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It's
amazing what you'll find in the countryside. If you dropped off
the interstate a few miles west of Benton, Arkansas, and toured
the back roads (practically a redundant term in Arkansas), you
might pass Warren and Janet Criswell's house and, noting the
chain link fence, logically suppose the presence of one or more
dogs. Good guess, but any other assumptions would almost certainly
be far off the mark and would not survive your first step over
the threshold.
 Directly
ahead, where most folks install living room furniture, the Criswells
have an imposing array of computer equipment and about 1000 board
feet of neatly arranged work surface. (I particularly liked that
big, eat-your-heart-out, color laser printer.) This is where
Janet manages and operates Criswell
Embroidery and Design.
 Tucked
to one side is Warren's workstation. Stacked beside it is an
intimidating pile of reading matter, including a volume by Nietzsche,
what appeared to be a book on the philosophy of science, and
Seamus Heaney's translation of Beowulf.
As you can tell from his web
site, Warren is a serious artist and a writer.  His studio is housed in
a long room adjacent to Janet's technology farm.  It's neat, well-lighted
and stuffed with equipment only marginally comprehensible to
the uninitiated. I could appreciate what he does with it, though.
Oh, yes, the dog census: They are,
going from largest to smallest, Greg (reminds me of another Greg,
although the dog has shorter hair),  Skipper (the absurdly pleased
blob in Janet's lap), Abby and Buffy. I was told that Buffy,
a tiny, animated ball of fluff, is a Chihuahua. I always thought
they resembled the one in the Taco Bell ad -- a large, nearly
naked rat with glandular problems. The Criswell's informed me
that it is one of the "big ones."  If you look carefully at
the painting propped up in Warren's studio (it is titled "Rachel
Stealing the Gods"), you'll see Buffy peering over the open
book.
Altogether
another pleasant visit with genial, creative and accommodating
people. I'm leading a charmed life so far.
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