The Estes "Golden" Family Reunion
Tuesday (continued)
After lunch, Alex suggests ice cream, and we walk
across the street to the little ice cream place serving Mayfield.
While Alex and Larry stand in line, Wayne is thrilled to see they have
a demonstration model of the Appalachian Ring Toss! It's a hook
on the wall and a string hanging from the ceiling with a ring on the
end -- you stand back with the ring and swing it toward the hook and
try to catch it on the hook. Wayne manages it in a few tries, it
takes me a few more, and Steven decides after a few tries that maybe a
caramel praline ice cream would be more interesting... Wayne
keeps playing, Larry and Alex give it a try, and Wayne plays it
again. As we leave the store, some tourists sitting on a nearby
bench and eating ice cream ask him if he won and are impressed to hear
that he did, indeed!
I want to stop by the nearby Christmas shop to pick
up my Highlands ornament, and Wayne says he wants to show Larry the
Christmas Graceland miniature, so we go over together. Yep -- a
small "Christmas village" style model of Graceland, complete with the
music noted gates. I decide to go with the unmarked bear on the
pinecone ornament instead of the bigger officially marked "Highlands"
Christmas ornaments (they just don't say Highlands to me, even though I
hadn't actually seen a bear there either, as Wayne had asked).
And we travel the half-block more into town, while Wayne moves the van.
We pass the pretty Edwards Inn on the corner,
currently under off-season renovation (as is the Highlands Inn across
the street), and I note the half-tables on the small wrought-iron
balconies that Rita had commented on earlier as neat. We stop by
The Dry Sink for an errand for Larry, but they didn't have what he was
looking for, and I drag them up two stores -- past the gutted Blue
Ridge Pharmacy -- to Call of the Wild to show them the kaleidoscopes
and Living Habitat handsoap. Larry comments that a snake pen
looks like something I would like (being the Charles Addams fan -- but
it's a little too icky for me -- snakes are tricky). On the way
out, Alex says, "Look!" and points at ANOTHER Appalachian Ring Toss,
and Wayne laughs. We stop by Trader Joe's (but
not the Trader Joe's of
Los Angeles that initially caught the West Coasters' attention) gift
shop to scout out a refrigerator magnet for Mom's travel
collection. Wayne chooses a cardinal one that's pretty, but maybe
too big, but he gets it as a safety in case she and Dad don't find one
that she likes -- Larry will gladly take it home if Mom finds one for
herself while they're out. We drive back to the lodge, Wayne
showing Larry his cool XM satellite radio, which clearly picks up the
same stations throughout the country -- except here, where the
mountaintops knock out the signal for a moment or two. And they
talk a little more NASCAR, of all things. (Mom had told me a few
weeks earlier the stunning information that the
previously-totally-non-sports brother had become interested in NASCAR,
and I noted that it had felt chillier lately, which made her and Dad
laugh.)
When we get back to the lodge, we check out the
giant tadpole scene at the lake ("Those tadpoles are FREAKING me OUT!"
Natalie announces), and Wayne points out some frogs sunning
themselves. There are a couple who are nothing more than quick
splashes into the water whenever I get near them, but Wayne points to a
huge lump on a log stump just across the water to the side, telling me
that's a frog. I can't really see him as anything more than a
continuation of the dark brown log, so Wayne tosses a rock into the
water near him to splash him into moving. Nothing. Wow --
because the slightest movement made the other frogs jump. Wayne
searches and returns with another stone, skipping it near the log and
nothing. Then Wayne lumbers something big enough at it and
practically hits the log, which results in the frog not jumping but
looking quite panicked, desperately turning onto his back, his leg
extended onto the log, and falling into the water. I'm not happy
and leave frowning.
The deli crew report their lunch at Don Leon's Deli
Cafe had its own little adventures. They have a "no
substitutions" policy, which Dad says means you can ask, but they'll
ignore it. He requested no cucumbers on his sandwich and got them
anyway. He took them off, but Jen wasn't quite as observant and
bit into a cucumber on her sandwich, which put her off her
sandwich. And Debbie added, "They were so busy giving out water,
they couldn't possibly have time to pour tea."
At the pavilion, Larry and Natalie are playing
checkers, where Jennifer joins them. Others have seemingly left
for naptime before going to an afternoon family matinee of either Panic
Room (Natalie's preference), Ice
Age, The Rookie
(Steven's preference),
or High Crimes (not) -- or a
combination -- in nearby (we assume)
Franklin.
"Hey, Marilyn! You wanna play checkers with
me?" asks Jennifer. Initially, I decline, thinking Larry or
Natalie are keen to play, but they're played out and want to take a
break, so I accept Jen's challenge. We play two games -- again,
loading up on kings on both sides -- Jen looks at her watch and says
it's getting to be movie time.
Larry and Debbie are checking out the tadpoles, and
I mention Jen's observation to them. They begin to gather the
dwindling few who are preferring movie to naps and debate who's going
to what. Eventually it shakes down to Natalie, Jennifer, Debbie
and Larry off to Franklin to see The
Rookie (Debbie and Jennifer) and
Panic Room (Larry and
Natalie).
"But I might get too scared!" Natalie says
laughing.
"Then you can come over to our theater," Debbie
offers.
"And I'll go see Ice
Age," Larry adds.
"I'll see Ice Age
with you if you want, Dad," Natalie offers.
"I'd like to see Ice
Age," Debbie remarks.
"You want to see Ice
Age?" Larry asks.
"Yeah," she affirms.
"Well, let's all go see Ice Age!" Larry proclaims, and
Jennifer looks
up -- huh?
Later in the afternoon, Wayne, Rita, Allison, Dad
and I go to pick up the pictures and mat (down to just me -- Wayne
decided they'd have Mom and Dad's very nice 11x14 framed by their
framer guy in Tennessee), and stop by the old-timey looking gas station
and store Larry had commented on liking 10 years ago on his last
visit. It was a woodsy version of your basic convenience store --
some more unique candies and snacks, unusual 16 oz. cans of Coca-Cola
products with the Coke ones featuring Michael Waltrip ("People see
Wayne at the track and think he's Michael Waltrip," comments Rita), and
old pictures lining the upper walls behind the old bottles and cans and
various other knick-knacks. And I'm thrilled to find cream-filled
chocolate-covered honey buns, a college dorm vending machine treat I
haven't been able to find since 1985 ("Do you think it's that old?"
both Rita and Wayne ask me at different times). Allison enjoys an
M&M cookie ice-cream sandwich, and we head back to the lodge.
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