The Chicago Cubs...

Wrigley Field is so awesome! I didn’t get to try out every single seat, but I’m pretty certain that there isn’t a single bad seat in that stadium, or surrounding the stadium. The game was great! The Cubbies beat the Oakland A’s 6 to 2.

I’ve wanted to visit Chicago and go to a Cubs’ game for a while. I’ve been to Chicago several times, but always for work and never for any length of time that allowed me to see much of the city. So, Mellissa bought tickets and we braved the “L” to Wrigley… we consumed the nachos of death, drank that horrible Old Style beer, which we were informed is the “official” beer of the Chicago Cubs… uh, they need to upgrade, and we cheered, shouted and sang along with Cedric the Entertainer for the 7th Inning Stretch.   

 We both bought the same shirt, but agreed to check with each other before wearing it so that we don't both wear it at the same time. I couldn't believe the circus of street vendors outside the stadium, it was crazy and nothing like I have EVER seen at a Mariner's game. The only mayhem after an M's game is the rush to get the closest place that serves cold beer.

Day Two... Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana

Tennessee was very pretty, lots of carved stone walls, rolling green hills, trees and corn... lots and lots of corn. Corn seemed to be the theme across all three of these states. After buying a bunch of beer for peeps in Seattle from the Lazy Magnolia Brewery - Mellissa knows the brew master... go figure. I hope the legroom that I had to sacrifice in order to get that beer back to Seattle is appreciated by everyone when they’re enjoying their beer… I also hope they don’t mind that it smells of feet ;-)

We did a speed tour of President Lincoln's birth place in Kentucky, after indulging in a two tablespoon mound of fluffy MSG (aka KFC mashed potatoes) smothered in thick, brown gelatin (aka KFC gravy). Mmmmm... KFC Mashed Potatoes; they were delicious and so thick I was full for hours.

We ate dinner in downtown Louisville at an Irish Pub, the fish and chips were very good, so was their local beer. It was a porter, but I don't recall the name of it. We watched the Lakers spank the Celtics and wished that we were watching one of the World Cup games instead. The area we went two Fourth Street Live, was full of bars, sidewalk cafes and various restaurants. It was fairly quiet because it was Tuesday and there was a tornado watch. However, all those hours in the car and we were NOT going to stay in our room. As nice as the sunset views were from our room, we were suffering from confined space fever and needed to get out. It was a nice break from the car, the room and the doggies. The doggies got to enjoy the sunset without us.

Mellissa and I practiced our texting while driving skills, we're approaching expert level, having passed professional enroute to Indiana. Did I mention all the corn?

Getting through Florida seemed to take forever... Georgia was fine, with the exception of Atlanta, that city is a mess to drive through. Fourteen lanes of traffic, all backed up and it wasn't even rush hour. NOT fun when it was over 102 degrees outside. The dogs enjoyed the AC.

We did find a place to eat in Valdosta, called the Smokin' Pig Barbeque. We selected it because the name was so freakin' funny, and we were starving. So, the place is in the middle of... nowhere, but it was packed, even for an early lunch on a Monday. The parking lot could rival Costco and it was more than half full. We sat outside on the rocking chairs and at our roasted pig snacks and sipped our Georgia Sweet Tea... I was in a coma an hour later, which came in handy driving through Atlanta. The serving sizes were HUGE, I had half an order and there was so much left that I had dinner that night and breakfast too, if I could have withstood eating it... I couldn't. bleh.

All in all, that first night was pretty uneventful, we made it to Chattanooga early enough to watch the season opener of True Blood, sans the first fifteen minutes, which we caught the next night, or day. I can't remember. Chattanooga is a really cool place, I loved it. We had coffee at Chattz, a local coffeehouse that roasts their own beans and I've been told by the proprietor they had the first coffeehouse in downtown Chattanooga, which was 8 years ago and before the Starbucks. He was a little worried about me liking the latte he made once I told him that I was from Seattle. The downtown area was very nice, it looks like residents are revitalizing the city, buying up older buildings and converting them into business, office spaces and dwellings. Very bike and pedestrian friendly... and pet friendly! There were lots of green spaces downtown, as well as various sculpture and galleries. The below are all part of one four sided sculpture located out front and to the side of the courthouse.