Asheville – Tales of an Introvert

No Child Left Inside

Here is something that is near and dear to my heart. I haven’t done a whole lot of outside stuff with the Young Extroverted One (and more recently the Mullethead) since we’ve moved away from the Black Mountain/Montreat, North Carolina area. However, Chattanooga may lend itself to more outdoor fun for me to experience with my kids this summer.

So, check out the link. Find out what you can do with your kids (or neighbors’ kids | with permission of course) outside! Cool video after the jump!

No Child Left Inside: Home Page.

Please join us in this national effort to highlight the importance of environmental education. As part of the NCLI Days campaign we are urging environmental, education, conservation, and all other interested organizations to work with schools in your community to showcase engaging, environmental education activities. Use the “No Child Left Inside Days Action Packet” to work with teachers to develop a lesson plan, generate press coverage, and educate Members of Congress about the benefits of outdoor environmental education in your area.

Toot Toot

Don’t mean to toot my own horn . . . but, I set up a room with some audio visual gear yesterday for a meeting that the hotel and their corporate folks are having today. As I stood in the room making sure presentations were working properly my set up got some nice compliments. It’s really not that big of a deal but when the director of sales is in the room and he is one of the reasons my company hired a different director it was kind of satisfying to show him what he’s losing. Not that it matters anymore because I hope the Nashville Doubletree will be better fit.

One other presenter was from the Renaissance Asheville (I’m not sure what her position there is). My company just listed a director position there that is open. Unfortunately, I can’t throw my hat into that ring because the Elder Extroverted Holy One has one more semester. Aargh! She wasn’t too happy with my idea of me taking that job to set up the homestead back in western North Carolina. Especially with the Young Extroverted One and a new human and school. With being at the Doubletree I’m kind of obligated to stick around for another year.

Oh well, <vague t.v. reference> “Missed it by that much.” <anyone get it?>

B-double-E-double-R-U-N

Went to the Music City Brewer’s Fest on Saturday.

Mmmmm. . . beeeeer. . .

Mmmmm. . . humidity . . . ugh.

Lots of great brews, including my all-time favs The Highland Brewing Company. I hovered around their booth for a little while but figured I should branch out. I would write about my impressions of all the different beers that I tried that day but I can’t really remember. I must have drunk too many good ones. The heat is really the only thing that I can remember. Oooof.

I do remember that I missed having a little water to rinse out my cup at each booth. You should be able to wash out the remnants of the prior beer before you tried a new one. I feel that I didn’t get a good representation of taste because they were really all mixed together. Oh well. This was my first time away from my favorite brewer’s fest, the Brewgrass Festival, and maybe they don’t offer that everywhere. At least it gave me a hint of beers that I’ll try to find the next time I’m at Midtown Wine and Spirits.

I did a lot of comparisons between the Music City Brewer’s Fest and the Brewgrass Festival. My apologies to my partner in brew, I sounded like a guy talking about his old girlfriend that just dumped him. I must have sounded like such a putz (no real connection for this link I just love the name of this company)(a shout out to my buddy Mountain Kilter).

On the subject of beers and festivals, walking around amongst the throng of amatuer and professional beer drinkers in downtown Nashville in the humidity I came to realize that I really love to listen to bluegrass drinking fine brews in the middle of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Here I am talking about my old girlfriend again. So sorry.

Sigh . . . well, the introvert/extrovert clan may have to take a trip come September 22 to Asheville, N C.

Black Mountain Ramblings

I’m sitting here in the fine home of our dear friends, currently stealing someone’s wi-fi (thanks whoever you are!) and enjoying the scenery here in Black Mountain, NC. I have certainly missed this quaint town on the verge of being surrounded by gated communities spoiling the ridge tops of these Blue Ridge Mountains. I’m not really sure if it’s B.M. or just the area because we really enjoy Asheville too. Whenever the Elder Extroverted Holy One graduates I’d really like to be back here.

It’s not that we don’t like Nashville. We really do enjoy being there. I think it’s the community feeling that we miss the most. As we pulled into the Ingles parking lot to pick up some wine* for our host family the EEHO saw and greeted three or four people she knew. I only see one person that I know when I go into the Inglewood Kroger every couple of weeks and that doesn’t guarantee they’ll speak to me (or me to them . . . what can I say? I AM an introvert!).

Just driving from one place to another in this place we have seen people that we know going about their business. It’s comforting to experience that kind of thing. In East Nashville it’s more like, “Hey! There goes that kid who broke into my car last week!” Definitely not the warm and fuzzy feeling that one gets from a small, mountain community.

I guess the one thing that’s going for Music City is that we wouldn’t have to pack and move again. Plus, the hockey team. Oh and the museums and concert venues. Add to that the fact that I have a job that is year round. Oh well, maybe we’ll stay. I swear to you out there in the blogospherical universe I will have seasons tickets to Predators hockey if we stay!

*It is SOOOOO nice to be able to buy wine at the grocery store and not some nasty liquor store.