You can choose your friends but you can't choose your relatives. Part 1

“She’s drivin’ for ya! You got yourself a good one!” Grandma Betty

We began a bit late again (Phil’s habit) to get underway to Chattanooga and finally Nashville. Chattanooga was our first stop meeting each other’s relatives (Phil’s grandmother and Uncle Jerry) while on the trip. Needless to say Emma was warned of potential weirdness.

We had lunch at a fancy Thai place my long-haired Uncle picked out. The food was great but the lights a little dim for my Grandmother who checked her purse for a flashlight several times when the waitress came around. After we finished eating the two of them talked to us for about three hours.

The stories ranged from the mundane to simply preposterous, but we nodded and continued to listen. Since most of you don’t know my Uncle Jerry ‘invented’ the type of music that ZZ Top plays while he lived in Montana! On the truth end of the story spectrum the grizzly bear stories were the best part. I must say it was great to see them after two years and they are still the same loveable people. And Emma is now Phil’s girlfriend and there may be another wedding in the future, according to Grandma Betty.

Once we finally got on the road we started the few hour drive to Nashville. A few days prior to this trip we got a call from Emma’s besti, Abi, who released the good news and the bad news – good news, her sister Katie was in labor; bad news, we wouldn’t get to hang out with her in Nashville. But we’re glad Abi got to be there for Katie when happy and healthy Tyler Scott Canestrano was born on October 9^th.

Our plans weren’t thrown though – we met up with Amanda who was happy to host us, especially since Emma hosted her in Tanzania for 3 weeks J. After playing a little bit of Wii – a relatively new thing to us, and visiting, we headed out to dinner where we met up with Kristin, another friend for Emma’s summer working in Nashville.

After dinner we headed to 3 Crow where we continued to take advantage of free “gifts,” from beer to pin balls we gladly accepted anything that saved us a penny or two. We even had another friend come out! Joy, a WCF friend of Nicholas and Kristy’s at ASU met up with us at the bar. Emma hadn’t seen her in quite a long time – and though she was friends with her brother, Nicholas, she was there during the time Emma first got a little intoxicated as a wee little high-schooler.

Not a terribly late night, but glad to hang out with old friends and have good conversations. After a bag of beef jerky, some tuna and crackers, and a bit of water, we crashed.

Special salutations to Emma’s Dad: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, and watch out for table saws, they could take off your finger if you aren’t careful.