Charlotte & A-Town

So I have finally recovered from my week long trip to visit my brother in his short time in Charlotte, followed by the celebration of K's b-day in Hotlanta. There was some baseball, frisbee and a number of "hoppy" beverages. Needless to say, it was a blast.

I started off flying from Houston to Atlanta, rented a car and drove the almost 4 hours to Charlotte, just in time to see my brother before an International League (Class AAA) doubleheader between the Toledo Mud Hens and the Charlotte Knights. The weather was a little muggy and the baseball palpable. I got to meet my brother's crew (the two guys he has spent the last 5 months of the year travelling up and down the eastern part of the US and Canada). Both guys were great umpires and even cooler people. After the game the following night, we all went out for a few drinks and had a good ol' time.

I drove to Atlanta the next morning, met up with K and then spent the night with the gang to celebrate K's 28th (yes, he is THAT old) birthday. The night started off with trivia, dinner and drinks at The Local (where my vast useless knowledge came in very handy on a number of questions including "Besides R2-D2 and C3PO, how many droids, within one, did the Jawas try to sell to Luke Skywalker's uncle?" and for those that don't know, the correct answer was 4). Although we didn't finish in the top 3, we had a great time. The biggest surprise came when Raj showed up out of nowhere to surprise K. We then went to Hand in Hand, followed by an after-drinking food binge at the Majestic (and for those that were there, a fun little story occurred thereafter which I don't feel at liberty to put into print).

Thursday night was a light evening to gain sleep for the upcoming weekend. Friday, our friends from Birmingham came in to celebrate. We played a little frisbee, ate at Osteria and ran up a huge tab at Hand in Hand. Great times were had by all.

The best story of the week however, came on Saturday night. After a great dinner at the Floataway Cafe (highly recommended if in the Atlanta area and looking for some good food), we met some of our frisbee peeps at Atkins Park. Myself and the B-ham folks decided to leave the aforementioned establishment to grab some cheaper beverages and there was hot-tubbing to be had. We left the bar just after 11:45pm and Atlanta law prohibits supermarkets from selling beverages containing alcohol once the clock strikes 12. Atkins Park is approximately 1.87 miles (including the long parking lot) away from "Death" Kroger on Ponce and Rich and I only had about 10 minutes to pick up said beverages and purchase them. Now for those that don't know me, Carl Lewis I am not. Yet, with the proper motivation, Rich and I sprinted, ran, jogged, walked, made a phone call to the women who were picking up the car, and decided which brand to buy. Almost 2 miles in under 10 minutes. If I weren't there (and hallucinating from lack of oxygen) I would not believe it. We picked up two cases, carried them to the front where a police officer informed us to ask the gentlemen in front of us in the self-checkout lane to allow us to pass them in line to beat the midnight deadline.

THE EPILOGUE: we were only able to buy ONE frickin case as the clock hit midnight and disallowed the second part of the purchase.

After a relaxing Sunday where no alchol was consumed and said our tearful goodbyes, we got a good night sleep and watched the news regarding Hurricane Katrina. The next morning I drove to the airport, only to be stuck there for 2+ hours before finally taking off and had a long, turbulent flight to Houston. I am now back in Houston, awaiting the beginning of the next stage of my life, work.

And a big Houston welcome to all residents of Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi who will be living in arriving here today to live at the Astrodome.