They Do Things Differently Down Here

My Bluffton friends and I still keep in touch through a monthly newsletter, which has become my most favorite email! I had written this up for one of the newsletters recently and just thought I'd share it here as well.
1. I now live in the upstairs apartment of the train station in town! :-) So, if you ever decide to visit, you could potentially arrive at my front door if you take the Amtrak train! (Also, the station happens to have been featured in this old movie called, "Mystery Train" if you're ever curious enough to check it out...)
2. People really are a little more friendly down here (For example, I fist pounded with a guy who said 'hello' as I was running the other day) and I just love their accent! At restaurants you have the option of sitting at "community" tables so you can start conversations with the locals right next to you! (or just try to awkwardly ignore them... lol.)
3. I never knew so many BBQ and fried chicken places could exist in one city. (Makes it a bit tough for vegetarians like me...)
4. In this city, Elvis really is still alive it seems...
5. Just a short jog from my house I can see the might Mississippi River, Mudd Island, a pyramid (which really confuses me because I think it's just abandoned), and street cars still traveling on the streets in town.
6. Memphis has its own version of the ball drop... the guitar drop, which I was able to watch on New Year's Eve this year! (And for some reason dropped 3 minutes too early! It was pretty funny!)
7. The major grocery store chain in town is called "Schnucks" which every time I say it/hear it/read it makes me chuckle as it sounds so much like "Schmucks". (And I'm not sure I want to shop in a place for "schmucks"... haha).
8. It's almost impossible to walk down any street in downtown or Midtown on the weekend and not hear some live music. I'm learning to really appreciate jazz and blues!
9. Down here sweet milk = regular cow's milk; buttermilk = buttermilk (but not sour milk)... I had to have a vet give me a lesson on my milks one day!

Come on down ya'll and get ya some souse!

10. There is a food down here that is a Southern version of headcheese called "Souse". One of my patients told me he tried to cook it once and just ended up with a pan full of liquidified fat. Yummy!

Perfect President's Day Weekend

Now that I have officially become a government employee, I get to observe all those great Federal holidays in the calendar year starting with Presidents' Day! Will and I had been thinking of going on a bit of a trip since it will be the last time we have a 3 day weekend for a few months, but the holiday sort of snuck up on us before we had a chance to make any big plans. That doesn't mean the weekend went by without some fun times!

Finally! A TV!

 I just received my tax return last week and I was itching to finally purchase a TV for my apartment. So, on Saturday, I went to Best Buy and after shopping around, found that the 40" Dynex set was only $30 more than the 37" that I was intending to buy... so, somewhat guiltily I went ahead and purchased the bigger set and I am definitely enjoying it! I feel a bit spoiled. In the evening, while Will assembled the TV stand I made ginger-soy salmon, asparagus, and sweet potatoes for dinner which we enjoyed eating out on the rooftop garden for the first time!

Picnic Grub!

Sunday, the weather was fantastic (despite being a bit blustery), so Will and I packed a lunch and rode our bikes out to Meeman Shelby state park. Their paved bike trail is nothing like the smooth gentle ride I had imagined! It's a surprisingly treacherous path littered with sudden twists and crazy steep hills which made things much more exciting anyway! Midway through our ride we found a nice picnic shelter and enjoyed our lovely packed lunches on frisbee plates. After lunch, we played a few holes at the fantastic disc golf course they have there which meanders through the woods (creating a lot of trees to obstruct your putt!). The evening closed out with a trip to an Indian restaurant and then to the Hi-Tone for the band "Thee Oh Sees". They're a super fast electric rock/indie group ("Thee Oh Sees" - YouTube) that was we had seen advertised in the Flyer that sounded like fun. They weren't my typical genre of choice, but definitely an excitingly energetic concert to see!

The weekend finished up today with just some down-time around the house as I get ready to get back to the grind tomorrow (and recover from my slightly sore biker behind! Haha).

Getting Started... Is Always the Hardest Part

Hey Y'all!

  In an effort to keep you better updated on my life here in Memphis in a way that allows me to be a bit more creative (hopefully!) than emailing or calling, I thought I would make a go at creating a blog. I can't promise that it will be the most riveting thing you have ever read and I am sure there will be times when I "fall off the bandwagon" and forget to post for a few weeks, but I will try my best to encourage a few chuckles or smirks as I share my Memphis moments.