Doin' Fine at 59!!

BIRTHDAY MONTH:  ENGAGED!!

4/1 - I was in Morristown for work today (no April foolin'!) and when I was done, I headed south toward Greeneville for some waterfall hunting.  My first stop was at the historic Nolichucky Dam on the river of the same name where the right side of the old dam (built 1913 and held during Hurricane Helene in 2024) looks like a natural waterfall. 

My next stop was to pee, and I was so grateful for the little gas station's super-clean bathroom (and store overall) that I just had to buy something.  I found an interesting regional soft drink called Dr. Enuf that was actually pretty good.  Kind of tastes like a Sprite and ginger ale mixed together.  It has natural energizers (no caffeine), so I got a Sun-Drop as a back-up!  

Kelly Falls is a little roadside beauty on Paint Creek inside the Cherokee National Forest near Greeneville, TN, and close to the North Carolina state line.  

Dudley Falls is farther downstream on Paint Creek and is signed but is more of a sliding cascade than a true waterfall.  Still, it makes for a nice roadside area with a great swimming hole beneath it.  There were even two people swimming in it when I came back through!!  What??  It's April 1st, you crazies!!  
Delicate little Ricker Branch Falls is across the road from the parking area for Dudley Falls and was just a trickle today but would definitely be worth coming back by to check out after some significant rain.  

They even had a sign for this little fella, also on Paint Creek farther downstream, called Stephen Falls. 

Hardy-har-har - UNTAPPD trying to be funny on April Fool's Day - hey, morons, did you know you actually can check a beer in while in Antarctica?  My best friend, Craig, tried to do it recently and got no love for it?  Get your shit together already.  I earned this goofy badge back at the Casual Pint in Pigeon Forge this evening where the beers were back to their pricey $8+ per pint cost (welcome to the Smokies, tourist!).  At least they were both good brews.  I started with the smooth and tasty Wrought Iron oatmeal stout from Iron Forge Brewing over in Sevierville, and then the crisp and rather fruity IPA from Hi-Wire Brewing (Asheville) called Cooler Nights.   I even saw a rainbow as I was coming in born of the rain showers that I drove through coming back from the west through the mountains. 

Well, ya got me, Facebook.  Well done.  An ad popped up last night for this Verse Immersive "experience" at Ripley's Super Fun Park in Pigeon Forge, and it looked and sounded kind of interesting, so I plopped down the $30 cost ($25 plus taxes and fees) for a ticket tonight.   Turns out it's more of just a trivia game in AVR (augmented virtual reality) than an "experience" and looked nothing like the ad picture above.   It was still kind of cool, and I even learned a thing or two (did you know that giant-ass Jupiter acts as shield to Earth blocking a lot of interstellar bad stuff - like comets and asteroids- from getting to us), but it was not nearly worth the hefty price.  Oh well, lesson(s) learned.  

4/2 - I headed back west today with some new-to-me waterfalls and breweries in my sights. My first stop was Middle Fork Falls 

Yahoo Falls in Kentucky

Yahoo Arch? 

Princess Falls in Kentucky? 

Big South Fork Brewing Company in Oneida

Dream Country Brewing in Cookeville 

4/3 - Day off from work, poker tournament at The Barrel? or Poker Barn? 

4/6 - Sebastian Bach of 80's hairband, Skid Row, fame, with friend, Nate, at the newly reopened Cannery in Nashville (poster pic on phone) 

Cali Hwy 59 sign pic on phone at 1/19

4/18 - Fly to LA, 

discount rental car at Enterprise (thanks to points) 

staying at an Airb BnB in West Hollywood, 

Whiskey a Go-Go - Stevie and the Rockers, a Fleetwood Mac tribute band (poster pic saved on laptop labeled "33 original" from 3/12) 

Viper Room?

4/19 - boat out to the Channel Islands NP, Anacapa Island and Lighthouse 

stayed overnight for free with points at a nice Springhill Suites (free with points!) in Oxnard.  

Breweries.  

 4/20 - Nashville's own, Langhorne Slim, at The Troubadour (poster just above Whisky a Go Go poster pic on laptop)

 stayed overnight at the historic (and convenient) Beverly Terrace Hotel

4/21 - Fly home from LA