BRACES!

Guess what?  I am getting braces again!  The last time was about 50 years ago (oops, letting too much out regarding age!)  Anyway, due to some alignment issues, it will be braces for the next 20 months.  Then I will be beautiful!  Hey, that's what all those other "after" photos show, so it must be true, right?   I am bug-eyed with excitement waiting for my new pink braces at the end of August.

My orthodontist is always trying to promote that "WOW" and a little happiness factor that a true Zappo Sister enjoys.  One of his fun things is an I-Tablet to the best summer fun photo.  Believe me, Ms. Techno Geek here wants that tablet!  While on the Sister trip, we devised ways to send some hysterical, or so we thought, photos to Dr. Roeder and staff.  Hey, Dr. Roeder, did you take some Zappos training, too?



Working on my sign that would crack us up the entire trip.
 

WSQL in Brevard.  Hey, I have a great voice so why not radio?

 

                          

What better place than PARI?
Surely in a parallel universe,
some "one" is listening??






Now I can add Pontoon Pilot to my resume!

Lakeside Luxury for the SISTERS!

Sister trip 2011

Due to scheduling conflicts, Sister and I had a modified excursion this year.  It was the shortest trip in miles but one of the most relaxing.  We met at my home and planned to explore a part of the mountains that Sister had not seen.  Mileage was 90 miles round trip and did not include a plane. Scarlett, the Cadillac, was the transporter and in true sister fashion, we had “her” packed pretty full. 

 Now you have to understand that Sister and I tend to overpack when offered the option of car travel because you never know what you might need or how you will feel about an outfit on a certain day.  Also, we have to include extra shoes…we are the Zappo Sisters, after all.  And I cannot leave home without my special “techno” case to tote my netbook, “Barbie”, Nook, “Midge”, chargers, phone & camera. (betcha didn’t know that Midge was Barbie’s best friend?) Since we were entering “a dry area”, we needed to bring wine.  For those of you not familiar with this term, there are some remote regions in the South where libations are not sold.  Really.  Not even in the grocery stores.  You should be prepared.

DAY 1:

We did lunch at a delightful Thai restaurant, Lime Leaf Fusion, in my town followed by a stroll on Main Street.  Wouldn’t you know The Mast Store was having a big sale!  My favorite brand, Woolrich, was reduced so I could not leave without another pair of capris. WAGG is a cute accessory shop for dogs & cats and a must stop.  Sister bought my cats a new grooming brush.  MEOW!

Then it was off to meet that famous Haffie, ODIE, at Shoal Creek Farm in the Dupont Forest area. Sister had not met Odie and she is a tad nervous around horses.  Odie is such a “love pig” that he can bond with anyone and soon had Sister under his spell.  After some petting and a few carrot chunks, we headed on to Brevard.

 

        

         

         

         Brevard, in Transylvania County, is home to white squirrels and waterfalls.  Each year Brevard has two festivals…one to honor their white squirrels and another at Halloween to celebrate the mystery of Transylvania!  The radio station is WSQL (yep, the call letters are just what you think.) 1240 on your AM dial. http://www.wsqlradio.com. 

In addition to 1240 AM, the local cinema, Co-Ed has been showing movies for 75 years… http://coedcinema.com/index.php  We watched Harry Potter, Part 2 before dining at the Square Root.  Check out that restaurant to uncover the meaning of its name http://www.squarerootrestaurant.com  Our b&b, The Inn on Main Street was only 3 blocks from town so no need for the car.

DAY 2:

Up early for breakfast at the Inn and then off to explore the town of Brevard before heading to Lake Toxaway.  Brevard has many quaint shops but we quickly voted GRAVY as our fav. Not only does GRAVY sell items by local artists ranging from jewelry to antique clothing but a portion of each sale goes to support the Boys & Girls Club in the county.  Nice, huh?

By 11:30, we were on the road for a 30 minute drive to Lake  Toxaway.  That would mean arriving some time after noon, right?  Of course, you have to factor in two more stops and then the “aliens”.  No, not the tourists…real ALIENS.  Within 10 minutes of our destination, we took a right turn which happened to be a wrong turn and would lead us into some eerie territory.  Blame it on talking, laughing and not fully reading the road signs.  However, some wrong turns are meant to be.  I had been yammering about wanting to see PARI since yesterday but finally, decided that it would not be the best use of our time.  Not only did we take one wrong turn but three.  After driving for a considerable time without even a mobile home on the horizon, we admitted defeat.  The map was no help because we had no idea what road we were on or what direction we were headed.  Had not seen a road sign in some time.  To add to our dilemma, Scarlett’s directional light was suddenly not working; neither of our phones had a signal and even ONSTAR was off.  HELP!!!  We are lost without anything but our “stuff”, wine & water.  Where was Lake Toxaway?  Where were we???

                                

Out of the blue, we saw the entrance to PARI but I was speeding so we had to turn around.  This was the first sign of civilization for some time.  As we turned into the entrance, I noticed several security cameras focused on us.  It was long, paved, well-maintained road with security cameras all the way to the guard house.  By now, we are totally creeped-out but too far in to give up.  Off to the right of the guard house is this huge tower and a dish with a smiley face.  We see cars, well a few, but no people.  “Keep driving,” Sister says...  “We can go to the visitors’ center and someone will give directions.” There is one car in the lot and it looks like something from a junk yard.  The building is straight from the 1960’s, industrial, few windows, peeling paint but we go inside.  Did I mention that our phones received a signal as soon as we entered the PARI property?  Inside was just a desk and some brochures about PARI but one was a map.  We were so far away from Lake Toxaway that it was a hoot.  I found a bathroom and saw some people in a classroom of sorts but they ignored us.  So, there was life as we knew it inside the building.

          You tell me that there are not forces in the universe beyond our knowledge after we were “sent” to PARI….http://www.pari.edu/about_pari/history   Yes, this was a tracking station for NASA in the early 1960’s but such a government secret only a privileged few were allowed access.  What did they track?  The official word was satellites and the study of astronomy.  The unofficial word was aliens…E.T….life forces beyond our planet.  Are there life forces outside our Earth?  The “men in black” say: “No!”  A local who worked for the project and the government, says: “Absolutely!” 

Back on the road and all devices are working again.  When we finally arrive where we took the right/wrong turn, we read the sign.  It is a BIG sign and even states Greystone Inn, our destination.  We cracked ourselves up laughing about that.  Once you enter the Lake Toxaway Club/Greystone Inn property, you will drive about 7-8 miles before reaching the Inn on a most scenic and curvy road.  The last sign stated the Inn was 15 miles ahead.  The period between the 1 & 5 was almost non-existent.  Nonetheless, we arrived around 3:00.  What time had we left Brevard?  Had we been lost in a parallel universe?

The Greystone Inn is breath-taking…http://www.greystoneinn.com…situated on Lake Toxaway.  Our room, The Bailey, had a covered deck overlooking the lake.  

         Within minutes of entering this room, I was calling to cancel other reservations and we were arranging to spend our entire time at Greystone.  That was an excellent decision.  Sister was not familiar with lakeside living and quickly became fascinated.  We spent hours on the deck reading, dozing, laughing watching boats and enjoying some wild storms.

Greystone is elegant and reminds you of a time closer to 1900 than 2011.  We compared it to our times in Banff at the Fairmont. 

                                           

It was princess treatment, for sure.  Each afternoon featured tea time on the screened veranda with huge fans and wicker rockers to while away the time until dinner.  Two nights, we ate in the Lakeside Dining Room where the service was five star; the atmosphere was impeccable and food was incredible.  You must dress for dinner here and that was a lovely touch which we enjoyed.  It was a pleasure to see men in suits and ladies in dresses.  No ball caps and no jeans, allowed. Dinner was a five course event and I think the filet was the best entrée.  

   

          

          

two       Our two servers were girls from Rosman who happened to be horse crazy.  One told us about riding from Rosman to Brevard one winter day just to eat at SubWay…7 hours round trip. Breakfast served in this dining room was included and we did not miss one day of breakfast.  What we did not know until check-out was that dinner also was included.  RATZZZ!  We could have dined every night but then, we would have waddled like “the Klump family” for days.  Sunday afternoon, we ate at the Toxaway Country Club and brought back some snacks for dinner.  I had saved half my Reuben to savor later. When I opened my box, there was a dead fly beside my leftovers.  ICK!  So, without thinking, I flicked the fly to the floor and tried to salvage & clean around the remainder of my sandwich. OMG!!!  That fly was not dead, just frozen from being in the too cold fridge. He tormented us for four hours  buzzing, buzzing, buzzing…Finally, Sister saw him on the shower door and destroyed him.  Do you have a clue how irritating one fly can be?

One evening, we took a champagne cruise on Lake Toxaway on the “MISS LUCY”…a wooden,electric, service boat. Lake Toxaway is small but surrounded by incredible real estate…most over one million and one was 14 million!  Pontoons and ski boats are the norm with only big tubes called “big Mabel” to be towed behind.  Thank goodness the lake is too small for jet skis.  After doing the cruise, we had to take a ride on the Inn’s pontoon which you could rent for one hour.  Now the fact that the Inn allowed anyone over 18 to rent this boat, regardless of experience, says a lot for the level of piloting difficulty.   What fun!  We could have stayed on this boat all day cruising the lake.

  

 

 An activity which caught our attention was the croquet court.  We could watch but not participate because participation required the “proper attire”…white hat, white shirt, white skirt or shorts, white socks and white shoes. This was a battle for the seniors who were visiting and who had been playing for some time.  A beautiful golf course, tennis courts, pool and marina were located on the property.

          

        

This was fabulous, one of our new favorite places and the best kept secret in WNC.