Category: Longform
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Goodbye, Krispy Kreme
Sometime while we were gone on our Christmas vacation, our local Krispy Kreme closed down. It opened back in 2000, is only two blocks from our house, and the smell of fresh donuts often wafted over to tantalize us. I have a love-hate relationship with Krispy Kreme donuts; when they’re fresh and warm, they’re a real treat. Once they’ve cooled to room temperature, they become a total sugar overload and I am no longer a real fan. But still, I’m sad to see them go.
The local Krispy Kreme franchise owner says that the distributing facilities elsewhere in the state can handle the Cedar Rapids area’s distribution needs, and Krispy Kreme donuts will still be available in many retail stores. So people can still get their fix if they really need it… but it won’t be the same as driving up to the store in the morning, the smell of donuts in the air, and being offered a free fresh hot glazed donut. Wow, those were good.
On the upside, the news story says they’re likely to open an Arby’s in the old Krispy Kreme building. That will make Becky very happy. :-)
Pick Chris's Reading List: Taliesin (Book 1 of the Pendragon Cycle)
On to a book recommended by Nate Downey: Taliesin by Stephen Lawhead, which is book one of five books in Lawhead’s Pendragon Cycle.
I read Taliesin over Christmas break. My first surprise was when I looked at the publisher’s page in the front of the book and saw it was published by CrossWay Books, which is a Christian publishing house. “UhOh”, I thought… “I hope this isn’t going to be some silly Christian novel trying to masquerade as fantasy.” But I had faith in Nate’s selection, so I read on. And I was not let down.
The Pendragon Cycle deals with the Arthurian legend, trying to flesh out the story and put faces on the people. Taliesin is a great deal of back story; it follows the lives of a young lord in England and a princess of Atlantis who end up marrying; they have a child named Merlin who ends up being, well, that Merlin. Along the way there is a typical amount of fantasy-type plot: we see Atlantis’ destruction, intrigue, rivalry, and warfare between the various clans, and the introduction of some early Christian missionaries.
It was that last bit that started to get me worried. The missionaries are introduced about two-thirds of the way through the book, and while on one hand I know that the Arthurian legend needs to have a Christian component (he does seek the Holy Grail, after all), I was worried that it might turn from a decent novel into an evangelistic enterprise quicker than you can say Pendragon. But the author handles it well; he allows the characters to become Christians and wrestle with Christian ideas while avoiding the trap of having them give long speeches about how everyone should come to Jesus and the like.
I really enjoyed Taliesin - thanks, Nate! I will now have to reserve book two from the library when I get a chance.
The Great New Year's Eve Flood of Aught-Six
Let me tell the tale of the Great New Year’s Eve Flood of Aught-Six. You won’t hear it from anyone else. As most calamities begin, so began this one; not with a single odd event, but with the convergence of multiple odd events. In this case there were two:
- A stoppage in a pipe somewhere kept the toilet from draining.
- The flapper valve in the toilet stuck open, causing the water to run and run.
The end result of the convergence of these two events was the Great New Year’s Eve Flood of Aught-Six. At first, it didn’t appear to be too bad; water had run out of the bathroom and into the hallway, but that was about it. Becky called for me to help, and I quickly used the shut-off valve to stop the water. We grabbed some towels and started sopping up the mess. Then we heard another sound of water running. Suffice it to say that our floors are not waterproof; the wooden floor let water run through right down into the basement. And then a bunch of water backed up near the toilet and made its way down as well.
So downstairs we went, to find water running from the drop ceiling in several places. I grabbed a bucket to catch the worst of it, but there was already a nice puddle stretching from the computer table over to Laura’s playset. Again with the towels. My computer monitor, tower, and keyboard were fortunate; they got splashed on a bit, but didn’t suffer any damage. My printer/scanner I’m not so sure about; when I picked it up a good 2 or 3 cups of water ran out of it. I unplugged it and set it in the downstairs shower to drain out. I haven’t yet tested it for damage, but I’m not too hopeful.
Being as this flood occurred mid-morning, the rest of the day was spent cleaning and repairing; I replaced the various valves in the toilet and it seems to be much happier now. Two of the ceiling tiles in the basement were waterlogged beyond salvage; a quick trip to Lowe’s found me a partial package with just the two tiles that I needed, which was a much better option than having to buy a full carton of ten. Several hours of a box fan on high speed managed to dry things out pretty well in the basement. All that really remains is for me to hang the new ceiling tiles, sweep the floor, and test out the printer.
Thus ends the tale of the Great New Year’s Eve Flood of Aught-Six. Pray it never happens to you.
Heading Home
So I’m finally caught up with my trip posts. It’s 10:20 PM and we’re in a hotel room in Dayton, Ohio. We traveled from Waxhaw this morning, picked up my sunglasses from the Cozart’s where I’d left them last night, then headed up through NC, Virginia, West Virginia, and most of the way through Ohio. It was actually a pretty good drive, not too tough, went pretty quickly.
We stopped in West Virginia at a Cracker Barrel for lunch. I’d never been in West Virginia before today. Well, not quite true; I think our college choir bus went through that little arm of WV and the little arm of Maryland on our way to Pennsylvania one year, but that hardly counts. Anyway, maybe the Cracker Barrel experience today wasn’t totally representative of WV and its people and culture, but maybe it is… I’ll just take it as a data point. So, we’re all familiar with the stereotypes of West Virginia and its people; of uncultured inbred toothless hillbillies… you get the idea. The funny part today was this: had I gone into that restaurant with no preconceived stereotypes about West Virginians, the ideas I’d have picked up in that hour would have pretty well matched the preconception I already had. I saw more people without teeth, in bib overalls, and/or just plain scary looking in one hour in that Cracker Barrel than I have seen in a month of Sundays at home. (Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t fearful or anything… more just amused.)
Over the Rhine graced the CD player this afternoon in honor of our Ohio travels, and tonight we hit a shopping mall to stretch our legs and eat some supper. Tomorrow morning I think we’ll be hitting the local Tim Horton’s in honor of my favorite Canadian *Dan (who speaks so highly of them!), then it’s back onto the interstate through Indiana, Illinois, and finally into Iowa. It will be good to be home.
The Penguin, and New Friends
Thursday was get-ready-to-head-home day. We picked up a cartop carrier that Ernie had salvaged for us. It is in excellent shape, and with all the post-Christmas shopping Becky did, it’s a good thing we have it! There’s no way we’d have fit all the stuff into the van. Then we started packing up to go home. Can’t believe we brought so much stuff along. Seriously, we took the back seat out of the Caravan, and it’s still packed up nearly to the ceiling, then we have the cartop carrier almost full, too. Goodness.
Thursday evening we headed in to Charlotte to meet some of our “weird internet friends” for supper and to hang out. We met Brandon, his wife Sarah, and Andrea at The Penguin near downtown Charlotte. The Penguin is a nice hole-in-the-wall place; very small, very loud, very eclectic. The jukebox would be playing heavy metal one minute and jazz the next. Very unpredictable. The burgers were good, and the specialty that we had to try was deep-fried dill pickle chips. They were fantastic.
After supper we went back to Brandon and Sarah’s apartment for dessert and to watch Brandon’s beloved Texas A&M Aggies who were playing Cal in a bowl game. The Aggies ended up losing. Sorry, Brandon. We ended up getting back to Waxhaw about 11 PM. It was a fun night, fun to finally meet some people we interact with online all the time. And yes, they’re normal people… not weirdos… just like I’m a normal, non-weird person. Heh. :-)
Post-Christmas Mayhem
The day after Christmas found us trying to sleep off all that food we ate the day before. :-) We enjoyed leftovers for breakfast and lunch, again ate too much food. We played Upwards for the first time. It’s like Scrabble, but gives you the opportunity to stack letters on top of other letters to make new words… kinda fun.
We took a little walk and Brandi drove herself and Laura around the yard in her little battery-powered Corvette.
Then late afternoon came and it was time to pack up and head back to Waxhaw. We just barely fit everything into the Suburban. Traffic was kinda heavy but we made it back and crashed. Another enjoyable day. Pictures below.
35 years and counting...
This post is only a day belated, but let me wish my parents a very happy 35th anniversary! Don and Marj Hubbs were married on December 26, 1971. 35 years and 5 children later they are still going strong, and are a blessing to each of us. Congratulations Dad and Mom!
Christmas!
Christmas morning dawned and we packed up four adults, two small children, and lots of presents and luggage into the folks’ Suburban and headed up to Faith and Ernie’s home in Conover, NC. It was just about a 2-hour drive from Waxhaw - not bad at all. This gave Laura the first chance to meet her cousin Brandi, and oh, did they ever have fun. Brandi is almost 5. Faith and Ernie adopted her from China 3 years ago. She is a sweetie.
We opened presents and presents and more presents. Every time it seemed like we might be done, Ernie would find some more presents under the tree and we’d keep opening them. I can’t begin to keep track of what all I received; Becky is actually sitting right now documenting it all as I write this blog post… at least that way I’ll be able to write thank-yous! The one memorable thing I’ll mention here is a refrigerator magnet from Becky’s sister Cynthia; it has a cartoon of the Mona Lisa holding a fish in one hand, with the title “The DaVinci Cod”. Hehehe. [Edit: Becky corrects me that this magnet was given to her folks, not to me. :-( Still, it is pretty cool.]
After that came Christmas dinner, and Faith had prepared enough for an army. We ate leftovers again on Tuesday and there was still far too much left over. But it was sure tasty. The rest of Christmas day was just a crash day; we watched some football, took naps, and enjoyed watching the girls play. God has certainly blessed us richly with family, friends, and material goods. I, for one, need to step back more often and realize how blessed I am.
Christmas Eve
Sunday morning of our trip brought us to Calvary Church in Charlotte for the Sunday morning service. It is Becky’s folks’ church, and she attended and was an intern there while in college. Then in 1998 we got married in the chapel there… so I guess we have a little history at the church. :-) We got there early so Becky could see a few people she hasn’t seen in a while… and of course she could show off the girls.
After church we pigged out on Sonny’s BBQ, which has some phenomenal sweet tea. Then it was back to Waxhaw for an afternoon nap, and then the traditional Christmas Eve feast with Becky’s folks. Then it was off to bed for the girls as we packed up to head to Faith & Ernie’s for Christmas…