SAYING GOODBYE

My eyes are wet with tears as I'm writing this. even when i got up at 4am to pee, i was awash in grief before thoughts could enter my mind. I'm permeated with sorrow.

Today i took a final (this is how it feels to me: final, the end, finish, no more) marathon walk around all my old walking route haunts; checking out the gardens and seeing what's new on people's porches and checking out the parks i walk through. When i was here in April and May, the main flowering trees in the park were magnolias and now they are crepe myrtle.

All over Charlotte, even vacant lots; tall trees or short bushes filled to bursting with white, purple, orchid, pink, red flowers.

Yesterday we spent the afternoon and evening with Alicia and Keith. Ate pizza and watched Invasion of the Body Snatchers with Donald Sutherland. (this movie was scarier than i remembered it and very well done and  the music was an excellent addition to the tension of the pods)  getting to spend time with Keith and meeting him and talking to him was great. He is a super guy and just perfect for Alicia. They complement each other very well.

Today we are spending the day with Alicia before she goes to work and tomorrow morning we leave Charlotte heading to visit Bill's siblings and dad in the midwest. (is michigan in the midwest?) I don't know when we'll see alicia again. I can hardly swallow with the heaviness of not seeing her. We spent an entire season with her and daily too except for when we were in Asheville and  that was every weekend.  I am suffused with Alicia-ness and don't want this to end.

but it is ending. and my "escape route" from these overwhelming painful emotions is to plan; so already i'm thinking of when we might be able to visit North Carolina again; also thinking of seeing old friends in Portland. But the future fantasy tripping ain't workin' and i'm devastated.

This visit which was the main goal of the road trip has exceeded my expectations and imagination by 1000-fold.

Onward. It is, what it is. (damn it.)

SOME FINAL MOMENTS IN ASHEVILLE

 A view of Beaver Lake - my morning walk route and our evening stroll route. This picture was taken from the Bird Sanctuary.

 This is the metal bird that is at the front of the Sanctuary and is on top of the bike rack.

 Alicia in her new outfit that we got at an arts and crafts fair. We had so much fun. Bill for the most part took refuge on a bench in the shade and i would periodically visit him when i needed cash replenishment. It was the perfect weather day  for an afternoon of commerce.

On our front porch (we ate all our meals here) having a final spaghetti and 'kitchen sink' salad dinner.                                                       We have eaten twice at a wonderful restaurant called HomeGrown. Their motto is "slow food right quick". Their menu changes daily since they cook dependent on what's available from the local markets and farms. They have outdoor seating and also lots of tables inside. It is a converted house so there are several different and separate eating areas with different feelings.

Last night Bill ordered escarole in a bitter tomato vinaigrette. I had fried chicken one time and yesterday had a farmer's salad with fresh peaches and sunflower seeds and a wonderful creamy tomatillo and bacon salad dressing.

And our last hike here was in Dupont State Forest. It is crisscrossed with trails and some are forest walks and others go to viewpoints and the ones we took visited lakes and waterfalls. The forest is in the town of Brevard which is the waterfall center of North Carolina. I did better on this hike in spite of the humidity which had my fingers dripping! I think because i slowed my pace.

And we had the best most perfect lunch spot; all alone, deep in the forest by Lake Julia. On a clean non-buggy deck overlooking the lake. AHHHHHHHHHHH

CHEF

A great high energy, lively movie. We both rated it an 8 and the audience clapped with delight (as did we) when the credits rolled.

The plot was very simple; a chef at a high end restaurant in L.A. (Jon Favreau as Carl) was culinarily stifled by the owner of the restaurant (Dustin Hoffman). So after an argument in the kitchen and after a scathing review by a food critic (Oliver Platt), Carl quit the restaurant.

His ex-wife asked a favor of one of her other ex-husbands (played deliriously manic by Robert Downey, Jr.) to help Carl out. So he outfitted him with a food truck. This started Carl back on the road of cooking and serving food that he liked; in this case Cuban and South American food. He was joined by his young son and one of his cooking crew in L.A., John Leguizamo (Martin).

And that was it. Any criticism of the movie would be based around the absolute feel-goodness of it, the lack of reality in many scenes, the ex-wife who was beautiful and wealthy and had some sort of mystery important job, the perfect son. sort of like comfort food: filling but not very nutritious.  But the acting was excellent and all the characters were likable especially Martin (Leguizamo). He brought a lot of spiciness and verve to the scenes.

and speaking of spicy: that was the main attraction to the film. It was colorful and had lots of music; salsa, blues, soul; there was singing, the dialogue was snappy, it was the perfect length and the food!!!!! oh, the food!!!!! the buying of it, the preparation, the serving, the plating, the tasting, the cutting.

It was mouthwatering; there were a lot of times when me and the audience just groaned with hunger. One of the times was when Martin marinated a pork butt and roasted it for Cubano sandwiches. I felt like i wanted to snatch a slice of that meat right off the screen.

Even the sappy and especially fantastical ending, didn't detract from my love of this movie. I left the theater with my stomach rumbling and my toes tapping and my face in a huge grin.

MAGICAL DAY AT NORTH CAROLINA ARBORETUM WITH ALICIA

Bill and I at the garden part of the
arboretum.
Fantastic flower displays. We hiked the shady trails first and saved the sunny gardens till late afternoon; very humid out this day.







Alicia at our lunch spot which was a small stoned in "cul-de-sac" area off the main Carolina Mt. trail.










Some bonsai displays in the gardens. We  thought the ones below looked like the Oregon Coast.

Alicia and I in the quilt garden.

THE LOCAL TACO - DOWNTOWN ASHEVILLE, NC

Had another fabulous evening in downtown Asheville. This time we went to 2 bookstores. Downtown Books and News is on Lexington and has lots of used books and a really funky atmosphere with old movie seats for reading. The other one was on Hayward and was Malaprop's. They have lots of author readings and one was going on when we were there. That store is like a small local Barnes and Noble.

Then we did a lot of walking around admiring the old Art Deco buildings. We ended up eating at this taco place and we sat outside. Most of the restaurants have a nice outdoor eating area; some on patio's and others on secret flower decorated courtyards.

I had the fried avocado taco with sweet chili sauce and zucchini slaw. The fried avocado, i know, sounds so strange but it was absolutely delicious. A great crunch around the soft interior. And the other taco was  southern fried chicken strips with chipotle mayo and lettuce and tomato. Incredibly good and amazing how much innards were put into the flour tortilla. The side i ordered was ham hock pinto beans; spicy but good.

Bill had a beef brisket taco and a smoked pork butt taco. The beef was in a mole sauce and was quite zippy. His side was rice which was just ok.

Then we were slowly going to walk back to the parking garage but i had a serious sweet tooth goin' on. So remembered one of the waitresses at another restaurant highly recommending the Chocolate Lounge! love that word. Lounging with chocolate; lovely. She recommended their melted truffle drink. You pick out the truffle or truffles of your choice and they are slowly melted and mixed with heavy cream for an out of this world drink. Afterwards i would imagine that i'd have the manic energy and sugar high to climb a mountain right before i was overcome with an intense urge to lounge.

Anyway, the place was jammed; very very busy. the line was almost out the door. I didn't want dessert that badly. and it was a very wise GI decision.

Tomorrow we are going to be downtown again at an arts festival with alicia and i think we'll stop  at one of the 2 artisan chocolate stores and pick up some treats for later on. when we are ready to Lounge!!

FARM BURGER - ASHEVILLE, NC

We went to the fabulous downtown library which is 10 minutes away from our house. It had the biggest used bookstore i've ever seen in a library and the prices even for relatively new books was super cheap. AND the selection of magazines was the most extensive i've seen except for some bizarre reason they had no computer or technology related magazines.

So afterwards we walked to a mexican restaurant highly recommended by Alicia and Keith but it was so small inside and so crowded. The only available table was one of those claustrophobic tables in a row against a wall where you are within earshot of the most whispered conversation and where you better keep elbows close to your side or you will knock over the next table's glasses and guacamole bowl.

So onward to the place next door where i had the best burger ever. (I'm full of superlatives today, aren't i?) You go up to the counter and order and then the wait staff (all friendly and efficient) bring the food to your table. We ate outside which was great to watch the rainstorm during our meal which happened to almost end as we were leaving.

You can create your own burger or order one of their special ones. Bill and i shared a burger with peach chutney and goat cheese and also one with vermont cheddar cheese, caramelized onions and arugala. wow. both were delicious. but we liked the peach chutney one the best because the contrast between the sweetness and the tart cheese was exquisite. I didn't even add ketchup to either burger; that's how good the meat tasted. The bun was very fresh and held together and wasn't thick so i didn't feel like my meal was bread with a little bit of meat thrown in.

We also shared a salad with peapods and juneberries which tasted sort of like blueberries; they looked the same anyway. The dressing was farm goddess; a less pungent green goddess and very creamy without being too cloying.

There was a bocci play area. That's really popular here and in Charlotte also. Oh and in Winston-Salem. We took a lovely walk in a city park there and there were 2 teams of men that had been playing for decades bocci-ing it. the game seems fairly simple and fun plus its a great game to socialize while playing.

Anyway, if you're in downtown Asheville, go to Farm Burger.

OUT AND ABOUT IN ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA

 this is the house we are renting in Asheville; 2 bedrooms and 1 bath. Its about 3 miles from town in a very rural black bear, rabbit, turkey, deer area.

 this is in the Botanical Gardens on the University of NC campus which we are only 5 minutes away from.

 In the Botanical Gardens

 This was along one of the trails in the gardens. Bill called it the Student Reefer Hut.

 We have a charcoal briquette bbq at the house which is making food menu planning a lot easier. Bill is grilling steaks; i had a burger.

 chowing down in our kitchen

 Keith came up one weekend with Alicia and this was a walk in the bird sanctuary which is about 4 minutes from our house.

LUELLA'S BAR-B-QUE - ASHEVILLE, NC

Every time we have passed this restaurant the parking spaces are  filled  plus more cars squeezed in at odd angles and folks milling about outside. but we figured on a Tuesday we might have a chance to be seated pretty quickly. which we were.

The restaurant was very very noisy - not helped by the tile floors.

And i was disappointed after all that anticipation built up in part by the  constant crowds around the building. We shared a 3 meat combo meal which consisted of beef brisket, pork ribs and smoked turkey. I didn't care for any of the meats. The ribs weren't tender enough (the best so far on this trip was in smyrna, GA; the baby backs! wow; they fell and leaped into your mouth; all you had to do was hold the bone.) and the brisket was very chewy (i had never ordered brisket in a barbeque place but i tasted Bill's entree once at R & R in Tucson and i was hooked. That meat was absolutely delicious; no fat and no gristle and flavorful. They used to be at Speedway and Wilmot and then moved when the lease amount got raised to a hole in the wall, unappealing building off of 22nd and Kolb i think. they didnt' stay in business long there and were just doing catering by the time we left on this trip.) and the turkey was too "wet". I like poultry on the dry side.

And continuing with my culinary chagrins: i didn't like either of the sauces; one was the carolina thin mustard sauce and the other was too sweet. Am not fond of hush puppies and i've tried them at several venues. They are all just balls or oblong shapes of calories which i should paste right on my thighs. Bill enjoyed his collard greens. The other 2 sides were potato salad (pretty good) and a green salad (quite good; ingredients fresh and the ancho ranch dressing was delicious; just a hint of a kick).

And our waiter never checked back with us and never told us about the daily side specials which included garlic green beans, fried green tomatoes and a pineapple casserole which i probably would have tried. The prices were very very reasonable, however.

We assuaged my unsatisfied tummy (Bill enjoyed the food more than me but also said it wasn't in the top 10 bbq places by any means.) by walking across the parking lot to Yolo for some yogurt. We each had key lime pie and triple chocolate. I left smiling and full. All Louella resentment gone!

CRAGGY GARDENS HIKE OFF THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY IN NORTH CAROLINA

 Along the trail, we looked out and thought we saw the tip of a roof and it was! this shelter was where we had our apple break. I had heard and read that shelters such as this are prevalent on trails in the NE and SE.

some of the rhododendrons along the trail. June is the big bloom month.

 Along the Rhodie Walk!

 Another shelter

 A view from the top of Craggy Pinnacle. The farthest ridge you can see is in the Smoky Mountains.

A lady who was painting the landscape was at the top and kindly took our picture.

EARLY GIRL EATERY - ASHEVILLE, NC

We walked around downtown with Alicia and Keith and came across this cute sort of hole-in-the-wall place. The area was really crowded and A. and K. who had been down here twice before said they had never seen it with so many people. School graduation day was the friday before and we thought the throng was because of that.

So a lot of the restaurants were jammed and there was a lot of music; a band or guitarist or group on almost every corner. All the shops were open too.

Anyway, this place was a comfortable diner and we had a great table in the back by a large window. All the waitresses were tattoo'd (it seems everyone in Asheville is designed and way more women than men, too), and hippie and young and thin and eco-green small carbon footprint types. some colored hair styles and nose rings.

Bill and I shared a fried chicken and bacon salad; he had creamy garlic dressing and i had miso poppyseed. The salad was large and had generous servings of bacon and tomatoes and tender with just the right amt. of breading fried chicken pieces. I also ordered a side of cornbread - warmed with lots of butter. The cornbread was very cake like and slightly sweet and dense and absolutely delicious.

Keith had an avocado and sprouts and hummus spread sandwich which was so healthy and life affirming; it took 5 years off my life by just looking at it. I had a bite and it was good. He also had collard greens which he liked. Alicia had a sweet ginger almond sunflower seed mandarin orange salad with small slices of garlic toast. She liked it.

The service was good and friendly and prices really reasonable. The bathrooms were located through a door and down a hall and then turn right and look to your left; all the while carrying a big metal spoon on a keyring which was going to unlock the door.. The bathrooms were used by several different businesses in the building.

The restaurant is at 8 Wall Street in downtown Asheville if any of you are heading out that way.

GODZILLA

Our name for this movie is Borezilla or Dogzilla or don'tseethiszilla. We left before it was over; just couldn't take anymore. I rated it a 2 (only because Bryan Cranston from breaking bad was in the first 1/8th of the movie and was the only good actor who had some semi-intelligent lines.); bill rated it a 4 ("just for the effort with the special effects")

Everything about this movie was yawn inducing; the acting, the dialogue, the sets, the endless blur of monsters, the ridiculous tension-lacking non-action. A waste of time.