Carolina On My Mind

Funny, I'm really not a JT fan but the title seems apropo...

Myrtle Beach was a blast. It's all a hazy blur, a swirl of laughter and beers and old friends and an off-season beach resort that in 20 years will be honky-tonk Miami Beach. The beach itself is beautiful, most of its long stretch built up with hotels and condos, and it's very cheap to stay there. We had a penthouse condo, 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms that is clearly worse for the wear after our stay...
The details of the bachelor party, the dirty little secrets (such as they are; nothing untoward or outrageous occurred aside from massive alcohol abuse) will remain in our collective memories. What I will share is the fondness I have for all these guys; most of them are guys I grew up with. The two Adams I've known since preschool, Dave and Yosef since junior high. Yosef's cousin Stephen, who's a few years older than we are but a guy I've known for 20 years and always enjoy hanging with. Steve's a raconteur of the first order, a huge and hugely entertaining character who may not be everybody's cup of T&T because of his rather colorful vocabulary but as big-hearted a guy as you'll meet. Stefan and Alex are somewhat more recent acquaintances, but good dudes both. I'm just very proud and very humbled to have friends like these...seeing the guys I've grown up with, from kickball in the schoolyard to junior-high mischief, high school keg parties at each other's houses and various wooded areas, the years at UMass and then jobs, weddings, moves to various parts of the country and kids, and now another wedding on the horizon...to be a part of that story is really something. Jobs will come and go, careers and the day-to-day minutiae that consumes our lives, but our friends and family are what matter, what make us the people that we are. Being in Myrtle Beach and sinking back into familiar roles, albeit slightly more mellowed than years ago...Dave George still stirring the pot, throwing out outrageous opinions just to see where the conversation will go. Yosef noticing every little slip, maintaining a running commentary on the proceedings whilst quietly driving them. Adam Silver relaxed as always, going with the flow and enjoying it all. Adam Sachs his usual all-out self, whether it be golf or tequila shots or Golden Tee. Me, far more comfortable in my own skin now than I ever was as a teenager or in my 20's but still the sarcastic smartass...I think what I'll remember most from that portion of the trip is laughter. Laughter over dinner, over drinks, during marathon Golden Tee sessions (as with most video games, which I play very infrequently, I suck at this one, which is why I play video games very infrequently), laughing in the morning during shared-hangover time and on the balcony just bullshitting with each other. These guys will always be my friends, my family, regardless of how often or not we see each other. So god bless you all, and thanks for a great time. We'll pick it up at the wedding next month.
Heading out of Myrtle on Sunday was a chore. So hungover and tired and feeling sick. A situation at home just constantly on my mind, but nothing I can write about here at the moment. Might be a book someday; praying that there's a happy ending. Anyway...drove 4+ hours back to Greensboro, N.C., past roadside attractions like Sparky's (if this collection of assorted shit were any bigger, he'd be buying it from my father) and thru towns like Ellerbe, N.C., where you can't believe you're still in America. Church, pawn shop, church, gas station, check cashing, church...I know I mentioned it last time, but it's worth mentioning again: HOW CAN PLACES LIKE THIS STILL EXIST IN AMERICA, 2007? How do so many get left so far behind, with so little hope of ever catching up? I don't believe in fairy tales and I don't believe it's all the fault of one political party or another. I don't believe any one candidate or party or platform can fix it; I just hope they-and by extension, the mainstream media, since that's the real driving force in this country-start paying attention to it. After the election, I mean. Not platitudes, and not government handouts. Just do something meaningful, figure out some way to educate their kids properly, break the cycle of abject poverty that has gripped generations in a vise of misery and provide them the tools necessary so that they have a fighting chance at a decent life.
Down off the soapbox for a minute...got to Greensboro around 5p, checked into another anonymous hotel room and just crashed, hard. Very little sleep during the weekend (too many beers, too much shitty food, too much unbelievably loud snoring and farting-hey, we're men after all), so took an immediate two-hour nap. Then just lounged, read my book and back issues of Rolling Stone (still catching up, and giving said back issues to my stepfather for his adopted soldier program so an added incentive to get thru them). On IM for quite a while late in the night, in a rather heavy conversation with someone quite close to me, who it turns out was a bit drunk and didn't remember most if it the next morning. It happens. After that, got a great night's sleep and checked out early. I was in Greensboro to visit my friend Jo. Another interesting character, very smart, very cool lady just back from Paris with her new boyfriend but that's her story to tell (and it's a doozy of a tale). Met Jo for breakfast at a French restaurant called Bistro 150, where a sign that reads "Bonjour Y'all" greets all who enter. Only in the South. Had a great day with Jo; visited a labyrinth (no, David Bowie wasn't there), an old-fashioned mill, a local winery and a few other key sites before dinner at Prissy Polly's bbq. Yes, French for breakfast and super-Southern for dinner. Not sure which was better, the galletes or the hush puppies, just never thought I'd have a day of cuisine like that...in North Carolina.
Stayed at Jo's last night, her house warm and charming and comfortable. After a week in various hotels, all of which looked more or less the same, it felt great to sleep in a real bed in a real house. Woke up this morning to the smell of homemade pecan pancakes frying on the griddle. Awesome. Pancakes, strong coffee, a quick shower (and unfortunately, the ultimate houseguest faux pas, a clogged toilet..."hey, um, do you have a plunger?" Ugh.) and on the road again. Drove up to Charlottesville, Va. Beautiful drive, once you cross into VA. The "rolling hills" really are....it's just gorgeous here, and Charlotteville is a real hip little city, a quintessential college town. At the moment, I'm at my friend Nick's house, working out of his bedroom office while he works records to stations that increasingly just play follow the leader instead of taking a chance and breaking some good music. More hospitality, more family vibrancy as Nick's wife and 3 young sons play downstairs, a smattering of French here and there (it's a bilingual family, as Dominique is French). Going to visit another friend tonight, Andrew Silver, younger brother of the aforementioned Adam. Andy is a chef, owns a restaurant here called Zocalo. Really looking forward to finally dining there. This is the last stop of the tour, at least for now. In the morning, I'm driving straight back to The Woo. The mission is largely accomplished, time to get back to real life and resolving the future.
Adieu, Y'all!