You know that a day that starts with “oh sh*#t” isn’t going to be a good one. We were planning on leaving the house by 6 am yesterday, to drive to North Carolina to see Liz. She and I have some web design work that we need to finish up, Bass had a weekend gig cancel, so we decided to hop in the car and head into the sunrise. The person in charge of the alarm clock forgot to change the setting, however. And so the expletive when I woke up at 5:30.

My edginess eased somewhat when I discovered that Liz wasn’t going to be home from her Chicago trip until 11:30 PM — an item I had mixed up in my poor little overtaxed brain. We drove in dense fog through most of Jackson County, AL; the sun came through as we slipped into Tennessee.

Tension faded fast as we headed toward Asheville. The day was gorgeous (I’d been expecting rain, another source of anxiety for me), and there was hardly a soul on the road. Even in Knoxville, we just breezed right through.

By the time we stopped for lunch at the Corner Kitchen in Asheville, we were giggling and having a grand time. We had discovered this little gem in Biltmore Village when we visited Asheville in March. Comfortable, unpretentious surroundings (try to eat in the glassed in porch if you can), excellent service and perfectly prepared food that doesn’t set you back a week’s wages make up the perfect restaurant experience for me. That’s crab/corn chowder sitting on the table. Bass ordered it with a salad, and shared a bite with me. The cilantro garnish led him to declare that cilantro is a food that makes him happy. I knew right then and there that this would be a great little vacation. If I can talk him into it, Bass and I may stop there for brunch on our way home Sunday afternoon.

After lunch we wandered down the street to get a cup of coffee for the road. I snapped this photo heading back to the car. If you look carefully between the trees and the cars, at the end of the street you’ll see Yarn Paradise, my favorite yarn shop in Asheville. We didn’t stop this time, though. We were ready to head for Raleigh, still four hours away.

After we arrived at the hotel and got settled, we set out in search of dinner. Bass suggested pizza, and we remembered that Liz had taken us to Uno’s the last time we were here. As transplanted Midwesterners, we never turn down an opportunity to have good Chicago pizza. The North Carolina outpost of Uno’s did not disappoint. We were even more pleased to end the evening with a visit from Liz, who had been able to take an earlier flight home. She had teased us earlier in the day with the comment that she had a gift for us. Something we hadn’t seen in a long time. Something we couldn’t get in the South. Something from her childhood. I guessed cheese curds. I was close — she brought us Mackinac Island fudge! (Bass, click on that link and see if you recognize this place.)

All in all a very satisfactory day was had. Not at all what I expected when I woke up.