Jackson MS

March 4, 2007
Well, we really stayed in Pearl, MS, but I didn't think anyone would recognize that. It is a suburb, nothing special. Saturday we slept a little later because we had a shorter drive than usual.
We entered Alabama and stopped at their nice welcome station. The lady there gave me info about Birmingham. There were 2 or 3 things we would like to have seen - and no, Bear Bryant's grave was not one of them. We finally picked the Alabama War Memorial (does anyone see a trend here?) It is really nice. I am sure Don will send photos. You walk up a path so that you don't see the parking lot, just the wooded area where it stands. A very medatative place. It is a number of columns standing in an enclosure with different plaques on them. Some are Medal of Honor citations, some are letters written home from the soldiers, some are remembrances, and some are castings developed from drawings. Beyond the columns is an enclosure where the wall is lined with names starting with WWI. While there we talked with a couple who come there often. We met them because of their 2 beautiful german shephards. Found out they were rescue dogs, they were so sweet. As were their owners.
It was time to move on - we had shopping to do!! On to Scottsboro, AL and the Unclaimed Baggage Outlet. We spent a couple of hours there and spent money. I don't know if we spent too much or not, Don is in charge of figuring that out. Looked for a bluetooth, but couldn't find one for my phone, oh well. Guess what I bought- three guesses. Anyone who knows me won't need 3 guesses. Books! People leave lots of books behind and UBO sells them for $1, $2, or $3 - hardbacks are a little more, but I didn't get any of those. I bought $17 worth. We had made reservations at Gadsden, AL, but it meant driving into a head wind so we decided to stay in Ft. Payne. For those who are fans, Ft. Payne is the home of the Alabama Fan Museum. That's Alabama the band. No we didn't go there, so no souvenirs, sorry. Anyway, while checking in at the motel, talked with the desk clerk. She has property in Sevierville, TN. Small world. 25 years ago when she bought she thought she would retire there, but it has gotten too crowded and she is staying in Ft. Payne.
After a good night's sleep we headed back to Knoxville. Bittersweet. We will be glad to be in our waterbed again, to see Apryl and to have the dogs back. But we would like to have traveled much more. We pray there will be more times though. For now we have plans and are looking forward to implementing them. Again, thanks for everyone's kind words. It has been fun writing. Love and God Bless, Don and Pat