More Family, Friends, Fabulous scenery and (of course) Football

From Tennessee we headed to Louisiana via the Natchez Trace Parkway. The Nachez Trace was absolutely beautiful! It was one of those roads you could have stayed on forever. It was a long, mostly straight road that was generally flat and had very few cars on it [Flat=Good for us bus drivers -J]. For miles upon miles it was just The Moose and the open road. The scenery was stunning and the leaves had not even begun to change yet so I can only imagine how beautiful it is when all the trees are colorful. From there we went to Baton Rough to go to the LSU/Florida football game. We stayed at a KOA Campground and took the bus they chartered with all the other fans camping there to the stadium. Of course we wore our USC garb which ended up possibly not being the best decision as LSU fans loath USC fans [Jeaousy is always ugly -J]. It was a bit scary as we walked around with people yelling at us and cussing at us. When I was not with Jimmy they left me alone but when he was there they gave it to us in full force. Then….the unthinkable happened…USC lost!!!! Jimmy had Eddie (my brother) on the phone giving him play by play for the last few minutes of the game so we knew they lost before the announcement at the stadium [This is now my least favorite part of the blog -J]. You would not believe the cheer that came out of the LSU fans when they announced the USC score at the game. Needless to say it was not a fun walk back to the bus.

From Baton Rough we headed to New Orleans to meet up with Bob (Jimmy’s Dad) and friend Sharon. We stayed in the hotel in the French quarter that they were staying in which was VERY nice. It was a dog friendly hotel so even though it was an upscale hotel Dixie could walk through the lobby with us and go up in the elevator and sleep in the bed. She liked it all except for the elevator which she hated and the restroom facilities. There was no grass for her so she had to just go on the sidewalk which she was not very happy about. Jimmy and Bob found her a little spot of grass a few blocks away which she liked. We ate at some very nice restaurants and tried some new interesting tastes like turtle soup and Gumbo [I highly reccommend trying Gumbo, its very good -J]. Mmmm mmmm good!!! It seems like all you do in New Orleans is eat. Jimmy could barely eat anything for a day after we left. After lunch we took a horse drawn carriage ride around town and saw all the sights. We saw Brad and Angelina’s house, a very beautiful old church and lots of strip joints. After our carriage ride we went back to the hotel so the boys could have their afternoon nap….Then another meal. The next morning after more food (sweet bread and coffee) we went on a swamp tour which was lots of fun. Our tour guide was a bit wacky but it was still fun. We saw some alligators, birds and lots of cool swampy scenery. At one point they pulled out a baby alligator and we got to hold it. I think it was one of their pets that will be returned to the wild when it is big enough. On our bus ride back to the hotel it began to rain and after only 20 minutes of rain the streets flooded and you could see why flooding is such a big problem in New Orleans as there is nowhere for the water to go.

After the swamp tour we said our good byes and headed out via the lower 9th ward. Now you can not imagine how bad it is there. As we headed down the main street toward the Lower 9th Ward the neighborhoods got worse and worse. We kept thinking “This must be it”…but no it kept getting worse. Again we would think “This must be it” as there were houses spray painted with a big X on the front meaning the house had been condemned. Destroyed buildings and debris lined the streets for miles. But then….we crossed over a rusted bridge and saw the lower 9th ward….I don’t think words or pictures could describe the devastation we saw. It was just heartbreaking and breathtaking at the same time. The water literally swept the houses off their foundation and all that was left in this once busy neighborhood is foundations and steps which lead to nowhere, now mostly covered by overgrown weeds. In this once densely populated town where some 10 thousand families lived are now 5 Fema trailers where families are refusing to leave their properties. As we were taking pictures we came across a trailer(actually 2 together) with a flag and a memorial. As we (ok I) was out taking pics the owner came out. I thought he was going to be mad at us but it was quite the contrary. He invited us in and told us his story. He told us of how they tried to escape during the hurricane to the Super Dome and was told to come back later. They went back home and went to bed. They were awakened in the middle of the night with water rising in their house. They cut through to the roof and rode the house down the street where it ran into a tree and broke into pieces. They were able to jump from their roof onto a truck that had lodged itself into a tree. Before she was able to get to the truch Grandaughter slipped off the roof and drowned. This man's mother also died on that roof (She was in grave condition already). In the picture on the right you can see Jimmy and holding up a T-Shirt with his Granddaughter and his mother. Very, very sad!!! An interesting thing we did not realize was many of the residences of the Lower 9th Ward had lived there 40+ years, and their mortgages were paid for years before Katrina. Now all they have is an empty plot of land that most can't afford to build on. The day we were there AT&T were installing phone lines. Crazy how over 2 years has passed and they are just now putting phone lines back in. Just heart breaking…I know it is not a very well engineered city but the families have been there most if not all of their lives in many cases for generations and now what???…Just so sad.

We left the 9th ward in silence and quite humbled as we headed to Texas for our friend Donna K’s wedding. On our way we stopped at the Alamo which was another one of our whirlwind tours. The parking fee for our bus was astronomical so we decided to do it the Tyner way. We parked on the street as there were tour busses coming and going so we were not completely obvious. Then one of us would stay with the bus while the other ran down the street and ran through the Alamo. There were lots of cool things like Davey Crockets Gun and Boone’s spoon. To tell you the truth the best part was seeing my husband come around the corner when I was in charge of the bus. I was so nervous I would be asked to move the bus I was freaking out. We also could not take any pictures inside the Alamo as it is now a shrine and there are guards everywhere. There are lots of good food/barbeques in texas. In Austin we went to Mann’s Smokehouse Barbeque where we had a killer barbeque which included fried green tomatoes. Mmmm mmmm good!!!

Another cool thing about Texas is that it wins the prize on our trip for the most wildlife. Our first night we stayed in San Antonio at a Wal-Mart which was overrun by grasshoppers. We had to have our windows open so some of the grasshoppers made themselves home in our bus. They made a chirping sound like a baby bird [Not annoying at all!!! -J]. I was wondering why it was so loud then realized it was in the bus. One of them got itself stuck in our windshield wiper and hitched a ride for a couple hours. Our next stop was Houston where we stayed at a KOA. The ground looked like it was moving that night and as we looked closer we noticed it was frogs. EVERYWHERE!!! Luckily not in our bus. Dixie likes to play with frogs. In Dallas we stayed at another campground where there were millions of caterpillars on the ground and in cocoons in the trees. Crazy!

Anyway Dallas is where Donna K and Preston's wedding was [Fight On guys!!]. We were invited to the rehearsal dinner which was very nice and lots of fun. Jimmy went to USC with Donna and had never met her parents. We showed up at the church to watch the rehearsal and everyone was lined up in the back. Her mom came up to introduce herself. Jimmy said “Hi, I'm Jimmy” and she screamed “The Jimmy…oh my gosh I have heard so much about you!!” Yep my husband is famous….. I don’t know what for but he is famous!!!! [Many women can't control themselves in my precense sweetheart, its ok... :-) -J] Anyway the wedding was beautiful and so was Donna. We had a few hours until the reception so guess what we did…….. If you guessed watched an SC game you would be right. The problem was no one had it on so we ran around town to all the sports bars until we found one that had the College Gameplan. I think it was the 4th sports bar we found that finally had it on. So we were a bit late to the reception but we made it for the food and the dancing and the cake cutting. Jimmy had a blast with all of his friends from SC….Oh the good old days!!! [Trojan's for LIFE!!! -J]

Before we set out for Kentucky we went by the spot where JFK was assassinated. We did not get out to see the memorial but we did drive by it. We took pictures of the book depository (Where Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK) and the grassy knoll (Where conspiracy theorists say JFK could have also been shot). The memorial is on the grass right next to where he was assassinated. We drove the route they were driving when he was shot. It was pretty darn crazy.

Next Stop: Louisiville, Kentucky. We went to Churchill Downs where the Kentucky Derby is held. We went in the museum which was pretty cool but what was really cool was the tour. We saw the stables where the horses stay before the race, we walked on the place where they enter from as they go out to the race track and we stood in the winners circle. It was quite interesting to hear the stories that our guide told. Back in the day when the place was much smaller they did not have room to house all the horses who were racing that day. One race was won by a horse who had to run a few miles that morning just to get to the race. Now of course they have plenty of stables for all the horses, and they are warmed up and checked out in the stable area.

Next stop: South Bend, Indiana and the USC vs. Notre Dame Game. We got to our campsite a day earlier than we were supposed to, so we parked in a church parking lot around the corner. There was a spectacular storm that night. Well spectacular makes it sound like it was in some way fun….it was not. It was quite scary as the thunder and lightning raged on and the rain poured like nothing we had ever seen. Lightning flashed every few seconds and the rain was going sideways and we are in a metal box begging to be hit by lightening! We huddled up on the sofa with out rubber soled shoes on (even Dixie wore a pair of sandals) and prayed we would make it through without being struck by lightening or taken away by a tornado. But…..as soon as it started it was over. The next day we checked into our campsite and found out it was a tornado. They were surprised we didn’t hear the sirens as the entire campground was evacuated into the office which is their ‘safe place’ in a tornado. WOW that was a close one!!! Sorry no good pics…I was a little freaked out, I got a couple but obviously they didn’t turn out real well.

The next day we pulled into our campground as early as we could so Jimmy could take a train to Chicago to meet up with Greg, Kylie, Michael and Mrs. Fisher. They had lots of fun…I guess…but nothing beats what I did while he was gone. >>>>>LAUNDRY>>>>> Now don’t worry I volunteered to stay back as it was easier to stay back with Dixie rather than bringing her along. It ended up they came back that night instead of the next day so it wasn’t too bad but I did get some things done around the house which was good. The Notre Dame game was lots of fun [38-0 Fun!! -J]. We saw lots of Notre Dame's beautiful campus. Even Jimmy saw things he had never seen. He has been there many times with the team but was always working so never got to see the campus and the game day activities. We saw the team get there and got some good pics as we were front and center. Then we headed to the “Golden Dome" where there were lots of fans waiting for the trumpet section of the band to play inside. They were positioned so as you looked up into the Dome they were there with their trumpets over the edge. Pretty cool!!! We also saw the Grotto which is like a little area where people can light candles and I guess pray for the game. The Grotto is right next to a lake and across the lake is the college that Rudy went to before he transferred to Notre Dame from St. Mary's. Of course we beat Notre Dame….AGAIN!!! [Have I said Fight On!! yet??? -J] and had lots of fun hanging out. I cooked eggs in a hole for breakfast the next morning and then Greg and Kylie were off and so were we.

Next Stop: The Shenandoah National Park. On our way there we watched the movie “We are Marshall”. It is about a football team who were all killed in a plane crash. Only the assistant coach survived because he stayed back to recruit and some team members who were injured who were not on the plane. The movie is about the town picking up the pieces and rebuilding the team. Since we were going through Huntington, West Virginia (the town where Marshall is located) we decided to go and check it out. It was pretty crazy to be there and see the town where it all took place. We went on the field, walked to campus and saw the memorial fountain that is in the movie. We also went to the cemetery where there were 6 team members who were unrecognizable so they buried them together at this cemetery. There is a large memorial with their names, but the 6 tombstones are blank with no names. Can you imagine?? ….so sad.

The Shenandoah National Park was beautiful but not a road for a bus. Before we got there Jimmy stopped the bus to clean the windows so we could get the best view and pictures. Well we had a great view until the fog rolled in and then not so much. We were quite unlucky in our timing as there was a storm passing through and visibility was almost zero. Plus we were informed by the rangers at the gate that there was a bridge about half way to our campground that we would not fit under, so we would have to take another route out and come back in. Since we could not see much anyway we ended up exiting the park and sleeping in someone’s empty lot, and we decided not to go back in the next day. But that does not mean we were getting away from the storm. We (ok my husband) decided to go the Virginia Tech game where the storm was passing through [Makes perfect sense to me -J]. I actually thought it would be a bit exciting to go to a game in the rain as long as we were prepared to stay warm and dry. Warm and dry is not exactly what happened. Luckily we were able to see the campus and the memorial (for those slain in the shooting a few years ago) before we were miserable. Evidently when you have a poncho on you are supposed to keep your arms on the inside. I thought my jacket was H2O proof so I didn’t even think about it until my arms were soaked and I was freezing. We (I am at least) are so San Deagoinized that weather like that is just WRONG!!!! I thought for sure the stadium would be empty with weather like that but not a chance… These fans were CRAZY!!!!! The craziest fans we have ever seen and the weather did not effect them one bit. Most fans stood for the entire game. Some did not have ponchos on, rain jackets or even a long sleeve shirt. These people are crazy. I sat there for most of the game praying it would be over as the rain poured directly into my face. When it would rain harder the fans would just cheer louder. It was (for me) not so much fun.. I think my husband didn’t mind as it was a completely manly sporting event for him [It was awesome! -J]. The big problem when we got back to the bus was that we were staying on the side of the road and we had no electricity so no heater ….we got home freezing and stayed freezing. We had no hot water so I boiled some on the stove to thaw out my feet. Even though we both had our UGGs on, out feet were soaked and frozen. I thought I had frost bite. Needless to say we made it out alive with all of our fingers and toes.

Next we headed to the Blue Ridge Parkway which was ABSOULTLY BEAUTIFUL!!!! Jimmy described the trees as “a box of crayons”. They were so colorful and beautiful it was breathtaking. The Appalachian Mountains are definitely somewhere you want to visit someday in the fall. We stayed at a campground in Boone, North Carolina which was the most beautiful campground to date. As we walked around we found some mobile homes that people had as vacation homes. These homes had the most spectacular view especially when we were there in the fall. Absolutely beautiful!!!!! Some of the houses were for sale but not the one with the best view…we did look into it but didn’t buy anything yet. Ok so we probably won't …since we are broke…but it is nice to dream!!!

We continued on the Blue Ridge Parkway where the scenery continued to impress. Definitely one of the most beautiful places our country has to offer. The road was a bit curvy and Jimmy took one turn too tight. Everything flew everywhere including Dixie. She ended up on the other sofa and in the picture it looks line she is screaming. Sooooo funny!!! In South Carolina we went to see the ‘other USC’ (The University of South Carolina). We have actually stopped along the way and seen many universities and their football/baseball stadiums (of course). I haven’t added everyone because there would not be enough room and I don’t want to bore all those who are not sports fans [Hater -J]. I did think the “other USC” was kinda interesting so it made the blog.

Next Stop: Charleston, South Carolina. We decided to stay at campground near the city. Less than a mile away from the campground our bus started acting funny so we pulled into a driveway to check it out and the bus proceeded to shut down. We didn’t think it was the gas because the gauge read ¼ of a tank, but we hoped that was it and not a bigger, more expensive problem [Amen sister]. We found ourselves in the parking lot of the Bizzie Bee Bar. Luckily it was an ok part of town and the owner was very nice and said we could stay the night if we needed to. We waited a few hours for Good Sam (like AAA) to show up with some gas ….and sure enough we had run out. Evidently our gas gauge does not work quite how it should. We now fill up before it gets to ¼ of a tank or at least that is the plan. We went to Charleston because our friends from church (Worth and Sandra) are from South Carolina and said it is a pretty cool place to see. They were right as it is a very cool town with lots of old houses and lots of history (some good and some not so good history). We couldn't park our Moose anywhere so we just drove around the historical downtown. We found the Citadel and drove around it which was pretty cool. After Charleston we were on our way to Florida.

Next Stop: Dunnellon, Florida. We visited my family friends Ken and Janine, who live in Dunnellon which is south of Gainesville. They have a beautiful house that is decorated in mostly a Florida theme and a really nice property with a huge beautiful tree in the front yard. Janine and I took the dogs on a walk while the guys talked business/sports… whatever guys talk about. She showed us (Dixie and me) the river which was very clear and beautiful and at some point ends up at the Gulf of Mexico. We had an awesome home cooked steak meal and then chatted in the spa. The next day Jimmy and I went to the Florida football game. Now talk about honoring your hosts…..They wanted us to wear Florida Gator gear …and we did. I couldn’t believe Jimmy wore something other than USC…now that is a first. I had a USC sweatshirt around my waist...it was just too weird not having something USC. We got great seats and had fun in the sun. It was quite a hot day and the game was a blow out so we left at half time, walked around the campus and then headed back to Ken and Janine’s. We had another great meal that the boys ate in front of the TV (watching football) and us girls ate in front of the computer (looking at pictures). Sunday we went to church with them and then had lunch at a local spot. After lunch they took us sightseeing around Florida. We saw their lot which is on another river that also ends up at the Gulf of Mexico, then we saw the Gulf Of Mexico which was very cool. On the way back I got a great picture with a guy swimming right next to an BEWARE OF ALLIGATOR'S sign. He said he doesn’t worry and has never had any problems but that would be pretty freaky swimming with alligators (I guess lots of snakes too). When we got back to their house we packed up, prayed, said our good byes and we were on our way.

Next stop: Alabama!!! We stopped at some football stadiums which I will not go into too much but one was pretty cool, The University to Troy. For those of you who don’t know, USC is the Trojans [If you don't know that we need to talk -J]. The University of Troy are also called the Trojans, which was cool. Ok moving on.

We stopped in Montgomery, Alabama where we saw lots of history including the First White House of the Confederacy and the church where Martin Luther King preached at. That was the same church where they organized the bus boycott after Rosa Parks refused to go to the back of the bus. It was pretty cool to see where all of that took place. The next morning we had ribs for breakfast. Jimmy had heard of some famous barbeque places that we had to try out. One for breakfast and one for lunch. The first was Dreamland Barbeque Ribs which was a pretty interesting place. It was in the middle of an old neighborhood and was pretty much a local bar that served ribs. ..and that was all they served. There was no menu, when we walked in they said ‘take a seat, ya gonna share a slab?’ ahhhh yep were gonna share a slab. We had water instead of sweet tea, I don’t know if it was that or just the way we looked but it was obvious we were out-of-towners as they asked us where we were from. The ribs were good with a very strong vinegar sauce served with white bread and more sauce. We only ate about ½ of the slab as we knew we would be eating again soon. In between our barbeques we went to the University of Alabama. Ok one more mention about Universities. Alabama had huge mansions as their fraternity and sorority houses, which was cool. Next barbeque was the Little Dooey Barbeque and catfish which was near Mississippi State University. This Barbeque I think won the prize as it was not as strong of a sauce and they served sides. After eating we headed on our way to Graceland.

Although we had been in Tennessee 3 times already we had not been to Graceland. We only really visited Tennessee once; the other times we were just passing through on our way somewhere else. This time was supposed to beanotherpass-through but I was able to find a campground right next to Graceland where Elvis lived. It was pretty cool as you take a shuttle up to the house ad have head phones on to take the tour. You see his house (everything but the upstairs master bedroom) I guess not many people saw it as he entertained down stairs and everyone waited for him to come down when he was good and ready. We saw the room where he played the piano and sang songs the morning of his death. It was pretty cool to see the memorabilia, hear the stories and watch videos of his life. The last stop on the tour was his grave site where people leave flowers, notes and other things to pay their respects. They leave flowers until they wilt and everything else stays until the weather warps it. There were some museums of Elvis stuff that were pretty cool especially all his cars and his air plane, The Lisa Marie.

Next stop is where the wind comes sweeping down the plane….OKLAHOMA!!! I know I’m a geek its ok [Whatever you say sweetheart -J]. Anyway we visited some good friends (Josh and Kelly) which was lots of fun. Dixie had fun with their dogs once they stopped barking and nipping at her. We took them out to dinner and then they took us to Freddy’s Frozen Custard which is like a blizzard dessert. You pick the Custard (ice cream) and what to mix in it. YUM!!! The next day we went to the OKLAHOMA football game. Before the game Jimmy got to play with some farming equiptment. They have a lot of property so they had to get a John Deer sit-down lawn mower which Jimmy was pretty stoked about. Josh had already mowed but dont worry my husband found some grass that needed a little cutting...Well mostly he just drove around like it was a race car. Those things can really get up and move. After that excitement it was game time!!!!Josh was gonna go with him but once we described what a day of football with Jimmy is like he politely declined and I, the faithful wife, went along [WHAT A WOMAN!! -J]. Ya know after so many games I kinda enjoy it. Once I know what to expect then I’m ok. We left the game at half time and had the SC game recording in our bus. When we went back I had to go in and rewind it to the beginning so he could see it from the start. Have you ever seen the movie Fever Pitch? That is my husband. If you haven’t seen it, its about a crazy fan…not just a crazy fan.. A CRAZY FAN!!!! That’s my man. He doesn’t want to hear the score or how they are doing, he wants to see it from the beginning. While we were still at the Oklahoma game I had to watch the score board where they showed other game scores and make sure they weren’t showing the SC score so he didn’t accidentally look up and see it. It is like the scene in Fever Pitch when she has to hold his ears when someone is talking about the game [OK... I think they get the idea...]. Totally something my husband would do. Anyway SC won and everything is A OK. We went to church with them the next morning and then to lunch. After lunch the boys took a nap and then Jimmy and Josh went to help with the youth group at their church. Us girls stayed home and watched movies. The next morning we were on on our way.

Usually when we are driving I find where we will be staying that night (a Wal-Mart or a campground). That day I had a really bad headache and was out of commission, so it was up to Jimmy to find us a spot for the night. He found a nice Flying J (which is a gas station for truckers with showers, restaurant and a market). This one was nice and had more motor homes than trucks so we decided to stay. It was still warm so we had the windows open. We were about to get romantical when there was a loud crunch and glass went flying everywhere. A motor home had pulled in and took out our side window. There was glass everywhere and our broken window out on the ground. The guy was really nice. He worked for the company that makes the motor homes and was towing it to the new owner. He had a perfect driving record for 10 years…until today. BUMMER!! It was a cold night with that window open and no heater. We all (even Dixie when it is cold) snuggled in bed and stayed as warm as possible. The next day we found a lumber yard and bought some ply wood. The guys there were really nice and helped us take the broken fame of and tape the plywood up. We were there for a couple hours and then were on our way. Kinda freaky with the plywood shaking in the wind…hopefully we make it home ok…

Only a week left and we will be home. I can't believe how quick it went. God really has blessed us with a wonderful time as a family. He has kept us and everyone on the road safe and sound. Our next blog entry will be the home stretch. See y’all in a week.

Lots of love,
Jimmy, Roilyn and Dixie