rushmore. The head has a shiny nose. Legend has it that if visitors rub the nose it will bring them good luck. The large tomb is impressive on the out side and is just as impressive on the inside. Entering the tomb you are greeted by a smaller version of the Daniel Chester French statue that appear in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D. C. As you make your way through the hall you see several smaller versions of the more famous statues. Then you enter in to the chamber that contains Monument that sits over the tomb of President Lincoln. He is buried in a concrete vault 10-feelt below the monument . Crypts on the opposite wall hold the remains of President Lincoln's wife Mary Todd Lincoln, and his sons Eddie, Tad and Willie. It was 96 degrees and very high humidity and as I was wrapping up my visit my phone started blowing up with with thunder storm warnings. So I called it a day and headed to the hotel. After getting checked in I headed out to supper which was a challenge. I stopped at a Bob Evans and was told that they were open only for to go orders. It was just the Manager and one cook working. The manager said he could not find anyone of work so he was trying to make it with to-go orders. I then stopped at an Applebee's and it was basically the same thing. The manager told me that it would be about an hour before I could be seated. He only had one server show up and she was trying to work 9-tables. He and the cook were preparing the orders. Finally I ended up at a Chipotle and spent 45-minutes in line. There were only two people working the front and they were trying to handle all of the online to go orders along with the walk-ins. It a sad state that pays people to sit on their ass and draw more money that they would it they were working. Cut out all of these free programs and send people back to work for goodness sake. Oh well, this day has been good but it has had its trying moments. Tomorrow, I may just say to heck with Illinois and head west. We will see what tomorrow holds.