The night before had been a late one, and I slept in. Jan had left early for work. I took a shower and contributed my clothes to a wash. Then, I just sat at the kitchen table and talked with Fay for a good portion of the day. She left for an appointment in the afternoon, and I worked for the rest of the day with Jan's female dog, Jo, as a companion...
Jo.
I took periodic breaks and stepped outside to enjoy the sun. The air temperature was still a bit chilly, but the sun felt nice. Of course, Jo joined me each time...
What's that sound?
Around lunch time Jan returned for her ritual of seeing Jo and letting her out. We talked about Fay's husband, James' offer to take us all out for dinner that night and planned to all meet here. She returned to work and finished out her day there.
When dinner time rolled around, Jan returned, Fay returned and we were hungry and ready to go. The plan was to go to JPeters, a local favorite known for ribs and their salads. James arrived and we hopped in the car and drove down town...
Very pretty Main Street lights.
The others suggested I get the salad with the house dressing--a honey mustard. We all examined the menu closely. I couldn't decide until Jan settled on the prime rib with mashed potato. That just sounded way too good to pass up, so I ordered the same thing. The other two ordered seafood dishes.
Waiting for the food to arrive, we talked about the town and about South Carolina in general. They had all lived in many different places around the country and had some great stories about them. I guess, in a sense, I too have lived in many different places. Obviously my stays have been much shorter. And because of the nature of what I do, my "living" is in the mostly-unseen parts of towns and cities. Unless I'm visiting with folks (as I was now), I didn't really get to see from the domestic point of view. There is a big difference.
Having spent so many years in Maine and living the "normal" life, at least I do have an excellent idea about the social systems and structures of typical domesticity. All the while, it is always edifying for me to learn of the longer amounts of time that others have spent in the states I have really only passed through. Their immersion in the real cultures of the regions where they lived is always fascinating to me. It gives me an even richer idea about life in this country. I was glad to be sharing this here at dinner. I have tales from the road, but they had real substantive long-term experience about some of the places in which I'd only led my more transient existence.
We finished up--for some reason I am always the last to finish. This isn't a recent phenomenon. Even as a kid, I was teased about being a slow eater. Yet in this case, I just really wanted to enjoy the moment. They were very patient with me.
My meal had been out-of-this-world. The prime rib was as soft, juicy and perfectly cooked, with just the right amount of fat content as any that I'd had in the past. The potato was savory and had just a hint of acidity, which I really liked. The salad was everything they built it up to be, with the right amount of dressing--a unique version of honey-mustard. I had made a good decision by following Jan's lead. A mental note was taken.
We headed back to the car...
Full, fat and happy, with leftovers in hand.
The night was cold, but a bit warmer than the night before. It would have been a good walking night. Riding was an extravagance though, one that I always appreciated. When we got back, James left me with ladies, and the three of us talked for a while before Jan turned in.
Fay and I, again, had a conversational journey about so many different things. I love getting to know people I have only known online. Originally, she was going to be the editor for my first - and now shelved - book about the first crossing--here at the blog, referred to as "A Manifest Destiny." She is also a published author: Naked Me (2013) and Hell Outta Dodge (2014), both available through Amazon Books. For various reasons, the Manifest Destiny project had to be put on hold. I am now glad I didn't rush into publishing that Journey. It's adventures await a new incarnation at some point. Regardless, on this night we renewed the idea of collaborating on my future print-publishing; with some concepts I look forward to developing with her over the next few months.
It was time to head to bed and we said goodnight and hit the hay. I had many unusual dreams on this night, but slept well. Except for the "form filling" dreams I've talked about here at the blog, I consider any night that I can remember dreaming to be a satisfactory restful one. for me, ultimately, sleep is about psychic adventure, and being awake the next morning is a different kind of relaxation. The two states- sleep and being awake - complement each other in that way.
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