IT'S ALIIIIIIIVE!!!!

Well, after nearly a year being buried six feet deep, this blog is being resurrected. I'm not saying I'll be posting daily. But I hope to at least have a "best of the week" post. With that being said, this return post is just that. For those of you that are friends of mine on Facebook, I'll always post on there when I make a new post to the blog. If you're new to reading this blog, you'll often see me use the term "wild art." These are just fun little "slices of life" feature photos from around the area.

Most in this post are wild art. But as for the Dinosaur World photos, a small roadside theme park near the Beaver Lake Dam which operated from 1960 until 2005. The 65-acre park features about 50 life-sized concrete dinosaurs. And fire (suspected arson) destroyed the main building which housed a restaurant and gift shop. Although I've driven by the park anytime I've gone out to the dam, I hate that the park closed before I moved out here. Just the nostalgia in me, I suppose.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/07/11--
UA football practice
quarterback Tyler Wilson during practice on Sunday, Aug. 7, 2011



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/07/11--
Doug Kinsey of Fayetteville patches a crack to prepare for painting underneath the awning separating the outdoor tennis courts at the George M. Billingsley Tennis Complex on the Fayetteville campus of the University of Arkansas on Sunday, Aug. 7, 2011. Kinsey and his brother, Blake Kinsey, both of Eckco, Inc. in Fayetteville, have an expected completion of painting both the indoor and outdoor courts by Aug. 15.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/07/11--
Jake Bilderback, 13, of Huntsville carries a bag of ice on Sunday, Aug. 7, 2011, to his grandfather, Carl Bilderback of Tontitown, while helping his grandparents set up their concession trailers for the 113th annual Tontitown Grape Festival. Carl and his wife, Debbie, with C&D Concessions, have six different food and drink trailers staged on the grounds for the festival which runs Tuesday through Saturday.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/07/11--
Nina-Rose Stephenson, 7, waits for customers at the Fayetteville Farmers' Market at the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks on Sunday, Aug. 7, 2011. Nina-Rose was helping her mother, Amye Stephenson, both of Berryville, sell peaches and nectarines from A&A Orchards in Berryvile.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/08/11--
Paris Middle School secretary Vicki Furstenberg maneuvers the ropes course behind Paris High School on Monday, Aug. 8, 2011. Paris Middle principal Martha Dodson led the faculty on the ropes course as part of team-building exercises to prepare for the upcoming school year. Students return to classes on Wednesday, Aug. 17.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/09/11--
Shannon Banks-Yocom of Bella Vista helps Leah Scheele, 4, of Bella Vista on her stroke during the Bella Vista Junior Sports Camp on Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2011, at the Kingsdale tennis courts in Bella Vista. The three-day camp, presented by Bella Vista Community Church, exposed about 60 children to tennis, basketball, volleyball and Bible stories.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/09/11--
A caveman sculpture guarding the entrance to the closed Dinosaur World is seen on Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2011, near Beaver Lake. The building was destroyed by fire last week.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/09/11--
The charred remains of the building at the closed Dinosaur World is seen on Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2011, near Beaver Lake. The building was destroyed by fire last week.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/10/11--
Selia Perez (left), 9, watches as her brother, Cody Lunsford, 6, both of Springdale gets his hair trimmed by Anna Gail Thompson on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2011, inside the House of Hope Rescue Mission in Springdale. Thompson, who works at JR's Salon in Springdale, was offering free "back-to-school" haircuts at the center free of charge.



Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER --08/10/11--
Jordi Castro (left), 8, pushes Amber Mate, 7, both of Rogers, across the floor during a relay race during the Rogers Activity Center's Summer Day Camp on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2011. This is the last week of the camp as students return to classes at Rogers Public Schools on Monday (AUG. 15).