I drove four hours to Stockbridge, Massachusetts to visit the Norman Rockwell Museum! The day did not start very well as I got two hours into the drive and June let me know I left my laptop behind! So now I’ll be doing everything on my phone! Oh well, could be worse. The museum was incredible! The grounds were beautiful and included a large museum and his painting studio that sits in a meadow above a river. I first enjoyed a large room in the basement of the museum that included a 10 minute movie as an introduction and then pictures of every Norman Rockwell cover on the Saturday Evening Post! I took a tour given by an incredibly intelligent and articulate former Latin teacher. Among many other things, she explained how Rockwell was not just an illustrator, but an artist which was a stigma he tried to overcome his entire life. She explained some of the details and thought that he put into every one of his paintings. When the Saturday Evening Post would not let him put a portrait of any people of color on their cover unless they were subservient, he left the post in the 1960s and started painting for a Look magazine that included anti-segregation and other famous paintings. He became quite an elder statesman. This part of Massachusetts is beautiful highlighted by the Berkshires. On my way to the campsite after my visit at the museum, I passed the botanical gardens in Pittsfield, which I saw from the street but noted two women getting honey out of a couple of bee hives! I passed conservation land, farm land, large horse stables, and even was treated to some policeman with a canine going into the woods! I’m now sitting at the campsite with everything set up. I am at the Mount Greylock state campground. Mount Greylock is the highest point in the entire state of Massachusetts. Please excuse any typos as I am trying to dictate. The service is not that great but I will do my best to post a number of pictures for your enjoyment. I hope everyone’s well! 

First time took about 30 minutes. Should be much faster next time. Back to the museum. Out of over 4400 paintings and illustrations the museum only controls about 800. The rest are owned by private families such as the Walmart family who actually have their own Museum.