Fully caffeinated the next morning, I drive into the Smoky Mountains. Jolene tells me where to turn. I want to stop off at Toccoa - the birthplace of "the sepia Mae West," Ida Cox, who famously opined that wild women don't get the blues. Jolene advises me to keep on straight, so I put the pedal to the metal, and cross on over into Georgia.
Every bend in the road reveals another pretty rural church; one even offers free nutritional advice:
"For a Christian, the best vitamin is B1."
Once we cross the border into North Carolina, antique shops hug the hilly highway. Some of my favorite singers came down out of these mountains: Rev. Gary Davis; Rev. Julius "Junie" Cheeks of the Sensational Nightingales; Ira Tucker of the Dixie Hummingbirds. I'm trying to make up for lost time when the silver car behind me suddenly starts flashing blue and white party lights.
Uh-oh.
I've blown half my honorarium on a speeding ticket.
Jolene doesn't say a word.
No comments:
Post a Comment