Thursday, Sept. 22:
Car had been mostly loaded the evening before, so finished loading what was
left and got under way about 0750. Traffic was heavy on I-540 so turned
off on US-70 to I-85 and headed on to Mayberry!
We made one rest stop outside Greensboro and made it the rest of the way
without stopping.
First stop was Snappy Lunch where we had our
huge....massive...delicious....messy....pork chop sandwich!! That made the trip
worth it!! While eating
we saw our first people, Jeff "Howard" Branch and Jim "Head Goober" Clark.
After eating we made our way up the street, stopping in stores as we went.
No crowds! How nice!! Then in to see Darrel, Debbie and Samantha at
Mayberry on Main. It is so nice to be treated so nice in a store and they are
to
be commended!! COMMEND!! There...done.
Also ran into Collin Watkins and his parents along the way!
We slowly made our way back down and stopped in the PO for my annual
postmarks, this time the mark features Snappy Lunch.
Next stop was to drop off the items for the silent auction on Saturday. But
one thing was missing and that was some homemade desserts at Barney's
Cafe. His mom makes all the desserts! Carol and I both had some cocoanut cake
ala mode and was it good!! After eating out dessert we walked back to Bear
Creek and got some of their home made fudge.
We decided to see if we could check in, but it was only 2 pm and check in
is 3 but we made it, got unloaded and all our stuff in the room. We
stretched out to rest and woke up a little over an hour later! Got a shower
and
later went to the hospitality room. Not hardly anyone came in this time and we
can't understand where everybody is??? We did meet up with Bobby, Janet
and Kyle Butler, and it is hard to believe Kyle is now I think 19 years old??
WOW! What a nice family!
Friday AM: POURING rain this AM!~ We walked over to Biscuitville, next
door, and had breakfast. We waited around the hotel a while until the rain
let up and rode downtown. Went to opening ceremonies at the Playhouse as the
amphitheater would have been a bad place at that time!! By time the
opening was over, the rain had stopped, so we walked back downtown until time
for
the trivia contest. What hard questions!! Even Pat and Dennis, past
champions who had gotten every question right, had loads of trouble with
these!
Pat came in second and Dennis came in third this time, the honors this time
went to a man from Indiana and I am sorry I forgot your name!!
When the contest was over all the members of WBMUTBB gathered at the
stage and after intros had our group photo taken. That was fun! After that was
over we walked back to the parking lot to leave and ran into a friend from
Virginia....Literally!! He had backed out a little to allow his wife to get
in the car and when I backed out of my space didn't see him and we
connected! Not a lot of damage to either car so glad for that. Have turned it
in to
my insurance co. so hopefully it will be settled. We started talking and
became instant friends, and saw them again at the amphitheater and talked
again. That is the Mayberry Spirit!
Went back to the hotel, got baths and went back to the hospitality room
and sat with unhappy fans!! We have no celebrities to talk with except George
Spence, who came in about 9:15 and is always a good conversationalist! And
loads of fun!...but no one else! And no music this year!
Saturday: Up at 0600, got out of hotel about 7 and went to Biscuitville
drive thru and got our breakfast.We rode downtown and parked on the street
and ate our biscuits, then waited for the parade. It started to arrive about
9:10 and lasted just under an hour. A couple from Sylva NC stood with us
and upon talking to her my wife found out she is starting treatments tomorrow
for Breast cancer, so say a prayer for a friend from Sylva. the parade was,
as usual, great! Loads of great things to look at, all the stars and
tribute artists, and a couple of the wives had great roles as well....Jan was
pickle queen dressed all in green, and Patty.....I have yet to figure out
what that was!! It was hilarious whatever it might be! So much fun!
After the parade we walked up to the playhouse to check out the silent
auction. We walked over to the amphitheater for the pork contest awards then
back to the playhouse to get our pork barbecue sandwiches, taking them back
to the amphitheater for a place to sit while we ate. We saw the cloggers
and some country music, then walked back downtown and got the car and drove
it to the amphitheater for the Mayberry Idle contest. That was fun! David
"Gomer" Belk who has a fine Gomer voice, whistled the Fishin' Hole and hit
every note right on! There was a conglomeration off different acts, all
enjoyable. First time I had heard the Stars and Stripes Forever played on a
guitar! As soon as Collin did his rendition of I Wish Life Was Like Mayberry
we
left to get our baths and some rest before Col. Tim's Talent Time. We
arrived back at the playhouse about 6:30 and talked with old friends until
time
to go in. And as usual, what a show!! It started with role reversal....Jan
Newsom dressed like Floyd and Patty Browning like the Mayberry Deputy! That
was a real hoot!! Then David and Allan took over and did a fantastic job!
And we didn't realize David and Patty could clog until they got on stage
with the cloggers and took part in it! Fantastical!! Or as my daddy would
have said.....Magical, Magical!! Ick Blick Obby!! Yum Yum!! Don't ask me what
it means but he said it a lot! But, every act was great, loads of laughs
and some seriousness as well. The song to draw a standing ovation was when
Colllin Watkins was asked to sing I Wish Life Was Like Mayberry and he drew a
long applause through the tears, and the standing O. The show ended with a
couple songs by Michael "Elvis" Hoover, ending with Trilogy. What a song!
We got back to the hotel about 11:15 and stayed in the hospitality room
with the Hendersons from Chester VA and George Spence again, and had a fine
time until Midnight.
Sunday AM: Had been raining a little but not much, and it had stopped. We
got our stuff packed and into the car about 0900 and got to the amphitheater
10 minutes later. As usual, LeRoy and Jan had a great church service with
lots of singing and Jan, the master storyteller, told a great story about a
learning impaired kid who got to play in a ball game. Thank you LeRoy and
Jan for another stellar service!
Afterwards we headed to the Sagebrush for early lunch but for some reason
the stars and tribute artists were segregated from the fans, except for
"Brisco" who ate in our area.
After eating and saying our goodbyes, we rode back downtown for a while,
then headed home. When we got to Pilot Mountain the car just naturally turned
off and headed uphill to the knob! What a view! If you go to Mayberry and
don't make a sidetrip to the mountain, you miss a great view! But when you
head back down you see a sign..Use Low Gear....believe it!!! Don't be
confused by all the signs saying Pilot Mountain. There is only one for the
turnoff and it is a brown sign, not green. The green ones lead you to the town
of Pilot Mountain. Follow the brown signs and you will get to the knob!!
Then it was head for home, made 2 more stops along the way, one rest stop
and one for a tank of cheaper gas which was 3.35.9 which is still
ridiculous! But, we made it and got our sleep last night!
As the old folks would say, a good time was had by all, so we will see you
all next year!!
_______________________________________________
WBMUTBB mailing list
[email protected]
http://www.mayberry.com/tagsrwc/wbmutbb/
