On Thursday, we left Indianapolis around noon and headed for Atlanta. We decided to take a 45 mile gamble and go to Atlanta via Knoxville rather than Nashville. When we were in Nashville (and Louisville) in April, the traffic was absolutely nightmarish, so this seemed like a good idea, given that it's only 45 extra miles. All was going according to plan until we got to the border between Kentucky and Tennessee. We lost about an hour stuck in construction, but we still got in to Atlanta by about 9:30pm. We stayed at the Sheraton Suites at the Galleria, which we very nice. Nothing much else to report on Thursday.
On Friday we left Atlanta and headed for Athens, Georgia. On the way, we stopped at an IHOP which was very tasty...for an IHOP. I realize that I previously scorned the IHOP, but this one was pretty decent. Erin was somewhat surprised to see that the Rooty Tooty Fresh and Fruity is a real item on their menu, and despite her temptation, she couldn't bring herself to order it because of the name. For future reference, I got the stuffed French toast, which basically was a donut injected with butter and apple goo then topped with said goo and cream cheese icing. This plus a plate of eggs and sausage made for a delightful, multi-thousand calorie breakfast. On to Athens...
But Athens isn't on the way to Hilton Head, you might be saying? Ah, but it's close. And I'm a huge fan of the band R.E.M. which hails from Athens. As an R.E.M. fanatic, it's customary at some point to make a pilgrimmage to Athens to CD shop, check out the clubs where they got their start, and generally embarrass your wife. Once we return, I'll put together a page of R.E.M. sites for anyone who cares. On the way out of Athens, we stopped at Weaver D's for a quick lunch. Weaver D's was made famous by R.E.M., as the title of their album "Automatic for the People" came from Weaver D's slogan. The lunch we got was unbelieveable and included barbeque chicken and a pile of fried and butter soaked vegetables. Delightful. While sitting at Weaver D's, the owner himself popped a squat next to me. While I was inhaling my fried cornbread, I must have startled him while I gasped for air between bites. He turned to me and said, "Is your food good?" I said, "It's wonderful." His reply -- "Automatic." I elicited an "Automatic" from the man himself. R.E.M. would be proud.
After a drive through the middle of nowhere Georgia, and a stop for an ice cream cone at Dairy Queen, we arrived yesterday afternoon at Hilton Head. We're staying at a place called the Swallowtail at Sea Pines. Here's a picture of our condo.
After getting settled in we had a quick burger and chips at a bar overlooking the water and headed back for a night's rest. The night's rest started off well enough, but was sent off the rails around 1:30am. Erin, for the second time in the last month, woke up and started running around the room shouting, "Help me! I can't breathe! Where am I?" This is funny...once in a while. And usually she wakes up and all is fine after some deep breathing and slipping her a drink. Last night though, I couldn't get her to wake up, so the bout lasted a few minutes. It made me grouchy, I have to say, but the evening's fun wasn't yet over.
Here's where things get complicated. If you'll recall, I've noted previously that my stomach as a kid used to act as a sort of trampoline. You'll also recall that on this day of driving through Georgia I've eaten: IHOP, Weaver D's, Dairy Queen, 1/2 pound burger with 1/2 pound of chips. I was awakened at 2:30 by a stomach on fire which refused to stabilize without, er, drastic measures. Lesson learned. Well, not actually. I should have learned by about age 4, but I haven't. So today I'll eat like a normal human being...mostly. And hopefully I'll be set.
More adventures to come...Our rented bicycles arrived, so I'll provide a detailed injury report tomorrow.
Bret
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