Day 7--8/17/07

Lots of pics today!! Here and here.

    Got up early this morning...we're finally going to see the mansion!  Got to the visitors' center at 9am to get our tickets, which were for the noon tours (10 per hour), and we finally got up there around 1:30pm.  The reason it took so long is because the tour lasts as long as you want it to.  You know, it was so worth the wait (and the price-$70 for the four of us)--it was absolutely amazing.  You gotta check it out. 
    After that we went back to the hotel and relaxed for a while.  The kids and the mother-in-law went to Shoney's for dinner, and we stayed behind...lol.  I waited to eat, since I was saving my appetite for some BBQ!!!  By suggestion, we went to Blues City Cafe.  Of course, I had ribs.  OMG--they were worth not eating the whole day for.  So juicy, so flavorful.  Yummy.  And cheap--1/2 rack of ribs, cole slaw, baked beans, texas toast, and a drink for only $33 (for both me and Joey).  Recommend that place to anyone.
    Coincidentally, we were going to the same place later to see a band play.  When we got seated for our food, we were sat in the bar...where the band was playing!  The rest of the group (minus the kids and my father-in-law) met up with us soon after.  The Dempseys (see the video) are awesome.  They just keep going for the whole set--no breaks between songs.  And they're full of energy--all over the stage, playing each other's instruments, just plain nuts, etc.  Wow.  After one hell of a day, we were done.

til next time...=)

Day 6--8/16/07

Pics!

    Got up early this morning to go to the Graceland gravesite, but people were still going up with candles from the night before (it was about 7:30am).  So we couldn't go up.  We went back to the hotel and did some laundry--yay.  Then we took a quick drive down to Mississippi and saw Jerry Lee Lewis' house.  Came back to Tennessee, went downtown in Memphis and the kids played a game of bowling at Jillian's.  After that, we went for lunch.  The group split up--the kids and Grandma went for pizza at one of the food court restaurants in Peabody Place, a few of the group went for catfish at The Flying Fish.  Joey and I walked around the area and found Renee's--good food, good prices, and good conversation.  After we filled up on that, we went over to the Peabody Hotel where the ducks live.  Didn't get to see them, since there were too many people there.  That's because Priscilla Presley was there to dedicate Elvis' new spot on the duckwalk.  Then we got in the van and drove up to Graceland, and finally walked up to see the grave.  Wow--all the flowers and memorials were amazing.  Then we called it an early night, since we were going to see the inside of the mansion tomorrow morning.  Busy day!

til next time...=)

Day 5--8/15/07

Pics?  Of course...here.

First thing this morning, went and got coffee from a place called Cafe Francisco...just like the coffee shop I go to at home....mmmm.  Then we went to the Pink Palace Planetarium (try saying that 10 times fast!) for a special Elvis laser light show with music and pictures.  After that we rode by the river on the trolley.  Awesome views, but it was so hot (at least 100 degrees).  After that we went back to the hotel to relax for a few, then went back out.  This time it was to the Flying Saucer, where they were giving away free Elvis mugs to commemorate the day of his death.  After that, we went up to Graceland for the vigil.  The traffic was soooooo bad.  Duh--85,000 people going to the same place will cause that...lol.  We saw the ceremony and stayed for a while, but there was no way I was standing in line (for at least 8 hours) to take a candle up to his grave in the 95 degree heat (at 9pm!).  So we left there, and went for a late night snack at CK's.  I swear, we were the only white people in there...felt a little awkward.  But the food was good!  Then we called it a night.

til next time...=)

Day 4--8/14/07

Here's today's pics...here.

We slept in this morning, then went for breakfast at the Blue Plate Cafe. Another place with good cheap food. And I had biscuits and sawmill gravy for the first time...MMM. Couldn't get enough of those.
Then the group split up--Joey and I were dropped off at Sun Studios, and the rest of the group went to Autozone Park, where the local baseball team plays. At Sun, it was totally packed with people, and man, was it hot. Good thing they had these fans that blow a water mist--I so want one of these! After about a half-hour wait, we went on the tour. It was awesome. Slim, our tour guide, was really cool. Found out later that he's the best tour guide they have--the other ones are boring compared to him. While on the tour, we listened to music that was recorded there, and got to see some cool artifacts, such as the instruments they used, and the microphone that was used by such icons as Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Elvis. It was awesome. Good thing we got there when we did--after we finished our tour, three tour buses filled with tourists pulled up. Hahahaha....
After that, we drove around for a little while, and eventually went up to Graceland...again. Listened to some music, and saw the Heartbreak Hotel...which by the way IS at the end of Lonely Street. It's a real hotel too...the rooms are designed like the rooms in Elvis' mansion.
It was getting a little late, so we dropped the kids and in-laws off at the hotel...and headed out to Beale St. Wow...all the music, all the people, all the BOOZE!! You know you can walk down that street with an open beer, and the cops won't say a damn thing?!? In fact, on the weekends, the bars are open until 5am, and the cops are at the ends of the street carding people...lol. Anyway, we went to Silky O'Sullivan's and got some drinks. They had dueling piano there--man, they were good. We left there and went up to the Flying Saucer, where they have about 90 different beers on tap! I'm not a beer drinker, so I'm thinking I'm SOL...but no! They have beer that doesn't quite taste like it...I'm game for that. If you go there, you'll see my brother-in-law's saucer hanging on the wall for drinking 100 different beers there (3-a-day limit). Then we went to Dyer's, a burger joint that fries their burgers in grease...and they've been using the same exact grease since they opened in 1929!!! Sounds bad, but damn, that burger was GOOOOOOOD. After that, we went back to the hotel and crashed for the night.

til next time...=)

Day 3--8/13/07

From today...zoo pics and other pics.

    We went to the zoo this morning.  Saw loads of animals...they were awesome!  Then to the fire museum, where the kids got to play on the fire trucks!  After that we walked over to the fountains on Union Square.  Cool--I mean that literally, since it was about 105 degrees.  Went for lunch at a little known place called Westy's.  They had some good food there, and cheap!  We paid about $10 per person...not bad.  Then we did some more driving around, seeing Elvis' high school, St. Jude's Research Hospital, and the Lorraine Hotel, where Martin Luther King was shot (National Civil Rights Museum). 
Soon after, we dropped off my father-in-law and headed up to Graceland.  Saw some more impersonators...a local news crew was there filming some of them along with the fans who were watching, including our kids.  Turns out they were on local TV here too!!! We also looked in the gift shops at the visitors center, and stared in awe of all the people lining up at the gates for the vigil, which was two days away!  Stayed up there a few hours, then went back downtown, and got some awesome sunset pics, looking across the Mississippi River.  We also went back to the fountains we saw earlier...the kids got wet this time!!!  Then back to the hotel for a good night's sleep.

til next time...=)

Day 2--8/12/07

Here's the pics for the day...here.

    Today we drove from Knoxville (where we stopped for the night) to Nashville and picked up my in-laws at the airport.  Then all eight of us (me, Joey, the two kids, his mom, his dad, his brother, and his brother's friend) all squished into a 7 passenger minivan and drove to Memphis (about 2 hours).  On the way, we stopped in Cordova (1/2 hour from Memphis) for lunch at CiCi's...we don't have one of those at home...I wish we'd get one.  Pizza, salad, and pasta....all you can eat, cheap! 
    Back on the road, we drove a little through Memphis, then went to our hotel--across the Mississippi in West Memphis, AR.  We unpacked, showered, and off we went...we ended up on Beale St., where we walked around, listened to music, and took some pictures.  Then we went to Peabody Place, where the kids got to play some video games at Jillian's.  Then we got back in the van and drove up to Graceland.  We caught some performances from Elvis impersonators (some good, some bad).  After all this, we went back to the hotel and called it a night.

til next time...=)

Day 1--8/11/07

    First day!  The drive was long, but not bad.  The kids were unusually good the whole way down.  Traffic wasn't bad at all...boring, but not bad.  Made three stops total--one at a rest area for lunch, one pee break, and dinner at Iron Skillet (Petro) for dinner (which took an hour).  Twelve hours, two highways, and four states later, here we are at a hotel in Knoxville.  Gotta get up early to drive to Nashville.  Woohoo!

til next time...=)

i'm back y'all

    Yes, I'm back from vacation.  Been back since EARLY Monday morning--2:30am, actually.  It's just taking sooooooooo long uploading all the pictures I took.  Been at it for the past two days (taking a break for food, smoking, and work...of course), and I'm still not done.  It takes time to upload about 235 pics, you know.  Sigh.  And I did take notes during my vacation...so once I get all the photos done, I'll be sure to link it here (no, I'm not putting them all here...duh), then I'll be telling about what I did on my summer vacation...hee hee hee.

til next time...=)

some like it hot...

Yay.

til next time...=)

just in time

Just in time for vacation--in two days!



There.  Much better.  I've had them for a week, and it's coming along--they feel weird, but I'm starting to eat, I smile more, etc.  Yay!

til next time...=)

change of events

    You know, finally something might be going our way...kind of.  The landlord changed his mind about evicting us, but didn't come for the rent yet...and we had it over a week ago.  He hasn't called us about it since Thursday...you know, I'm not going to hunt him down and remind him that his money is sitting here waiting for him...if he wants it, let him come get it.  And I want receipts for all of it...just in case he tries to pull this shit again.  And we're still looking for another apartment...spare us the drama.

    And we're still going on vacation on Tennessee.  In 11 days...WOO.HOO.  I went to work last Monday and gave up half of my vacation days that week so I could make the money for the rent, etc.  Then my brother-in-law (you know, the one I can't stand...to a point, anyway) called Joey said we would only need half of the money we originally needed, and we can pay him back after the trip.  Don't worry--the next day I got the vacation back.  So we're going...and I'm SO looking forward to it.  Yeehaw!

    I know what you're thinking--OOH!  Things are turning around for you guys!  Nope...just a small change in scenery, then back to the same old crap.  Keep in mind, my hell months are just around the corner, starting with back-to-school shopping, followed by birthdays and Christmas...nooooooooooooooooo.

til next time...=)

down the drain

    Why does it seem like every time things are going good and the wheel is spinning so nicely, that something or someone comes along and throws a stick into it and screws it all up?  This happens literally all the time with me...all is well, things are going perfect, and then all hell breaks loose.  And nothing goes as planned.  You know, I always think the worst is going to happen...and unfortunately, it does.  Here's my latest evidence to support this theory.

    A few months ago, we (the family) were offered by the in-laws to go to Memphis with them in August.  Of course, we said yes.  I put in for my vacation for it (three weeks from now), got all the bills caught up so I could save money for the trip.  Even my teeth are on schedule to come in next week (FINALLY!  that's another story, though) in time so I could eat the ever famous barbecue.  The wheel was turning ever so perfectly.  Then the stick comes...

    Friday.  I was getting ready to pay my rent (late, but in the same month...so that's not too bad--wouldn't be the first time, but the landlord was ok with it), and Joey calls me to tell me that an eviction notice has been given to us.  WTF?!?  Says that we haven't paid the rent, sewer, or garbage.  Now mind you, Joey talked to the landlord earlier in the week to tell him to come by for the rent Friday--he said no problem.  Joey called him Friday morning to remind him that we had the rent, but his phone was shut off.  No more than 10 minutes later, he's at the door with the notice, along with a note saying I'm playing "head games" with the rent (no clue what the hell that's about).  There is so much more to this...such as the outstanding sewer bill he has (which has nothing to do with us...it's probably from years ago or something...the sewer authority won't tell us) and didn't tell us about until it got shut off for non-payment (last month...it was back on the next day).  Or the garbage bill that we were never told about, since it doesn't come in our name...it's in the owner's.

    So now instead of saving money for my vacation in Tennessee, I'm saving money for the sewer bill (which is a fraction of what he owes, and from what the authority said, might get shut off again for non-payment), the garbage bill, and the rent for August, incase the magistrate ends up siding with him and makes us pay.  And if not, saving money for a down payment for a new apartment...which I might be moving into during my vacation.

Here we go again.....

til next time...=)