Delayed

This delayed post is brought to you by CHURCH MEETINGS.

You know, the ones where people will go on and on about a topic that either starts or becomes irrelevant.

It's nice to have an extra long meeting for some fellowship, but people, I HAVE A BLOG TO WRITE!

Properly Named

On our way to Gatlinburg, we drove through the Great Smokey Mountain National Park. The drive through the park is beautiful and offers a lot of places to pull over and enjoy the view. That is if you are privileged with a view. As we drove more and thicker clouds moved in to the area. We didn't have much rain, but we were IN the clouds.

My main destination in the park to visit was Clingmans Dome. This is the highest point in the park and also the spot of an awesome look-out tower. As I drove higher, the view grew shorter. We went anyway because we were on a tight schedule and wouldn't be able to back this year.

Surprisingly, we weren't the only ones willing to fight the uphill hike to the tower submerged in fog. The hike is fairly short but very steep. This did not make my children happy. There was much complaining and claims of broken legs as I forced them up the hill. Along the way, we passed a father and two children coming down the hill. His kids were equipped with hiking poles and backpacks. They were smiling as they followed the path. Why does his kids enjoy hiking so much that they will carry packs with a smile, yet mine declare hiking equal to torture?

Eventually, we made it to the top and climbed the spiral path to the top of the tower. Of course the view from up here was white and grey. It was still a beautiful place to be and someday I will return to see the mountains that follow below this point.

On the way down, I asked the kids if the hike was worth getting to the top. The boy shot a look back at me like I had lost my mind. "I didn't see anything.", he declared.

"Smokey Mountains", I informed him.

"They sure had that name right", he answered.

Gatlinburg VS Pigeon Forge

This summer we made our first visit to Gatlinburg, TN. In the weeks leading up to our trip, my friends would describe Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge together. Almost like two towns set on top of each other. You won't see one without the other was the image I was given.

Once we arrived, we drove through Gatlinburg and into the neighboring Pigeon Forge for dinner at the Apple House. This was a destination we were told not to miss and we are glad we listened. The Apple House is great.

We also realized very quickly that the two little towns are, in some ways, opposites. As I drove down the center of Gatlinburg I noticed the sidewalks and small shops up against the road.

The architecture is beautiful and the sidewalks are landscaped with plants and benches. Further down the road, after driving through some forest, I entered Pigeon Forge. Everything was one of three things; mini golf, restaurant, or go cart track. Some were all three combined into one. Pigeon Forge is nowhere near as beautiful. The buildings are all very separate and pushed back far from the road with massive parking lots between the highway and the attraction. This is no different than driving down your towns main shopping strip. Just replace every dollar store with a miniature golf course and every gas station for a go cart. It's just not pretty.

After dinner we drove back into Gatlinburg and didn't leave there or drive our car again until it was time to head home.

Walking the streets into the evening was a lot of fun. There are a lot of shops to look through and there seemed to be a lot going on. In front of a magic shop, a magician held a mini show on the sidewalk and we stopped to watch. He was fun to watch and he had my kids sold on most of the products he showed. We went into a mirror maze and the next morning we visited the Ripley's Believe it or Not museum.

Somehow we managed to escape town without buying fudge from one of the fifteen shops offering huge chunks of it.

So the lesson of this post is don't let anyone ever give you the impression that Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg are one in the same.

ADA

Every so often I can become obsessive and particular on something very simple. Over the past year, it has been chewing gum. I chew gum every day after lunch and sometimes after dinner. It has taken me a while to choose the best gum for me, but I think I have finally found it. Last week I stood in the candy aisle reviewing my selections for about twenty minutes. This was a serious decision for me. It wasn't going to be just a pick up a pack and go about my day.

The variety of flavors is the lowest priority. What I was comparing was the ingredients. I want one with xylitol because of its properties in helping prevent tooth decay. Next I look at the serving sizes and how many servings are in each package. I have tried just about every brand but have finally settled on Trident because they use xylitol.

While reviewing my choices of gum, I noticed that many of the packages contain the seal of the ADA. What's strange is that a lot of toothpaste products do NOT contain this seal. What is this place coming to when the American Dental Association supports your chewing gum and not your tooth paste????!!!

As well, I have never given this much thought or attention to selecting a tooth paste. It may be time to start studying now for my next purchase.

The Beacon

I have known about the Beacon Drive In almost as long as I have lived in South Carolina, but I have never found the time to get over there.

The Beacon is a famous landmark in Spartanburg, SC. They serve burgers, chili, hot dogs, sliced pork, and more. The food is good, but even better is the experience of having eaten at the Beacon.

The night before we went, we reviewed the menu so we would know what we wanted before arriving. This saved us some time once we arrived because when it is your turn to order you better know what you want or get out of line. Sure enough, there was a group huddled up near the door reviewing the menu when we walked in. My friend Jack, guided me passed the group and up to the counter, telling me that the mass of people weren't in line because they hadn't decided.

A man stands at the beginning of the counter waiting for your order. "Beacon burger a-plenty", I tell him. He shouts my order to the cooks and tells me to move down the line. By the time I walk down the counter with a tray, another man puts an overflowing plate of food onto my tray. I have a huge burger on a plate piled with fries and onion rings. Only about a minute has passed since I have ordered. I grab a glass of sweet tea, pay at the end of the counter and find a seat. The tea is another thing to experience at the Beacon. They claim to serve more tea than any other restaurant in the US. This one restaurant uses 3,000 lbs of sugar each week and will make more than 62,500 gallons of tea in a year!

The food is good and the price is fair but part of eating at the Beacon is enjoying the experience and the history of this sixty year old restaurant. Its partly being able to say, "I've eaten at the Beacon."

Figure Eight

She's EIGHT today!

Mohawk!

The boy requested a mohawk and him mom complied. She thought she would do it and then come back a few hours later to finish shaving his head. I'm not so sure that Cari anticipated him liking it. When they asked my opinion, I told him to keep it.

Cari still says it will be shaved before we go back to school, but it may grow on her by then. As far as I'm concerned it's up to the boy.

A Very Special Need

There is a good friend of ours in need of a kidney. He is very sick. If you have ever thought of organ donation, now or after you are dead, remember someone needs you!!!

Useless

Cari was lecturing Randy on how being MOM puts you in control for everything. As Randy contemplated his lack of control, a smile came across his face and he said,

"You just wait until you get to your useless years!"

AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!

I

am

MELTING!

The Mall is a Trap

It's true. There is some type of force that prevents you being able to leave the mall with the same amount of money that you entered with. I don't care if it is a rainy day and you are just looking to get out for a bit with zero intention to spend. As hard as you try, you won't get out of the door you entered through without draining your wallet a bit.

So why did I, the guy that just finished shopping for "Christmas in July", go to the mall on Tuesday? Good question.

At this point, I have to admit that we actually went to the mall on my suggestion. There is a game that I recently learned about and wanted to pick it up. The mall in Greenville has an outstanding little store called Boardwalk and Parkplace. If you are ever looking for a card game, board game, or even a dice game, this is the place to go. The place is packed full of any game you can imagine and more. When I walked in on Tuesday I said, "I'm looking for PIT". The manager smiled and walked me directly to the game.

PIT is a card game that was created in 1904. How I went so many years without knowing about it, I don't know. The game is simple. Everyone holds nine dealt cards. Each card has a different commodity pictured on it. There are an equal number of commodity's as there are players and there are nine cards of each. You job is to be the first to trade cards until you have all of one commodity.

The play is fast. There is no taking turns, everyone trades at one time. If I have two "gold" cards and I want to dump them, then I would shout that I am trading "TWO!". Holding the cards face down, I trade to any player willing to give me two of something. You continue trading as quickly as possible until your hand is all of one item. As you do this, everyone else around the table is shouting and thrusting cards at each other along with you.

We played a bit tonight and it was quite fun. The game supports up to eight players and I imagine it could get a bit crazy with that many people. Sometimes pressuring someone to trade with you seems to work. You have to be loud to get attention and get the trade. If three people are all shouting "ONE!", then you have to get aggressive and get your card in their face.

After picking up my game at the mall, I felt that I may be able to head home. Some money had been spent and it looked as if I would escape the trap. My hungry family had other ideas as they smelled the food court. More money would have to be spent before escaping the trap known as "the mall" on Tuesday.

Local

I have been thinking a bit about what this blog started as and what it has become. Overall I don't think I have changed it much, but I realized that a few years ago it was very much about the hiking and sight seeing that Cari and I did.

I'm not sure why you come here to read what I have to say, but I feel like I want to do more to show you what's around me. When I read blogs, there are different reasons I choose to revisit. Sometimes it is to learn about a new place . What does someone that lives in the city have to say or show me? What does someone that lives on a farm have to say? If that's one of the reasons you visit my blog, I want to keep that going.

Having a baby in the house has made it more and more difficult to get out and do some long hikes, but what I am going to do is try to show you more about my town. I'm going to get some photos of local areas and buildings and give you my perspective and hopefully some history.

That's my goal anyway. It's good to have goals. Next up, something local.

Unexpected

I was browsing some videos yesterday and came across this one. What happens really caught me off guard and I wanted to share it with you.

Christmas in July - conclusion

Christmas in July DOES make me feel better. Over the past month I got a new tent, a backpack, and three video games! In fact, two of the video games were pre-orders and come out in August and September, so I'll be able to spread my happiness of new things out over a long stretch.

Don't worry, I didn't buy everything that I desire. I left a certain number of things on my wish list for the next time that I need some retail therapy.

Over the past month, did you go and buy yourself a present? What did you get?

Ancient Historical Artifact

I discovered this historical artifact while walking around town last night. It was in one of the (closed) shop windows.

Halloween

I recently heard a local pastor and part of his message caught my attention. This is my attempt to summarize a portion of what he said.

Halloween is when you can dress up and go trick-or-treating. Perhaps you will be a super hero, or maybe a goblin for the night as you collect candy.

But, what happens if you knock on a door and trick-or-treat on November 10th? The person would look at you like you are crazy. Halloween only works one day a year.

In the same way, church is like Halloween for a lot of people. They dress up on Sunday like something they are not. They are dressed up and trick-or-treating to God. Trying to fool Him.

I thought this was a great message. It's something you can reflect on yourself. As you go throughout your week, are you still behaving like a Christian? Or do you dress up and become a Christian only on Sunday?