Awake 5:43am Temp 40 Clear & windy Overnight @ Bartlesville, OK
Attend St. John Children's Mass @ 815am. The priest, Fr. Festus, from
Zimbabwe, did a marvelous job of talking with the children during the
homily.
After breakfast, I take our computer to the campground office & use their
Wi-Fi signal to connect. Due to our distant parking site from the office &
maybe some trees & other RV's blocking the signal, we get no hint of Wi-Fi
in our motorhome. Dave & his wife, the campground owners, ask me to try
out a USB Network Adapter as a test for our extended range. I download the
program, make the prescribed connections, even open one of our motorhome
windows to place the antenna...but still no signal. Dave appreciates my
efforts & tells me that they are working on strengthening their Wi-Fi
signal for everyone that parks in their campground.
@1:25pm, we drive into town & sign up for the 2:00pm tour of the Price
Tower. Frank Lloyd Wright built the Price Tower @ the request of Harold
Price, founder of H.C. Price Co., a world renowned pipeline construction
and pipe coating firm. This is the tallest project built by Wright, tower
height is 191 ft.; to the top of the spire is 221 ft. Original cost
estimate in 1953: $800,000.00 - The completed project cost was 2.5 million
in 1956. The entire design is based on a diamond modular of 30 degree & 60
degree triangles; triangle ceiling lights, air vents, stair steps,
elevator cubicles, bathrooms, bookshelves, desks, etc. Construction of the
tower floors are all cantilevered, providing unobstructed views of the
surrounding city. The 4 inner columns which house the 4 elevators are the
main strength for the 19 story building. While the architectural
engineering & ingenuity of Mr. Wright's designed Price Tower draws
tourists from all over the world, there are a few downsides to this
magnificant structure.
The 4 triangular elevators are so small, most of the office equipment had
to be crane lifted from outside up to it's destination floor, and windows
temporarily removed allowing for the placement of the equipment. Not only
that, but nearly every piece of furniture was designed by Wright, custom
made and some built in to fit the angular spaces. All floors from 3 up to
15 are basically identical in design. But as the tower gains altitude, the
floor space gets smaller: the 18th floor was Mr. Price's executive office
& conference room but was so small, only a handful of people could be
assembled at one time. The elevators could take 3 thin people @ a time
without luggage or one person with a limited amount of luggage.
It was a fascinating tour of a uniquely designed, ahead-of-its-time,
multiuse structure (it was originally designed to combine business
offices, shops, and apts). There is a lot more I could say about the
buildings' shortcomings, but the practicality of this attractive structure
is not really the main theme at all, it's the architecture. It's one of
those "must see to believe" accomplishments.
It was too windy for a walk after our Price Tower tour so we did a little
more suburban exploring by car & then returned to the bus around 5:10pm.
6:10pm Dinner: Crab cakes from Costco, zucchini & red peppers in lemon
herb butter & wild + brown rice with walnuts.
Evening: Magazine & novel reading for us. A little break from the TV.
High temp today=66 Lights out: 11:59pm
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