Blue Ridge and BBQ

 Today we will complete our week stay here in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina.We have been staying in a very small RV Park about 10 miles southwest of Asheville ... located in a small valley not far from the Blue Ridge Parkway. The weather has been quite nice during our stay with mostly sunny skies ... highs in the low 80s and nighttime temps around 60 degrees. Good daytime tourist weather and comfortable sleeping temps - can’t beat it!

The Blue Ridge Mountains here in North Carolina are quite stunning ... gorgeous views everywhere - especially from up on the Parkway! Peggy and I have spent our time enjoying the weather, enjoying the views, checking out the Asheville- Waynesville - Cherokee areas ... and even trying some local Carolina BBQ! Our first BBQ was in Asheville at a spot that has been a local favorite for decades named “Little Pigs.” Peggy and I both had a lunch platter with the typical fare ... pulled smoked pork, hush puppies, slaw, potato salad and baked beans. I added a small helping of BBQ ribs to my platter. We both enjoyed the fare at Little Pigs but it didn’t rise to one of the top ten places we’ve sampled. We decided to try another Asheville BBQ spot this evening - Luella’s. Now Luella’s was another story! We tried some sliced smoked brisket with a spicy dry rub and some dry rubbed smoked ribs. Both meats were fantastic with no sauce at all and even better with just a bit of one of several sauces. I have added Luella’s to among my top 3 BBQ spots. As for Peggy? She seemed to enjoy her meal but you will have to ask her for her own review. And oh Bye-The-Way ... I have learned that you can’t order anything down here without getting Hush Puppies ... and I really don’t care for Hush Puppies ... where is Terry Guiler when I need someone to take my Hush Puppies!

With our planned time here in the Blue Ridge used up ... it is time to move on. Our next stop is a bit further south to northern South Carolina to visit the Freightliner Factory Service Center and get some planned preventative maintenance items accomplished at Winne’s Chassis birthplace. It looks like we may also get to experience a southeastern US heatwave with temps climbing into the 90s for a few days.

Everyday is an adventure with these Maineiacs in Motion!

Jerzee!

 Well here we are ... one week in on our 2021 Springtime getaway. We have been hanging out in “southern” New Jersey ... more specifically in Absecon, NJ ... a few miles west of Atlantic City ... a few miles east of Stockton University, home of the fighting Ospreys ... and about 30 miles east of Sicklerville, NJ, home of the New Jersey Evringham Clan.

Our granddaughter Alyssa graduated from Stockton last Tuesday with a degree in Marine Science ... so that was pretty exciting!

She even found time to tour her grandparents around nearby historic Smithville. I can’t say we saw a lot of “history” ... but we did visit a lot  of CLSs (that’s Cute Little Shops for you unfamiliar with the Acronyms of Miss Judy Patterson!). After buying plenty of Cute Little Things from the CLSs ... Miss Alyssa took us for a side trip to the Stockton University Marine Field Lab Site where we met Steve the Field Lab Manager and even got a quick tour of the Stockton University Research Vessel RV Petrel complete with explanations of the underwater ROV (Remote Operated Vehicle) and the SSS (Side Scan Sonar). Fun times on a beautiful spring day here on “the shore.”

Today is granddaughter Emily’s 17th Birthday ... so we will assist in celebrating that at some “Escape Room” here nearby and then dinner out at some Japanese Hibachi Style cookery! So wish us luck on that adventure ... hopefully we escape with all participants and in plenty of time for dinner.

The trip is going fine so far with only one semi major hiccup when I had to replace the evaporator fan motor on our refrigerator a couple of days ago! Fortunately I was able to source the needed part in short order at a local appliance parts supply business and make the installation in about an hour ... after carefully studying the appropriate you tube video! And then there was/is an ongoing issue with some neck pain I am having — but we will survive that too I hope!

I guess I should also note that we are planning on heading further west and south starting tomorrow with our next waypoint scheduled to be near Asheville, NC on Wednesday. Yes — I am aware that that part of the country has been experiencing fuel shortages after a major distribution pipeline had to be shutdown last week ... and then the panic buying set in for a few days. But the pipeline is back up and running now and the fuel supplies are returning to normal so ...off into the abyss we will go!

In spite of all the reasons to turn back ... we will venture forth! After all ... look at the bright sides ... we are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 ... the feds tell us we can stop wearing masks ... someday soon all the states may agree that masks are not necessary ... the crisis at our southern border is “under control,” Israel will soon stop Hamas from firing rockets in their direction until the UN brokers a ceasefire thereby allowing Hamas to rearm and start again, the Democrat Socialists will soon piss-off everyone around them and will be pushed back into their caves ... so yeah ... things are looking up!

I told you kids that this mess is yours to fix ...

I’m off to the next adventure!