The Plains Experience

The main goal of our 4 day jaunt through parts of TN,GA and NC was to visit former President Jimmy Carter's Sunday School class at Maranantha Baptist Church in Plains. Our visit to Plains began on Saturday afternoon where we visited Plains High School (a museum of Carter memorabilia), the campaign headquarters at the Plains Railroad Depot and The Boyhood Farm where he grew up and the rather small town itself. The National Park Service has taken over operations of the main Carter sites in Plains. We had great Southern cooking twice at Mom's Kitchen in Plains. I had sweet potato pie for the first time. It was real good. The people we met were exceptionally friendly. Even the Police Chief stopped while we were outside the Plains Depot and took a picture of us and chatted for a while. We were made to feel right at home. Both of us felt like this was the most awesome vacation experience we've ever had.

The Segway was an attraction in and around Plains. The minister of the church, Jeff Summers, asked me to show it to him after the service. I talked him into getting on it (it wasn't hard as he was eager to see how it worked) and experience traveling a few feet forward and backwards.

The Sunday School lesson was excellent. Here was a former US President asking us what determines greatness. His answer was that it was not found in one's accomplishments, great wealth or obtaining a position of great power, but rather to be more Christlike.

After this picture was taken, the former President told me that he had ridden them (Segways) before and found them to be a lot of fun. He further said to me "You can leave it here when you leave Plains" and flashed a typical Jimmy Carter smile.

TN,GA,NC

Our 1st stop was in Chattanooga TN, where we visited the Tennessee Aquarium. We have visited several different aquariums in some of the places we've been to and liked them all. This one featured a River Walk, Ocean Walk, and a Butterfly exhibit in which you walked through a large area which was enclosed with netting. Butterflies flew all around and were abundant. Very neat experience. The above picture was taken in the River Walk section of the aquarium and featured plants and animals native to the mountain regions. Here is Wanda in Plains, Georgia. This destination was our main goal in scheduling this trip. More about the Plains experience in the earlier presidential post.On our way back we stopped in Helen, GA. Helen was a very tidy town in which all the architecture was of the style of a Bavarian village. The Chattahoochee River runs at the edge of the town. The Tallulah Gorge area is near by. This is where the setting for the movie Deliverance took place. My favorite acquisition in Helen was a T-shirt which reads in large letters - Paddle Faster, I hear banjo music. We spent the last night in North Carolina, stopping for a shopping trip in Highlands. The area is known for the many falls, this one being Bridal Veil Falls. In Highlands I met the Chief of Police while we were shopping in the town. He was interested in the Segway because he was thinking about getting one for his officers to use on parking patrol. Good idea.

MS Walk at The Kentucky Horse Park

Today was just one of those days that makes one glad to be alive. The MS Walk was sponsored by the Kentucky Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The event was held in order to raise funds to assist in finding a cure for the disease. The walk was held at The Kentucky Horse Park just south of Georgetown. My local doctor, Dr. Gus Bynum, came jogging along and stopped and offered to take a picture of Wanda and I. I had mistakenly told Wanda before the event that it was just a mile long. The route was really 3.2 miles in length and I didn't know it. Although she walks a lot at home, she was still glad to see the finish. I couldn't resist stopping for a short break to go over and see a four legged friend. They seemed curious about the Segway. As you can see, Central Kentucky is beautiful this time of year, greening up and getting ready for Derby Day.

Hilton Head Family Fun '06

The family and I spent a week at Hilton Head, South Carolina, staying in a beautiful condo in the Palmetto Dunes Plantation. We've been there several times, but this was the most beautiful condo we have rented. Situated at the edge of canals, the views out the many tall and wide windows provided us with a very beautiful semi tropical sight. Gliding along the beach at top speed was a fantastic experience. To ride as fast as the Segway would take me, near the waters edge while feeling the sun and wind in my face was almost breathtaking. I was able fly as free as a bird, and in a few of my more mischievous moments I even chased some beach birds too. I almost felt like I could take off and fly with them. Although gravity held me its prisoner and kept my body on the ground, my spirit soared with them as they took to flight. Flippin' awesome experience! My youngest grandson, Sam, loved to run down to the water and fill his bucket up to take some back to where his bigger bucket was and play in the sand with the water he carried back. His place of play was way behind us where his mother and mum are sitting. He'd happily dip his bucket in the water and then when satisfied, return to his play spot near the blanket. The only problem was that he'd tip his bucket over a little bit when he was running back and most all of the water would drain out on his return journey. He'd add the few drops which remained in the pail to his larger bucket and be ready to go again.

The ankle brace on my right ankle is a new addition. Due to my weak right side, my ankle would easily turn causing me to fall sometime when standing. When I talked to Dr. Gus Bynum, my GP, he prescribed it for me and said "We've got to keep you standing on that machine as long as we can". Excellent idea! It does help a great deal.

A Real Segway Challenge

This was the pathway I had to use to get to the beach with the Segway. Going up this side never gave me any trouble at all. Maybe because the sand was at least either partially shaded or received indirect sunlight and was a little less dry than on the other side.

Below is a picture of the side that gave me some trouble. Coming back from the beach the sand was very dry and loose if it didn't receive any rain the evening before. I did get the Segway bogged down at least twice and had it suddenly catch hold and fly out from under me, leaving me on my back looking upward at the sky. I did figure out that the best way to maneuver through this was to get off, put the Segway behind me, use the 'power assist' function and let the handlebar touch the small of my back and let it actually push me until I could get through to a firmer place. Loose sand on a level plane caused no problem whatsoever. I just traveled slower and stayed very alert in order to guide the machine through to harder sand.

The Lady and Sons, Savannah, GA

The Lady and Sons restaurant in Savannah. Since my wife and I are both fans of Paula Deen, we decided to take a little sidetrip and drive to Savannah for lunch at her famous restaurant. We were not deterred by the tales of long lines stretching far down the block just to put your name in with the hostess for an assigned time to be seated. We actually didn't have to wait much more than 30 minutes, and got an early seating time (11:30). Parking in Savannah's Historic District is almost a nightmare, so I let my wife out in front of the restaurant and drove around looking for a spot to park. I found one about 4 blocks away, maneuvered the SUV in it, got out, unloaded the Segway, climbed aboard where I was once again transformed into my alter-ego (Segwayman), and glided effortlessly along the sidewalks and a through couple of Savannah's beautiful park-like squares to meet my wife in the line at the restaurant. Another great benefit in traveling with the Segway, that being letting her out and then driving wherever to park. Makes it easy on both of us.
Wanda and I having a great lunch at "The Lady and Sons". The two drinks in front of us are: her iced tea, and second, my swamp water. A delicious mixture of half tea and half lemonade. We learned about it while having lunch at Gullah Grub on St. Helena Island just outside Beaufort. It has become my lunch/dinner drink of choice. Wonder if they've ever heard of swamp water back home in Kentucky? Bet not.
Outside The Lady and Sons restaurant. I rode the Segway inside where they showed me a place where I could park it and then used my cane to get to our table via an elevator to the 3rd floor. The food was not merely average or good Southern cooking, rather great Southern cooking. As the saying reads on some gift items in the restaurant - "The Lady Can Cook".

Bike Riding

My oldest daughter, Melody, with two of her three little varmits ready to go to the beach. On the right is AnnMarie Rose Stacy, age 3 and on the left is Samuel Pruitt Stacy, age 1. They added a lot of fun to the trip. But Belly Button Eating Crabs kept bothering AnnMarie (a fun game I play with her when I use my hand to mimic a crab crawling around and trying to find a fresh belly button to eat) My wife, Wanda, and I getting ready to ride. The Hilton Head bike paths wind in and out of beautiful semi-tropical settings and are interconnected for miles. One shouldn't visit Hilton Head without experiencing this. Another outing which had become lost to me because of my being unable to ride a bicycle and balance myself because of my MS. Using the Segway returned this to me in the grandest of ways. I don't think people can truly appreciate every little moment to the fullest unless they've had something so taken for granted unexpectedly stolen away and then returned to them at a later time. Thank you so very much Dean Kamen (Segway inventor and developer).
My youngest, and still single but probably about to change, daughter Cynthia Rose with grandson number one, Tanner, age 6. It's difficult to notice the front teeth he's missing in this picture, but yes, they aren't really there. Cynthia's are all in though as she shows by grinning from ear to ear.
Lil' Beaver and I getting ready to ride. I had to be careful and not let him go too far like I did the first evening, because he gets real tired on the return trip. I had to give him several pushes with my hand on his back several times as we were coming back.
Lil Rascal and Lil' Miss Priss looking forward to a trip to the beach in the little buggy hooked on the back of mommy's bike.

Hilton Head Stops

Outside the Mall at Shelter Cove. As with all Hilton Head commercial buildings, they manage to maintain the tropical look.

Wanda and I at Harbourtown the last night. This evening concluded our week long stay. Although we all did miss Mike, my son-in-law (who feels more like a real son to me), because he was away in Hong Kong with a student exchange visit with students from his high school, it was a very enjoyable experience for me in being able to spend a week at the beach with my wife, two daughters, and of course my three little varmit grandkids. We had been going to Hilton Head for several years, but stopped when it started not being as much fun for me because of my limited mobility. Now the Segway has restored that to me too. I'm in awe of the machine and how it works for me.