Brenda and Harlan's Trip Blog

We made it to Brenda’s parents place at around 9:45, and had delicious sour cream pancakes (different from the recipe used by Harlan’s great grandmother). After breakfast we chatted for a while and took some pictures (finishing the roll of 35mm from Chimney rock plus a few from somewhere “earlier”). Every time Harlan went outside for something it started to rain.

We left Pinehurst around 11:30 and headed to Atlanta. (Eve sent us off with a bag of her chocolate chip cookies – very tasty!) On the way we passed thru Polkton NC, the birthplace of L.L. Polk. I suspect they meant this guy. We passed by our first cotton field for this trip. We also passed a truck with a trailer completely loaded with what turned out to be plastic “pens” about 12″ by 12″ by 24″ or so, which were filled with live adult chickens. Brenda was surprised to discover the chickens were alive and that they would make eye contact with her. Harlan was wondering if the ones in the middle of the “packing” had any trouble breathing. Probably not an issue when the truck was moving at highway speeds…

We decided to stay at a Comfort Innl on the south side of Atlanta, as we have a long drive ahead of us in the morning and wanted to shorten this leg if possible. Brenda suggested that Harlan meet his friend Tim without her, so we’d get some “apart” time, and then Brenda could be sure to be in the hotel room in time to watch the Saturday Night Live special on TV and also not be bored with a lot of shop talk (Harlan and Tim worked together about 20 years ago and there was sure to be computer talk at dinner).

Tim suggested eating at Fogo de Chao, noting it was his favorite restaurant and even more fun to be at than Disneyworld (or was it Disneyland?). The description of the food was insufficient to sway even Brenda from her plan, as she noted there was a Golden Corral next to the hotel and we have been meaning to try the food there for a long time.

Harlan headed off for dinner with Tim, and was very happy with the conversation and the food (even bringing some of the cheddar cheese bread puff roll things back for Brenda). As there is now a Fogo de Chao in Houston, we may have to be careful/choosy about where we eat there. Tim asked about our trip and when he heard about our travels to South Dakota he asked if we visited the Corn Palace. He had not heard of Wall Drug, however. On the way back to the hotel Harlan missed a turn in the rain and passed by the Museum of Patriotism and was about to be scared of what it might contain when he noticed the Center for Puppetry Arts across the street, and initially misread the title as “the Center for Puberty Arts” and just decided to stop thinking about what he had seen and kept driving.

Brenda did go to the Golden Corral and discovered that it was seriously mobbed and had a long wait to get in. The bottom line is she didn’t eat there, she headed over to the Taco Bell for a spicy chicken burrito (her favorite), and was happy that Harlan brought back the little bread muffins. Harlan was happy to discover that while he asked for 2 muffins, they gave him 6. This meant that he got to eat one or two more…

We’re planning to be on the road by 10 or 11 in the morning (the Golden Corral does breakfast…) and hope to be in Orlando/Kissimmee by 6 or 7 tomorrow night.

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 20th, 2005 at 8:32 pm and is filed under Early 2005 Trip. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.