Auburn Gal Always

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"where I'd like to be"




There are several places. Some of the places hold special memories and the promise of more good times. Then there are the places that speak "rest" and "peace" and "comfort."




1. My bed, clean sheets, dark room, alone, with no one's feet in my tummy or back, with no telephones, alone.


silence.









2. Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee. Any time of day. Any time of year. Any kind of weather. We live 3 hours from this beautiful place and try to visit at least once a year for a long weekend (or more.) The wildlife is abundant. Picnics. Peaceful walks. Naps in the sunshine. Eating Pringles, sausage cheese balls and beanee weenees. Sunrise. Fog. Snow. Rain. Sunshine. Sunset. Mosquitos.





3. Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Late summer. August 1999, The Mighty Hunter, his mom, dad & brother and I spent a week there. Rented a condo and a mini-van. Rode around Yellowstone and the beautiful town. Saw lots of animals. Ate some great food. Made some great memories. We lost his mom to leukemia the next June. This was our only family vacation with Kay and some of her last healthy days.





4. The Park Grill, Gatlinburg, Tennessee. French Onion Soup, Moonshine Chicken, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Yordy's White Chocolate Cheesecake, Coffee, Sweet Tea. Near the piano.


This is not the cheapest place to eat in the Smoky Mountain area, but it is worth every penny. It's a requirement for me to have one meal (or at least a dessert) there each trip.


yummmm



5. Dauphin Island, Alabama. Spring or Fall. Summer is too hot. The Mighty Hunter's dad has a condo there. Stinkerbell loves the beach. The hermit crabs are abundant and very entertaining. A short sea-doo ride takes you over to Sand Island, a very large sand-bar, where you can find beautiful shells and sand dollars. I had never seen an undamaged sand dollar on the beach until our trip there last year. Good times.



















6a. Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama. Fall. Gameday Saturday. Back in the day, as a student and/or member of the band. 90,000 people in the stands. Aubie clowning around. Marching out of the tunnel to the sounds of my own horn and those around me playing "War Eagle!" and the crowd cheering and singing to MY! MUSIC! wow









6b. Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama. Fall. Gameday Saturday. With Stinkerbell (and soon, Lucky too!) Spending a paycheck on a Coke and popcorn. Letting her be the "center of attention" in her AU cheerleader costume. Watching AU beat the other team.












6. My bed, clean sheets, dark room, snuggling with The Mighty Hunter, Stinkerbell and Lucky.
















There are other places I could include in this list, but those are in my memories alone.




edited to add: #7. Walt Disney World. We went about this time of year in 2005 and 2006. Stinkerbell loved it. It's an amazing place. We'll probably wait till next year to go with Lucky though.