After a very fun time in Nashville, we got up and headed for my brother’s home in Crump Tennessee. It’s a little more than two hours from Nashville, and the car’s GPS led us right to Crump and then his home on the Tennessee River. Initially, Ricky didn’t have a clue as to who was parking in his driveway because he didn’t recognize the car and the plates said Florida. As we climbed from the car, he, of course, recognized moi. Lots of hugs and introductions all round.
It was also
Ricky’s birthday, so the fish fry he planned was for both his birthday and our
arrival. As the afternoon moved forward, so did the appearance of guests and
family, all with potluck items to add to the table. I introduced AJ, Haley and
Tyler whenever possible, but they certainly didn’t seem to have a problem
mixing in with all the guests.
I had a chance
to catch up with Uncle Gene who will soon be 85. He looks terrific, and while
still sad due to his wife’s passing, he keeps himself busy around his place and
eats most of his meals at a diner in town (more about that later).
Ricky had a few
assistants when it came to preparing and cooking the catfish. I stayed away
from that section of the fish house, but should have investigated because
whatever piece of equipment he was using to cook the fish looked totally
foreign to me…something I’m going to have to ask him about the next time we
talk.
Not only did
family attend, but either three or four couples who are Ricky’s neighbors.
Everyone was very outgoing and friendly, and I appreciated seeing my nieces and
nephews even though it didn’t seem as though there was enough time to catch up
with everyone. I’m also certain you, my reader, has attended events where you
wished you’d had more time with every single person there.
The food was
excellent, as it always is at a potluck. The catfish was cooked to perfection
and my plate was practically overflowing with the various accompaniments. I
also ate my first frog leg and was so amazed by how good it was that I had a second.
It was a bit like a chicken wing only bigger and tastier. I wondered if I could
get them in Seattle and still don’t know because I haven’t checked.
The party went
on for the entire afternoon and into the late evening. While I didn’t get a
chance to talk a lot with a number of the folks, I went to bed thinking and hoping
I’d get a chance in the days to come. In some cases, I did.
That was Sunday.
Monday, we just kind of lazed around for the morning. Ricky and Tomia did lead
us over to the Shiloh Military National Park. Again, there was a video for us
to watch and I learned so much about the earliest battle of the Civil War which
lasted two days. Initially, it looked as though the Southern Military group was
going to push north and defeat the Northern troops. It would have been a
defining win for the South. Unfortunately, the Southern fighters were exhausted
and General Grant was on the other side of the field for the North. Almost
24,000 soldiers from both sides died which is why it is called the bloodiest
battle of the Civil War. Later I looked up this site and found that an actual
tour can take up to seven or eight hours (if you like to hike) if you want to
see everything that’s referenced. This Military Park also contains a cemetery
and well-preserved prehistoric Indian Mounds.
Ricky and Tomia
went off to buy some jalapenos for jalapeno poppers. We stopped at a store and
I bought salad fixings and corn on the cob. I had heard Ricky tell Tyler that
we’d have duck for dinner. What I didn’t know as I watched Tomia fill the
jalapeno peppers with cream cheese (No, I couldn’t help because there wasn’t
enough room at the counter.) was that she was adding a piece of duck breast
before wrapping the whole thing in bacon. Ricky then cooked them on the grill.
I made the
salad and Tomia showed me how to cook the corn in it’s shuck in the microwave.
It’s two minutes per ear. When it’s done, you hold the skinny end with a hot
pad, cut off a bit of the fat end and the corn slides out totally free of the
silk. Amazing. Tomia then put the corn into two separate containers, each with
a cube of melted butter. By the time we ate, the corn was saturated…and
extremely yummy. Also yummy were the stuffed jalapenos. I ate two, and
initially expected them to be HOT, but the cream cheese and fat from the duck
breast somehow prevented the HOT from being too HOT.
On Tuesday, we
were off to Muscle Shoals and Haleyville Alabama. We went first to the Muscle
Shoals recording studio. I had no idea that this little nondescript building
was responsible for recording so very many artists. At one point, it was
Detroit and Muscle Shoals that were responsible for recording the music we all
love. The gentleman who provided the tour knew so many stories about so many
artists, I now wish I had put my phone on record. If you’d like to learn more
about Muscle Shoals, there is a great documentary which can be found at https://youtu.be/hKmGUIM1uAI?si=NJ1BU94hXdDn036-.
Then we went to
Haleyville so Haley could have her photo taken beside the “ville” sign. We were
hungry and stopped at a Mexican restaurant that we found didn’t serve alcohol.
We had a small appetizer, left and tried another Mexican restaurant. We could
see the bar as we walked in, so this was the place. Tyler and I had medium margaritas
and Haley had the fishbowl while AJ stuck to one beer. A little bit of shopping
for Haleyville souvenirs and then we headed back to Crump.
On Wednesday,
Ricky took Tyler and Haley fishing on the Tennessee River and my niece Anita
came to visit. AJ went for one of his marathon walks. Anita shared lots of
family information and delivered t-shirts she’d planned to send in 2019. Some
health issues took precedence and she didn’t remember they were tucked up in
the closet until we came to visit. Niece Tina (Anita’s younger sister) runs a
dog rescue operation in addition to her regular job. The run/walk happens the
beginning of November and on the long-sleeved t-shirts, there’s always an “in
memorium” section. The 2019 carried the line, “In memory of John Karlberg.” I
had no idea the news of his passing had gone far enough to be remembered there.
AJ, Haley and I each got a shirt, plus I brought one home for Thor. Anita also
told me Tina is looking up in the attic for another shirt that remembers either
Kaizer or Karma, probably Karma, which she’ll mail out to me.
Both Tyler and
Haley caught a big catfish that afternoon, and as we sat on the deck, we saw
them returning up the river. I didn’t personally see the fish being cleaned,
but there are photos. The results went into the freezer and I’m sure Ricky and
Tomia will think of the kids when they chow down.
I thought we
had planned to go out to dinner (my treat) on Thursday. First, we went to the Tennessee
River Museum across the river in Savannah. It was very interesting to learn
about the area and how it developed because of the river. I also brought home the
Historic District Driving-Walking Tour Guide. Number 13 is called the
Williams-Churchwell House. It was rebuilt in 1869 because the original was
burned in the Civil War. The blurb about the house didn’t include any family information.
Number 20 in the guidebook is the Churchwell McGinley Taylor House, built in
1876 and purchased by E.P. Churchwell in the 1880s. He was a merchant in
downtown Savannah and the home has remained in the family for over 125 years. I’m
gonna have to ask Ricky if we’re related to those Churchwells.
When we left
the museum, we ended up parking behind some buildings, but I didn’t know why
until we got inside where we found Uncle Gene. It’s the place he always has breakfast
and lunch. He was treating all of us to lunch. It was cafeteria style, and I
ordered the chicken-fried steak (HUGE), mashed potatoes and deep-fried okra. I
could have had corn and peas, but they were reminiscent of when Grandma or mom
opened a can and cooked them for hours. I also passed on the corned bread,
biscuits, bread. A glass of sweet tea went well. I wasn’t able to eat it all,
so Haley (who ordered a hamburger from the menu) finished it off. Ricky had
ordered a piece of caramel pie which he shared with the table. OH MY, it was
yummy and I ended up with the last couple of bites. Uncle Gene ordered three
servings of banana pudding. I haven’t had banana pudding like that since the last
one my momma made. Another few bites and I was…as they like to say…full as a
tick. I also had a feeling there’d be no dinner out that evening.
Back at Ricky’s, I went for a
walk in the hope my tummy would decrease in size. Walking back, I ran into Ricky
who was taking Haley and Tyler to Uncle Gene’s to fish in his pond. Tomia and I
sat around and chatted about stuff for a while. When AJ returned from his walk,
Tomia drove us over to Uncle Gene’s. Now, when I say he has a pond in his back
yard, I mean a POND. He told me his property line is on the other side of the
trees on the opposite side of the pond in the middle of the creek back there.
He doesn’t do all the upkeep himself any longer, but has someone come in a mow
the hay on one side. He said it was due for a second mowing right about then.
I think everyone tried their hand
at fishing except me and AJ. We sat with Uncle Gene on his back deck and watched
the fishers and the ducks and one swan move around the pond. Tyler and Haley
caught some small fish, but released them back into the pond. The day was
coming to an end when we said farewell and piled back into the vehicles to
return to Ricky’s and pack. The sun was still shining as dusk fell.
We packed up, including three
boxes that would be shipped via UPS the next day. I had the smallest box and
Haley and Tyler the largest. Haley said in the future, she was going to buy one
of those hard suitcases and carry her stuff back home in that…far far cheaper
than UPS. Then to bed with a bit of concern about Hurricane Helene…would it hit
Nashville?
The next morning, it was windy
and rainy. We said our thank yous and farewells, stopped by the UPS store with
our boxes and hit the road. I was happy to be in the back where I couldn’t see the
highway because I think visibility at seventy miles an hour, or whatever speed
AJ was traveling, was pretty much zero.
Still, we arrived in Nashville
without a problem, turned in the car and went to our rooms at the Hilton
adjacent the airport. AJ had applied for and received permissions for us all to
enter the airport and take advantage of the restaurants and gift shops. We did
and I wanted ribs one more time; however, the rib joint didn’t look all that
appetizing, so AJ and I ended up at Hattie B’s Chicken. It was both hot
(cooked) and hot (spices). I asked for macaroni and cheese but got fries which
was fine. Once again stuffed, I picked up a couple more souvenirs before heading
back to the hotel and bed.
