FIELD TRIP!

Yes, indeedy, that's what I said, "F-I-E-L-D T-R-I-P! I got up this morning to Randy already having made a trip to McDonald's. (A sausage, egg, bacon biscuit.) I ate 1/4 and gave him the rest. He ate it and his too. From there, we cleaned up and got ready to go, after Randy did a quick vacuum, because I had to have my fall arrangements placed on the front doors, and they were a little messy.

Oh, I forgot. Randy's been trying to get a cold. (Where in the world did that come from? Would anyone want a cold?) So I decided it was time to try the "Medi Pot" that the ENT suggested I try to decrease my allergy symptoms. Randy would have none of it, so me being the Tom Sawyer that I am, (That is probably the best example in literary history in how to draw someone into ones schemes.) I read the instructions through and hung my head over the sink and was happily surprised that I didn't drown and it was harmless. Instructions warn the patient not to use tap water, but distilled instead. So, I boiled our water and let it cool in a glass measuring cup to room temp before proceeding.

Randy didn't hesitate once he saw how harmless it really was, so I happily poured water straight from the kettle into the container, poured in the little pulverized salt crystals, screwed the newly sanitized lid on, and handed it to him, not believing it could be that easy. He held his head down and gently squeezed, per instructions, but stopped rather quickly stating it hurt. I told him, "Good! That means it's working. It's the salt cleaning our your nasal cavities. Keep squeezing." He moved to the other nostril rather quickly and then said, "It's too hot! I need to let this cool some more." I attributed it to his sensitivity to anything that may be construed as pain, and felt the bottle myself. It was a little hot, having come straight from the kettle and all, so I suggested he leave it out on the counter until it became lukewarm. That was about 5 minutes later, after he opted to put it in the freezer instead. It must have been pretty hot because it was still warmer than I would have used. He sucked it up, literally, and it worked like a dream. Try it and see for yourself. Caution: Room temp.

After all the morning excitement, we decided we would go to the little town of Salisbury...not sure about the spelling, which is 1 1/2 hours away. Maybe 15 minutes less. A perfect little day trip in the rain. Let me pause a moment to say we have probably 10 books on things to do while in North Carolina. They are all upstairs in the library and neither one of us thought to go and get the "road trip" book before we set out.

We had to pass through the town of Advance before we got there and were happily surprised to recognize that we had been there when we were house hunting two years ago, and couldn't remember where a specific neighborhood was that we wanted to see again. We will save that for the next rainy day field trip.

We finally got there and it didn't look like much initially, but we just took one turn and there was TOWN. I love Town...any Town that looks like this one. Old buildings, with lots of places to eat and browse for gifts and antiques. People out walking in the rain made me want to walk, but I didn't. We had Mollie with us and I don't want to test Randy's patience with having to carry the dog everywhere, after he's taken such good care of both of us for the past 10 days. Plus, I really don't need to be tipping into shelves, etc.

We found a little barbecue place for lunch, called Richard's, not to be confused with Little Richard's, one of our local joints. True to form, it had a red vinegary covered coleslaw included in the bun with the pulled pork, which is what sets North Carolina barbecue apart from other barbecue across the nation. Needless to say, it wasn't as good as Red, Hot & Blue's Barbecue pulled pork sandwich, but I am trying to stay open-minded, as I don't want to fall into close-mindedness anymore than I already am as we head into the mind deteriorating years. (I'm reading 2 books to help me in this endeavor. Will tell you the name of them if they work.)

Speaking of Red, Hot & Blue. It was voted #1 for barbecue in the D.C. area this past week. We are very happy. A radio station was asking for votes for BESTS and people voted on line.

Other than quaint houses and Town, there wasn't much else in Salisbury. When I can venture up the stairs with confidence, knowing that I can get back down safely again, I will explore the glories of the town and let you know more. Ah, here's a little piece of history I picked up from a sign: Andrew Jackson studied law under a local attorney there for 3 years and "was admitted to the bar." Who would have known...

Randy wanted me to make sure that you knew that after I yelled at the doctor yesterday, he, the doctor, said he only wanted to make sure I would be ready to wear 4 inch stilettos when I could finally walk again. I gave him a hard look and told him I never wanted to wear them to begin with. He just shrugged and said, "Well, just in case you ever do." I guarantee I won't.

AND, lest you think the doctor was a little rough on me yesterday, everything could have gone a lot better if I had just let Randy exercise the toe a little harder. Who would ever think they would risk having all their handywork destroyed just so the patient can recover more quickly? (Or is it quicker?) It's still an enigma to me. I am now able to bend the toe all the way back and half way forward. Progress.