"My banana's frozen!" said Tom.
I rolled my eyes at the ceiling. What could I do about it? Was it my fault the temperature was 27 degrees below normal? Unfortunately, there's not much you can do with a frozen banana except dip it in chocolate. And I had none.
It turned out OK. Once we hit Cincinnati, the snow pretty much disappeared, and you could see the grass starting to peep out.
I passed a sign, "Big Bone Lick, exit 1 mile." There is no way to explain this while keeping a straight face. All I know is that it's a state-sponsored attraction of some sort - the sign was brown. I tried to Google "Big Bone Lick", but got a whole bunch of links that had nothing to do with Kentucky or state parks. Well, maybe partially. Let's end this story right here, shall we?
In Nashville, the temp was 60 degrees and the sky was cloudless. Ahhhhh!!!
I had dinner at Cock-on-the-Walk. Lest you think there's a theme running through this post, lemme set you straight. A "cock on the walk" is the head-honcho alpha-dog on a riverboat, and is named so because he struts around like a rooster. It means "best of the best".
The menu had four items: Fried Catfish, Fried Chicken, Broiled Catfish, Broiled Chicken. The end. Now, I'm not stupid. I knew my vegetarianism would be a challenge down here in the South. But now the choice was staring me right in the face. I could either:
- Eat meat
- -OR- starve
I chose life. Meaning life for me, not for the catfish. Anyway the server set a banged up tin plate in front of me, and another tin plate with approx. 46 pounds of food. Fries. Hush puppies. Two big catfish fillets. Slaw. Skillet bread with tasty jalapeno. Pickled onions. And a side plate of fried dill pickles. Yes, little slices of hamburger dills dipped in batter and deep fried. When they asked me if I wanted a doggie bag, I suggested a doggie U-Haul instead.
The night was young, and I decided to head downtown. Oh man! The entire route from the hotel (near Opryland) to downtown was a maze of road construction. It was like doing a midnight bobsled run - all downhill, two lanes with no shoulder and dividers, snaking in and out. Yee haw! And then I was on Broadway, and the music was flowing everywhere.
I ended up in Layla's Bluegrass Inn, where the house band Jypsi was playing. In some ways, they were typical: 3 sisters, 1 brother, string bass, mandolin, 2 fiddles, all acoustic. You know. Except the guitarist looked like Kurt Cobain, and the second fiddler wore a flapper dress from the 20's. Boy they could play! When they got to Mule Skinner Blues, they broke out in double time and just about tore the varnish off their instruments. And when the yodelling chorus appeared the lead singer went "way-hay-hay-EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" it shook the Christmas lights strung across the ceiling.
It is quite possible I am in Music City. TTFN!
9 comments:
I have a really good recipe for frozen bananas; but you have to roll them in hot fudge and nuts BEFORE you freeze them. Thanks for sharing your trip w/us. You and Tom have fun. If I were you I'd give him a break...you never know, the spirit of Ignatz could invade him.
If you were there a month from now you could have gone to a Sounds game.
Good choice on the music.
Fried pickles are the best, yum!
Sounds like a great trip so far. Kinda shocked you had catfish. I expect to hear what it tastes like since I didn't get a chance to have some when I was down there. Broadway is the best. You can go into any place at night and see some great live music!!! I loved it there!
~Raymo
Gee Whiz, can you believe that Mule Skinner Blues was my favorite song in 1960. I have no idea what it sounds like without a alcohol haze though. Of Course no one plays it better than Myron Lee and the Caddies but I think their all dead now. Sounds like a wonderful time with some interesting places to visit. Rookie wants some of those deep fried pickles.
Craig:
I actually have a photo of the brown Big Bone Lick sign from some road trip or other during my college days. Now I wonder where the photo might have gotten to. I'm sure I'll have to dig deep to find it.
Glad to hear you made it to TN without major trouble. On my first trip to TN back in '83 I flew into Nashville and then took a bus to TN Tech in Cookeville. While waiting in the bus station on that 95 degree day in walked a young woman and her 4 kids with nary a shoe between them. You hear about that sort of thing, but I didn't expect to see it in the first 30 minutes of my visit!
Take Care.
Dean
Brown signs signify NATIONAL sites, not state.
If you're up for some line dancing, I'd suggest the Wild Horse Saloon. Of course, you may want to make sure the Jack Daniels is also flowing so Tom can keep up with you!!...they have the fried pickles too, yum!
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