Author: Easin' Along

The plan for Thanksgiving 2019 was not a grand one. Our children and grandchildren would remain at their homes on either coast and we would connect via FaceTime. My brother and his family had graciously invited us to share Thanksgiving dinner with them and we made plans to do so. Then came the call…

It turned out that some dear friends decided that they wanted some company for Thanksgiving and invited us to share the holiday with them and another couple high on the Blue Ridge mountains near Blowing Rock, North Carolina. The offer was too good to pass up. We enjoyed an early Thanksgiving with my Mom and my brother’s family, then packed up the next day and headed east.

We arrived late on Wednesday afternoon in time to capture the picture at the top of this page of the Linville Gorge just before sunset. The image is a good illustration of the “Blue” that colors the sky above the Blue Ridge Mountains. I lingered long in front of the view.

That same view offered a brilliant sunrise on Thanksgiving morning and held promise for a day of good weather.  Although the temperatures would hover in the high 30’s, rain was not in the forecast. Knowing that a large meal was ahead of us, we went light on breakfast to save some room for the feast—a good decision.

Helen and I love a big Thanksgiving meal as much, if not more, than anyone we know, and usually cook up a large turkey dinner with all of the trimmings. There would be none of that this year. Instead, a chef in Grandfather Mountain would apply his considerable skills to ensure that we did not come down from the mountain hungry. Another couple joined our group for the feast and, after exchanging a few pleasantries, the time came to get down to business.

The buffet line offered choices that would torment a foodie like myself and decisions were not easy. Do I pile on the roast turkey or go for the prime rib instead? Whether to choose traditional dressing or a scrumptious looking squash casserole became another dilemma. How about gravy? The cranberry salad called me, of course. Desserts—I made it back to that table for seconds. My memory does not allow me to do justice to the offerings–there were just too many to recall but, trust me, all of the choices I made were excellent.  I felt like a big bear prepping for hibernation beginning that afternoon, but I chose football on the television instead.

Before we left for home on Friday morning, we reached a unanimous decision to walk around a nearby small lake to wear off the kinks and a few calories.  I had not done any extensive walking since my knee operation, but I was game to test out my new joint. If I was going to do any hiking, this spot was perfect—nice and flat with a beautiful lake to take my mind off any discomfort.

As it turned out, there were plenty of folks with the same idea and we took some of the last remaining parking spots. Scattered among the walkers were some adorable dogs out for some exercise and fresh air.  I was attracted to two pairs that were kind enough to pose for pictures.  I’m not certain of the breed for the white pair, but the Black and White cuties are Japanese Chins. It took a lot of coaxing to get them to look into the camera, but persistence paid off.

It’s been a very busy week and I’ve rushed through this blog post. I hope you’ll excuse the rapid-fire writing, but I wanted to share the pictures of the Blue Ridge give a sincere thank you to our hosts and our friends for including us in a delightful outing that can be summed up in one expression…we’re extremely blessed and grateful for our friends and all that we have to be so thankful for. I’m not certain that even those words say it all so, I’ll say it again—we’re blessed…and we’re Easin’ Along, filled with gratitude…and gravy.

 

Helen and I send sincere wishes to everyone for a happy, blessed, and safe Thanksgiving holiday. We have so much to be thankful for and we know that Easin’ Along readers will be ever mindful of those less fortunate and grateful for the service of every American in uniform serving our country both here and abroad. 

We’ll be back next week but, in the meantime, please gobble up all of the joy that comes with spending this time with friends and loved ones.

Joe and Helen

Knoxville, Tennessee

 

Except for the White house Christmas tree that spent a night in our town, we have had a relatively uneventful week here in Knoxville.  The leaves on our trees are all but gone, and our serene neighborhood must now contend with a chorus of leaf-blowers sounding off in a roar so loud it makes my teeth hurt. From my man cave, I watch through the window at some very active chipmunks filling their winter stores with the nuts once covered by a thick bed of leaves.

My activity level moves at a pace much slower than that of the chipmunks. I go to therapy for my knee three days a week; do strengthening exercises when I’m not in rehab, and sit under an ice pack the rest of the time. I’m making steady progress however as measured by the degree of bend in my surgically replaced knee. When I began physical therapy, my bend measured 115 degrees. The goal is 125 to 130. My latest measurement (after a lot of screaming and sweating) came in at 141. I’m now able to drive and, driving to therapy resulted in the only other noteworthy event this week. Read on.

My rehab center, Prompt Physical Therapy, is about three miles from my home and, on Monday of this week, I threw on a pair of gym shorts and a sweatshirt and jumped into my car for another session with Steve, Mary Catherine, and Grace, the wonderful therapists who are helping me heal. Due to some persistent stiffness in my right leg, I tend to drive slow, allowing for extra reaction time to apply the brakes if needed. As I approached the therapy center, I slowed down to make a right turn into the parking lot when, WHAM—something or someone hit me from the rear and moved me forward into the parking lot. Next, that something veered to the left from my rear and ran headlong into a car coming from the opposite direction. The entire episode lasted less than 10 seconds.

“Holy (expletive)!” was my immediate reaction before I gathered myself enough to get out of the car and see if I or anyone else was hurt.  I was fine, and the fellow who ran into me was already standing beside his Mercedes and talking into the OnStar system that was alerted to the crash. I overheard him tell the operator that he was fine and ask her to notify the police and call for a wrecker. A policeman arrived almost at once. Patrons and therapists came out to witness the scene.

The lady driving the other car eventually came out from under her airbag and walked out to join us.  Other than a blow to her nose from the airbag, she was not hurt seriously, just understandably shaken.  Oddly, the propellant from the airbag caused a chemical burn on the sleeve of her shirt.

Since both of their cars were blocking the road, the policeman gathered information from each of them first. As that was going on, the wrecker arrived and hurriedly began setting up to prevent other wrecker operators from moving in and stealing the bounty. I used the time to assess the damage to my car.

My car, a 2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser is my most prized possession. I named this car Freddie and I refer to Freddie as my toy.  Over the years, I’ve had a lot of toys including, boats, motorcycles, four-wheelers and campers. I even had an MGB sports car once although, with my 6’ 4” frame, it wasn’t a good fit. Freddie is perfect for me and, the day before, had just passed 66,666 miles on the odometer.  Freddie is roomy on the inside, and unique on the outside. I keep it polished to a high gloss and rarely let Freddie out of the garage if there is even the threat of rain. Freddie has taken me to some lovely places in our mountains and I’ve shared a few pictures here. Toyota doesn’t make this car anymore which only adds to the appeal.

On this day however, Freddie absorbed a blow to the bumper that resulted in a cantaloupe-sized inward bend. Miffed at first—there was not a scratch on Freddie until now–I soon realized that, of the three cars involved, Freddie was the lucky one. The lady’s car was probably totaled, and the Mercedes would require extensive repair if not totaled as well. Neither car was driveable in their current condition and soon departed on the bed of a wrecker.

The three of us shook hands after exchanging information. Almost immediately, I took a phone call from the insurance company of the Mercedes owner, assuring me of proper care and treatment for the bend in Freddie’s bumper.  I turned and went inside for treatment on the bend in my knee…grateful that I am still Easin’ Along and mindful that things could be a lot worse.

 

Note: Easin’ Along will take a little time off for activities with family and friends.  Please know how grateful we are to have our readers join us each week and Helen joins me in wishing each of you a blessed and safe Thanksgiving holiday.