Sheet Pan Sausage & Veggies And Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins, Limelight Hydrangea

This beautiful shrub at our driveway entrance is a Limelight Hydrangea providing some great mid-summer blooms.

Day Trip To Crossville For Bird Houses And Lunch With Friends

Several years ago, at an RV rally in Crossville, TN, we bought a few bluebird houses from a representative of the Cumberland County Bluebird Club and we stationed them around our property.  Since bluebirds are very territorial, it is suggested they be placed at least 100’ apart, which we did.  Starting last year, tree swallows took over some of the houses and since they are bug eaters, we decided to welcome them.  The swallows are also territorial so they also need to be spaced out but after some research, I learned they can co-exist in close proximity with bluebirds and the houses for the two of them can be 25’ apart.

With this new knowledge, we decided to make a trip to Crossville to get six more houses from the bluebird club along with two of the predatorproof poles for our on hand bird houses – the ones the snake invaded.

Since we were going to Crossville, we didn’t want to pass up an opportunity to see friends Diane and Milo so we arranged the visit around their schedule then we met for lunch at the Beef & Barrel Restaurant & Lounge.

We got there early and were the only diners at that time (Pat still using a walker from her knee replacement).

I forgot to have the server get a pic of us at the table but we spent the first 20-30 minutes visiting before we got around to ordering.  I couldn’t find a decent menu pic on line so I took my own pics of it – still not great but better than online.

Bev and Pat each had a Reuban Sandwich with one side.

Diane ordered the Chicken Pesto Sandwich and a side.

Milo chose the Patty melt with a side.

And to maximize my protein and minimize calories, I ordered the Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich and a side of Steamed Broccoli.

I ate all of the broccoli and less than half of the meat from the sandwich – no bread.

The Verdict:

I believe everyone enjoyed their meals and we enjoyed the visiting even more.

Bird Houses

Following the meal, we drove to the upper end of the Fairfield Glade community to pick up the bird houses and poles which filled up the back of our car.  In addition to the predator guard, they have an easy installation system where a piece of re-bar is driven into the ground then the aluminum pole just slips down over it.

Photos can be slightly enlarged by clicking on them and the blue words are links.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

Larry

6/17/25 event date

First Watch With Cindy and The Predator Hawk

Just as with friend, Kathy, I gave Cindy free lunches for her Christmas present and for her first one she chose First Watch in Maryville .  First watch is a 600+ restaurant chain headquartered in Bradenton, FL and Cindy has been there many times and since I had been wanting to try it, I was pleased with her choice.

Ming Tree, Friend Green Tomato Sandwich, Bev & Her Boys, And Skunks

Ming Tree

Our Kia was due for it's annual service so we drove both cars to town, dropped off the Kia at the dealership, and went to lunch at the Ming Tree Chinese Restaurant in Alcoa. 

Delicious Creamy Chicken Fajita Pasta

When I saw this recipe for Creamy Chicken Fajita Pasta on Chef Dennis’ “Ask Chef Dennis” blog, I thought it would work well for our Friday get together so on the menu it went.  To increase the number of servings, I increased the ingredients by 50% except for the pasta amount but the original recipe along with excellent how-to pics can be found by clicking on the link.  Dennis’ son, Chef Ryan Littley, says “This creamy chicken fajita pasta brings together juicy chicken, sizzling peppers, and bold Tex-Mex flavors in one easy skillet dinner.  Ready in about 35 minutes, it's a family favorite that's as quick as it is delicious.”

Kathy’s Final 2025 Christmas Present Lunch

I’ve mentioned this in previous post but due to scheduling issues, it took nine months for me to give good friend, Kathy, her Christmas present of five free lunches but we final made it to the last one – I hope to do better next year.  At the suggestion of neighbor, Steve, I decided to make this outing more special than just driving to a local restaurant, so we picked the date and rode the pontoon boat down the lake to the Tellico Village Yacht Club.  Tellico Village is a large 5000 acre retirement community stretching several miles along the west side of Tellico Lake.

SIL, Pat also joined us for our lunch excursion and here we are starting out of our cove.

A Little Blog Modification And WV Trip Continued - The Greenbrier Hotel And Resort

Since my buddy Dave has announced that he is giving up most of his blogging, it got me to thinking about mine. I believe my blog is as they were meant to be - my journal - where I can go back and find recipes, pics, our travels and so on, thus I have no intention of quitting right now or I would miss all of that documentation, plus it gives me something to do.  I have recently been posting every three days but I don’t have many folks stopping by to read quite a few of them and so I had an epiphany.  I can keep writing up my blogs to get the documentation I need but I don’t have to publish all of them but rather just the ones that I think you will find interesting and hopefully about more than just food.

Greenbrier Hotel pic from the web.

Trip to Italy Day 25 – The Awesome Amalfi Coast - Back By Water

After our stop in Cetara, we headed back west and stopped in the town of Minori for lunch at the Ristorante Giardiniello which was recommended by the tour company owner, Roberto and it has been in business since 1955.  It was very pleasant sitting under the pergola. 

Trip to Italy Day 25 – The Awesome Amalfi Coast - Out

Well, the big day has finally arrived – the major reason for coming to this area is to see the Amalfi Coast and we hired a private tour to do it so we could leave the driving to them and be able to take in the sites.  Our driver, Fabio, picked us up in Sorrento at 8:30am and the journey east began.

Trip to Italy Day 21 & 22 - Orvieto To Rome Airport To Beautiful Sorrento

After a good nights sleep, on Saturday, mid-morning, our very nice hostess, and owner, Sabrina retrieved our car from the parking garage, helped us load up and sent us on our way.  This is a shot of the owner, Sabrina, on the right and her right hand girl, Rita.

Trip to Italy Day 18 & 19 - Our Last Day In Castellina And Heading To Orvieto

Day 18 was packing day for us and while I was pretty much well, Bev was still feeling a little rough – the silver lining was that we watched the complete Taylor Sheridan series “Landman” starring Billy Bob Thorton and much of “Tulsa King” starring Sylvester Stallone - so, we flew a few thousand miles and spent more than a few thousand dollars to watch shows we were unlikely to watch at home – duh.

Bev took a few pics around the farmhouse before we left.

Trip to Italy Day 16 & 17 - A Day In Castellina Then Goodbye

Since Rhett & Beth joined us after cruising across the Atlantic and spending time in France and England they were ready for an easy day before flying home so they just kicked around in Castellina for the day – they had been gone for 24 Days.  We made reservations for them at the Squarcialupi Taverne (Castellina’s best restaurant) while Beverly continued to convalesce and I stayed with her.  Unfortunately, our dream trip has turned into the trip from hell for her with a chest cold and a sprained ankle and she’s talking about wanting to just go home.

They ate on the taverne veranda overlooking the countryside - the black rooster on the bottle indicates good wine.

Trip to Italy Day 14 & 15 – Cooking Class In Volterra and Return to Florence

The plan for this day was to go to Agriturismo Biologico Diacceroni  near Volterra (75 minute drive) for a pasta and pizza cooking class but since Bev needed to stay off her sprained ankle, I stayed home with her and Rhett and Beth went to the class.  They both took the pasta class.  Here is a shot of the place that I borrowed from the web.

Trip to Italy Day 7– Florence Tour

On Saturday we all slept in and then prepared for the trip to Tuscany's capital, Florence for a guided tour on what was finally a pretty day.  Since I can’t do long distance walking and we were having trouble figuring out how to get to Florence, we just decided that I would drive them to a place to meet the guide, come back to Castellina then go back and pick them up – about a 50 minute trip each way.  I had mentioned before that the terrain reminded me of WV and here are a couple of shots showing that from the road to Florence and the road to the farmhouse where we are staying.

Home Grown (Restaurant), Bodie, And Snow

When Madison (granddaughter) lived with us the first time, she was in 8^th grade and, even though we had two dogs, we decided to get her a dog of her own.  After some looking around we ended up with a cute little Maltese puppy that Madison named Bodie and we all grew to love him so we were disappointed when she moved back home and opted to take Bodie with her – but of course we understood. 

When Madison went off to college, Bodie ended up with Rhett and Beth, which is the current situation but since they both retired in October, they have been traveling extensively and Bodie ends up being boarded a lot.  Since they plan on more traveling, we all thought it would be best for Bodie if he stayed with us for a while, which of course we will also like.

To get him we each made the approximately three-hour drive to Asheville, NC and met for lunch at an interesting little place called HomeGrown  which is a converted old house.  I borrowed some of the pics from the web.

Our Annual Trip To Marco Island, FL – Everglades City and The Triad Seafood Market & Café

We woke to ten-degree cooler temps this day as the cold front had made its way into South Florida (mid-30F nights at home) and the wind was blowing from the west causing the usually calm gulf to have some pretty good waves.

Our Annual Trip To Marco Island, FL

You are likely aware that my girls make a three-week trip to our timeshare in Marco and I rarely go because I don’t like to go where it’s hot after just getting thru a long hot Tennessee summer, but this year I decided to go so Bev wouldn’t have to make that long drive.  So, after saying good-bye to Cindy and the very disappointed pups, we got on the road at a foggy 5am.  We came down US-411 to near Cartersville, GA then I-75 where the traffic was light to Atlanta then pretty heavy until the Florida Turnpike peeled off in Wildwood.  They have been widening I-75 for as long as I can remember but they should have made it four or five lanes rather than just three.  As it turns out, I’m more relaxed behind the wheel than as a passenger (maybe it’s a control issue) so I did the driving and 12½ hours and 800 miles later we pulled into The Charter Club Of Marco Beach.  Listening to a book helped the time pass quicker.  While Bev doesn’t like spending a night in a hotel, I think it’s time to start making this a two-day trip.  

We got in at sunset and had this view from the balcony.

A Little Roundabout Trip To Nebraska, Day 6 & 7, Sioux Falls

This day started the trip toward home and took us from Rugby, ND to Sioux Falls, SD to spend two nights.  It was a 464 mile day so we got an early start and just ate leftovers and cheese & crackers for a quick lunch on the road.  The drive took us back east on US-2 and south on I-29 which we had driven going to Rugby (I-29 only from Fargo).  US-2 is a good, four-lane road with 70 mph speed limit and few vehicles.  I think you would consider it as heavy traffic if you can look out your windshield and in your rear-view mirror and see more than two other vehicles.

There was a big difference in land from rolling terrain around Rugby to table top flat near Grand Forks and we saw some soybean harvesting happening and the wheat was done but there are lots of crops still standing ready.

A Little Roundabout Trip To Nebraska, Day 5, Rugby

The next day was spent in the Rugby area where we accomplished the reason for coming here, which was to see our little 68 acre piece of land that we bought several years ago (it's a long story) but have never seen.  It turned out to be about 45 miles south of town and in the middle of nowhere.  We had pretty good directions but still got lost and happened to stop at a home to ask for directions and it turned out this guy had sold the land to the person we bought it from (what are the chances) so he knew exactly how to get there.  Here are pics of the land and the road it’s on starting from the top of the road and shooting east.  In the distance you can see the pond (called sloughs here) and they are everywhere and at some point they are big enough to be called a lake and they are often dry.

Delicious Home Cooked Pork Rinds And Spring Is Definitely Here

Pork rinds may well be my favorite snack food and I buy the 16 oz container of them from Sam’s for $6.28 and they last me a week or so.  As we’ve gone to various festivals over the years, there is often a vendor selling fried pork rinds and I noticed they use small pieces of pork skins that they had purchased.