What I wanted was time away with my best friend whom I hadn’t seen in-person since January 2019, to breathe deeply in green, tree-laden landscape, to see fireflies, and experience a thunderstorm.
What I got was all that plus so much more.
This is Bilbo, my friend Camille’s puppy. Bilbo is the son of a rescue dog and a mysterious stranger (I could make up stories). Now nearly six months old, Bilbo came to live with Camille when he was but eight weeks old. Bilbo is funny, charming, and eighteen pounds of pure love. He didn’t hesitate one minute to anoint me with puppy kisses when we met outside the Charlotte airport where Camille picked me up, a blessing he continued to shower me with whenever we were within tongue-licking distance. I’m in love.
For one beautiful week I got puppy-kissed morning, noon, and night as Camille and I explored the stunning landscape and charming small towns in the Blue Ridge Mountains area of North Carolina.
From our home base (a renovated carriage-house airbnb in Morganton, NC), we road-tripped the Blue Ridge region, stopping in small towns along the way to take in farmer’s markets, craft shops, art galleries, bookstores, and libraries.
This is Angela Shores, Owner & Idea Engineer at Adventure Bound Books in Morganton, who greeted us with a warm welcome and many smiles under that mask.
I met a musician in Hickory, who sang the requested John Prine song, “Angel from Montgomery,” which made me cry, and I got into a long, interesting dialogue with a young man, recently graduated from Pratt Institute in New York, now living in Boone, NC (home of Appalachian State University). He’d set up a pop-up used book stall along the main street featuring paperbacks of many American classics—Steinbeck, Fitzgerald, Cather, Hemingway, O’Connor. I didn’t buy any books, but we discussed type fonts, book design, and the publishing business.
Q: what would you think about a book (print, not e-book) with no cover design beyond the book title and no page numbers? Just you as reader and the story you’re reading. This was a project he and a fellow student worked on.
We drove the Blue Ridge Parkway, hardly speaking for the beauty outside our windows, a sweet playlist of country-rock accompanying the many graceful turns in the road. Here’s a link to a one-minute video so you can take the drive, too.
We did experience a thunderstorm, rain so hard we were trapped in our car for a humid fifteen minutes, unable to see out the windows. And I did get to see some fireflies. Not many, but enough to hit a high note on my delight scale.
Camille told me that after they dropped me off at the Charlotte airport for my return trip home, Bilbo whimpered for several miles as they made their way back to Morganton for one more night among the green.
Camille, Bilbo & me at Blowing Rock in the Blue Ridge Mountains
Did you get a summer vacation this year? I hope so. Or a vacation of any kind. Tell me about it.
So glad you had a wonderful vacation in beautiful North Carolina. I live in Raleigh (formerly from Michigan) and I am lucky enough to be heading to the mountains in the morning to visit with some old friends. I will never forget you and the Brown Bag group in San Diego, my introduction to writing in 2000 which continues today. Many many thanks to you
Oh Peggy, what a delight to hear from you! Yes, I remember those days at the turn of the century (how odd to write that), when we all gathered together to write our whatevers. I’m so glad you’ve continued the practice. Brown Bag Group is still alive, online now through San Diego Writers, Ink, as is Thursday Writers, which I co-facilitate with my pal Steve Montgomery.
How lucky you are to live so close to all that beauty that is the Blue Ridge. Enjoy your visit with old friends. That’s the best, isn’t it.
Thank you again for stopping by.
Aw, Miss Judy, I did cry as we drove off from the Charlotte airport. I still miss that sweet face of yours. Sometimes I even dream about you. I’m so glad I got to meet you; mom talks about you lots still. I’ll never forget the sound of you squeaking up the steps of our home that week. Be still my puppy heart. I love you even more than my chicken. Xoxo, Bilbo B Soleil
More than your chicken?! Oh, Bilbo, my heart. And I miss your puppy kisses.
I absolutely love how your portrayed the love affair between you and the dog! And thanks for turning me on to the John Prine song – I love it! My only summer vacation was yours – vicariously! Such fun.
It truly is a love affair with that little critter. I can’t even tell you how many road trips I’ve taken with that particular John Prine song on my playlist–Bonnie Raitt’s version. In my next life when I come back with long legs, long hair and a beautiful voice, “Angel From Montgomery” is the first song I’m going to sing.
Judy, I’m glad you had a great vacation. I didn’t get one but hope to hop on a train sometime soon for a getaway.
Oh Jill, I love train rides–up the coast from San Diego to Santa Barbara and beyond–beautiful. Bon voyage, my friend.
Beautiful photos. I have fond memories of what I call “the 3 Bs” of North Carolina: Blowing Rock, Banner Elk and Boone. Such lovely, little towns in the rolling, blue mountains. I stayed at the Gideon Ridge Inn at Blowing Rock, a magical experience with sublime food made with ingredients that the chef at the time (this is years ago) sourced from around the world, and still recall the melt-in-the-mouth scones at tea time.
But as for THIS summer…my husband, dog and I managed a road trip to celebrate our anniversary in Telluride, CO, with a stop in Flagstaff, AZ. Because of the confinement we’ve all experienced for so long, this was as welcome and enjoyable as a trip anywhere in the world. We viewed everything with fresh and grateful eyes.
Bilbo is adorable, BTW.
Oh Deborah, we did not get to Banner Elk, but yes, Blowing Rock and Boone (and Black Mountain). How stunning the scenery, and all the crafts and art and artists who created them. I didn’t have any sublime food, except for the fruit and vegetables we got a the farmer’s markets.
I’m glad you got to have a road trip this summer. Flagstaff is another beautiful place in our world.
Happy anniversary.
xoJudy
Judy,
Stunning video scenery — reminds me of camping deep in the Kootenay forests. Before I found out there were cougars there along with the bears. At least you can smell and hear the latter.
As for summer holidays I spent it avoiding the maskless as I learned how to walk slower. It’s better for overall health, I was told. And besides I can count more minutes doing the same route. However the thunder of those unseen hooves grew too distant and soon I was racing again. Strange how people don’t move when they hear feet pounding behind them, they just stand there and turn to look. There came only one collision.
Thanks for a great morning read.
Linda
Thank you! for stopping by with your summer stories. Glad there were no more collisions. By the way, I think Tom took me to the Kootenay forest, or some very green and tree-filled place in BC. Another fishing camp. Hanging on a huge stand made of logs, a black bear–enormous, its paws (those are paws? on a bear?) bigger than my face and the pads of which were like black leather. An image that has stayed with me. Much as the “Canadian sunset,” that we witnessed in our aluminum fishing boat.
Judy,
Thanks for sharing this lovely story of your vacation. It sounds amazing: the beauty of the surrounding area, the good friend and the puppy-love!
Arlene
Hi Arlene,
Thanks for reading it and posting a comment. Of course there are so many more stories of that vacation, like any vacation. They may show up as time goes on.