first trip of summer

Memphis, Tennessee

A long ride in the car fo'sho!

Because we have five kids and our Money Tree Out Back hasn't sprouted yet, we tried to "do Memphis" as inexpensively as possible. A friend of ours gave us a Bucket List of stuff to do, but we had to pare that list down to manageable bite sized pieces, especially considering the fact that two toddlers were on board.

The first thing we did was to ride through downtown. Up and down the historic city streets we went, admiring all the architecture, taking note of all the little businesses which try to thrive. We were taken aback at the incredible "sprawl" of the city. Also, by the fact that SO. MANY. BUILDINGS. were empty. A lot of architecture from the late 50s/early 60s. For some reason I thought some of the buildings looked like Darren Stevens and Larry Tate could have worked there.

Next we went to the Peabody Hotel and watched the march of the ducks. We went up to the skyway and saw where the ducks lived when they aren't swimming in the lobby's fountain. Then we went to le shoppe de gift and bought some ducky memorabilia.

After a yummy hamburger lunch at Huey's, we took the streetcar through downtown. Slowly it made its way through downtown, then circled around and went down near the mighty Mississippi River, then swung back up and around.

We were sitting there, enjoying the breeze and the methodical 'lump lump lump' of the streetcar's wheels along the track when between two buildings I caught a glance of the Lorraine Motel. In that split second of an instant, recognizing what it was, the importance of it in American history, a clap of thunder went through my being. Something I actually felt. I gasped. People in the streetcar looked over my way. Sheepishly, I explained to King that it was a powerful moment for which I was not prepared, but one for which I was extremely grateful.

Time was not on our side. The wee ones were getting tired and needed to go back to our hotel and nap. So, we got to our stop, climbed down off the streetcar, found our car, grabbed an ice cream from Chick-fil-A, and rested.

The next day was filled with Irish Music and Dance competitions. My fiddler won a 2nd place medal and my dancer won a 4th, a 2nd, and most importantly a 1st in one of the dances she needed to move up. Another thunderous moment, not for the Nation, but definitely for our family unit.