Mountain Rendezvous

A couple weeks ago we rendezvoused with 2 sets of special friends in western North Carolina, in the Great Smokey Mountains. Cooler, less humid and populated with dear friends, the trip was a welcome respite.

John and Susan flew all the way across the country to join us for the weekend. It was so nice to see them. It's instantly comfortable being with them again - it feels like no time at all has passed.

Tom and Helen pointed their RV towards western NC and joined us from their last stop in Virginia. Helen did the research to uncover the perfect place to stay together for a long weekend. It was a beautiful new home set in the mountains with 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms and of course... a good kitchen. Because the men were intent on having an IRON CHEF weekend. And of course we were more than willing to let them cook for us.

And did they ever! When we arrived I got a bit delirious - Tom was already in the midst of preparing his famous, authentic seafood gumbo with homemade stock no less!

Oh swoon...

I've so been missing wonderful seafood dishes and Tom's gumbo is worth killing for. John's official measure of a good meal is "would you have it for your last meal?" Answer: yes, need you ask?

And if that wasn't delicious enough, we topped it off with Helen's bread pudding and whiskey sauce crafted from a Bon Ton's recipe. I had it for breakfast the next morning too. Why not? I'm positive New Orleans natives do it all the time. But now I have to add whiskey sauce to my personal list of controlled substances.

While the guys slugged it out in the kitchen we went shopping. Blowing Rock NC has a wonderful selection of unique little boutiques. Unencumbered by the males we cut a modest shopping swath through Blowing Rock. New and numerous trinkets! Oh happy day!

In Kitchen Stadium, Iron Chef Love
inspects Iron Chef Mazza's work

While we were out, the men made homemade bread. John has perfected bread making to the point where he can make the most amazing bread anywhere, any time. I swear he could find a way to do it in the car using the cigarette lighter. So incredibly good. The best bread I've had since we moved here.

But wait! There's more! Homemade cioppino! Lobster, crab, prawns, clams, mussels, flavor! More swooning. I've been so deprived. Cioppino is a special meal that makes an appearance on holidays, like New Year's Eve and birthdays. Certainly this get-together qualified.

Our weekend also included a little sight seeing and a cut throat game of Cranium. The girls beat the boys, but barely. After being plied with food and drink we didn't have our usual edge. We also got a bit distracted by the antics of Tom and Helen's giant dog Baxter. Caught up in the excitement (e.g. the shouting, laughter and general hysteria) he joined in with some of his own and created even more hilarity.

Baxter displays hungry eyes... and incredible control

We love Baxter, he's a person in a fur suit. He won the dog lottery when found his way to Tom and Helen's front porch in a desperate state. I think there is something of the divine in this enormous and sweet dog making a beeline for the front porch of 2 people tender-hearted and generous enough to say "oh all right..." and move over to make room for a giant dog.

And then it was over. You know you had a great time when you find re-entry back to your real life kind of hard. I returned home dragging my feet. Already missing being in the circle of friendship, warmth and laughter.