White Squirrels & Old Friends

The county courthouse in the town of Brevard, NC, is a fine place to be on Memorial Day.  I was actually there on Saturday to enjoy the White Squirrel Festival, again, and had a very good time.  The small monument honors all the deceased veterans from all the major wars, listing casualities by name.  It's a moving site.  There was also good music, excellent beer and plenty of sunshine.  And the soap box derby was a highlight for me!  Along with Craggie Brewery's 1840 ale, once again.  It has become a favorite!

Knowing it was the opening day for Sliding Rock, I had to scoot up there for a look and to cool off a bit.  There was a 25 minute wait to slide that day.  The cool air sure felt good!

On Sunday, after Jubilee!, I went to Maynardville, TN, to visit longtime friend, George Holcomb, his wife Brenda and their small pack of friendly and somewhat spoiled 4-leggeds.  I stayed in their "guest house", a 3 bedroom, 2 bath place that was the former home for George's parents when he and Brenda cared for them in their later years.  It's a beautiful place, on the spine of a ridge over looking the mountains.  It's very quiet there, except for the birds and the barking of the 4-leggeds doing their job. 

The main house sits on the crest of the ridge and is a very pretty place.  It is spacious, comfortable and a fine home.  The hosts are also spacious and comfortable and I'm always glad to be there!  Thank you, my friends!

Susie is the alpha female of the little pack and sweet as she can be.  A beautiful lab, she had joint surgery not long ago and is doing very well.  Lil Bit is a daschund with a mind of her own who listens to no one, except maybe Susie.  I didn't get a picture of Otis, a red bone hound dog with a shy disposition but still wanting to be very friendly.  There are a couple more 4-leggeds who hang around the big house, wanting to be part of the pack.  But not yet.  Maybe later. 

George's dad was a pilot in WW II and therefore a hero of sorts to me and George, too.  He also flew radio controlled model airplanes and taught George that hobby.  As you see, my friend has more than a few gorgeous planes and is a very fine RC pilot.  His attention to detail is unmatched and some are like works of art - to be looked at, only.  Therefore, a couple of them have never flown and probably never will!  Good call, my friend!

On Monday we took George's boat to nearby Norris Lake, along with good friend Steve Bales, and had a ball.  We told stories, laughed our butts off, sipped a bit of rum and coke, then collected bait fish all afternoon while anchored in the shade and wading in the cool, shallow water.  It was great fun! 

We ran out of bait (night crawlers), because somebody forgot to check the container and there were only about 3 scrawny worms in there.  So on our way to get more, the wild life officers pulled us over for a safety and fishing license check.  I didn't have a license, so I was warned not to touch a rod.  Well, okay officer, if you say so.  While they were checking our credentials, I managed to sit my sippy cup full of rum and coke on top of a roach crawling across the transom of the boat and saved the day - for the roach and for us!  When the officers departed, we laughed our butts off, then went and got more worms.  Later we trolled for striped bass with the bream we had caught, but had no luck.  Which was fine.  Because we had already had a ton of fun!

There are a few people from high school that I've maintained some contact with over these 45 years, and when I see them, we pick up where we left off. George is one of those, as is David Rickman, Brenda Kay Jones O'Kelly, and Gail Setzer Cyr.  I got close to another classmate, Wayne Caldwell, when we were in college together at Carolina, along Eric Godfrey, now deceased.  I know that for all of us, our days our numbered, and I don't know what the number is. So I want to connect with these good people whenever I can.  That's one of the reasons I started this traveling journey and plan to continue it for a while longer. 

As the Lakota say, "All my relations!"