White Light and Charlotte

It's now Saturday, July 30th and we rise early for the next jaunt on our journey east expecting to reach the suburbs of Charlotte, NC by late afternoon. But first John must pursue his quest for a Triple-D diner that he thinks may be suitable for breakfast on our way out of Kentucky. Just 55 miles east is the capital of Kentucky which I bet most of you don't know is Frankfort (am I right?) and home of Rick's White Light Diner. As we drive by I see that it's a definite "dive" and declare it unfit. You can see why here but John is keen and persists. We arrive a good half-hour before opening time so decide to walk around. It seems a pretty sleepy place for a capital but maybe that's because it's early in the day. Rick spies us hanging about and right away takes notice of our out-of-state license plates (newly registered in Massachusetts with Red Sox on them) and invites us in. What can I tell you? Rick is a retired navy-man, quick-witted and sharp-tongued. He learns our tale while we place our orders. We learn about Rick's experience with Guy Fieri and his famous show while Rick and his crew get everything going. Soon we are joined by a couple of local regulars and then the sparring really gets going. They drag John into it and he enjoys every minute. Eventually the crowd persuades him to buy a hat in memory of the place and we get on the road again. By the way, the breakfast food was fresh and made from local ingredients but otherwise mediocre. Perhaps it would have been better if we could have enjoyed an Oyster Po'Boy for lunch which is one of the menu items Rick's is known for. Nonetheless it was a memorable experience for us afterall!

With 450+ miles to go we head for the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee. It's picturesque but the truck traffic is appreciable and causes our focus to stay mostly with the road. Around 5 p.m. we reach our destination outside Charlotte in the town of Weddington, NC where our friends, Tom and Laura now reside. We last saw them a little over a year ago before they too departed Colorado. They prepare a sumptuous meal including Tom's family-secret meat marinade and we get settled in the roomy guest quarters in the basement. That night we sleep like dead-dogs and completely miss a serious thunderstorm that passed over. Sunday is a play-day. We hang-out and relax in the morning then decide to go to a movie in the afternoon. It's called "The Tree of Life" starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn and is the WORST movie ever! We almost walk out (as several others did) but keep thinking it's going to get better - WRONG!

Madeline

Afterwards we grab a bite to eat and head back to Tom and Laura's for cocktails and cake. Their daughter, Madeline has made a special cake for us! Sweet!  Then Tom takes John out to his man-cave (which is actually the garage) and teaches him a new game (a ring tied to a string from the ceiling that you swing and try to catch a hook). Yeah, whatever. Later I catch the boys enjoying their drinks with cigars and the dog, Chase. They are obviously having a good time! All in all a very relaxing and needed break from our trip and thanks so much to Tom and Laura for their hospitality!

John, Tom and Chase (the dog)