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By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 11/9/98 8:05:52 PM
# Replies: 28
first of all, it's been a pleasure to return to houston, land of beef jerky and john glenn t-shirts. but now i must be off to our nation's capital, to help save the world, watch the churning engine of our government, and maybe rub elbows with a few interns. along the way, however, i'm hoping to have a little fun.
so i'm filling my 88 cadillac with african violets and an accoustic guitar. i've got a spare tire, a jack, money for gas and chicken fried steaks. but where to go? So far my only plan is to hit Atlanta on the way, where i have a friend and a relative (and maybe i can get ralf to take me to the fang-recommended vortex...?). But other than this, i have no other plans. Fang tells me alabama in particular can be a drag. Knowing the vast "great american road trip" man-hours that have been racked up among you all, i'm hoping your collective experience can guide me to the "must go to once in your life" sites that i might accidentaly pass.
I'll be leaving thursday or friday. any advice you can give me is mucho appreciated.
Response #1
By: Homer The Brave
Date: 11/9/98 11:56:57 PM
Ride the Natchez Trace Parkway. It goes from somewhere in Louisiana to just outside Nashville, TN. You can, of course, leave it for a more Atlanta-bound highway, but this you must know:
The Parkway has ZERO traffic, two lanes, and no cops. It's a national park, so if you're caught speeding it's a federal offense. Wewp. Oh, and it has interpretive stops along the way where you can find out about the many cultures of hayseeds who settled Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Be sure and gas up every chance you get; the one drawback to the Parkway (aside from not actually being a road from where you are to where you need to go) is that services are sparse along its length.
It's a pretty drive, tho.
Response #2
By: Gowan McGland
Date: 11/10/98 12:05:49 AM
Stop at every Krispy Kreme donut shop you can find and savor the flavor of a fresh Krispy Kreme doughnut.
Response #3
By: Da Sissop
Date: 11/11/98 4:09:51 AM
That's assuming you *like* your doughnuts crispy.
Response #4
By: sooz
Date: 11/12/98 3:22:33 PM
I prefer mine kinda doughy.
My brother, the recently-divorced, got-no-kids, been-stuck-in-Korea- for-6-long-months Air Force guy, just came back for his month-long hiatus.
"Bye, I'm leaving" he said, after being here a day or so.
"Where ya goin'?" I asked, thinking he was making a 7-11 run for Diet Coke.
"Canada, probably" says Steve. "And I'm gonna hit Juarez on the way."
He calls daily, as I"m his contact for Air Force intelligence. Yesterday, he was in Utah, and has hit 16 state/national parks in 6 days. He highly recommends the tour.
Response #5
By: Homer The Brave
Date: 11/12/98 6:46:04 PM
Yes, no experience can equal that of spending 10 minutes exploring the grandeur of Canyonlands National Monument.
Response #6
By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 11/12/98 10:43:07 PM
thanks for the advice--i'll see you in dc!
Response #7
By: Da Sissop
Date: 11/15/98 10:23:32 PM
Are ya there yet?
Response #8
By: The Sorcerer
Date: 11/18/98 7:29:33 PM
Gowan Sez:
------------------------
Stop at every Krispy Kreme donut shop you can find and savor the flavor of a fresh Krispy Kreme doughnut.
------------------------
Funny you should mention Krispy Kreme doughnuts. I just ran down the street and got me some and I'm currently munching on one of their wonderful glazed doughnuts. Next...the chocolate iced.....
:)
Sorc'(Rev)
Response #9
By: Gowan McGland
Date: 11/19/98 10:06:21 AM
Why, that's WHY I mentioned them.
Last Saturday morning at 9am, there were 30 cars lined up outside the parking line down Westheimer trying to get Krispy Kremes.
When I finally go some of my own, I asked how many they had sold since opening on Friday. The guy said he didn't know how many, but that they were making 270 dozen an hour and selling them ALL. That was just the glazed ones.
Krispy Kreme plans on opening another five stores in Houston over the next year.
I don't think that's gonna be enough.
Response #10
By: Da Sissop
Date: 11/19/98 1:48:54 PM
I'm on the waiting list. I'm supposed to be able to pick up my donuts next Tuesday.
Response #11
By: Hijinx
Date: 11/20/98 6:41:48 PM
now, if you truly want a GREAT donut, then you have to go to Murfreesboro, Tn's Donut Country.....it is the stuff dreams are made of....but I am still not sure what makes them soooo wonderful. Krispy Kreme pales in comparison. But there again, when are you Texans gonna be anywhere near Murfreesboro....well, if you ever are, Donut Country is the only way to get great donuts at anytime of the day, but particularly at 3am, they are fresh and incredible.
Wouldn't it figure that my longest post would be concerning junk food.
Thats a fat guy fer ya!!!
Response #12
By: Gowan McGland
Date: 11/21/98 9:52:00 AM
Okay, well, I'll be in New Johnsonville for the Xmas holidays..
is that anywhere near Murfreesboro?
Response #13
By: rorschach
Date: 11/21/98 3:53:55 PM
Murfreesboro Arkansas?
Response #14
By: Hijinx
Date: 11/24/98 9:42:36 AM
I don't think so...it's about 30 minutes south of Nashville...and, no, ror, TN.
Response #15
By: Gowan McGland
Date: 11/24/98 11:36:45 AM
Well, I may end up DRIVING to New Johnsonville, so if that's the case, I'll have to make a detour.
Response #16
By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 11/24/98 4:17:14 PM
I'm here! I'll give you the full report shortly. I'm quite swamped. Suffices to say i did savor the flavor of two krispy kremes in atlanta.
Response #17
By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 11/25/98 7:32:24 AM
for those of you just joining the story: come next spring, i shall be entering the peace corps. in the interim, it was necessary for me to get off my lazy butt and get a job. by coincidence, a small environmental consulting firm just outside Washington DC required a bright energetic young man to stick into the gears of their firm. well it was magic from the first--i packed up my caddy and took it up from houston to washington, with a small stop in atlanta on the way. this is my story. well much has happened--i'll give you the bullet points:
1611 Hancock Ave.
Alexandria VA 22301
and on and on. no "running around in loincloth" stories yet, but i'm having fun.
Response #18
By: sooz
Date: 11/25/98 2:24:59 PM
Child Three sounds like she has quite a challenge on her hands. I wanna send her anonymous gifts.
Are you able to elaborate about the friend and relative in Atlanta that are living in seculsion? You really grabbed my interest with that story, and left me hanging. Damn you.
Keep up thee epistles. They make for wondeful reading.
Response #19
By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 11/30/98 1:14:02 PM
thanks for the comments sooz. now is a good time to send anonymous gifts; her birthday is tomorrow. sorry to leave you hanging about my aquaintences in atlanta, but i don't like to gossip, and it's not that interesting anyways. trust me.
what's the happenings in austin? houston?
Response #20
By: rorschach
Date: 12/6/98 4:41:52 PM
well, in houston it has hit 85 degrees three days running... think it is this global warming thing? nah... thats just some hooey that some enviromental types cooked up to get us outta our cars! well i say break out the old 1968 roadrunner R/T's and Super Birds! The price of gas is in the basement and the oil companies are swingin' the axe hot and heavy! its about our JOBS! (actually, i think it is a conspiracy between the japanese and the saudis, (who have always been on good terms cuz thats were most of thier oil goes!) to cripple the american economy and drive the yen down at the same time so they can take over the industrial world again.....)
Response #21
By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 12/7/98 11:44:35 AM
weather's been pretty nice round heres too, can't complain too much about global warming in december.
last friday night a group of us went down to old town alexandria because it was the major 'happenin' place' around where i live, and i wanted to check it out, have a few beers, whatever. a word or two about old town. this is sort of a historical district, full of colonial type buildings, cobblestones, quirky shops. during the daytime it's a fun place to hang out and window shop.
so we arrive around 10 o'clock that night and start walking around. first thing i notice is that everyone is slightly, um, mature. people are walking around in khakis and argyles. walking a little deeper, things start getting stranger. every other person begins to have an ice cream cone in hand, and a few kids pop out and run around. i begin to think, 'this is exactly the opposite of what i had in mind!' instead of swarmy sailors roaming the area, we see two perky high-school cheerleaders in their uniforms walking nonchalantly. in the end we ended up at a well-lit 50's style ice cream parlor which played upbeat christmas carols on the speakers nonstop. we eat pecan pie and ice cream, walk around a bit more, then head for home. it was a strange experience.
Response #22
By: Da Sissop
Date: 12/7/98 12:11:22 PM
Were the people in color or black and white?
Response #23
By: Gowan McGland
Date: 12/7/98 12:20:36 PM
I wanna know more about these cheerleaders...
Response #24
By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 12/7/98 4:05:39 PM
the cheerleaders were just a *bit* young, you pervert.
and yeah fang, i thought the exact same thing!
Response #25
By: sooz
Date: 12/8/98 9:03:44 PM
You childless people are weird.
Response #26
By: The Sorcerer
Date: 12/12/98 3:09:42 PM
Hey SoS, how long are you going to be in D.C.? The company may be sending me to D.C. the first week of January for a training class, maybe I'll see you while I'm there.
Sorc'(Rev)
Response #27
By: Seventh of Seven
Date: 12/14/98 9:13:35 AM
woo! hey sorc, i'll be home for christmas, probably in new york for new years, but in between and after i'll be in washington. gimme a call, the # is 703-jelo-tyt.
Response #28
By: Capt. Spastic
Date: 3/2/99 2:34:01 PM
The really important question is, when is someone going to mount an effort for the Alehouse to bring back the original Ale Batter Onion Rings that we all know and loved? The ones they have now are crap!