Six days later and it is still here. The temperature rose a bit today and rain rolled in. Now we are just waiting to see if school will be cancelled again for Cliff tomorrow. Crazy.
Thursday, December 12, 2013
Day Six of the Snow
Six days later and it is still here. The temperature rose a bit today and rain rolled in. Now we are just waiting to see if school will be cancelled again for Cliff tomorrow. Crazy.
Saturday, December 7, 2013
Winter Wonderland
With the threat of snow on Thursday night, I went to Walmart to get a snow shovel. We didn't have anything that would be helpful if we did get a bit of snow. Fun fact: Walmart does not carry them. They told me "we don't need them here." What?!? I calmed myself and saids "no worries as Jerry's is next door (think Home Depot of Eugene/Springfield). They only had two. Not two kinds...two total! Not because there was a run on them but once again because we don't need them here. Regardless, I grabbed the Rolls-Royce of snow shovels and headed home. I paid $21 bucks and Cliff assures me it is the nicest shovel he has ever used. Go me.
I was so jazzed about driving that I decided to document my view from behind the wheel before I hit the road. I drove very slowly (10-15 mph) and gave myself plenty of room to stop. With this said, I did activate my ABS twice during my two mile trip home. The first time I started to panic until I remembered that is what they are supposed to do. Oh my....
I spent the rest of the day fielding calls about the postponed Christmas parade and daydreaming as I watched the snow from the windows. I miss snow. I wanted this storm so bad. I felt warm and fuzzy all afternoon as snow days (even if they are only partial) are magical.
When I took Rudy out to go to the bathroom last night I decided to document the situation on the roads. Deep trenches with no relief in sight. It was official....we were going to be snowed in all weekend!
This weekend was going to be nutty. Cliff was supposed to have a soccer game last night. I was supposed to have the Christmas Parade this morning followed by going to a friend's open house in the afternoon and Cliff's work holiday party in the evening. Tomorrow is another open house hosted by my boss. In actuality last night ended up as us watching Battlestar Galactica until we traded it in for hot cocoa and Elf. Today we made homemade pizza and walked to our friend's party (as we are within walking distance!). Even at 3pm in the afternoon the road conditions hadn't changed and we felt walking was the safest way to go. Just packed, icy snow roads. I'm thinking we will probably be homebound again tomorrow. Oh darn! (Note: that is said with sarcasm).
P.S. did I mention that Rudy doesn't like the cold but loves the snow? See...snow is great!
O Tannenbaum
To help set the mood, I would like you to know that as I type this post I am listening to the Vince Guaraldi Trio's version on O Tannenbaum (Charlie Brown music) and looking out the window at 7-8 inches of beautiful fluffy snow on the ground. We are snowed in and I am happy. So get ready for multiple possible posts today.
Last weekend Cliff and I had a really festive Saturday. We donated food to the local Mission, bought Christmas presents to support Small Business Saturday, and went to Northern Lights Tree Farm to cut down our Christmas tree. This is our third visit to the farm but only our second tree purchase (as we couldn't fit a tree in our original Springfield dwelling back in 2007).
Once back at the barn, we asked them to shake the tree and bail it. We normally don't opt for the $3 bailing service but this year like I said...we went fancy. Plus we knew it would help us get the tree in the Honda Fit.
Which brings me to the fact that I love our car. We picked a winner. We fit a 6ft Christmas tree in it! The seats all fold independently so the tree got the right side of the car and Cliff and I got the left. Oh and we buckled it up for safety.
We learned a very important lesson this year. Always know the size of your tree stand before you leave the tree farm. When we got home we found that our tree trunk grew slightly curved and it was too fat in some areas. It didn't fit. We currently do not own a saw so Cliff had to use a serrated kitchen knife to trim it up. It took us, no kidding, 45 minutes to get the tree to fit and stand kinda straight. We got the tree up and I decorated it while Cliff rowed (holiday challenge). It looks beautiful. However, it is a pain to water. It is still really round so it is pretty difficult to find an area that allows for water to flow down into the well. It requires two people and a flashlight.
The house is now decorated and it looks like Christmas threw up all over. I am particularly happy this year as I found the red, green, and white warm round lights that we used to have when I was a kid. I loved them and have been looking for years. I bought them at Walmart the day after Halloween (yes, I was that girl). Oh man, I love Christmas decorations. Love. Love. Love.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Thanksgiving in Springfield
Turkey Day started at 4:30am for Cliff and me. I was off to work by 5:00am for the Turkey Stuffer 5K. Cliff was awesome and got up with me to help load boxes upon boxes of bananas and pointsettas as I didn't want to leave them in the car overnight for fear that they would freeze. After I left, Cliff rowed for an hour (as Thanksgiving is the first day of the Holiday Challenge!). While I was at work signing in volunteers, setting up canopies, pumping water, cheering on runners, and doing other random stuff; Cliff was cooking a turkey, two pies, and generally making the house smell and feel cozy.
Despite the larger venue we had a small crew again this year. Kathy and Jill went back east this year to hang out with family. At this point, we have spent quite a few Friendsgivings with them so it was odd not to have Jill taking photos of food preparation and Kathy laughing at stupid things I say. We missed them! With this said, they were there in spirit as Cliff made Jill's famous chocolate pie. There is no turning back for us. Every Thanksgiving from here on out will include Jill's chocolate pie.
We were happy as Brie made the journey down from Portland. She brought a really amazing salad. It consisted of roasted butternut squash over mixed field greens with tahini dressing. It was awesome. She also brought her newest craft items and we got to see her do some pretty cool needle felting. I think she could sell her creations at Saturday market. I would buy one! It is really wonderful to have family near and it is always fun to hang out with Brie!
My rockin' coworker, Jana, also came as all her family is back in Indiana. She outdid herself. Despite working the crazy morning shift for the Turkey Stuffer she also managed to make a green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, and crescent rolls. What?! I don't know how she did it. Several folks at work commended me on hosting Thanksgiving and cooking a turkey despite working that morning. I corrected each of them and and told them that Cliff is the master cook/baker in our house. We are all much happier because of it too. I pick the menu. I buy the groceries. Cliff does all the hard stuff. I eat happily. We are a great team.
All and all we had the following: turkey with gravy, Cliff's homemade cranberry sauce, the squash and greens salad, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, rolls, wine, cider, sweet potato pie, and Jill's chocolate pie. It was a feast.
Rudy also had a great time. There were more people to pay attention to him and more food being dropped on the kitchen floor. This photo shows his excitement. Now just imagine him butt swishing and prancing like a show pony all around the house. So good.
After eating we chatted about family holiday traditions, looked at Black Friday coupons, and watched Wings on Netflix. It was quite. it was relaxing. It was just awesome.
The following morning Cliff and Brie went on a 7.5 mile run/hike up and around Mt. Pisgah. I tried to take left over race food to a local food bank. In that process I also found myself in Target finally getting my hands on a $6 copy of Pitch Perfect. Victory.
Gotta love Thanksgiving.
Sunday, November 17, 2013
October
Holy cow the past few weeks and months have been crazy. Absolutely nutty. October 2013 surpassed the previous craziest month of our life which was June 2008. In June 2008 I completed my graduate research, graduated from grad school, had a fake wedding, moved across country with two cars and three lovely siblings in 10 days only to have Cliff immediately start grad school. All of this took place in about 20 days. So now imagine the nuttiness of this past October. So many really amazing/stressful things happened. I wish that I could dedicate more time to each event but instead I will present them as fast as they felt to me. Get ready.
Mom and Pam Visited Oregon
I can't describe how happy I was to have these two wonderful women here for a week. They visited the first week in October and did a little of everything Eugene/Springfield has to offer: eating out, shopping, bowling, exploring the mountains, visiting the coast, packing, hanging out, and the list goes on and on. We celebrated Pam's birthday at the Timber Bowl then Falling Sky Brew Pub and four days later celebrated Cliff's birthday at the Falling Sky Deli. I sadly wasn't able to take more than one day off from work but that ended up ok. Mom and Pam explored during the day and we hung out at night. On the weekend, we went to Saturday Market, drove up 126, had a picnic lunch after wine tasting at Sweet Cheeks Winery, thrift shopped, ate, and generally tried to do it all. I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown the whole time due to the next event to be outlined and they helped to keep me sane, laughing, and well fed. I love them and can't wait for them to come back.
We Bought A House!
That's right, we not only moved but moved into something we now own. AH! We had been looking at houses for a few months and had just about given up (seriously, we had to come to terms with throwing in the towel for another year when we found the one). After seeing 50+ homes, we walked into an old homestead house in the Washburn and fell in love. It honestly felt like our house the moment we stepped in the door. The next day we put in an offer, two days later accepted a counter offer, three days later visited a mortgage broker, had an inspection, appraisal, and finally signed papers. The whole time we were holding our breath and trying not to get excited as we know things go wrong with buying houses all the time. We tried to keep a level, non-emotional head. The whole whirlwind process took less than a month. I discovered something about myself through this process. Apparently my body shuts down and sleeps when I am that overwhelmed. Seriously. We would meet with our real estate agent or mortgage broker and afterwards I would go home, stuff my face with something in our cabinets and then fall asleep to be dead to the world until the next day. I did this several times a week! I was not a good partner to Cliff in late September/early October as I was asleep for most of it. Thankfully we are past that now. We signed the papers on Cliff's birthday and moved in four days later with the help of amazing friends.
The date on the house says 1905 but the paperwork at the City actually dates it to 1890. The home was once used as as a residence for mill workers and then a barber. We are only the fourth owners of the home. The lovely woman we bought the house from had lived here for over 35 years and did an amazing job keeping this old house in wonderful shape. We are so incredibly lucky.
This is all you get photo and description wise as there will be more to come in the upcoming weeks. We are 100% unpacked but only about 70% moved in. When you go from a tiny cottage to a three bedroom house there are lots of opportunities for more furniture. We are heading to Ikea next week to hopefully acquire a few last items that will complete the picture (rug, chair, bookshelf, etc.) Then we will post more photos and stories.
Events at Work
Between October 12th and October 25th at work we had a first time community event, two park grand openings, a day long service project for staff and volunteers, and a major three day event. Did I mention this was as we were moving into the house and trying to get out of the cottage? Did I mention that my boss went into labor the morning of the major three day event making me the new interim Special Events Supervisor until March? Did I mention that I love these events and that I was having a really hard time balancing my time between work, moving into a new house, and actually being a person? To top it all off, the weekend of the 25th I had a multi-day Board retreat for an organization that I am a part of up the coast. Crazy. I'm so thankful to be on the backend of the stress filled two weeks.
Cliff and I Celebrated 5 Years and I Paddled In A Pumpkin
On October 19th, Cliff and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. Time flies by! To celebrate, Cliff was amazing as we left our new house filled with boxes to drive up to Tualatin, Oregon so that I could participate in the West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta. I lucked out back in March as I met the organizer and they let me take one of the spots for the event and since then I have been telling everyone I could about it. I love pumpkins. I love fall. I love events. I love my supportive husband. This is everything I love wrapped up into one. You had to be dressed in costume so I bought a sexy bumble bee outfit from Value Village and like a sane person added black leggings and wool top to it. The sexy bumble bee costume turned into a rational, normal person bumble bee costume. I picked the outfit as it would allow me to be warm and swim with ease should I tip out of a 1,000 pound pumpkin in public.
We arrived in Tualatin, ate hotdogs and hamburgers, drank fresh cider, and ate apple cider donuts (you can't find those often out here in the PNW!). The event consisted of four heats: two were speed races and two were challenges. I was in the last challenge heat and was so nervous. By the time that I paddled to the starting line, the other paddlers told me that I needed a ball and a flag. What? So I paddled back and minutes later was given the items but not a description of what they were for. As I paddled back to the starting line my mind was so focused on not tipping out or throwing up because of excitement that I missed the instructions on what we were supposed to do. Whoops. No worries as I kinda watched what others were doing and tried to follow. I understood the rules to be take the ball and keep it in front of you as you paddle around a bouy in the middle of the lake. To do this I would throw the ball for a bit, pick it up, throw it a little further, move it forward with my paddle a bit, throw it again, repeat. I didn't come in first and I didn't come in last. Just what I wanted. It was amazing. I was like smiley, dopey idiot happily paddling around in the middle of a lake. When I got out, Cliff met me at the finish line and laughingly said "I like how you decided to cheat the whole way." "What?!? I didn't cheat!" is that my brain was yelling. Cliff informed me that the rules were announced that once we did the initial throw we were not allowed to pick up the ball again until after we passed the finish line. We were to juggle it with out paddle the whole way. Get out?!? I was mortified and felt really bad. I don't like to be a cheater. It took a little of the victory out of my step. I felt so bad that I hunted down the event organizer (who so kindly gave me the opportunity) to apologize for my rude interpretation of the game. He laughed and said it was totally good. He in fact had not even noticed. Whew. Kathy and Jill, the wonderful friends that they are, drove down to cheer me on. We hung out for a bit then we all went our separate ways. Cliff and I topped off the evening with dinner at the Urban Hopworks pub in Portland for their happy hour and then returned home. We ended the day with a 44oz Sonic chocolate banana milkshake. It was an amazing Saturday and a pretty fun way to spend an anniversary. For the next one, I need to support Cliff as he geeks out and gets to do something fun. I'm a lucky gal.
October was crazy but really wonderful. In addition to the events listed above we also got to spend a morning with the amazing Katie (Schumm) McFaddin as she was in from Boston. It was only an hour or so but it was so great to catch up! We also celebrated our first Halloween in the house. We have never had trick or treaters at our previous places but this year we had about 70. It was interesting. All in all, I'm thankful that I kept my sanity.
Mom and Pam Visited Oregon
I can't describe how happy I was to have these two wonderful women here for a week. They visited the first week in October and did a little of everything Eugene/Springfield has to offer: eating out, shopping, bowling, exploring the mountains, visiting the coast, packing, hanging out, and the list goes on and on. We celebrated Pam's birthday at the Timber Bowl then Falling Sky Brew Pub and four days later celebrated Cliff's birthday at the Falling Sky Deli. I sadly wasn't able to take more than one day off from work but that ended up ok. Mom and Pam explored during the day and we hung out at night. On the weekend, we went to Saturday Market, drove up 126, had a picnic lunch after wine tasting at Sweet Cheeks Winery, thrift shopped, ate, and generally tried to do it all. I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown the whole time due to the next event to be outlined and they helped to keep me sane, laughing, and well fed. I love them and can't wait for them to come back.
We Bought A House!
That's right, we not only moved but moved into something we now own. AH! We had been looking at houses for a few months and had just about given up (seriously, we had to come to terms with throwing in the towel for another year when we found the one). After seeing 50+ homes, we walked into an old homestead house in the Washburn and fell in love. It honestly felt like our house the moment we stepped in the door. The next day we put in an offer, two days later accepted a counter offer, three days later visited a mortgage broker, had an inspection, appraisal, and finally signed papers. The whole time we were holding our breath and trying not to get excited as we know things go wrong with buying houses all the time. We tried to keep a level, non-emotional head. The whole whirlwind process took less than a month. I discovered something about myself through this process. Apparently my body shuts down and sleeps when I am that overwhelmed. Seriously. We would meet with our real estate agent or mortgage broker and afterwards I would go home, stuff my face with something in our cabinets and then fall asleep to be dead to the world until the next day. I did this several times a week! I was not a good partner to Cliff in late September/early October as I was asleep for most of it. Thankfully we are past that now. We signed the papers on Cliff's birthday and moved in four days later with the help of amazing friends.
The date on the house says 1905 but the paperwork at the City actually dates it to 1890. The home was once used as as a residence for mill workers and then a barber. We are only the fourth owners of the home. The lovely woman we bought the house from had lived here for over 35 years and did an amazing job keeping this old house in wonderful shape. We are so incredibly lucky.
This is all you get photo and description wise as there will be more to come in the upcoming weeks. We are 100% unpacked but only about 70% moved in. When you go from a tiny cottage to a three bedroom house there are lots of opportunities for more furniture. We are heading to Ikea next week to hopefully acquire a few last items that will complete the picture (rug, chair, bookshelf, etc.) Then we will post more photos and stories.
Events at Work
Between October 12th and October 25th at work we had a first time community event, two park grand openings, a day long service project for staff and volunteers, and a major three day event. Did I mention this was as we were moving into the house and trying to get out of the cottage? Did I mention that my boss went into labor the morning of the major three day event making me the new interim Special Events Supervisor until March? Did I mention that I love these events and that I was having a really hard time balancing my time between work, moving into a new house, and actually being a person? To top it all off, the weekend of the 25th I had a multi-day Board retreat for an organization that I am a part of up the coast. Crazy. I'm so thankful to be on the backend of the stress filled two weeks.
Cliff and I Celebrated 5 Years and I Paddled In A Pumpkin
On October 19th, Cliff and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. Time flies by! To celebrate, Cliff was amazing as we left our new house filled with boxes to drive up to Tualatin, Oregon so that I could participate in the West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta. I lucked out back in March as I met the organizer and they let me take one of the spots for the event and since then I have been telling everyone I could about it. I love pumpkins. I love fall. I love events. I love my supportive husband. This is everything I love wrapped up into one. You had to be dressed in costume so I bought a sexy bumble bee outfit from Value Village and like a sane person added black leggings and wool top to it. The sexy bumble bee costume turned into a rational, normal person bumble bee costume. I picked the outfit as it would allow me to be warm and swim with ease should I tip out of a 1,000 pound pumpkin in public.
We arrived in Tualatin, ate hotdogs and hamburgers, drank fresh cider, and ate apple cider donuts (you can't find those often out here in the PNW!). The event consisted of four heats: two were speed races and two were challenges. I was in the last challenge heat and was so nervous. By the time that I paddled to the starting line, the other paddlers told me that I needed a ball and a flag. What? So I paddled back and minutes later was given the items but not a description of what they were for. As I paddled back to the starting line my mind was so focused on not tipping out or throwing up because of excitement that I missed the instructions on what we were supposed to do. Whoops. No worries as I kinda watched what others were doing and tried to follow. I understood the rules to be take the ball and keep it in front of you as you paddle around a bouy in the middle of the lake. To do this I would throw the ball for a bit, pick it up, throw it a little further, move it forward with my paddle a bit, throw it again, repeat. I didn't come in first and I didn't come in last. Just what I wanted. It was amazing. I was like smiley, dopey idiot happily paddling around in the middle of a lake. When I got out, Cliff met me at the finish line and laughingly said "I like how you decided to cheat the whole way." "What?!? I didn't cheat!" is that my brain was yelling. Cliff informed me that the rules were announced that once we did the initial throw we were not allowed to pick up the ball again until after we passed the finish line. We were to juggle it with out paddle the whole way. Get out?!? I was mortified and felt really bad. I don't like to be a cheater. It took a little of the victory out of my step. I felt so bad that I hunted down the event organizer (who so kindly gave me the opportunity) to apologize for my rude interpretation of the game. He laughed and said it was totally good. He in fact had not even noticed. Whew. Kathy and Jill, the wonderful friends that they are, drove down to cheer me on. We hung out for a bit then we all went our separate ways. Cliff and I topped off the evening with dinner at the Urban Hopworks pub in Portland for their happy hour and then returned home. We ended the day with a 44oz Sonic chocolate banana milkshake. It was an amazing Saturday and a pretty fun way to spend an anniversary. For the next one, I need to support Cliff as he geeks out and gets to do something fun. I'm a lucky gal.
October was crazy but really wonderful. In addition to the events listed above we also got to spend a morning with the amazing Katie (Schumm) McFaddin as she was in from Boston. It was only an hour or so but it was so great to catch up! We also celebrated our first Halloween in the house. We have never had trick or treaters at our previous places but this year we had about 70. It was interesting. All in all, I'm thankful that I kept my sanity.
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Nashville
Three weeks ago Cliff and I jet-setted across country on a red eye to meet my dad in Nashville for a few days of vacation. We had three nights and three and a half days to take in as much of the city as possible while spending some quality time together. The trip was a success. And I have photos to prove it.
The story actually begins before we landed in Nashville. Our flight from Portland to Houston was incredibly bumpy. We were at the back of the plane. It was loud. If I was lucky enough to lull myself to sleep during the infrequent bump-free moments I was immediately woken back up when someone flushed the toilet. I was relieved when we landed as I hoped our short flight into Nashville would allow me a few minutes to try and sleep. The terminal was weird and we quickly realized why as we were moved past ticketing downstairs so that we could board the plane from the outside. FROM THE OUTSIDE. Small plane. I hate small planes and this one was the tinniest yet for me. Cliff couldn't even stand up inside. Fortunately, to my surprise the flight was so much smoother than our first. I actually slept for about 30 minutes and even had the courage to drink a ginger ale. Victory.
Dad met us at the airport and the adventure began. We got breakfast at Shoney's and then we checked into the hotel (that I booked for a deal on Hotwire) so that Cliff and I could actually get some sleep. Five or six hours later we felt like real people again (sorta). We headed downtown to get dinner and take in the scene. We ate at the Old Spaghetti Factory then toured the city on a horse drawn carriage. Our tour guide was Lee and his dog Rio. They told us about architecture and local history. It was a great way to get the lay of the land. After the carriage ride we got candy from Savannah's Candy Kitchen then walked up to Live on the Green. Live on the Green is a weekly free concert series that features really big headline names. The night we were in town was Michael Franti and Spearhead. It was incredibly hot (for us wimpy folks from the Northwest) and the humidity was draining on us all. We waited around by a fountain for the music to start. All of the kids running around were pretty entertaining and I wished that I could join them. After about an hour we called it a night as our nap magic was wearing off and we were really sticky. Even though we didn't get to see the headliner it was still a really nice night.
The next morning we woke up to get breakfast. I purchased two Groupons in advance to help us find some fun- Nashville places to check out. The first was the Pfunky Griddle a little south of town. The concept is that you cook your own food. Crazy. I know. We paid to make our own meal. But don't think I'm crazy as it was as much about the experience as it was about the food. It gave us a chance to hang out, slow down, and chat while managing to not burn pancakes, potatoes, french toast, and eggs. Dad and Cliff took turns as grill master.
After breakfast we headed to Antique Archeology. Our family in general is a big fan of those shows on the History Channel that show people finding old cool stuff and trying to make money off of it. Antique Archeology is the storefront for American Pickers. We went in hoping to see treasures that Mike and Frank have found on their travels. Instead what we found was an incredibly cool and beautiful storefront for Antique Archeology t-shirts and bumper stickers.
As you can see from above, Cliff was already a little tired. Despite the fact that we have been together for more than a decade he still hasn't gotten use to the Johnson way of vacationing. We like to take lots of stops, shop, browse, eat, and generally roam all day long. Vacations are less about relaxing and doing nothing than jam packing your days with as much cool stuff as you can possibly find. With this said, we dropped Cliff off at the hotel for some RnR and then hit the road again. Dad and I decided to go to the Country Music Hall of Fame. I admit that I'm not much of a country music fan these days (or at least the stuff they play on the radio) but I was a huge fan back in the early 1990s. I was really excited to see all of the memorabilia that the museum had to offer. We got to see a whole lot of spiffy classic country outfits and super fancy objects like Elvis Presley's gold piano (and his Cadillac that was painted in crushed diamonds and fish scales). Other things I learned while at the museum: country music was/is a big deal in Bakersfield, California. Apparently many people migrated to that town after the dust bowl. Some of those folks became popular musicians that became icons of country music (Buck Owens and Merle Haggard). I also leaned that Carrie Underwood is the smallest and skinniest person alive. There was a whole exhibit on her costumes from her latest tour and he leg seriously looks the same size as my arm. Mind blown.
Afterwards we went to Hatch Show Print, the oldest working letterpress print shop in the country. Their posters are everywhere and are pretty iconic. I was hoping to see the presses at work and possibly get a tour or look through back catalogs of their prints. Instead it was once again a store front for selling a few classic prints plus ones for popular artists. Oh well.
That night we went to my cousin Karen's house to eat dinner and visit with family. I think it had been 10 years since I had seen cousin Karen and aunt Donna and I had never met Tippy (Karen's husband) or Courtney (their daughter). It was wonderful to see everyone. We got to tour their beautiful house, chat, and eat some really good southern food (fried okra..I ate three kinds of meat!). I discovered that Karen also have a love of Fiestaware (orange and brown). We pulled up Karen's profile on ancestry.com and discovered that the Butlers are pretty Irish (who knew?!?) and that we have family who were some of the first responders in Concord, MA when the British were coming. Very, very cool. Within a blink of an eye over six hours had gone by and it was time to go back to the hotel.
On the way home we got pulled over for a sobriety check point. Everyone was being stopped so I rolled down my window to chat with the officer. He asked if I had anything to drink and I replied "yes sir, about a half a glass of wine about 5 hours ago". He asked where I had been and where I was going "We have been at my cousin Karen Baker's house on XYZ Road and we are now heading back to our hotel as we are from out of town....". I went on and on. I could not shut up. I was sober as could be but was so incredibly nervous that I would have told that man anything. I think I almost did. Because I had one drink much earlier in the night I had to do a dexterity task with my fingers and count forwards and backwards. I obviously passed but my heart was pounding. I felt like a crazy person.
We headed back into the city, drove by the Batman building, and went to the Ryman Auditorium. It was wonderful. Just being in the building made me feel all warm and tingly. So many musicians got their start on that stage. Home of the Grand Ole Opry from '43- '74 it has hosted personalities all all types from all over the world. Ballet, opera, politicians, the list goes on and on. Such a wonderful, magical place.
We continued our cultural experience by heading to White Castle as Cliff and I had never eaten at one. So when in Rome....eat White Castle! Surprisingly, it was pretty good. Between the three of us we ate ten little sliders, two fries, and two drinks. Perfect snack to get us ready for the Grand Ole Opry.
I had been excited to go back to the Grand Ole Opry from the moment that we bought our plane tickets. As I mentioned before, I was a HUGE country music fan when I was younger. One year we went to Fan Fair, met all sorts of country music stars, and watched countless acts perform on the Grand Ole Opry stage. This time, we lucked out as we got tickets for a night that featured Martina McBride. Before the show we decided to go to the Oryland Hotel to look around. I put on my cowboy boots (don't get to wear them often enough) and we set out for the hotel to get BBQ at the Jack Daniel's Restaurant. As remembered, the hotel was amazing.
After BBQ we took the complimentary shuttle to the Grand Ole Opry. Can you tell we were excited?
The show was wonderful. With eleven performers on the schedule we got to hear yodeling, old time music, gospel, bluegrass, contemporary country, and we even got to see some pretty sweet clogging. We saw John Conlee (Rose Colored Glasses), Joanna Smith, Mike Snider, Jeannie Seely, Jimmy C. Newman, Jesse McReynolds, Ricky Skaggs, Jean Shepard, The Whites, the Opry Square Dancers, and Martina McBride. Scott Hamilton was even there! I know, right?! I would be lying if I said I didn't well up with tears quite a few times. I loved it.
Perhaps my favorite part of the evening was the performance of Jesse McReyonolds, an 84 year old bluegrass mandolin player who has been a member of the Grand Ole Opry since 1964. McReynolds had been ill for the last few weeks/months and the night we were there was his first time back. After coming on stage, he said that he is known for playing all sorts of music on stage and tonight he was going to play a little Grateful Dead. People laughed but then he started into his cover of Black Muddy River. It was so great. It made my heart so happy. Best part of the night. Hands down.
We packed our last day with as much as we could. We visited the Nashville Parthenon. Thats right, Nashville's Parks and Rec. owns a replica of the Parthenon. Awesome. Afterwards we bought butter beans, tomatoes, and peaches at the Nashville Farmers' Market. We ate our very first beignets in the market food court. We went non stop until we landed back at the airport.
Dad met us at the airport and the adventure began. We got breakfast at Shoney's and then we checked into the hotel (that I booked for a deal on Hotwire) so that Cliff and I could actually get some sleep. Five or six hours later we felt like real people again (sorta). We headed downtown to get dinner and take in the scene. We ate at the Old Spaghetti Factory then toured the city on a horse drawn carriage. Our tour guide was Lee and his dog Rio. They told us about architecture and local history. It was a great way to get the lay of the land. After the carriage ride we got candy from Savannah's Candy Kitchen then walked up to Live on the Green. Live on the Green is a weekly free concert series that features really big headline names. The night we were in town was Michael Franti and Spearhead. It was incredibly hot (for us wimpy folks from the Northwest) and the humidity was draining on us all. We waited around by a fountain for the music to start. All of the kids running around were pretty entertaining and I wished that I could join them. After about an hour we called it a night as our nap magic was wearing off and we were really sticky. Even though we didn't get to see the headliner it was still a really nice night.
The next morning we woke up to get breakfast. I purchased two Groupons in advance to help us find some fun- Nashville places to check out. The first was the Pfunky Griddle a little south of town. The concept is that you cook your own food. Crazy. I know. We paid to make our own meal. But don't think I'm crazy as it was as much about the experience as it was about the food. It gave us a chance to hang out, slow down, and chat while managing to not burn pancakes, potatoes, french toast, and eggs. Dad and Cliff took turns as grill master.
As you can see from above, Cliff was already a little tired. Despite the fact that we have been together for more than a decade he still hasn't gotten use to the Johnson way of vacationing. We like to take lots of stops, shop, browse, eat, and generally roam all day long. Vacations are less about relaxing and doing nothing than jam packing your days with as much cool stuff as you can possibly find. With this said, we dropped Cliff off at the hotel for some RnR and then hit the road again. Dad and I decided to go to the Country Music Hall of Fame. I admit that I'm not much of a country music fan these days (or at least the stuff they play on the radio) but I was a huge fan back in the early 1990s. I was really excited to see all of the memorabilia that the museum had to offer. We got to see a whole lot of spiffy classic country outfits and super fancy objects like Elvis Presley's gold piano (and his Cadillac that was painted in crushed diamonds and fish scales). Other things I learned while at the museum: country music was/is a big deal in Bakersfield, California. Apparently many people migrated to that town after the dust bowl. Some of those folks became popular musicians that became icons of country music (Buck Owens and Merle Haggard). I also leaned that Carrie Underwood is the smallest and skinniest person alive. There was a whole exhibit on her costumes from her latest tour and he leg seriously looks the same size as my arm. Mind blown.
Afterwards we went to Hatch Show Print, the oldest working letterpress print shop in the country. Their posters are everywhere and are pretty iconic. I was hoping to see the presses at work and possibly get a tour or look through back catalogs of their prints. Instead it was once again a store front for selling a few classic prints plus ones for popular artists. Oh well.
That night we went to my cousin Karen's house to eat dinner and visit with family. I think it had been 10 years since I had seen cousin Karen and aunt Donna and I had never met Tippy (Karen's husband) or Courtney (their daughter). It was wonderful to see everyone. We got to tour their beautiful house, chat, and eat some really good southern food (fried okra..I ate three kinds of meat!). I discovered that Karen also have a love of Fiestaware (orange and brown). We pulled up Karen's profile on ancestry.com and discovered that the Butlers are pretty Irish (who knew?!?) and that we have family who were some of the first responders in Concord, MA when the British were coming. Very, very cool. Within a blink of an eye over six hours had gone by and it was time to go back to the hotel.
On the way home we got pulled over for a sobriety check point. Everyone was being stopped so I rolled down my window to chat with the officer. He asked if I had anything to drink and I replied "yes sir, about a half a glass of wine about 5 hours ago". He asked where I had been and where I was going "We have been at my cousin Karen Baker's house on XYZ Road and we are now heading back to our hotel as we are from out of town....". I went on and on. I could not shut up. I was sober as could be but was so incredibly nervous that I would have told that man anything. I think I almost did. Because I had one drink much earlier in the night I had to do a dexterity task with my fingers and count forwards and backwards. I obviously passed but my heart was pounding. I felt like a crazy person.
The next morning we checked out another Groupon breakfast place called the Blue Sky Cafe. It was great as it was in a little historic part of town that we would not have seen otherwise. The food was good and the place seemed to be a popular breakfast spot of the local 20/30 something crowd. We felt hip. Or at least I did. On the way out, I noticed the "As Seen On Nashville" sign in the window. That confirmed that we were hip.
We headed back into the city, drove by the Batman building, and went to the Ryman Auditorium. It was wonderful. Just being in the building made me feel all warm and tingly. So many musicians got their start on that stage. Home of the Grand Ole Opry from '43- '74 it has hosted personalities all all types from all over the world. Ballet, opera, politicians, the list goes on and on. Such a wonderful, magical place.
I had been excited to go back to the Grand Ole Opry from the moment that we bought our plane tickets. As I mentioned before, I was a HUGE country music fan when I was younger. One year we went to Fan Fair, met all sorts of country music stars, and watched countless acts perform on the Grand Ole Opry stage. This time, we lucked out as we got tickets for a night that featured Martina McBride. Before the show we decided to go to the Oryland Hotel to look around. I put on my cowboy boots (don't get to wear them often enough) and we set out for the hotel to get BBQ at the Jack Daniel's Restaurant. As remembered, the hotel was amazing.
After BBQ we took the complimentary shuttle to the Grand Ole Opry. Can you tell we were excited?
The show was wonderful. With eleven performers on the schedule we got to hear yodeling, old time music, gospel, bluegrass, contemporary country, and we even got to see some pretty sweet clogging. We saw John Conlee (Rose Colored Glasses), Joanna Smith, Mike Snider, Jeannie Seely, Jimmy C. Newman, Jesse McReynolds, Ricky Skaggs, Jean Shepard, The Whites, the Opry Square Dancers, and Martina McBride. Scott Hamilton was even there! I know, right?! I would be lying if I said I didn't well up with tears quite a few times. I loved it.
Perhaps my favorite part of the evening was the performance of Jesse McReyonolds, an 84 year old bluegrass mandolin player who has been a member of the Grand Ole Opry since 1964. McReynolds had been ill for the last few weeks/months and the night we were there was his first time back. After coming on stage, he said that he is known for playing all sorts of music on stage and tonight he was going to play a little Grateful Dead. People laughed but then he started into his cover of Black Muddy River. It was so great. It made my heart so happy. Best part of the night. Hands down.
We packed our last day with as much as we could. We visited the Nashville Parthenon. Thats right, Nashville's Parks and Rec. owns a replica of the Parthenon. Awesome. Afterwards we bought butter beans, tomatoes, and peaches at the Nashville Farmers' Market. We ate our very first beignets in the market food court. We went non stop until we landed back at the airport.
Hanging out in Nashville with dad was great. We all had a good time. I think we should meet someplace new each year. Who knows, maybe Austin next year?
Nashville, I liked you just as much as I did the last time we met almost 20 years ago. Thanks for being a pretty great city. Hopefully we will see you again within the next 20...
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