I had a fun drive from North Carolina up over the Blue Ridge Mountains into Asheville. Up the Drovers’ Gap Road and Hickory Nut Gorge as planned. Plenty of twists and turns with copious blue mountains on either side.

Good days. And bad days. I’m told I can’t go around it, I just need to go through it. Knoxville was hard. I’ve felt like I was getting more and more quizzical reactions when I tell people I don’t stop anywhere – I drive to a point and then drive to the next. So I thought maybe I ought to try stopping and chose Knoxville. Maybe partly because Janelle always wanted to see Tennessee women play. That probably should have been enough foreshadowing to make me reconsider. I parked in downtown and walked by a good number of perfectly fine day drinking bars. Got back in my car and sat with tears streaming down my face. By next morning I was recomposed and drove onto the UT campus and got some pictures for Janelle. I think she and Pat shared some similar qualities.

My plan had been to spend three nights in Nashville looking for live music. Knoxville makes me wonder if that is prudent. Headed to Chattanooga now, after a stop in Oak Ridge for a dose of Manhattan Project. I don’t need to decide on Nashville until tomorrow…