Asheville Trip // my first vacation with Aaron
The city of Asheville, North Carolina has way too many head shops. Drappy dresses, bad art, incense, and kitchen magnets were in most every front of its downtown stores. Not to mention there were rows and rows of cabinets full of glass blown pipes. I tugged Aaron into Skinny Beats Drum Shop, which sold African drums (the Djembe, the Congo, and Doumbek). We talked to Billy, who was one of the owners and had just returned from Africa, where he'd learned more about the musical art. "I don't eat cheese," he insisted to us as he tapped out a janty beat on one of his drums. "Being in Africa changed my entire dietary habits." Don't ask me how we got on the topic of cheese. I can't remember, honestly.
Wine and Beer stores were a must-stop-by for Aaron, so I ended up often in the midsts of obscure wines, looking up flavors and origins. I found out in one that one of the most popular German brands of wine is in danger of losing its flavor due to a ill-advised interstate construction project plowing through the countryside near its vineyards.
Aaron stuck to his beers everytime, obsessing over trying this IPA or that porter or this stout. We ended up trying two dozen types of beer, sampling many of the local brews from some of the pubs and bars like Jack of the Wood (the Green Man's Brown Porter, delicious!), Lab (American Pale Ale!), and Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company (Mmm, the Rocket Girl!).
But before all that.......The first thing we did when we arrived in Asheville was see the Highland Brewery. There was a live band there, frizbe golf, corn-hole, and ping-pong, so plenty to keep visitors entertained. The brewery itself was amazing. I talked to a couple of the employees, who showed me where their Mocha Stout was made (my favorite). Aaron and I tried their speciality beer, the 7 Sisters, which was way too cinnimon-y and tart for both our tastes.
We argued for probably the 10th time about children since there were many of them running around the brewery with their parents. He bought me some nachoes while we were there and they were delicious (they used this white cheese that was just great).
When we arrived downtown, the first place we went to eat and drink was the Bier Garden. I had read online that it had over 200 types of beer, many of them international. So we started out with a Honey Lager then branched off and tried a Stout and a really light IPA. Aaron, meanwhile, had slumped into a major sulky depression, not wanting to talk or move or eat. Since this has been my fourth encounter with this kind of behavior from him, I didn't react seriously to it. Just ordered a sandwhich, chatted when something came into my mind, and left him alone until he was more amiable. It took some major coxing, but what pulled him out was a game of air hockey, which I purposefully made him play with me. My theory is that it's next to impossible to be depressed for long when you're trying to play a competitive game. It worked, and he beat me. Barely. And was in high spirits ever since.
Afterwards got blurry, as we spent our Friday night checking out as many bars as we could. We went into the Thirsty Monk and tried some wines and beer. Aaron was on his eighth or ninth beverage by this point, and insisted on laying out on their couch downstairs, where I recieved some embarassement from one of their waiters, who witnessed my struggle to get him to get up and find a place to eat n'get sober.... We finally did end up at a bar that served chicken fingers. A band was there, playing the Eagles, which made Aaron very excited..... I remained surprisingly sober mostly, and drove us to a few more interesting looking places outside of the downtown area. We didn't get back to the hotel until 3:00 a.m. where Aaron passed out quickly as I prodded and poked him into getting to his side of the rather large King size bed. Originally he insisted on sprawling out right in the middle. Rude much?
The next day we ended up on a long mission to find some good BBQ food. Finally we found a place, which had its own sauces. I tried everyone, and loved all of them. I ended up splurging on a high gravity Imperial Stout drink that had 10% alcohol to it. This gave me a pretty decent buzz.
We ended up in a beautiful furnature shop at one point where everything was priced in the thousands, but so very, very gorgeous. I ended up in long flights of fantasy over the eventual purchasing on a large 3K opium bed....started thinking about how wonderful it would be to have an outdoor patio one day with a wooden Buddha head set in the middle of my rose bed. I saw myself happy with Aaron, in a small, sweet home 15 minutes from town. I would be a teacher and a writer, happy and social.... with two cats and a house full of original works of art.
We ended up later in an art gallery. We talked briefly with a woman from Maryville. Then we argued over the gender of a photographer, who had taken black and white photos of naked women in various "relaxed poses."
We spent a great deal at Jack in the Wood, by far the best pub in the city. We drank and played darts.... talked with one of the servers, who had a raven tattoo on her chest carrying a rune that meant "rebirth" in its claws.
The last day in Asheville we spent outdoors. First, however, we went to Bruis'n Ales, where we got a few beers we liked to take back home. We also tried the Duck-Rabbit Barleywine on tap, which was delicious beyond words. There was a puppy in there I liked to play with. There were dogs all over the city, in fact.
Then we stopped by Asheville Pizza and Brewing company for their pizza buffet and a small glass of their Lumbi on tap (it tastes like sparkling grape juice but has more alcohol in it than wine, yummy!)
Once we were out of the city, we headed straight for the Blue Ridge Parkway then to the Arboritum. We took some trails, saw the Azalea exhibit, walked through the gardens, and admired the river for a bit before heading out and having some really good Mexican food at a place called Papa's and Beer. Well, I had some food. Aaron just nibbled. All the beer and heavy food was making him fussy again.
The drive back hom was wonderful. I listened to a lot of his music, shared a few of my songs.... when we arrived home, Aaron stuck around and we played two games of chess, talked, cuddled then very, very reluctantly parted ways.
I went to bed shaky and exhausted, and passed out instantly. I didn't wake up again until my alarm went off at 7:00 a.m for my Jury Summons.
All day today I have been in a happy haze, enjoying the afterglow of being with Aaron, wishing to see him now. Aaah, love. I made a mistake, however, at work.... left my dial down too low, so ATC was muffled for about 10 minutes. Some people in their cars were probably dog cussing me on their way home from work, but I don't care.... I'm in love. :)
For tonight, I'm going to go see Sarah, or Ashley, or MJ.... or perhaps all three. I need some girlfriends to talk to 'cause I'm not going to be able to get through the next 24 hours without some social release. Mmm, this relationship is turning me into such a girl!
Wine and Beer stores were a must-stop-by for Aaron, so I ended up often in the midsts of obscure wines, looking up flavors and origins. I found out in one that one of the most popular German brands of wine is in danger of losing its flavor due to a ill-advised interstate construction project plowing through the countryside near its vineyards.
Aaron stuck to his beers everytime, obsessing over trying this IPA or that porter or this stout. We ended up trying two dozen types of beer, sampling many of the local brews from some of the pubs and bars like Jack of the Wood (the Green Man's Brown Porter, delicious!), Lab (American Pale Ale!), and Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company (Mmm, the Rocket Girl!).
But before all that.......The first thing we did when we arrived in Asheville was see the Highland Brewery. There was a live band there, frizbe golf, corn-hole, and ping-pong, so plenty to keep visitors entertained. The brewery itself was amazing. I talked to a couple of the employees, who showed me where their Mocha Stout was made (my favorite). Aaron and I tried their speciality beer, the 7 Sisters, which was way too cinnimon-y and tart for both our tastes.
We argued for probably the 10th time about children since there were many of them running around the brewery with their parents. He bought me some nachoes while we were there and they were delicious (they used this white cheese that was just great).
When we arrived downtown, the first place we went to eat and drink was the Bier Garden. I had read online that it had over 200 types of beer, many of them international. So we started out with a Honey Lager then branched off and tried a Stout and a really light IPA. Aaron, meanwhile, had slumped into a major sulky depression, not wanting to talk or move or eat. Since this has been my fourth encounter with this kind of behavior from him, I didn't react seriously to it. Just ordered a sandwhich, chatted when something came into my mind, and left him alone until he was more amiable. It took some major coxing, but what pulled him out was a game of air hockey, which I purposefully made him play with me. My theory is that it's next to impossible to be depressed for long when you're trying to play a competitive game. It worked, and he beat me. Barely. And was in high spirits ever since.
Afterwards got blurry, as we spent our Friday night checking out as many bars as we could. We went into the Thirsty Monk and tried some wines and beer. Aaron was on his eighth or ninth beverage by this point, and insisted on laying out on their couch downstairs, where I recieved some embarassement from one of their waiters, who witnessed my struggle to get him to get up and find a place to eat n'get sober.... We finally did end up at a bar that served chicken fingers. A band was there, playing the Eagles, which made Aaron very excited..... I remained surprisingly sober mostly, and drove us to a few more interesting looking places outside of the downtown area. We didn't get back to the hotel until 3:00 a.m. where Aaron passed out quickly as I prodded and poked him into getting to his side of the rather large King size bed. Originally he insisted on sprawling out right in the middle. Rude much?
The next day we ended up on a long mission to find some good BBQ food. Finally we found a place, which had its own sauces. I tried everyone, and loved all of them. I ended up splurging on a high gravity Imperial Stout drink that had 10% alcohol to it. This gave me a pretty decent buzz.
We ended up in a beautiful furnature shop at one point where everything was priced in the thousands, but so very, very gorgeous. I ended up in long flights of fantasy over the eventual purchasing on a large 3K opium bed....started thinking about how wonderful it would be to have an outdoor patio one day with a wooden Buddha head set in the middle of my rose bed. I saw myself happy with Aaron, in a small, sweet home 15 minutes from town. I would be a teacher and a writer, happy and social.... with two cats and a house full of original works of art.
We ended up later in an art gallery. We talked briefly with a woman from Maryville. Then we argued over the gender of a photographer, who had taken black and white photos of naked women in various "relaxed poses."
We spent a great deal at Jack in the Wood, by far the best pub in the city. We drank and played darts.... talked with one of the servers, who had a raven tattoo on her chest carrying a rune that meant "rebirth" in its claws.
The last day in Asheville we spent outdoors. First, however, we went to Bruis'n Ales, where we got a few beers we liked to take back home. We also tried the Duck-Rabbit Barleywine on tap, which was delicious beyond words. There was a puppy in there I liked to play with. There were dogs all over the city, in fact.
Then we stopped by Asheville Pizza and Brewing company for their pizza buffet and a small glass of their Lumbi on tap (it tastes like sparkling grape juice but has more alcohol in it than wine, yummy!)
Once we were out of the city, we headed straight for the Blue Ridge Parkway then to the Arboritum. We took some trails, saw the Azalea exhibit, walked through the gardens, and admired the river for a bit before heading out and having some really good Mexican food at a place called Papa's and Beer. Well, I had some food. Aaron just nibbled. All the beer and heavy food was making him fussy again.
The drive back hom was wonderful. I listened to a lot of his music, shared a few of my songs.... when we arrived home, Aaron stuck around and we played two games of chess, talked, cuddled then very, very reluctantly parted ways.
I went to bed shaky and exhausted, and passed out instantly. I didn't wake up again until my alarm went off at 7:00 a.m for my Jury Summons.
All day today I have been in a happy haze, enjoying the afterglow of being with Aaron, wishing to see him now. Aaah, love. I made a mistake, however, at work.... left my dial down too low, so ATC was muffled for about 10 minutes. Some people in their cars were probably dog cussing me on their way home from work, but I don't care.... I'm in love. :)
For tonight, I'm going to go see Sarah, or Ashley, or MJ.... or perhaps all three. I need some girlfriends to talk to 'cause I'm not going to be able to get through the next 24 hours without some social release. Mmm, this relationship is turning me into such a girl!