Last of the Travel Photos

It already seems so long ago that I was out there on the open road. My trip from Memphis, through Nashville (had to settle for photos: no time to find the museum where they sell the postcards), and on to Chattanooga was uneventful. I enjoyed the Tennessee Aquarium immensely and was there early in the day so I almost had the place to myself. Unfortunately, I only had a couple of hours to spend so that I could get to Asheville before dark.

The main reason for going through Chattanooga was to detour around a HUGE rock slide on I-40 in the Pigeon River Gorge. They say it's 150 feet tall and will take 3-6 months to remove. It's not the first time this has happened in the Gorge and it probably won't be the last. I decided to take a southerly detour rather than the northern one that most of the 18-wheelers are taking. In fact, I recall having to take the northern route on my first trip to Asheville from Minneapolis in 1996, and for exactly the same reason. We followed a line of big trucks down a two-lane mountain road (now widened and hooked into I-26), with the smell and smoke of overheated brakes in the air. The southern detour was MUCH nicer (see sidebar photos) and as I drove eastward towards the mountains, the tree-covered, rolling hills beckoned me onward.

I returned to Asheville just in time to attend a little soiree at the home of friends Jan and Paula. Jan (whose photo will appear in the right sidebar presently) had heart surgery about a month ago to correct a previously undiagnosed congenital heart defect that had progressively disabled her for the past 7 years. It's an amazing tale, too long to go into here, and she definitely belongs on that cable TV show about medical mysteries. Suffice to say, she has been brought back from death's door and we are all very glad to have her with us.

Last week I emptied and flushed Michelle's black and gray water tanks, then gave her a thorough washing with help from grandson Austin. It was an all-day project and I was pooped, so I didn't get the fresh water tank drained, which I must do before the temps get below freezing; I will also need to run a special RV antifreeze into the lines.

This week I've been helping daughter Liz do some major re-organizing in her tiny apartment, and have enjoyed visiting with her family and helping out with the cooking. She works several 12- to 14-hour day shifts a week as a hospital RN; Sean works several 12-hour night shifts a week for the Sheriff's Dept. as a detention officer, so there've been some poor eating habits established, understandably. Besides, I do like to cook, especially in a real kitchen with a regular oven.

I'll be moving in with my friend Cathy when her house closes the day before T'giving, at which time Michelle will cease to be my primary abode and become my sole means of transportation. I look forward to settling in for the winter and helping Cathy decorate her new space. We also will be planning a really BIG new business venture that I'll say more about later.

That's all for now. Time to fix Austin some breakfast: doing the Nanny thing again...nice.