The Beauty of Retirement...

...is you can pick up and go whenever you want.

Soooo, on Wednesday night, Butch asked, "What are you doing this weekend?"

Hmmm, considering I NEVER do anything with my friends on the weekend, I wasn't sure where this was coming from. All he needed to do was to look on the "B&B" calendar to see that we didn't have anything planned. I said as much. He then asked if I wanted to go to Memphis? I said, "sure" and he made the plans.

Originally, we were leaving on Saturday morning and coming home on Sunday. He booked the hotel and made us brunch reservations at The Peabody.

Of course, there would be geo-caching along the way---we don't want to miss a single thing of interest!

Our first stop was at this old furnace from the 1800's in Bucksnort, TN. I always wonder who comes up with these names. Bucksnort---sounds really country! We were definitely out there!

 We arrived at Sun Records in downtown Memphis right when they were opening.

The place was really pretty small. You entered here to a reception area with the recoding studio right behind.

Sun Records is mainly known for discovering Elvis. But the truth is that Elvis was only there for a year and a half as Sam Phillips sold his contract to RCA. Sun Records main money maker was Johnny Cash.

The recording studio. The place was really small. There is an iconic photo of the Million Dollar Quartet which consisted of Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley during an impromptu jam session in 1956. If you ever get a chance to see the stage producion---do it!

After Sun Records, we went for lunch at a famous Memphis dive bar called Ernestine's and Hazel's. There's only one thing on the menu---the soul burger. It was really good, but the place was truly a dive! It dates back to the 1930's---lots of history. Ernestine and Hazel were sisters who were hair dressers in this black part of town. They opened a cafe downstairs. It was eventually bought and turned in to a bar.

After lunch, we went around the corner to the Lorraine Motel---where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. We ended up having to do a drive by as it was so crowded---the parking lot was full and we circled the block twice and couldn't find anything. We didn't really plan to go in to the Civil Rights Museum anyway.

Right above that old car is a wreath which designates the spot where Dr. King was speaking when he was shot.

Next we were going to do more geo-caching. Butch had planned for us to have dinner at a Memphis bbq place. We had already decided that we would not go to Graceland this trip since the tickets are over $60---opting instead for the $45 brunch at the Peabody. Plus, I had never seen the ducks! They live in the penthouse and march down every morning. They roll out a red carpet at 11 a.m. to escort them to the fountain in the lobby. I was looking forward to that, but it was only 1 p.m. I suggested that maybe we should just go home rather than waste so much time just to eat!! Butch agreed and we decided to head home.

We made a couple more stops--first by a house that was part of the Underground Railroad--we did not go in as we've seen enough houses on our little road trips. Next and final stop was for the oldest geo-cache in Tennessee.

The cache was placed in January of 2001 in Collierville, Tennessee.

Butch had to do quite a bit of bushwhacking through some wetlands.

Now something you need to know about me and geo-caching. I LOVE doing it, but only under certain circumstances. It can't be too hot or buggy!!! Mainly, I'm in it for the unusual places geo-caching takes us. I'm perfectly happy to sit with my book while he does the hiking!

So that was our trip. We were home by 5:30. We had a great day! And, this is so typical of Butch. He doesn't really like to plan too far ahead. That's what makes retirement so much fun---the flexibility to just pick up and go! I'm already looking forward to our next adventure. I'll go with him anytime, anywhere!!