At the Drive-In

It is a dream of mine to go to a real drive-in.  I have vague memories of going to one as a small child but that could really be me remembering something I saw on TV years ago having convinced myself it was my own memory.

Phor mentioned Union Market was having its own type of drive-in for the summer and I said yes without any hesitation.  We decided to go to the last weekend when they were showing "No Way Out" as it had been years since I last saw it and Phor had never seen it.

Phor arrived very early and got a great parking spot in front of the screen.  We went inside the market and I found my food at Red Apron - a chicken foie gras hot dog with cherry and mustard toppings.  My absolute favorite was the pork fat french fries with rosemary. We sat on the car and watched all of the roller derby girls selling popcorn and hot dogs to the cars and car-less in the front.  I didn't take any photos behind us but it was packed with cars.

We grabbed dessert at Trickling Springs Creamery which is my hands down favorite ice cream in DC.  We both grabbed the seasonal flavor cherry and I mixed it with chocolate marshmallow.  Perfect.

The movie started with the old fashioned promos which just made it all that more authentic.

And the movie completely delivered especially when Kevin Costner was showing his best moves to the girl.

The Audience

I had one of those moments when I opened an email from the Shakespeare Theater advertising upcoming events and thought that I would finally try something new.  The theater was showing a telecast of the play "The Audience" which stars Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II. I have seen telecasts of operas advertised in the past but I thought it was comparable to watching sports on TV which I prefer seeing live.  I was wrong and it was worth it. I don't know when I will ever see Helen Mirren on the stage and this was brilliant even if I wasn't in the same room with her.

There are showings still happening and I highly advise finding one near you. I'm sure you can find reviews online but I shouldn't have to say anything beyond Helen Mirren.

There are a couple of other plays that will be telecasted in the near future and one that I already have tickets for is an encore performance of "Frankenstein"with Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller.  I'm excited to see performances I would not have been able to see otherwise.

Dolly Parton Country

I originally was pushing for us to go to Dollywood because the opportunity really doesn't come along all too often for me.  But we kept driving past Pigeon Fork and Dolly's birthplace to go on an 8 mile hike through the Smoky Mountains to the Ramsey Cascades.  It's advertised as a strenuous hike and it took us a few hours but it wasn't like hiking through the Canyonlands.  It's a climb through old gorgeous growth forests to a beautiful water fall.

I took a video not posted here of the falls to get the whole experience below the gorgeous blue sky but you'll just have to believe me that it was all pretty spectacular and worth the hike.

We went directly from there to Sweet P's BBQ which was exactly what I wanted.  The pork was perfect and the sides of mac & cheese and banana pudding exceeded expectations. We then took our sweaty selves to see Man of Steel.  It all made sense at the time.

I will return to explore more of Dolly country but I was super happy with our adventure.

What Does Not Owning An iPhone Look Like

We drove a few hours to the east until we drove into Knoxville.  Once again we were hungry for real food and made our way to the downtown area.

We wandered through the sculpture garden and made our way to The Tomato Head.  Debbie was happy with the large selection of vegetarian dishes and I was happy with my sausage pizza.

And this is what it looks like when you don't own an iPhone.

The next morning we were heading out for a hike but we our first priority was finding breakfast at the local farmers market.

We saw donuts so we ate a donut.

I Wish I Could Spell Louisville Like the Locals Pronounce It

We immediately headed to Hammerheads as soon as we entered Louisville's city limits.  We were starving for real food and that is exactly what we got.  Jenica ordered the crispy mac & cheese balls and each one was the size of her face.  There were no complaints and she begrudgingly let us try them. Or maybe I tried it when she wasn't looking.

I ordered the duck tacos and was in heaven.  I'm pretty sure this was a new way for me to eat duck and I remember them with fondness. 

We were all really happy with our food and Jenica and I were persuaded to try the bacon chocolate brownie.  I like the idea but it did not meet expectations.  

The next day we ate doughnuts and then wanted to explore the city.  We walked around to look at the beautiful architecture.  There are some great walking tours online and we picked and chose what we wanted to spend time doing.

There was so much loveliness in the homes and the gardens.  It was obvious that people took great pride in this neighborhood.

We were told by the girl who helped us at Nord's Bakery to check out this hotel downtown where the lobby has an art museum.  We had more fun hanging out at the elevator bank with the wall of falling letters that shaped itself into lines of poetry.

This was the lovely image that we saw as we walked outside.  We headed over to this really cute restaurant called Hillbilly Tea where we all ate salads and prepped for the drive back to Lexington and then onto Knoxville.  We were essentially alternating between sugar rushes and long intervals in the car. 

It Takes A Whole Man Or Woman To Be A Shaker - Mother Ann Lee

I need to rewind to about a month ago when I was back in Kentucky with Jenica and Debbie.  In between eating doughnuts, we actually explored the state but only when we knew the doughnut shops were already closed.  Our first stop was at Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill.  I remembered a little about them before the visit including their lives of abstinence.  The religion relied entirely on converts which is fascinating to me.  There is so much more to know about this religion which traveled to the US with the hopes of religious freedom.  The original villages were farther to the East but a couple of families traveled to Kentucky and they decided to stay.  This village was disbanded in the early 20th century because there just weren't enough members to take care of it. 

This was the main dormitory and the men and women slept on different sides of the house. Everything about the Shakers was about simplicity but there was so much beauty in that simplicity.  There was beautiful craftmanship in their furniture and clothing. 

We visited the farm and I kind of really liked the kids.  This one was particularly brave and didn't mind the photos.  

Sometimes A BBQ Is Meant To Be Indoors

After my coughing illness, I was ready to be outside eating BBQ.  I asked Jenica if she wanted to co-host since she has the perfect yard, grill and loves to cook.  We delegated tasks and then I watched the weather report.  It was great earlier this week and then it turned a bit worrisome.  But the weather in this area is always a guess.  We moved forward.

We spent the better part of yesterday setting up and cooking.

We set up everything in the backyard - tables, chairs, tiki torches, lights, flowers - and then it started pouring.  Around 5:45 we decided to call it a game and just baked the chicken in the oven.  I was so disappointed but it only turned into an indoor BBQ and I should be lucky that I only have 5 mosquito bites from the little time I was outside.

We had close to 20 friends yesterday but I apparently just wanted to take photos of the food.  I loved the colors of all of the vegetables and fruits.  Jenica made the watermelon, tomato and feta salad on the left.  

This is a pound cake with strawberries.  It needed more strawberries and whipped cream but I had no idea how much cake there really would be.

Jenica did an amazing job with the homemade lemonades - basil and strawberry.  I insisted on the mason jars which is kind of done but they are perfect for a BBQ.

Jenica also made the required by law mixed berry cobbler with blueberries, raspberries and blackberries which was delicious.

Debbie arranged the hot dog buns just so.  We had the choice of sausages and a dry rub chicken which I fell hard for.

I was very excited to see Seth, Sunny and the kids walk up the street.  They just returned from overseas and it had been over a year since I had seen them.  Tiger ran around looking for toys but Jenica and Debbie aren't really into toys any more.

A picture of the meats and cornbread and the beans.  The beans were incredible and I was super happy to finally find a cornbread recipe that wasn't dry.  I've had some disasters in the past.

Tiger didn't find toys but he found other distractions.

It was just a really lovely evening with friends.  It is also so nice to share the duties with friends.