Dinner at Jared's and Hockey

Our grandson Jared invited Barbara & Henry and us over for dinner this evening.  He and his roommate Lee share an apartment in downtown Charlotte, NC.  They didn't tell me that he has a third floor walkup apartment until we got there.  Sneaky people. 

Jared & Lee.

  

They prepared an excellent meal of chicken fajitas and I went back for seconds.  As a matter of fact, we all had seconds.  Delicious.  I have to give them credit for a job well done.  

Jared challenged his father to a hockey game and Henry is the acknowledged hockey king in the family.  He got ahead of Jared real fast and then Jared made a comeback, but he fell short of winning.  They really got into the game and it sounded like war with them spinning the players and hitting the side of the table. 

Henry & Jared in combat mode.

 Their apartment is right in the midst of downtown Charlotte near the Panthers football stadium and the restaurant & bar district.  Perfect place for them to party and live the good life.  This is the view from their balcony window.

The NBA playoff game between the Thunder and Heat was almost on when we decided to give them a break and head back home.  I know they are big sports fans and wanted to see the game and not have to entertain us. 

Thanks for the meal and company guys.  

On the Road Again

Well, today was the day to leave North Carolina and the family and head back to the cabin.  First Gerry had to give our grandson a haircut trim before he went on a job interview.  Now she will get credit if he gets the job or blame if he doesn't get the job.  Talk about pressure.  He is a great kid and if the company has any sense they will hire him.  He did get called back for a 2nd interview so that is encouraging.

We transferred to Larry Jr. our 1992 BMW and he bought the tags, insurance and transferred it over into his name.  The car runs great and only has 145,000 miles on it and most likely will run fine for another 100K or so.  We took a picture of the North Carolina tags on the car after being registered in Maryland for the past 19 years.  Hard to believe it has been that long as time has flown by.

We left Concord about 1130am and began the long 450 mile trek back to the cabin.  The trip was on interstate highways for all but 25 miles or so and we made great time.  Set the cruise control for 72 mph and away we went.  The traffic wasn't as heavy coming back as it was going down there.  The NASCAR traffic was long gone and we had an easy drive back.

We stopped at one of our favorite German restaurants,  Edelweiss Restaurant near Staunton, VA.  BTW:  It is pronounced Stanton by the locals.  We stop there every chance we get since we both love German food and they prepare authentic meals.  They have a great selection of German beers both on tap and in bottles and I ordered a Hofbrau Dark which was very good.  A nice Riesling wine was Gerry's choice for her beverage.  


To show you how popular the place is, we talked to a couple who drove 100 miles out of their way to stop by for lunch.  They said if they are anywhere near the restaurant they always stop.  Now that is great loyalty.

Since it was such a nice day, we decided to stop by the soft ice cream place on the way home and get two black raspberry cones to go.  As usual, they were delicious and we enjoyed them very much.  Next week it will be creamcicle ice cream and I don't think we will make a special trip for that.  Who knows, we may weaken.


The cabin came through the hurricane Irene in fine shape.  I don't think they had much wind or rain this far inland.  If so, it didn't show up much on the way in.