Comings & Goings

We have had a few small events occur over the last few days that are clumped together in this one blog entry for the sake of brevity:

Thursday, May 12 - We met our friends, Brenda and Danny, out at Zanies Comedy Club for dinner before comedian/actor, Kevin Pollak, took the stage. Kevin had a couple of openers for him who were pretty good, but paled in comparison to his wry, intelligent and hilarious set. It's no wonder that Pollak has transitioned into the movies so easily (loved him The Usual Suspects, A Few Good Men, and Grumpy (and Grumpier) Old Men). His story-telling style of comedy is impeccable and his voice manipulation and control (including great impressions of such Hollywood icons as Jack Nicholson, Christoper Walken, etc.) are incredibly skillful. He was nice enough to meet us briefly after the show and snap a picture with Brenda and Ashlee (photo above).

Friday, May 13 - We finally got to see "Water for Elephants" at the movie theater and loved it. We are both big fans of the book and were hoping the film would do it justice. It did in several ways including a great cast, beautiful cinematography and a splendid rendition of the book.

Saturday, May 14 - We had tickets to see one of our favorite performers, Brett Dennen, again at The Cannery in downtown Nashville. It was an early stop on his Loverboy tour in support of his new album of the same name. Opening for Brett was a folk-rock band by the name of Dawes. They were pretty good and their signature song, "When My Time Comes" is a great tune to hear live. Brett and his band followed with a great hour and half set of several new songs off the new album as well as some of his past hits (video below). Thanks to our friends, Beth and Michael, for meeting up and hanging out with us at the show.

Sunday, May 15 - The unseasonably cool weather and rain this weekend lent itself well for another trip to the movies this afternoon as we caught a showing of "Bridesmaids" which opened this weekend. Touted as the female version of "The Hangover" it definitely had it's share of over-the-top raunchy humor and it keep us entertained for a full two hours which is a bit long for a comedy these days. We were surprised when the movie ended that we were actually going to be a little late meeting our friends, Danny and Brenda, at Taste of Williamson (County), a food-sampling event from local restaurants held after hours at the Cool Springs Mall benefitting United Way. The food was great and there was plenty of it. We got full bellies and our money's worth for the entry fee very quickly.

Historic Hockey in May in Music City

We were proud to be a part of history tonight in Nashville as the professional hockey team, the Predators, hosted their very first 2nd-round playoff game in franchise history vs. the #1 seeded Vancouver Canucks. The Preds came home to the Bridgestone Arena tonight after splitting the first two games of the best of seven series in Vancouver. The downtown area around the arena was absolutely electric as Predators fans got to experience their very first taste of "hockey in the month of May" since they've never gotten out of the first round of playoffs before, but that all changed this season as the took care of the higher-seeded Anaheim Ducks in the first round in just six games.

We met our friends Chris and Tarryn outside the arena before the game and had a few drinks to celebrate the occasion. Our friend, Ryan, also met us before the game as we toasted the Preds' success. Our seats were obtained off Stubhub.com once we knew the date, and we got a couple of club level spots for a very reasonable price. The atmosphere inside the arena was even more pumped up as a "Gold Out" ensued with almost everyone wearing gold-colored Preds t-shirts that were given out before the game as well as gold rally towels being whipped around in a mad frenzy. It was quite a thrilling site as the players were being introduced at the start and on throughout the game especially during the now Predator-fans-patented standing ovation during a TV time-out in the 3rd period (video
below).

The game itself was as thrilling as the build-up to it, if not more so. It went into overtime tied 2-2 with the hard-working Predators battling every second against the built-for-success top-seeded Canucks. Vancouver's shots-on-goal were twice that of the Preds and were nearing 50, but Nashville goalie, Pekka Rinne, turned in an amazing performance as he blocked shot after shot from the relentless Canucks' attack. Overtime was brief and gut-wrenching as the Canucks went on a power play after a very questionable call going against the Predators. The sudden-death rules of hockey overtime allow for no errors and a crummy ending in OT of a 3-2 loss was the result.

Despite the heartbreaking loss, it was a thrilling night to be in Nashville for sure with the sold-out crowd of over 17,000 people, and we are so happy we were able to be a small part of it.
(Update - 5/10/11) - The Preds went on to lose all three of their home games against the Canucks and lost the series in 6 hard-fought games last night. Despite being knocked out of the playoffs this year, it is obvious that this team is improving greatly and we hope to see a lot of success from them in the future.

VH1 Best Cruise Ever

Thursday, April 28, 2011 - We flew down to Tampa, Florida, this morning in preparation to board the Carnival Inspiration cruise ship which was hosting the VH1 Best Cruise Ever, a 3-day, four night music-laden voyage to Cozumel, Mexico, and back. What really attracted us to this cruise was not the cruise line (Carnival cruises are describable as "OK" at best) or the destination (Cozumel is fine, but we've been there before), but the fact that several of our favorite bands and performers were going to be on board playing multiple shows during the trip. Some acts we have seen before like Train (over ten times now and obviously one of our favorite bands to see live) and Mat Kearney (who we've seen a couple of different times). But also some we haven't seen before, but have really been wanting to check out like Lifehouse, The Script, Alpha Rev, One Eskimo and Ryan Star.

The cruise was quite more expensive than usual with a Carnival cruise thanks to all the talent on board, but we were hoping for the best and to feel like we got our money's worth as we usually have done by paying for the expensive Bonnaroo tickets the last three consecutive years. In fact, this cruise is to serve as a substitute for our Bonnaroo experience this year as we have decided not to attend for the reasons of cost, timeliness and a rather uninspiring line-up. The one thing we did hope for was perhaps a more intimate interaction with the performers since we would all be basically stuck on a ship for several days together. This was the second annual cruise of this type and year one got rave reviews, so we felt good about it, but hoped our expectations weren't too high. The check-in process was easy and by lunch time we were let on board the ship to wander around, grab a drink and some lunch in the buffet area. Our wondering about actual performer interaction abated very fast as we wound up eating lunch at a table right beside the band, Lifehouse. We played it cool and giggled at our situation. This cruise just might be a lot of fun. The guys seemed relaxed and down to Earth. Just after lunch a cover band called The Trailer Park Ninjas played a welcoming set in the huge Atrium area of the ship as other guests arrived before the 4 PM departure.

We were let in our room around 2 PM and another of our questions was happily answered. This was the first time we had ever gotten a completely interior room with no window at all. Did we mention this was an expensive cruise?? In fact, all or our cruises together have been in balcony rooms which we really enjoy, and Ashlee went on a girls-trip cruise once with just a port-hole window, but this room was basically a closet. However, it was roomy and well-lit and gave neither of us any claustrophobic tendencies. It was quiet also, and when the lights were off you were definitely in the dark for some restful sleep. The muster drill was next before we departed and when we arrived at our assigned emergency area we got a kick out of seeing those same Trailer Park Ninjas hanging out as there as well. As least we weren't the only ones slumming it down on "E Deck." The boat pulled out of Tampa Bay right on time and our lunch-mates, Lifehouse, took to the large Lido Deck Stage which faces the pool area to kick off the Embarkation Party (video below). This elevated stage allowed for easy viewing of the performers from just about anywhere on the deck. You could also view the stage from the two levels above the Lido Deck as well, making for a very cool general admission outdoor show vibe. The sound was decent although not pitch perfect, but what could you expect on the deck of ship moving at sea. The weather was perfect. Sunny, but not too hot, with a nice sea breeze blowing. This was definitely feeling better than a humid cow pasture in June out in Manchester, Tennessee where Bonnaroo takes place.

After the Lifehouse show we moved inside to the Candlelight Lounge to check out Alpha Rev. This is a very cozy little cocktail lounge with lots of seating and a small standing area in front of the stage which is where we wound up. We weren't very familiar with Alpha Rev but liked their song, "New Morning" which is played on our local indie radio station back home. Our opinions quickly changed as this seven-piece band from Austin, Texas, just blew us away from the start of their hour-long set. All of their original songs sounded great. Their musical compositions were very complex and orchestral in sound with fiddle and cello as surprise additions. The one song we did know, "New Morning" sounded even better and richer being played live (the short video below does them absolutely no justice). Lead singer, Casey McPherson, has an amazing voice and range. Needless to say, Alpha Rev just earned two more huge fans.

On our way out of the lounge as we headed to our next chosen performance, we ran into Alpha Rev's fiddle player, Brian Batch, who we talked to briefly congratulating him and the band on a great set, and Ashlee got a great self-portrait with him. He was very humble and honored by our praise for his work and seemed like just a really nice guy. (Update: Ashlee has now become Facebook friends with Brian and her obvious crush on him for his talent and looks rages on!) We moved on to the Promenade Stage to catch a few songs from Ryan Star. He is a product of the "American Idol" TV phenomenon which we can't say we are fans of at all. In fact, we did not know who he was when the performers list came out for the cruise. But after a little Internet research we found we were impressed with his vocal talent and energy. The stage was tiny and makeshift and stuck in the corner of basically a hallway on the ship which did not give off great acoustics or sight lines. Ryan was energetic and his vocals were a little less smooth and bombastic as we had heard previously (obviously through good sound engineering and mixing in the studio), but he wasn't bad at all and we enjoyed checking out this budding performer.

We doubled back to the Candlelight Lounge to check out SAFETYSUIT next. We weren't very familiar with this band either although we had heard of them and knew they hailed from Nashville. The took to the stage with the subtly of a hand grenade and roared out a loud, rocking set of original songs that was pretty impressive. The sound mixing wasn't as good as Alpha Rev's but their energy and crowd awareness made for an enjoyable show. Next, we slipped up to the main indoor music venue called the Paris Lounge to catch a few songs from Train. The place was packed and since The Script were about to start a show as well, we had made the tough decision to miss most of this show so we could catch the other. We knew we had other chances to catch all of two other Train sets during the cruise. A show by The Script out on the Lido Deck after dark (photo above) finished our evening for us in grand style. These young rockers from Dublin, Ireland, put out a great debut album a few years ago with several radio hits and have just released their second effort. Similar to Ryan Star, their live show wasn't as polished as some of the other veteran performers on board like Train, Lifehouse and Alpha Rev, but the energy, crowd awareness and enthusiasm was abundant. We think these guys will only get better with time. We got back to the room well after midnight, exhausted from a great day of shows. We couldn't wait to get up tomorrow and do it all over again.

Friday, April 29, 2011 We slept in soundly since the music wasn't scheduled to start until 1 P.M. First up was Crowfield, an Ameircana-style band that we had not heard of before the cruise line-up was announced but liked once we did a little research on them. They played out on the Lido Deck and the coolest thing (literally) about this show is that we watched most of it from in the swimming pool. That was definitely a first in live music for us. We headed back to the room after the show and showered and got dressed up a bit to attend a wine tasting that we had bought tickets for that was being hosted by Jimmy Stafford, the lead guitarist of Train, and self-professed lover of wine. Seats were limited and we were lead to believe that we would be trying some of Jimmy's favorite wines, however, it turned out to be a tasting of six ho-hum, not-real-good regular wines that Carnival offers in their dining rooms. Sigh.

Jimmy couldn't have been nicer at least. He talked a little before the tasting about how he honestly doesn't know that much about wine other than he likes the taste of it and that the "Train Wine Club" wasn't really his idea, but the band's publicist. He said he was trying to learn as much as he could and traveling with the band did allow him to try a lot of different wines from all over the road (some good and some not so good). The band will be soon lending it's name to a wine being produced by a California vineyard. It will be called "Drops of Jupiter" (one of their biggest hits) and Jimmy did have a hand in selecting the blend for it. He was gracious enough to come around to each table and talk with everyone, sign autographs and have his picture made with the guests (photo above). When he got to our table, we told him we were from Nashville knowing that he had moved to the area in the last few years as well. He was very conversational, even asking how the Predators hockey team had done the night before in the playoffs and saying that he planned to go to Game 6 back in Nashville if there was one since the band schedule would allow it. (UPDATE: The Preds did hang on to force a Game 6 against Vancouver back in Nashville - Enjoy the game, Jimmy!)

Afterwards we moved back out to the Lido Deck and got right in front of the stage in anticipation of the Mat Kearney performance coming up. Mat, another Nashville resident, is one of our favorite artists to see live. He put on an amazing show at The Cannery in Nashville a few years ago that we still talk about (see previous blog) and he opened recently for Michael Franti & Spearhead at The Ryman as well. Mat's set started about 15 minutes late due to sound check problems. We have to say that the sound engineering seems to be a bit of a problem with most performances on this cruise which is surprising since it's associated with VH1 and it's not their first rodeo as a music cruise. It's definitely one of the few criticisms we have about this cruise. But, we are also spoiled due to the world-class sound engineering that Bonnaroo always has.

When Mat did get started he was great as usual (video above). His melodic voice and sharp musicianship blended with a great dry sense of humor between songs made for a memorable experience. One of the coolest things he did in this show was a seemingly ad-libbed "rap" about the cruise experience he was having and we, as the audience, were sharing with him. It's was just another reminder of how extremely creative and talented this guy really is. We went back down below and inside for the next show at the Candlelight Lounge. It was One eskimO (that's how they spell it), a four-piece band out of London, England,.....well, make that a three-piece band...it seems their lead singer was not on the trip with them due to "visa problems" with U.S.?? Wow, what a nightmare for them and especially the poor bass player, Jamie Sefton, who had to take over lead vocals. He did a decent job, but the show was really saved when some "friends" of the band helped them out on stage. Alpha Rev fiddler (and our pal), Brian Batch, joined them on stage for three songs. Their biggest hit, "Kandi (All Night Long)" was sung by fellow performer, Matt Wertz, who did a pretty good job. The bass player from The Script (photo above) also helped out on a few songs (photo above) so Sefton could play the horn. And finally Casey McPherson, lead singer of Alpha Rev, lent his vocals to a few songs. So what started out as a bit of bust due to the formalities of international travel turned into an all-star set that was truly unique and we feel blessed to have witnessed it in person. We were heading back out to the Lido Deck when what we will refer to as TRAINCIDENT # 1 occurred. I was headed to the public bathroom as I saw a crowd gathered around a skinny gentlemen and realized it was Pat Monahan, the lead singer of Train. I clapped him on the back and said hello as I headed into the john. Then Pat followed me in there! Yep, it was just me and Pat in the crapper. I played it cool and made sure to zip up and wash my hands before I left. Ashlee was waiting on me outside (or so I thought). She was waiting on Pat. He was nice enough to take a quick self-portrait before heading to the stage. What a nice guy. Of course, we had met him, Jimmy (our wine and Predators pal) and drummer, Scott Underwood, once before after a show at The Ryman last year (see previous blog), but that was an organized meet-and-greet and this was after Pat went to the can....pretty cool. We made it out to the Lido Deck and got fairly close to the stage as the boys took the stage. It was a typical Train concert with great sing-a-longs and hit after hit. It was toward the end of the show when what we will call TRAINCIDENT # 2 occurred. During the song "Marry Me" Pat likes to wander out in the crowd and make self-portraits with people's cameras. I can't prove this, but he seemed to make a bee-line for Ashlee and sure enough got a picture made with her again!! Okay, I handed her my camera to have it done, but that's beside the point! Something's going on here!! Don't you think? Another great day on the boat wrapped up with this show and we collapsed again in our dark, dark room well after midnight. Saturday, April 30, 2011 We arrived in the Cozumel port early that morning (or so we assume since we were asleep). We had once again made arrangements to spend the day at the Nachi Cocom Beach Club which we had visited last time we were here (see previous blog). After a leisurely breakfast on board we headed off the ship to grab a cab to the beach club. As we were walking back through the Cozumel port who should we happen to spy again....yep, that pretty-boy rock star, Pat Monahan....and guess what happened?? you guessed it....TRAINCIDNET # 3. He and Ashlee took their picture together again!!! Ok, this is getting ridiculous. We had a great day at the beach club with good food, lots and lots of beer, great weather and good times. We met a couple of gals from St. Louis on the beach who were on a different Carnival ship. They were a lot of laughs and a shared, giggle-filled ride back to the port with them. HERE'S WHERE THINGS GET FOGGY....we made the mistake of buying some Jim Beam Bourbon to sneak back on board the ship (don't judge us unless you've had seen a cruise ship bar bill before). We wanted Jack Daniels but didn't have enough money. We poured half of it in a hydrogen peroxide bottle (works like a charm, by the way) and SHOULD HAVE thrown the rest of it out...but we didn't...mostly me as I tried to stupidly finish the other half before we got on the ship. We offered it to other people but I don't know why they wouldn't except a half-drank open bottle of whiskey in a Mexican port???? Anywho.......here's what I remember from the rest of the night....... !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's "blog-speak" for a blackout. I remember nothing after that half bottle of Jim Beam on top of ump-teen beers. Not getting on the boat, not going to our room, not falling on the carpet and rug-burning my knee, not Ashlee trying to get me to eat something, nothing. She finally left me in the room to sleep through the night. She saw a few shows that night and got her picture made with Mat Kearney in the buffet at least. I am not proud of this night and didn't intend for it to happen. I apologize to my wife for my actions, but it is what happened and I don't intend to act like it didn't. I regret missing the music that night and feel that it is my punishment for such stupid behavior. Here endeth the lesson.... Sunday, May 1, 2011 -- Today was another day at sea as we headed back toward Tampa. I actually felt pretty good despite what happened the night before and was glad of that because we had another full day of music ahead of us. First up back out on the Lido Deck was Colbie Caillet, a cute little songbird with a couple of recent radio hits who didn't do much for us other than sounding a lot like Jewel. We had seen her on Friday up on the jogging track and didn't really know who she was. The Script were up next performing a cool acoustic set (video below). At 3 PM we headed down to the main dining room for a beer tasting hosted by One Eskimo. Much like the the fairly bogus wine tasting on Friday, this event as well was a Carnival Cruise set-up with only beers that they already had available on the ship and which were fairly common. Despite that fact, we still had a good time with a lively table of Continental Airlines stewardesses who attend a lot of music events together. The beer was plentiful and flowing (hair of the dog, I guess) and the One Eskimo guys were happy to snap pictures with us and socialize. Lifehouse had their own acoustic set next back out on the Lido Deck which was excellent. Train closed out the acoustic sets out on the Lido Deck as the sun set to our left. We missed the end of the Train set to catch a new-to-us band called Thriving Ivory back down in the Candlelight Lounge. They were pretty good with a lot of energy but the lead singer's Rascall Flats-like high nasaly voice was a bit much to take over a long period of time. We caught some of Ryan Star again back out in the Atrium next. On our way back to the Candlelight Lounge to finish the evening with Alpha Rev, Mat Kearney and SAFETYSUIT, we met The Script lead singer, Danny O'Donoghue. Between the Mat Kearney and SAFETYSUIT sets we learned (along with the rest of the boat) about the death of Osama Bin Laden, marking an important date in U.S. history. It certainly was nice to be enjoying our freedom as a nation at this great event on such an eventful night. Monday, May 2, 2011 All good things have to come to an end I guess as did the VH1 Best Cruise Ever as well pulled into the Port of Tampa early this morning. We got some leisurely breakfast in the buffet while we waited for our turn to debark the ship. Everything went smooth until amazingly TRAINCIDENT # 4 occurred! As we were schleppng our bags off the boat there he was again, Pat Monahan of Train. We couldn't believe he was just getting off the boat just like we were along wtih drummer, Scott Underwood, and the band's manager. I shook hands with Pat and again expressed how much we enjoyed the trip as did he and the band he replied. They were boarding a bus and then a plane headed for Ft. Myers to play another show that night. Ah, the "glamourous" life of a rock star. We had a bit of a wait at the airport before our 2 PM flight, but it was all good thanks to free wifi in the Tampa airport and a nice lunch at a sports bar there. We got home before 5 PM exhausted but extremely happy with our trip, easily ranking it in the Top 5 vacations we have ever had...and that's saying something when you look at all the places we've been and the things we've done. Addendum: 5/14/11 - Link to a very cool blog entry by Pat Monahan himself about this cruise and the interaction with fans.... http://patblogahan.com/post/5473459366/fans

44 Through the Door

Wednesday, April 20, 2011: We celebrated my 44th birthday tonight by grabbing some tickets to see the Nashville Predators hockey team hosting the Anaheim Ducks in the first round of the 2011 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. This was our first time seeing professional playoff hockey in person. Before the game, we made arrangements with our friend, Chris, to meet up for dinner beforehand at Big River Brewery & Restaurant. Chris has limited season tickets and since his wife had to work late tonight, he invited his friend, Stewart, along and he joined us for dinner as well. Our friend, Ryan, was also going to the game and stopped by our table for a couple of pre-game beers with us. Our tickets were in the lower bowl and in a very nice location. They were about 20 rows off the ice and against the first retaining wall with no one directly behind us. The game was fast and ferocious with the Preds falling behind rather quickly, 2-0. They battled back to tie in an exciting 2nd period; got behind again, 3-2, and drew again to a tie at 3-3 when the 3rd period started. Then the wheels came off and the team got dismantled rather quickly and easily with three unanswered goals by the Ducks. It was a resounding and stunning 6-3 loss. Not the greatest way to end one's birthday, but it was a good time and there was still a lot of excitement. Plus, the Preds weren't dead yet as the best-of-seven series moved back to Anaheim tied at two games each. (Happy Note: The Preds went on to win this series 4 games to 2!) 

 Friday, April 22, 2011: With the Good Friday holiday upon us and my birthday just a couple of days old, we grabbed a cheap rental car at the airport and packed up for the rest of my birthday present from Ashlee, a weekend road trip down to the North Georgia mountains for some hiking and relaxing. We broke up the 5 hour drive with a stop in Chattanooga for a late lunch at Blacksmith's Bistro & Bar in the St. Elmo area at the foot of Lookout Mountain. This funky little restaurant sits near the famous Lookout Mountain Incline entrance, islanded off between two busy streets. We sat outside on the patio with cars whizzing by us in different directions. The food was surprisingly good, plentiful and unique. We had nice large gourmet burgers, a heap of yummy fresh fries and a fried shrimp-roll appetizer that was very tasty. Thanks again, Groupon.com! With our bellies full, we headed on east briefly into North Carolina via our beloved Highway 64 (we have traveled this road many, many times in our early pre-blog years as a couple, hiking and canoeing in the mountains of TN, NC and GA) and then dipped south into Georgia to the tiny town of Lakemount which sits on beautiful Lake Rabun which was our final destination. The weather cooperated nicely despite a forecast of showers and we pulled into the Lake Rabun Hotel well before sunset. The historic hotel built in the 1920's is lovingly maintained and gets rave reviews. We could see why very quickly. Its beautiful grounds and charming woodsy lodge-like interior (downstairs lobby, photo below) are eye-popping. With only eight rooms currently available, it is also fairly hard to get into without advance reservations. We were set up in the Andreae Room on the second floor which had a view of the lake across the road as well as the hotel's front garden and koi pond. The room's original fireplace has been converted to gas, but still retains it's charm. The hotel is almost as well-known for its restaurant and we had reservations for dinner there tonight. The food was delicious (especially the homemade pimento cheese, served warm for dipping) albeit too much since we had eaten so well and so much so late in the afternoon in Chattanooga. After dinner we enjoyed a little time out on the second floor public balcony with our new friends, Chloe and Meow, the hotel's resident cats. The hotel retains its 1920's charm by not having TVs in the rooms although there is a public sitting room downstairs with one in it. We were too stuffed and tired to make it downstairs, so we opted to curl up in bed with a movie on the laptop that we brought along (Wedding Date - a hilarious romantic comedy) and that worked out great as we drifted off to a peaceful sleep in the ultra-comfortable bed. 

 Saturday, April 23, 2011: We arose not so early this morning (in fact, we missed the complimentary breakfast served from 8 to 9:30), but still in the A.M. as the chill moved out of the mountain air and the sun flooded the area for what looked to be a great spring day. Waterfalls were our destinations today and we had several in our plans to seek out and hike to before the day's end. This beautiful area is chock full of falling water and includes several cataracts that have eluded my collection of over 300 visited in the last 20-plus years, many of which we have visited together. First up was nearby Angel and Panther Falls which are reached by a mile-plus hike from the Rabun Beach Campground. Angel Falls is reached first and by the time we arrived at it, a rather large group of ladies in a hiking club were slowing moving on past it to Panther Falls which lies a short, but steep, distance beyond in the same cove. The falls which can dry up in the summer months was running nicely thanks to an abundant amount of spring rains lately. We opted to check out Panther Falls later since the trial was narrow to get to it and we wouldn't be able to pass by the large, albeit slow-moving, group ahead of us. We backtracked to our car (finding another creature out enjoying the spring weather, photo above) and consulted my now rather aged hiking book of the area and attempted to find a smaller falls nearby, but could not locate the trail head. Our stomachs were starting to growl from missing breakfast, so we opted for an early   lunch before pressing on to our next waterfall. We stopped at a small deli/cafe in the area called Annie's at Alley's which is housed in another historic building of the area. We had large, bountiful sandwiches and fresh, red-velvet cupcakes. Not a bad little find! Our next waterfall was not hard to find. In fact, Minnehaha Falls is considered one of the most beautiful in the area and with a short, albeit steep, hike in to its base, it is also one of the most frequently visited. It is amazingly lovely for sure with it's stair-step design, great green canopy of framing and beautiful rock colors. We were fortunate enough to get some alone time at this beauty before a throng of people descended upon it with their loud kids and louder dogs ruining the tranquility of the moment. Trying to guarantee more solitude and a more peaceful setting, we next opted for a longer hike to two waterfalls in a very remote area. We drove over 6 miles on a forest service road (the book said it was more like 9 miles) that we kept expecting to be too rough for our rented Nissan sedan, but it trudged along nicely and the road was quite manageable up to the parking area at the trail head to Holcomb Creek Falls and Ammons Creek Falls. Well, we got what we came for, that's for sure. There wasn't a soul out here with us. These two creeks fall wildly and beautifully in a steep cove of huge trees. It was a tough climb in and out of over a mile each way, but well worth the effort and the long, slow drive back in here. By the time we got back to the car, the sun was dipping behind the high mountains and we were ready to call it a day with four waterfalls visited and over 4 miles of serious trail hiking recorded. We showered and rested up when we got back to the hotel and opted to have dinner across the road tonight instead of the hotel. That was our only mistake of the trip. The place looked promising, but in the end was a real disappointment. We choose not to mention it's name here in this blog so as to keep criticism to a minimum. We got back to the room and put a cheap bottle of bubbly on ice that we got at the local Wal-Mart that afternoon...yep, it's a great state that sells wine at the grocery store...come on Tennessee, get off your "moral laurels" already and join the modern world. Oops, more criticism. Sorry about that. Back to a more positive focus and the good times that were had. We opted for another movie in bed (this time, Proof of Life - one of our favorite action films). 

 Sunday, April 24, 2011: We woke up in time for breakfast this morning and man, did we miss out yesterday! It was delicious, and we were able to eat outside on this beautiful Easter morning under a canopy of trees with a view of Lake Rabun. Not a bad substitute for church, and we figured The Big Guy didn't mind since we were sitting out among some of his best handiwork. After breakfast, we packed up and said goodbye to the beautiful hotel and its super-friendly staff and headed back the way we came. We definitely want to come back to this area when the opportunity arises. Perhaps rent a lake house for a long weekend in the summer, or again at this time of year which is stunning with all the spring colors. We stopped for a bathroom break back in Tennessee on the Ocoee River at the lovely visitors center built back during the 1996 Summer Olympics. We stretched our legs with a nice walk on a few of their maintained trails and bridge over the river. We met up with Ashlee's family that afternoon in Chattanooga for Easter brunch at Tony's Pasta in the Arts District...it's always a crowd-pleaser. We got back home in time to drop the rental car at the airport (you couldn't even tell it had been "off-roading" in the N. Georgia mountains). Addendum: Tuesday, April 26, 2011 - We had a great 3-course dinner and wine flight at Miel in West Nashville tonight for "Dining Out for Life" which benefits Nashville Cares with our friends, Danny and Brenda. Our friend, Caroline, was also there and a few other folks we know from her Christmas party which happens to be where we met Danny and Brenda.

Reno-Tahoe Weekend

Friday, April 15, 2011 -- Ashlee had her biennial corporate conference in Spokane, Washington, last week, so we decided to meet up afterwards in nearby Reno, Nevada, today for a long weekend visit to the area. Rob had arrived a day earlier and explored some of the Reno breweries (see his blog for more on that) and to play a little poker.

When Ashlee arrived at the Reno airport this morning, it was early enough to have breakfast downtown at Daughters Cafe. Despite a little slow service, the homemade food was delicious and unique. We started with some small hand-made sweet potato doughnuts which were decadent. Our main breakfast course consisted of a plate-sized Dutch Baby (think somewhere between a crepe and a pancake) for Ashlee and a huge omelet for Rob with goat cheese, apples and walnuts. Both entrees came with a side of delicious bacon as well. The restaurant is located near the Truckee River which flows through the middle of the city and has a very nice river walk accompanying it. The Truckee's path through downtown Reno is fairly swift-moving and tumbling, enough so to even accommodate kayakers. Downtown kayaking is not the only thing that makes Reno unique. Unlike it's "big sister" gambling town down south called Las Vegas, Reno seems more of a real town than just a playground. There are historic, vibrant neighborhoods scattered throughout the city limits, some sitting on high hills overlooking the city and ringed even higher by part of the snow-topped Sierra Nevada Mountains. Overall, it's quite a picturesque little city. There seems to be a lot of pride in being from or living in Reno. And why not, The town is clean with beautiful vistas in all directions and the residents (at least the one's we encountered) could not have been nicer.

After a little more exploring along the river walk, we headed south toward our real goal for the weekend, famous Lake Tahoe. While checking out Reno was on the agenda, seeing and experiencing as much of the natural wonder that is Lake Tahoe and it's surrounding mountains and forests would take up most of the rest of the weekend. It's about 50 miles from Reno to Tahoe and on the way you pass through the outskirts of Nevada's capital, Carson City. It's actually a quaint little city in comparison to bustling Reno with a ton of history of its own. We took a quick detour to check out the state capitol building which is a beautiful structure made of local sandstone and built among a large grove of cottonwoods. Continuing south as you crest Spooner Mountain on Hwy. 50 and see Lake Tahoe below for the first time, it's quite exhilarating. It's sheer size is daunting and the snow-covered mountains looming over it are what make postcard dreams. We were staying in the hamlet of South Lake Tahoe which is just over the Nevada state line inside California. It's a great little town to visit any time of the year with amazing ski access in the winter and unlimited lake access in the summer.

We chose to stay at very unique little place called 986 Park Hotel & Spa. It's an old motel that has been restored to a boutique hotel. What makes it unique is the fact that the "restoration" from cheesy motel to lovely hotel/spa has all been done with mostly reclaimed materials. Reclaimed wood and tin covered the place in decorative, tasteful ways. But it goes beyond just walls and trim; the front desk, the bar in the lobby, the tables throughout the hotel, the wardrobes in the rooms, etc. are all made from reclaimed wood. Our room itself was large, comfortable and quiet throughout our stay. We would definitely stay here again on another visit. Thanks to Jetsetter.com for recommending it and providing a great sale price.

We had an early dinner in our room of warmed up pizza from Zpizza over in Reno that Rob had picked up the day before. It was a Thai-flavored pie and the fresh, organic ingredients that this west coast chain is known for were still great tasting even reheated the next day. After eating, we donned our thermal undergarments and readied our warm clothes for our most anticipated planned activity of the trip -- a full-moon snowshoe tour. Neither of us had been snowshoeing before, let alone after dark in the moonlight. We were a bit nervous, not knowing what to expect as we drove a half hour around the gigantic alpine lake to the North Lake Tahoe Regional Park to meet up with our guides at 7 PM. The materials provided to us said we probably needed flashlights and waterproof shoes, and we had neither with us, so we stopped in the one place that was open after 6 PM and found both. It just happened to be a CVS pharmacy. Hey, you take what you can get.

We were scheduled to have 17 in our group, but only 13 showed up, so after a half-hour of waiting and the sun setting fast behind the snowy peaks, we got a quick tutorial from our guides, Kerry and Sander, on how to put on and walk in snowshoes. We then set off on our two-mile trek. The trail we were on was packed down pretty well with about a foot of snow which made for easy maneuvering over it. We picked up the art of snowshoeing fairly quickly and easily and are happy to report no trips, falls or face-plants. It seems that the key to snowshoeing is the fact that there is no slipping or sliding which makes for an easy, steady pace similar to hiking. It had been partly to mostly cloudy for most of the day and we weren't expecting a lot of moonlight, but we were pleasantly surprised when the full moon made an appearance from behind the clouds as we crested our first hill for a quick break. The brilliance of the moon glistening off the snow made our flashlights unnecessary. The pine and cedar forest we were moving through was very quiet and still except for a distance zephyr wind you could hear much farther up the mountain. Our guides gave us a good amount of information about the area, the lake and the surrounding flora and fauna during our trek. We took our longest break about a mile in atop a high ridge with a view of Lake Tahoe below. The moon was now in full view and it was an experience that is hard to describe in words...and even hard to capture in pictures, but here's the best we could do with the little camera we brought with us. Kerry and Sander provided us warm beverages which were tasty, but not really necessary since the movement and mild temps made for a pleasant evening for a moonlit stroll.

This was the last full moon hike of the season that was offered by the tour company and we feel really privileged and fortunate to have gotten this experience. Our last half of the walk was in pure full moonlight and the clouds pushed away and the stars shone brightly as well. We really enjoyed this experience and can't wait for another chance to snowshoe. Just to keep things in perspective and show that not everything always goes our way, while we were having this great snowshoe experience, the Nashville Predators were going down to the Anaheim Ducks in the Game 2 of the first round of the NHL Playoffs by a score of 5-3 and so did the money we had put on them at one of the state-line casinos that afternoon. Oh well, you can't have everything.

We got back to our room and were pretty tuckered out from the snowshoe trek. We warmed up the last two slices of Zpizza and called it a night. What a great first day in Tahoe! Saturday, April 16, 2011

We slept in a bit this morning and let the temps warm up outside as the sun finally crept up over Monument Peak looming some 3,000 feet above our hotel and into the valley that holds Lake Tahoe. We headed southwest this time around the lake with two waterfalls as our targets to visit. Our first stop along the winding Hwy. 89 that twists and turns high above the lake (with a noticeable lack of guardrails in many places!) was Emerald Bay. This large crescent-shaped inlet with it's own little island (Fannette Island) nestled in the middle of the bay is so exquisite that it doesn't even look real. Despite it being mid-April and the temps moving easily into the 60's by 10 AM, the amount of snow still clinging to the steep ridges dropping to the lake was tremendous. At times were were driving through snowbanks at least twice as tall as the car. As we turned into the entrance for Emerald Bay State Park, we got our first bit of bad news. "ROAD AND PARK CLOSED." Bummer. We were a couple weeks too early for access to the park and the trail to Eagle Falls. We headed down the road a bit for our second option, Glen Alpine Falls, at the far end of Fallen Leaf Lake. The road to get to it is very small and we figured it would be closed as well, but we kept going and were greeted with a completely cleared road. We took our time not only because the road was narrow and curvy, but because the views were amazing. Fallen Leaf Lake is pristine and the cabins and bungalows surrounding it are very nice without being over the top. This would be a great place to come back and rent a place for a week or so in the summer. When we got to the south end of the lake and the main road ended, we knew we were close, but there were no indications where exactly the falls were. There was supposed to be easy access from a small forest road and while we saw the sign for the road, we did not see the road itself. That's because it was under about 6 feet of snow! A friendly local gentleman told us that it was only a 10 minute walk up the "road" to the falls from where we were parked. Maybe we should have rented snow shoes for the day? He assured us it was packed down pretty well and should be too hard to get there. The snow was packed down fairly well and after a bit of slipping and sliding, we made it to the overlook of Glen Alpine Falls which was roaring with snow melt run-off. What a beautiful place and so worth the effort! We were able to experience this beautiful place with no one else around or a beautiful sunny morning. We again felt very privileged and fortunate in terms of timing.

We headed back to South Lake Tahoe and parked at our hotel. We were starving for lunch by now and decided to walk a mile back the way we had just come to The Brewery at Lake Tahoe for lunch. We intended to have a big lunch and we were definitely sampling some brews, so the walk was planned and necessary. The food was tremendous (best chili dog ever according to Ashlee) and the beer was top-notch. We each had a sampler paddle of their 9 available beers with their American Pale Ale and their Brown Ale being our favorites. The walk back was slow, but, again, necessary in terms of calories consumed and the effects of 45 ounces of beer on each of us. We contemplated renting snow shoes and perhaps going back to the entrance of Emerald Bay State Park and trying to get to Eagle Falls on foot, but the afternoon was bleeding away and we weren't sure we could get it done before darkness set in. We opted instead to walk across the street (after a bit of rest in the room) and take a ride on the Heavenly Gondola which whisks you up to the top of Monument Peak to a tremendous overlook and then on to snow-sport central at the heart of Heavenly Ski Resort, the largest in the area. The cost for the gondola is as steep as the grade it takes you up and the fact we had done something similar in Switzerland a few years back perhaps made us a bit skeptical of it, but overall it was a nice experience. We got a private gondola going up and the first-stop overlook is tremendous. The second stop, the entrance to the ski, snowboard and tubing trails was as busy as Times Square with people going in all directions to the numerous different trails offered. We stopped in a very cool outdoor bar for another beer ($8 a bottle! High altitude, high prices??) and enjoyed people watching for a while before taking the ride back down with a few other folks. We took another short drive as the sun was starting to set over to the Cave Rock Boat Ramp where we could get down close to the waters of Lake Tahoe. We couldn't resist taking our shoes and socks off and dipping our feet in the cold, cold water. After about 20 seconds your feet would start to turn blue, so, yeah, it was really cold. We got back to the room and rested up a bit and decided to stick with the theme of the day in terms of eating (and drinking) and walked north a quarter-mile or so to Stateline Restaurant and Brewery for dinner. This brewery is a little fancier than the one we went to earlier in the day, but the food was very good. We slowed down on the beer consumption with just a half-pint ordered for each of us. Another great day in Lake Tahoe. We hated the thought of having to leave this beautiful place tomorrow.

Sunday, April 17, 2011 Our flight out of Reno wasn't until 1:40 PM, so we were able to sleep in a little before getting packed up and saying goodbye to our lovely hotel, the great town of South Lake Tahoe and the beautiful lake itself. The weather was perfect again as we headed north back to Reno. We stopped for an early lunch at the famous west-coast fast food joint, In-N-Out Burger. The burgers and fries were tremendous and this place deserves all the hype it gets. Our flight home included a plane change in Denver. We rented a great movie starring Robert Duvall called "Get Low" off of I-Tunes to pass the time. After boarding our jet to Nashville in Denver we got quite a surprise when Wynonna Judd and her band boarded the plane behind us. I guess times are tough for everyone and you save money anyway you can. We had a little bit of fun coming up with inside jokes about the situation. Here are a few of the best:

"That's the best Wynonna drag queen impersonator I have ever seen." "Times must be tough in country music. Look who's in the B Group on Southwest." "I am sweating like Wynonna in the B Group line of Southwest." In all honesty, she seemed very gracious and down to earth (you have to be to fly the "cattle herd" style of Southwest Airlines). She waited her turn to get on and off the plane and made no demands during the flight. Someone sitting beside us said she was happily signing autographs at the Denver airport as well while waiting to take off. But that's Nashville "stars" for you. They never make much of a fuss. It was an interesting and nice finale to another great trip for us and the Reno/Tahoe area is definitely on our MUST RETURN LIST.

Indians, Gingers and Guidos - Ethnic Night Out in Nashville

We had another tasty dinner at our favorite Indian restaurant, Bombay Palace, over on West End Avenue in Nashville with our Meet-Up group of "Couples Without Kids." Afterwards we met up with our friends, Danny and Brenda, (who happen to be a couple with two great kids) and traveled over to Zanies Comedy Club to catch two of our favorite comedians who are frequently on one of our favorite TV shows, "Chelsea Lately."

First up was Brad Wollack, whose short stature and flaming red hair make quite the first impression. Brad's a writer for the ""Chelsea Lately" show and he has a razor-sharp wit. His stand-up skills are still in need of a little polishing, but overall he was very funny. Ashlee has a real fascination with all "gingers" as she refers to them with her biggest crush being the flaming red mophead known as Brett Dennen who we will be seeing again in concert here in Nashville next month. Until then, Brad was a fine substitute for her addiction and he couldn't have been nicer to us while taking the great photo above along with Brenda after the show.

Next came Chris Franjola whose tall thin frame and large teethy smile (Chelsea calls him "horse face" right to his face while also constantly questioning his sexual preference) are quite the contrast to tiny Brad. Chris has been at this stand-up thing a bit longer and his delivery is smooth and effortless. His observational humor and 40-something bemoanings were hysterical. Such as: Is there really anything more sad than listening to Journey songs nowadays sung live by a "Filipino" instead of Steve Perry? Is there anything more funny than Chris' impression of that sad event? We think not!

As a bonus to us, the two guys we came to see were actually opening for the main act of the night, a guy named Bret Ernst. Despite the name, Brett's a self-described Italian "guido" from the Jersey Shore before that meant something. His routine was dead solid perfect and definitely deserved top billing despite "only being on 'Chelsea' once." We howled at his stories of growing up in in the 80's as a n'er-do-well kid who was always in trouble, but who really only just wanted to rollerskate to his favorite song if it weren't for the likes of jerks like "Tony" who ruled the rink. We all know or have known guys like Tony throughout our lives as well, and we agree with Bret that sometimes you gotta just say "hey, F%#& Tony!! Let's skate!!"

Afterwards as the clock moved past midnight, our foursome stopped by the infamous Hustler Store downtown for some smirks and wisecracks of our own. A funny way to end a funny evening of good times and laughs.

Beat Paraguay!!

We had tickets tonight to see the US Men's Soccer Team in a "friendly" game at LP Field in Nashville vs. Paraguay. "Friendly" meaning it did not count for or against either team in terms of the 2012 World Cup qualifying which starts in June. Basically it was a practice or "pre-season" game, but you couldn't tell that from the crowd of over 29,000 that gathered to see the game - it was a historic night since it is now the largest crowd to ever see a soccer game in Tennessee, surpassing the same record set here two years ago when the Americans played Trinidad & Tobago during World Cup qualifying with over 27,000 in attendance including Rob.

Our friends Craig and Alison and their two sons, Ryan and Colin, traveled east from Paris, TN, to catch the game with us. They too were at the previous game in 2009. We also learned recently that our friends, Chris and Tarryn, were going to the game, so we made plans to all tailgate together beforehand if the weather allowed. We watched the weather all day as a bright sunny morning and early afternoon gave way to a cold front moving in fast from the west in the late afternoon and early evening threatening rain, cold temps and wind. The tailgating went fine with only a few sprinkles to report. Chris was an excellent parking lot grill-master. Much thanks to he and Tarryn for providing quite a spread for all of us, plus even a couple of young guys who accepted our extra burgers and a surplus hot dog.

At game time the temperature had dropped somewhat significantly, but it was still fairly tolerable. Ryan and Colin got help with the cool temps with the Team USA scarves we bought them as a late Christmas present. The field was immaculate and the US team wearing their new all-red jerseys for only the second time was an exhilarating site. Our six seats were right behind the north goal (photo above) about 15 rows from the field, and we got to see several near misses for the US in the first half as Paraguay defended in front of us. We were quite a long distance from Paraguay scoring on the other end of the field about a third of the way through the first half. A fairly heavy rain shower also came down in the first half, but neither it nor the early Paraguay goal dampened the spirits of the raucous crowd.

The second half was 45 more minutes of several shots on goal for the US (including an oh-so-close boot by team captain, Landon Donovan, (photo above courtesy of The Tennessean) that went side-net just inches from a goal. We saw a solid defense of the goal in front of us against Paraguay. The score remained 1-0 until time ran out. A win or even a tie would have been nice, but it was still great to see the team in action including several of the new, young members of the squad getting quality game-time minutes against a strong opponent in Paraguay who made the quarterfinals of last year's World Cup.

We hooked back up with Chris and Tarryn back in the parking lot after the game and sat in the car while the traffic cleared out just talking and laughing over a couple of adult libations. We all felt very fortunate to have dodged a lot of potential weather for the most part and see a close, exciting game amongst a lively, excited crowd right here in Music City. Come on, MLS, give this town a look!!!