A Long Weekend in the Mountains with Friends

After breakfast jam session.

After a year and a half, we finally found a weekend that worked for all four of us to get together at my boyfriend's cabin. We left Friday and came back late Monday ... and we had a blast! We hiked and shopped and ate and hot-tubbed and read and nerded and watch movies and worked jigsaw puzzles ... and laughed so hard we cried. It was a wonderful weekend that ended way too soon. So now, we're making plans for a whole week sometime this summer ... YEA!!

Here are a few highlights ...

A peek at the summit of Brasstown Bald

My boyfriend and I went to Brasstown Bald last fall (click here for more info on Brasstown Bald). It was so amazing, we had to share it with our friends. Much to our dismay, it is now off-season and the shuttle no longer runs, so you have to hike to the top. The path is paved and just over half a mile ... but it's a steep, steep climb up! Fortunately, the views are worth the climb and it's all downhill afterwards.

Two of the falls at Duke Creek Falls

After stopping in Booger Hollow for some granola bars and water, we went to Duke Creek Falls. Duke Creek is a series of beautiful waterfalls. Pictures never do justice to the majesty of a waterfall, do they?

Daytime temps were in the 60's while we were there, but the ice walls that form on the side of the mountains were still frozen.

Before we left, I took one last photo off the master bedroom deck, the mountains completely hidden in the fog.

After lunch, I took one last photo of the fog-draped mountains.

All of us wished aloud for one more day together in the mountains. But ... one more day just makes you want another. A weekend in the mountains is truly cathartic.

A Mystery Mountain

We often see this mountain in the distance
when we're driving around the mountains.
We don't know how to get to it or what it's called,
but we'll find it one day.

b

A Long Weekend in the Mountains

December and January were pretty stressful, so a long weekend in the mountains with a couple of our best friends seems to be just what the doctor ordered. I haven't felt like me since I got the call from ICU at 3:21 a.m. on December 17th. 

I really needed this! I think all four of us needed this weekend!

Dun, Dun, DUNNNNN!!!

Tomorrow is 'Ice Cream for Breakfast Day'

The first Saturday in February is Ice Cream for Breakfast Day.

As the British would say ... Brilliant!!!

Mint Chocolate Brownies

I added peppermint oil (which is way better than peppermint extract) to the brownies, then sprinkled them with Andes Creme De Menthe Chips as soon as I pulled them out of the oven. They taste like Girl Scout Thin Mints!! Be still my heart :)

She's Been Charging All Day

Oh, goodie ... now she can go all night :(

The Day the Music Died

The event that spawned the iconic hit song, American Pie, by Don McLean, happened 56 years ago today when Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and JP Richardson were tragically killed when the plane they were riding in crashed shortly after take off. How tragic that their lives were cut short so young ... Buddy Holly was only 22, JP Richardson was 28, and Ritchie Valens was a mere 17 years old.

Their deaths preceded my birth, but many of the songs recorded by these three individual are early rock and roll staples that everyone has heard and can sing along with. One can only imagine the music the world was deprived of "the day the music died".

Even more popular than their music, is the song about their death ... American Pie! Oddly enough, there is an entire website dedicated to the meaning of the lyrics ... UnderstandingAmericanPie.com.

Okay, Men ... Back Me Up On This

I hope everyone enjoyed the big game yesterday, and I hope everyone made plenty of the top four most requested game day foods ... because nothing ruins a Super Bowl Party faster than running out of French lentil and hominy chili or roasted mushroom and kale pizzette ... right?!!

I've Been Showering All Wrong

Before I tell you about the proper way to shower (which I have no intention of ever doing), I have a quick announcement ...

This is my 500th blog post!

(Cue the confetti and noise makers!) 

Now, as Paul Harvey would say, here's 'the rest of the story' ...

Turns out, I've been showering all wrong!

Turns out ... I don't care!

I read an article that says a hot shower makes you sleepy. The expert interviewed for the article gifted humanity with instructions as to how to take a shower ... correctly. "Right before you turn off the water, crank it to freezing cold for 30 seconds, then back to hot, then finally to freezing again."

Um ... (insert expletive here) ... NO!! 

For the record, I don't take a shower to wake up. The intention of my morning shower is to end up clean, and ready to start the day happy and refreshed. If I were to blast myself with cold water, not once, but TWICE, I might start the day clean, but I would NOT be happy OR refreshed. Giving up a warm, relaxing shower by dousing myself with frigid water would likely put me in a foul mood for hours. Quite frankly, I'd rather be sleepy than miserable!

The article states that scientific evidence points out, "Cold water immersion has been linked to increased tolerance to stress, a stronger immune system, increased fat burning, and anti-depressant effects."

Hold it right there, fella's ... I don't think you can claim the above statement is a one-size-fits-all fact! Cold water makes me more stressed and I find the very idea depressing. And for what it's worth, I'm okay with my immune system being a little weaker and burning less fat if it means that I don't have to start my day crying in the shower!

I go to great lengths to never be cold. I wear jackets and sweaters inside all summer long. In the winter, I bundle up like I'm getting ready to face absolute zero ... and I have a long, long winter. My winter starts in October, when the temperatures dip into the 60's, and runs until late March or early April, when the temperatures finally reach a tolerable 70º. I keep the thermostat as high as I dare in the winter, but it's still cold in this drafty, old house. I wear layer upon layer of clothing (think Ralphie's kid brother getting dressed for school in A Christmas Story). I have a fireplace in my bedroom I turn on long before my alarm goes off so that I don't freeze when I get out of bed.

Although my house has central air, the upstairs is on the same unit as the downstairs. It's tolerable downstairs, but it can get uncomfortably hot upstairs during prolonged heat spells, especially my room, since I always keep the door shut to keep the cat (and her fur and hairballs) out. I have a window air conditioning unit in my bedroom, but I only use it a little in the evenings (I'm too cheap to run it for long or overnight). Besides, I don't want to be cold. Ever, EVER, EVER.  I'd rather be hot than cold. I have gone to work on someone's computer before, and they'll say "Tell me if you get too hot and I'll turn the heat down". I tell them what I have always told the kids ... I'm not too hot unless I'm actually in flames.

One time ... once ... when the heat index was well over 100º, I took a cold shower after I cut the grass and worked in the yard for several hours. That single occasion is the sole exception to my 'no cold' rule.

Turns out, if loving a shower so hot I run the risk of emerging with second degree burns is wrong ... I don't wanna be right!

(Kids, if that last line doesn't make you smile ... or groan ... ask your parents about it!)