Can you tell I was in the South this weekend?

















I visited Mr. and Mrs. Mix in Nashville this past weekend and their dogs visited me while I was sleeping on Friday night. Well, it was toward morning and I was awake, but they hopped up anyhow. When they say it's a dog's life, they are not kidding. The main reason for the visit was to attend the...

RC Cola and Moon Pie Festival in Bell Buckle, TN

















It seems each person who has been in attendance before this year has called this festival "interesting". Bell Buckle itself is a small burg, known mainly for its antiques. On Saturday, that was the main focus. Thoughts about attending the Taste of Music City were dashed because we spent too much time in Bell Buckle and the weather by that time of the day was not cooperating as it rained a bit.

On Friday night, Mrs. Mix had an array of meats and cheeses awaiting for me to chow down on after my arrival. That goes swell with bourbon, I say. She had to run off to work, it seems the Moon Pie Flu was not enough to prevent her from working, although there weren't enough ill people to keep her there from doing a full shift, as we found out later. I was in charge of the dogs for about 20-30 minutes. My hands weren't very full, because they were in their normal watchdog pose. Which meant they were lying down, nearing nap mode.

After Mr. Mix (BTW, with new tattoos, a feisty looking Brutus Buckeye and a Pisces sign on each gun) came home, we finished watching the end of that Euro 2008 quarterfinal on the replay. Seems Turkey and Croatia were deemed an Instant Classic, although as it was nearing the end of Extra Time, I was wondering why. Two goals, one each, in the last 2 minutes was why. They went to kicks, where the Croats offered the lamest PKs you'll see in a long time. That meant it was the Turks against the Germans coming up on Wednesday in the Semis.

We then decided to wake up the echoes and catch a movie over by Opryland. Hey, the Gatlins were at the Opry that night, BTW. Anyhow, it was "Hulk" on the menu. The movie was pretty good, although it seemed there was a serious plot flaw, because a professor who was cooperating with Edward Norton (Bruce Banner) was found out and you would have thought the government would have been on his ass in an Instant Classic kind of way. Hey, and Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr., you know, Iron Man) shows up at the end as they keep setting up "The Avengers" movie.

But the coolest thing is at this Regal, there is a pick up line for concessions. See, this girl has a candy cart, and you think she's only selling candy, but wait, there's more. As long as you are paying in cash, the entire concession stand is within her purview. She calls in your order over the walkie-talkie and voila, you don't have to stand in line with the great unwashed. It's so cool when you hear that "2 Large Icees" order spoken into someone's collar.

Post-movie can only lead to one place...Sonic! 99-cent Hot Fudge Milk Shake, baby! Then it was back home to watch and listen to Vin Scully call Friday night's Indians-Dodgers game. How did the Tribe pull that one out of their collective ass? And that ended really late in the Central Time Zone, who stayed up that late here? I think I finally got that time zone thing down on this visit.

Then, on Saturday it was off to Bell Buckle. But first, it was lunch at Pawbowsky's in Murfreesboro. It's a mystery, but why does Nashville do better at Chicago-style dogs and sausages then Cleveland does. Beef sandwich, too, was a killer. I had me a sausage before we hit the festival, because you really can't do Moon Pies for lunch. And this is not a festival where there is a lot of other stuff. It's mainly RC Colas and Moon Pies, hence the name.

The festival itself was "interesting". Admission is free. You could park in a gas station on the corner for five dollars. They had lots of vendors selling jewelry and other boothy type items. I assume these vendors are there every week, although they may have been set up just for the Festival. When we entered the grounds of the Festival, we were taken aback, because it appeared it was in someone's backyard. I'm not kidding, it was in a triangular shaped field, with houses to the left and houses to the right. There we were, stuck in the middle with RC Colas and Moon Pies.

But as I was hoping, there it was, like from a dream. Four huge ice buckets filled with RC Colas. Not, just any RC Colas, but RC Cola in freezing-cold 12-ounce bottles! For a dollar and a quarter. I felt like Ray Kinsella's Dad from "Field of Dreams".

"Is this heaven?" "No. it's Bell Buckle, Tennessee."

















We opted for the Deep-Fried Moon Pies. Choice of chocolate and banana. They were both very good.

Ancient Tennessean Deep-Frying Secret

















Deep-Fried Chocolate Moon Pie

















That's pretty much what the festival is about. Oh, there are other activities. A 10K in the a.m. They have a play. They have Synchronized Wading. They crown a King and a Queen. They have clogging. And more clogging. Not only of your arteries, but of the dance variety, as well. They have a band. The Uncle Tom Band. Could you get away with that name locally, BTW? They also have a bunch of Olympic-type events. We stayed for the Moon Pie Toss and the RC Cola cans balancing on your head race. The field had to eventually try three cans. I think the winner may have been credited with two steps. I think she ran and got credit for them not falling as quick as the others.

But, as things usually go in the South, things were not exactly running on schedule. And it didn't appear that anyone really cared, so we moved off from sitting on hay bales, and decided to leave before the watermelon seed spitting and hog calling contests. And we missed out on the unveiling and cutting and eating of the world's largest moon pie.

The day kind of tuckered us out and we opted for a pizza place, Mellow Mushroom, down by Vanderbilt for more pies. I actually had a beer. First one in almost two months. Hey, it still tastes the same. And it goes good with a meaty pizza.

Today, it was a stop at Vanderbilt Hospital to unclog my arteries and then off to the airport. Where my flight was delayed for over 2 hours. Because our plane couldn't take off from Tampa. Hey, what to do? Bloody Marys at the Gibson Cafe, that's what, and make mine a double! We then had a window to beat the rain to the south and east and miss the hail that blew through this region. And I got back about 5:20.

I already pining for next year's Festival.

Meal of Links

I guess everyone has tired of Mike Myers. It's safe to say, with the constant publicity this movie has received, "Love Guru" bombed.
TEXT

How to save a skyscraper. Against earthquakes.

Hey, I thought only the NBA had fixed games. The betting scandal in tennis seems to be getting some legs.

Exercise Yard

They won't be at the semis.
















Neither will she.































In Euro 2008, you knew the Dutch were gonna flop yesterday, didn't you? Today, it was not Spain, but the Italians who lost on Penalty Kicks. Geez, that was boring. That sets up the semis as Germany-Turkey on Wednesday and Russia-Spain on Thursday.

It's gotta be a Germany-Russia final, n'est ce pas?

Visitor

None, I was airborne. Then Rainborne.