Home again

Doing a fast exit from Waverly, Tennessee, I am home without and temporarily out of an assignment for which grateful.

This gives me a little time to catch up on a few things, so with the help from Gary, my brother-in-law, we put the boat port/garage in good order, hung a couple of shelves and sorted things out so we could at least walk through it without stumbling over a box or crate of motorcycle parts left over from the move back in August.

The best part was installing a pair of external oil coolers on Boudreaux.  Hopefully, this will keep it from completely melting down in the event of a really warm ride this summer.

Those things accomplished, I had a little time to do some much needed chrome polishing. 

It probably won't be long before I'll be exchanging the Harley for a Boeing so I'll probably be on it as much as possible for the next few days.

The Honda Guy

Since I've been in Waverly, Tennessee, most days have been rather disagreeable. My feet feel like they haven't thawed since I was home a couple weeks ago.  It's either been raining and cold or snowing and cold, except for the 2 or 3 days this past weekend that was in the 60s and rained in biblical proportions.

Today, as I broke for lunch at McDonalds, they had spread salt on the sidewalk to prevent slipping.  In the parking spot next to the door was a Honda motorcycle which I had seen in that same spot countless number of times.  Thinking to myself, this guy is tough if he's riding in 20 degree weather with ice, snow and rain.  You have to admire him.

Going inside, I made my order at the counter to the young lady and put up with the usual questions.

"Welcome to McDonalds, Sir! How can I help you?"

"I'd like a Grilled Chicken Caesar salad and a medium iced tea."

"And what kind of dressing would you like on that, sir?"

"Uh......................Caesar?"

Paying her the $7.01 for the salad and drink, I looked around.  There he was.  The lone Honda rider sitting at a table hammering away on his laptop with his helmet on one chair and a thick jacket draped over another.

Retrieving my salad and drink from the counter, I maneuvered myself to another table in sight of Mr. Honda Man.

I noticed 3 or 4 other patrons who had walked in, some wearing Harley-Davidson caps and shirts, none of which were on motorcycles but proudly displayed their affection for  Harley-Davidsons while unapologetically riding in their warm pick-up trucks with Harley stickers on the back glass.

Now, we have the one lone Honda guy, riding to Mickey D's in the cold and wet with Harley guys riding in trucks and cars.  What do you think that tells you about Harley riders?

It tells me they are not dumb enough to be riding in 28° weather on slick roads and smart enough to stay warm when possible. That's what it tells me.

Wasting away in Middle Tennessee

Having a break from the 20 and 30° temperatures and now in the mid sixties, brought lots of rain along the I-40 corridor in middle Tennessee.  Being literally 40 miles from a town of any proportions that would have any restaurant of acclaim, I stopped in at the Hot Spot Barbeque for dinner.

If you get past the idea that you're stuck out in the middle of nothing, you begin to look around at the curiosities and odd little things that the locals do.  Here at the Hot Spot, you're confronted with a collection of corny gun and Harley Davidson signs (although there is no evidence this is a biker place), handwritten menus on the walls, plastic table cloths and..........9 pound turnips.

At first I thought it was fake but the owner soon confirmed it was the real deal  The 11 pound sweet potato behind was an added benefit.  I was amused and almost brought to tears at times as the locals bantered with the owner and kidded the two 70ish something waitresses about wearing sexier clothing.  Can you imagine Granny Clampett wearing skinny jeans?  Me neither.

Saturday, I had to get out of the hotel so I took a ride through Bucksnort, heading south through small back roads that sometimes became dirt roads where deer, turkey and rabbits abound.   I think I saw 6 deer in various places, 5 of which did not have a tire track across their bodies.

Looking down at my instrument gauge, I saw that I had a very low tire so I began to seek out a service station with an air pump.  Stopping at a small convenience store near Ethridge, I was amazed to see an Amish looking buggy pulling up.  Sure enough, two young men dressed in traditional Amish attire got out and went into the store.  Later, after checking the internet,  I found out there is a small enclave of Amish in middle Tennessee.  As one website says, it's in no danger of out populating Lancaster, Pennsylvania or Holmes County, Ohio but there is a presence as well as a few in Alabama and maybe even in Oklahoma.





Amish with a southern accent.  Who knew?

The winter blahs

Wow, this winter has been one of the more uneventful ones for me in quite a while.  Maybe that's good but really leaves me not much to write about, let alone, take a picture of.

Let's see, since Michigan, I've had a short stay in Kaufman/Mesquite, Texas, a week and a ½ in Moss Bluff/Lake Charles, a couple of weeks in Grenada, Missippy (that's the way it's pronounced there) and the week before Christmas, I was sent to Buggtussel, Tennessee. Actually, it's Waverly, a little burg in north central Tennessee and a very long drive from Memphis, especially when it's snowing and cold.

I'm guessing it will be a fairly short stint or at least that's what I'm hoping for.  Aside from being about 7 miles north of  Loretta Lynn's Ranch, on the banks of the Hurricane Creek, there's not much I find noteworthy.  Possibly there may be to it during the spring and summer months.

An update may be forthcoming once I get out of the hotel for the weekend.

Update:  Saturday, 12/29/12.

I could not take sitting in this hotel room.  I've looked at motorcycle websites, cruised bike and camera forums, edited pictures and watched some of the most awful TV ever broadcasted, so I thought I'd check out some of the local towns nearby.

Gray and gloomy with a light snow falling, the drive through Bucksnort and Dickens just wasn't much of an inspiration.  I had heard Franklin was a nice spot so I took the new 4 lane down that way.

Franklin proved to be a very nice and vibrant downtown with trendy shops, coffee shops and even the old theater was still in business.  Even though it was in the low 30° ranges, people were out, some with friends, some with their little kids and some with designer dogs.

 After having a reasonable gumbo (who would have thought) at Papa Boudreaux's Cajun Restaurant, I headed back to the car and looked at a map.  I was only 30-35 mile from Nashville.  Oh, what the heck, I have nothing better to do.

Still, a light snow was falling when I arrived and parked near the Ryman Auditorium, the original home of the Grand Ole Opry and walked a few steps down to Legends Corner on Broadway.  I hadn't even made it to the corner before I was accosted by bums looking for a handout.  Sure, I'm a softy, it was cold and wet so I handed him a few bucks.  On Broadway, dodged a gaggle of other tourists with Canons and Nikons dangling from their necks.  Even with it cold and wet, there was a significant amount of foot traffic walking by the ever present mandolin or guitar picker, playing for tips.

Broadway still has quite a few bars, clubs and pubs on it but I can see how it is becoming Nashville's version of Bourbon Street.  Broadway has it's T-shirt and tourist traps like Bourbon but being what it is, there's also boot and hat shops.  The thing about those shops are, they still carry those  old pointy toed roach killers worn mostly by entertainers and are almost a cartoon of western wear.

So, having my fill of walking in the rain and snow, I took leave and made my way back to the parking garage  through a gauntlet of beggars and hustlers.

The Lesson of the Moon Pie

A couple of weeks ago, I rode into town seeing gas in the $3.49 range and within a week, I was seeing $3.63-3.66 all around me. That was a wake up call to the fact that we are INDEED being hit with inflation.

When Gas prices go up, we can expect it to effect everything else from the shoes on our feet to the food at the store because it's all delivered to the final destination by a truck and that truck uses gas.

Here's another way I've seen it sneak up on me.  After having a decent meal in a little mom and pop restaurant in Decherd, Tennessee today, I was riding back to the office when the urge for something sweet hit me so I popped into a little convenience store, looked around for something to satisfy the sweet tooth and grabbed an old standby favorite, a Moon Pie.  I've been eating those things all my life but it's been a while since I have gotten one.  Walking up to the counter, I'm thinking this thing could hit me for anywhere between 59 and 79¢. The guy at the counter didn't even blink when he said, "Uh dollah an' seb'm cents, please."  Wow, my 59¢ good ole Moon Pie, with tax, is now $1.07?

The government has been denying that there  is significant inflation by choosing different reporting and calculating criteria.  But when my Moon Pie takes a 50% jump in price, now that's inflation.

I'm wondering how long a short term certificate of deposit at the bank can last below 1% now with the government (digitally) printing money at a record clip?  Hang on to your hats folks, this thing could get nasty.

Warm Spring Day In Tennessee

While yesterday was less than wonderful with temperatures ranging from the high 30s to the low 50s with gray skies, today was a gorgeous day. 

This afternoon, I explored local things near my hotel. One being something called the Old Stone Fort which is really an Indian mound but that's another story.

I walked some trails along the Duck River, managing to only fall flat of my face only once without breaking me or my camera. The tragedy could have been sliding off a 25 foot cliff into the waters.  It didn't look that deep but it was probably pretty cold and I wasn't ready for a swim.


Wild flowers were coming out along the rivers edge causing bugs to be out as well. While lying on the ground taking close-up pictures of some flowers, I had the uneasy feeling I was being watched.  I snapped off a couple of frames, slowly go up and saw a couple of Geezers (that would be someone my age or older) looking at me as if I were some kind of (please be kind in the comment section) nut.  I got up and nodded to them as if I were doing something important and headed back up the trail.  I suppose they don't see people wallowing around on the ground eye level to a dandelion very often.

It was a nice day.  I think there's even a full moon out tonight.

Tennessee

In case you had not noticed, I'm working in middle Tennessee and staying in Manchester.  When I arrived a week ago today, the gas station across the street from the hotel had prices of $3.49.  I have seen them raise prices twice in the last week up to $3.62 and three cents higher at the next exit.

North Georgia

September 14: With less than 24 hours since arriving in Baton Rouge from Virginia, I was already booking a flight to Burlington, Iowa. Thinking it impossible to be more remote than that, within 3 hours, the phone rang and my trip to Burlington was canceled and I on the cell phone in traffic booking a trip to Blairsville, GA. Not knowing for sure where that place was, I relied on the travel agent to choose the best airport. She tells me, "Knoxville". "Tennessee?", I asked. "Yep, your other choices are Asheville, Chattanooga or Atlanta". "Well", says I, "that's three states and a lot of space between those towns, are you sure?". Long story short, I'm on a flight early Thursday morning, flying over the tropical storm that had just passed through Louisiana and landing right back in the middle of it. Relying on my trusty (?) Garmin GPS, I took it's advice and went blazing down the road and within 30 minutes I'm on some little road in a drizzling rain questioning the wisdom of Mr. Garmin's invention. When I tell you that road was crooked, that is an understatement. At one point, I kid you not, I looked through the trees to my right and saw a car put on it's brake lights and 15 seconds later, I met that same car in the next curve. My trip to Blairsville lasted three hours through these curves and rain and had me muttering near profanities at the thought of my travel agent and the folks at Garmin Industries.

Blairsville is a Mayberyesque town of around 700 full time citizens with an old courthouse occupying the pivot point of a roundabout. The office where I met up with Wally, the other rep, sits on the north side of it. Unfortunately, it was nearly closing time by the time I arrived so Wally and I went out scouting for a place to stay. We chose Holiday Inn Express after a quick look at couple of other motels, thinking it was the safest bet, not knowing anything about the place.

September 26: After spending the past two days in St Louis, I flew back to Georgia. Thinking it might be best to fly into Atlanta, I flew in on American this time, giving my usual rant about Delta a rest. Feeling fortunate that we arrived on time, I retrieved my bags and tried to find the rental car shuttle bus. Atlanta's signage is less than wonderful so I found myself pulling two large bags to and fro outside the terminal building. After asking and receiving bad advice from two sources, I eventually was aboard the shuttle.

Instead of driving the fastest way, Saturday morning I checked out of my Patel and took Hwy 19 north. It soon became much more scenic than Hotlanta when I began to get into the north Georgia mountains. Arriving in Dahlonegah, I checked out a couple of motels and eventually unloaded at the Super 8. Believe it or not, it had more going on for it than the Holiday Inn Express and a lot cheaper to boot.

Dahlonegah, was hosting a couple of bike rides, one 50 mile ride and a hundred miler. There was more spandex covered butts there than at the flea market in Gonzales, LA. This small college town has a pretty neat historic downtown with satellites of shops and cafes all around the old courthouse. While the main attraction was supposed to be bicycles, the tight turned roads were constantly yielding to various arays of Porches, Beemers, vintage roadsters and everything imaginable in motorcycles.

October 6 and 7: Wow! Were the natives excited about the Sorghum Festival! Complete with a canon shot to start the parade Saturday morning, Blairsville denizens turned out on the courthouse square to take in the sights of all 5 fire trucks, Boy Scouts, people on stilts, Shriners, the high school marching band and every restored Camaro or Mustang still running. True enough, in conventional terms of traveling, there isn't a lot going on for Blairsville but somewhere deep down in your soul you'll find a lot and your heart will be better for the experience.

The last 3 weeks, I decided to stay at the Seasons Inn right on the square. It's an older inn that had been bought and run by a young couple. Furnishing were spartan but nevertheless, it was fitting for my stay in Mayberry......er...Blairsville.