Vacation 2011 - Getting out of Town

The blog has been quiet since I have been on vacation.  But it stands to reason that my return to the blog should deal with what -T and I did on our summer vacation.  The short version is that we had a great time.  The longer version follows.

We began our vacation with a 4:30 AM alarm on Friday, May 27th.  By 5 AM we were out the door on our way to catch a 7 AM flight to Nashville where we would meet up with our vacation companions, Lloyd (BILL) and Cindy (SILC).  Allowing 2 hours to catch the flight seemed reasonable, but after horsing the bags and golf clubs from the car to the shuttle bus, through the long check in line, we had no time to spare.  But we made the flight which was uneventful (the kind I like).

We landed in Nashville shortly after 8 AM, picked up the bags, golf clubs and rental van.  From there we were off to our niece Robin's and nephew in law Brent's (NILB) new home.  There we met up with BILL and SILC, and spent the day with the four.  The first stop was the Pancake Pantry, a Nashville tradition for the past 50 years.  I have heard stories about their breakfast, but never experienced it before this trip.  To Robin and NILB's surprise, the line was only 30 minutes long.  Only 30 minutes long at 9:30 AM on a Friday!  The Pancake Pantry prides itself on always having a line, so we were indeed fortunate.

After breakfast we returned to Robin and NILB's home for the tour.  It was then discovered they had a leaky shower in the bathroom, so myself and BILL decided to make repairs and perform a little home repair 101 for NILB.  A couple hours, a trip to Lowe's and then to a local hardware store, and the leak was fixed.  At least I hope it still is.  At the time, I forgot to explain the warranty in detail, but will now.  There isn't one.

A late breakfast calls for an early dinner (or supper as they call it in Nashville).  Another landmark, the Loveless Cafe, was our destination.  For the record, it was there that I consumed the ONLY barbecue of the trip.   A great meal served with their famous biscuits and jellies.

The final destination on this leg of the trip was an evening of Nashville music.  We went to a country music bar named Tootsies.  As soon as we entered, we were standing in front of a local band that was playing their butts off.  There was no open seats in the room, so we shuffled off to the back room hoping to at least be able to hear the band.  Even better, the back room also had a band who was just warming up.  Soon they began to play and we had a near front row seat.  The talent of these bands that are trying to get their break into the music business, far surpasses what is witnessed in Kansas City.  After leaving Tootsie's we walked the streets, occasionally stopping to listen to a street performer that was hoping to get their chance too.  It is no wonder why Nashville is call Music City. 

By 8:30 we were ready to settle down for the night, espesially since we now had a senior in the group.  SILC needed her rest before the long trip on Saturday.  We were back on the road by 7 AM Saturday morning, cruising east through Tennessee, then North Carolina, cutting across South Carolina before arriving at our destination, Sunset Beach North Carolina around 5 PM.  The trip did afford us the opportunity to visit a while with niece Kelsey.  She attends a community college in Knoxville, and lives in a large house with about 20 other girls that also attend the University of Tennessee. Kelsey entertained us with her stories of discovering what might have once been soup sitting covered on their stove in the shared kitchen.  It was discovered by smell, and not by anyone wondering why a covered pot was on the stove for so many days or weeks.  She also updated us on her love life.  He current boyfriend is pictured above.  I believe she said his name is Mike, and he is a teacher in her hometown.

One final picture from the trip to North Carolina is the row of phone booths spotted at a rest stop along the way.  It caught my attention due to the number of pay phones.  Does anyone use a pay phone anymore?  I can't remember the last time I did.  And assuming they are sometimes used, why so many?  There were about 8 lined up, even though the picture show only 4.  In this day of cell phones, a row of 8 pay phones stood out as very odd.

More about vacation very soon.