Charlotte, NC
11:35 AM
Up and to it this morning. It feels good to not have to drive multiple hours for a few days. I was driving Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday of last week. I’ve been run down.
I miss my Charlotte. People have gotten scattered in location and group, but the city still calls me. I got in from Atlanta Saturday at about 3. I finally was able to meet Jackson, my old roommate’s baby. I’m typing this from his and his fiancée’s kitchen table. Their baby boy is awesome. He looks a lot like Mike, poor kid. They have the same nose, eyes, but the chin formation is the most telling. I can’t believe he’s already 5 months old.
It was great to see everyone. I either must have been tired from the road or caught up in the hellos. My worst nightmare almost came true. We were standing around the kitchen and I was holding Jackson. Mike was showing me some pictures. I took my left hand to steady the camera and the little guy decided he wanted to lean back. My hand was not supporting him and he almost came tumbling down. I grabbed him though. It freaked him out and started to cry. It freaked me out too. I felt horrible. The look on Veronica’s face as he almost fell back was awful. I had the worst feeling in the pit of my stomach. He cried and she took him.
Your imagination runs wild with stuff when you hold a little baby. You get nervous about dropping a child. I almost did. That sucked. But, Jackson forgave me and allowed me to hold him. And he smiled at me and talked and kicked. What a good kid. Never cries. Always looking around. And his parents do a great job with him.
Veronica’s sister took Jackson for the night and the three of us did it up like we used to when we were all living downtown. We’d walk out of the apartment, head to Stool Pigeon’s and off from there.
Things have changed slightly. This time we made the 30 minute drive to downtown and Stool Pigeon’s. The downtown area was buzzing with people. I hadn’t seen it this busy since the Panthers beat the Eagles to get to the Super Bowl. New bars and restaurants had popped up, but we went to our old faithful.
We walked into Stool P and the same bouncer was there, chest puffed out, but always nice. I didn’t recognize any of the servers that I’d probably hit on in an over indulgence of $1.50 drafts. I did recognize the beautiful bartender with the body that won’t quit. I’d never slurred any come on’s to her, I don’t think.
We got our drinks and then looked around. The place was still the same but know we felt like old faithful. The crowd was very young. It could be that college is out and students are home for the summer. It could be the clientele has changed. Or it could be we are older than we were. We stood there with our drinks and hands in pockets. We did our best to not feel out of place. This is our place. Or this was our place. We had a beer and headed out.
We walked up 6th to Trade and marveled at the new places and the lines for those places. We are not club people or line people, so we didn’t try any of them out. Souped up low riders with big bass slowed by. You should have seen Veronica’s face when a big van hit its hydraulics and bounced up and down in front of us.
The night air felt great as a slight breeze whirred around the streets. We went into another old place, Ri-Ra. The crowd was better and we made our way outside. I love the skyline of Charlotte. It is so new, clean and well lit. I tilted my head back and stared up the Hearst Tower.
We had our beers and the yawns came out. It was close to 1:30 and decided we had to have some Fuel Pizza. We walked past more crowds of people and had a mega slice each. I miss my fuel.
We got back to their place at about 2:15 and called it a night. Veronica was missing Jackson. Mike and I watched a little ESPN before I had to bag it.
Sunday came with sleeping in. I was supposed to play golf in the AM but that didn’t materialize. And that was OK. Being in bed at 10 AM was fine with me. I rustled out and Mike and I went down to South Park to lay the tarp out for Pops in the Park. There is an amphitheatre here that is used for the Charlotte Symphony. They have 4 free shows in the summer. You get to the spot early, lay claim to your land, and come back as the sun sets for wine, cheese, and music. We had a spot close to the back, just off center. The blue tarp and tent stakes made it ours.
We came back here, ate some lunch and then headed to Lake Norman to see Steve (From Turks and Caicos trip), who had just bought some land on the water. It was great to see him. He is always working on houses and he was in the middle of tearing down a car port when we got there. He handed us a beer and showed us around, along with three dogs. We ended up down on the dock, sipping and finally jumping in the water. It felt great. After being up north for the winter, being the humidity and water was awesome. My shoulders feel the burn today.
Time was short and we left Steve’s at about 4 to come back and get ready for the Pops. We went and got fried chicken, some Riesling, and some beer. We arrived later than planned (7:45 PM). Our place was still there. We got the four of us settled, Jackson came along too, and popped the wine. I was surprised how the Pops had grown. We used to come to these two years ago and it wasn’t that well attended. Now, there were people all over the place. Camped out across the street. In Coke’s front yard. People were everywhere.
We sipped for a few and I went down a few blankets to catch up with Jay, Monica, Kinger, and Nadine (and Luke). I hadn’t seen them since I left and it was great to reconnect. Luke was born a few months ago and was a cute chunky guy. He was all smiles. We talked about my trip and some of the press stuff. Kinger’s business has taken off in a big way.
The Pops came on and I had to get back to our spot. We listened and talked and watched Jackson as he settled in. He enjoyed himself out there. Mike had a 5 AM wake up call today, so we left slightly early. I did some work once we got home and called it a night at about midnight after watching the boring NBA Finals.
I have to say I see Charlotte growing more than ever. The people, the construction, and the energy have multiplied immensely since I left. My friends are now in the burbs versus the city. Kids are on the scene in a big way with a lot of them and my cousins. And here I am driving around doing my thing. This is when it is hard. When I see my people growing up I wonder if I should be here making my bucks and doing it along with them. I don’t know the answer to that right now. The road still calls.
Time to leave and meet Rob and C for lunch.