Day 24- nov. 27 last day in GA

Before I start today's events, I must show you a few things with local character...

So, county, you think you are going to name the street, huh?

Here, you can see the street sign. The one down on street level looks normal, but if you look carefully about halfway up the telephone pole, you will see another one upside-down and crooked.

You see, the county decided to name this street but didn't name it after the family that has lived on it for over a hundred years. Well, the county put up the street sign with the name they chose and the locals weren't so happy about it, so they got out their shot guns and shot the sign to pieces.

The county promptly put up another sign...

The locals promptly shot it to pieces again...

The county then thought they would get smart and put up the telephone pole and put the street sign about 15 feet up in the air.

Silly people, don't they know a shotgun can shoot further than that???

The locals promptly shot that sign up too..

The county came right back and put the street sign up 30 feet in the air so when you would give directions, you would say...

"Yeah, just look 30 feet up in the air and you will find our street."

Well, silly people. The shotguns could reach that too!!

So that leads up to today. The sign still sits shot up, crooked, and upside-down up the pole and they have just put up a new sign at street level. :)

Look at this. Gave me a giggle. They even write in an accent here...

I got up at a normal hour (according to me) 10:00 am, and my aunt was fixing waffles!!! Oh, wow!!! I can't express what a treat it is to have breakfast fixed for you!! Men, are you taking notes? :)

The kitty starts the day just a bit differently than me. He goes tissue diving. As soon as you throw a tissue in the trash, he leaps and dives for it. Then, takes it out and plays with it. Check your shoes before you put them on because there's a likely chance he might have put one there to show you his trash diving trophy.

Us girls had a busy day!! We wanted to go to the movies and had heard, "The Blind Side" was good. Hmmm... we had an hour drive one way, so would this movie be worth the trip? WOW!! Let me assure you, it is worth more than that and I would recommend everyone go see it. What an INCREDIBLE movie!!!!!

After the movie, my mind could not stop rolling through thoughts, well it never stops, but more than usual this time. I thought about my life, where I am headed, what I do for others...

Probably more than any thought, the one that repeated most of all is what is my purpose in life? Well, today, I really had to think about that. I have a laundry list of goals, but not purpose. Hmmm... I am going to have to work on this one. I have many hours of driving ahead of me to think about it. I'm telling you what, when you think through things like this while driving, you won't believe how fast 8 hours goes. It amazing!!

Anyway, after the movie, we headed back towards home and had spotted this cute little shop. It was well worth a U-turn. Even my aunt is getting good at U-turns. You are only seeing half of it in this picture. It was full of everything you could dream of made of steel, brass, and other metals. The other half had homemade jams, veggies, birdhouses, and stone art for the yard.

I was like a kid in a candy shop and could have spent thousands here. They had the most incredible bathroom sinks I have ever seen. They were made of brass and had embossed designs in them. They would be perfect in a log cabin or country home. Good thing I left the checkbook in the car and brought my self control in with me!!! Clearly, next road trip, I will need a larger budget and a U-haul trailer.
After leaving the little shop, we crested a hill and came upon this view. This is the perfect image of the Blue Ridge Mountains because it shows the trees, farm land, and mountains!!

Further down the highway, I looked up to the left and the clouds were taking shape to present a beautiful sunset. We needed to get our dinner in the oven, since it would take 3 hours to cook, but when you have a sunset like that forming, dinner will have to wait!!

A detour was in order for sure. It's not every day I get to watch the sun come down over the Appalachian Mountains. How does one decide which picture to put on here? Well, if you're me, you don't!! You just post all of the best. ENJOY!!

Me, waiting for the beautiful sunset to begin...

My aunt and I enjoying time together!!!

How cute is this... It was a father teaching his son (probably 4 years old) to skip rocks while the sun set.

Once we had soaked in the beauty, we ran home, put a turkey in the oven and dashed out the door to ring in the holiday season in downtown Blue Ridge!! Today was the annual tree lighting ceremony in the center of town and we couldn't miss such an occasion. There was live music, cute little shops displaying their best, booths with different goods, and lots of people. I just love small towns!!! We got there too late to see a lot of it, but the music was still going and some of the cute shops were still open.

Here we are in front of the lit tree!! HO HO HO!! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Now, this family was really in the spirit!!! The hats light up and flash. So cute!!!

They had a singer that was local but was working really hard on becoming known in country music. He had an incredible voice that was deep and rich!! He just came out with his first CD and, of course, I bought it. I know what it is like to get started on something and I wanted to support him. That is not an easy venture he is working on and I have to respect him for going for his dreams!! I hope he makes it!!

His name is Bartlee Norton if you want to look him up.

It was freezing cold at the tree lighting and even our long underwear and 3 layers of clothing couldn't keep the chill away, so home was in order.

We fixed the most delightful turkey meal for ourselves and are now going to call it a night.
Just so you can see what I looked like when I wrote this!! I think OSHA would approve, don't you?

Each stop on this way just isn't long enough!! If only that money tree would start to grow in my back yard, I would be set!!

It has been such a wonderful visit here with my aunt. It had been 7 years since my last visit and this time I will not let so many years go by again without another visit!! I will head for Florida tomorrow morning and will have to go through a major wardrobe changeover, since I am going to enter the states of warmth!! Oh, that's kind of exciting!!

Good night all :)