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We did a couple of stops this last week.  I had to have my yearly blood work from the doctors, which I was supposed to have done when we first showed up here but since we were changing medical plans and it took forever to get the cards, it has taken me this long to find a doctor and get the ball rolling.  Last Tuesday I was finally able to see a local "Doc" and have a brief check up.  He reviewed my drugs that I take and had some questions about some of them, especially my diabetes medications.  He had me go over to the local hospital for the blood draw.  Gotta remember, this isn't Folsom Kaiser out here.

The local Keokuk Medical Center.

Interestingly enough, I was ushered into a single room, all by myself, with no one else.  Weird, not like Kaiser and 40 other people standing in line.  Other than filling out the Medicare, Blue Shield/Blue Cross paperwork, there was no wait.  Maybe next time!

So, the results came back that night but I was working and it took me a couple of days to get in touch with the doctor.  Basically, he said to continue on with the way things were going and the way I was taking my prescriptions.  No change in frequency or amounts.  My A1c was 5.7!  I haven't had one of those in years!  Last one I had last year was nearly 8 so this mission thing must be doing me some good, huh?  That's almost normal...well, for abnormal me it's normal, I guess....

On our way back from Keokuk, we drove up the "Great River Road", Highway 96.  The Mississippi is quite wide and very shallow except on the Western side where the barges travel.  On the East/Nauvoo side it's very shallow and the lily pads proliferate for a long stretch.  Arlene had me stop to take a few picts where the lily pads are in bloom.

No idea what the purple stuff is but it's pretty and there's a lot of it.  Only grows on the "dry" land.

Wider shot.

The "structure" out there is a duck blind that will be utilized when duck season starts in the fall.  The locals tell me they hear a lot of banging first thing in the morning till the season is over.  

A little further down the road, entering Nauvoo, is the "Old Granite Bridge".  There is a sign pointing to it and a walkway but nothing else.  Like a lot of things in this area, it's just there.  No history, just there.  I suppose it was a bridge entering town at one time or another.  There's so much history here that some of the lesser stuff gets ignored.

Classic bridge architecture.  Front side.

Back side.  Not so accessible.

Oddly enough, there is a sign posted on the bridge saying "private property" so you can't use the bridge.  The house there is part of the "Community of Christ" (RLDS) area of Nauvoo.  They have their own set of rules here that we need to be respectful of.

Also there is a Veteran's memorial not too far from the bridge.  No need to explain that.  Not sure about the placing of it there but it's an Eagle Scout project.  A nice one, too.  The local police car likes to sit here in the shade and use his radar to get speeders entering/leaving the town.  Nice....