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Rocky's Corner to Touchdown Jesus.........................Man,I love driving up Central
Everyday after work, I drive north on Central Avenue and often times I fall in love with Hot Springs all over again. But it's not for the...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Feb 21, 20232 min read
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Why Are Your Kids Good?
Last month our four kids, now aged 20 to 34 years old, saved up their money and sent my husband and me on an insanely great cruise. It...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Feb 18, 20233 min read
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A Polish Sausage and A Time Machine
Every morning, before the sun rises, 92 year old PaPa (Johnny Kara) starts making coleslaw, sauerkraut and horseradish sauce. Then he...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Nov 6, 20222 min read
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Mr. T and My Mom
You guys remember Clubber Lang in Rocky III? Mr. T played a horrible fighter who kind of kills Rocky's trainer, Mick, he tries to take...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Oct 29, 20222 min read
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Oaklawn Park Ponies...Something to Have Faith In
If you grew up in Hot Springs you will understand this post. This morning at 7:30, as I drove past Oaklawn, there were....there horses!...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Dec 4, 20202 min read
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Rocky's Where the Waitresses Still Call Me Sweetie
Dear Hot Springs, I love Rocky's Corner. Their pizza is so freaking good. Chicago style of course. Their chicken wings are freakishly...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Nov 23, 20202 min read
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Shhh...There's A Secret Brewery Out In The Woods!
Out in the woods, probably 12 miles from downtown, there is a funky, quirky brewery in the woods. It's absolutely perfect if your looking...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Nov 8, 20202 min read
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Tax Dollars Beautifully Spent...North Woods Trails, Perfect for Locals and Tourists!
Apparently, I'm late to the party. This morning Alex and I took Aries (aka Fluffy Butt) up to the North Woods Trail. It's an...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Oct 31, 20201 min read
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A Trashed Out Vision of Elegance and Hope
I love the people willing to invest in Hot Springs! They are brave and visionary. Recently, a local realtor, Chris Rix, bought an old...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Oct 25, 20202 min read
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An Architectural Beauty,Transformed
A few nights ago we tried to meet up with friends at The Rooftop Bar at the Waters Hotel on Central Aveue. It was 6:30 on a Thursday and...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Oct 19, 20202 min read
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The Audacity of Deluca's
Once upon a time, a few years ago, a short man with dangerous charm and a heavy Brooklyn accent moved to Hot Springs, Arkansas. This...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Oct 11, 20202 min read
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A West Mountain Love Story
Have you been up on West Mountain lately? It's still gorgeous. I think it's amazing that we have a beautiful camel-hump of a mountain...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Sep 28, 20202 min read
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Faith and BBQ...BBQ and Faith
I wish a photograph could capture smell. Walking into Clampit's Country Kitchen and Meat Market is so ridiculously delicious. The air is...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Sep 20, 20202 min read
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The Garland County Library, So Much More Than Books
I remember, back in the 60's, my mom Ann Stell would take me to the Garland County Library on Woodbine. It was not a terribly fun place....

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Sep 18, 20202 min read
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Hot Springs History and Puppy Love
On Park Avenue there's a handsome little building that's home to Tootsie's Pet Boutique. I love the history of the building, the...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Aug 29, 20202 min read
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Secret Brewery in the Woods
Out in the woods, probably 12 miles from downtown, there is a funky, quirky brewery in the woods. It's absolutely perfect if your looking...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Aug 26, 20202 min read
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Fordyce-Ricks Estate A Water Wheel and Love Story
I absolutely love walking my dog, Aries, around Stone Bridge in Hot Springs. It's right across from the entrance to Gulpha Gorge on Park...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Aug 20, 20202 min read
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Juice Running Down Your Arms at the Track Kitchen!
When you go to the Oaklawn Track Kitchen you feel like a cool kid, an insider. For years, the Track Kitchen wasn't really open to the...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Aug 16, 20202 min read
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Love In A Mexican Restaurant
Every time I drive up Ouachita Avenue and past what is now Colorado Grill, I smile a little. Not because I'm thinking about cheese dip,...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Aug 15, 20202 min read
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The Most Exquisite, Delicious Bread is In Hot Springs
I'm trying to focus on things that bring me joy even if it's only for a few minutes. Our brain and soul need it, I think, to combat all...

Diana McDaniel Hampo
Aug 5, 20202 min read
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Your Daughter has a Disgusting Boyfriend
One of the hardest things for parents is .watching their child fall in love (or at least they think they are in love) withan absolute jack wagon, with a mean, rude, disrespectful jerk. They "fall in love" with people who don't deserve them. They're literally not good enough. I've seen all my children fall in love with people so obviously wrong for them, stupid people, with no future, people who didn't respect them or the family, idiots who are obviously only interested i
Nov 243 min read


Dick Head Roosters
This is Frank, the beautiful jerk rooster When one of my new hens started crowing, really cock a doodle dooing, in the morning. I was upset. "You're supposed to be a girl, a hen, stop doing that," I yelled. My lectures didn't work. I knew Lovie the Hen had to go, Lovie was a boy and her new name was Frank. I only wanted hens because I wanted eggs. I didn't want a rooster and fertilized eggs. That would be disgusting. A friend,, with a farm, took Frank the rooster and I wa
Nov 213 min read


Bird Seed
Pushing a yellow shopping buggy through the Park Avenue Dollar Store, Helen smiled, greeting everyone she and her daughter passed. “Mom,...
Sep 12 min read
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