Bloggers Without Borders: Camden

Back in the old days when VW buses were in style, a "Road Trip" meant a head west, young man excuse to go anywhere with some semblance of purpose. Like seeing the Grateful Dead. And it usually was a car ride defined by the word "trip". The trip was not so much the journey but a feeling that you get after smoking too much or some guy / gal that tagged along being a real kill joy. Man, that dude was a "trip" or he/she was "tripping me out !" You dig?

Don't act so naive...

But we're all grown up and VERY responsible these days, so when CeeElCee put out the call for a road trip to encourage NewsComa recovering from surgery and visit the Rodent Queen, I said why not? Road trips are always fun, especially when the chance to converse, listen to road songs and get out of the house presents itself. After being up all night watching the election returns, I needed a change of pace from the election chatter.



CeeElCee and I have the ability to stay tied to the office via our Treo smartphones, so driving up to Dresden, TN was very feasible. And it was the right thing to do; when a blogger needs some encouragement, do as the Baptists do - Fun, Food and Fellowship! So we hop in the Tahoe and met up with Sista Smiff, fresh from live blogging the CMA Awards.



Funny how much the three of us all had in common, with the mutual friends and places we've labored at. Stories we could tell!

Sista forgot to pack an extra bladder for the day trip, so we pulled over at the next rest area. This particular rest area named the Patsy Cline/Chet Atkins Rest Area in Benton County was part of the Music Highway. The rest areas and weigh stations along this stretch of highway from Memphis to Nashville are all named to honor a musician who is either a native of, or lived near, this stretch of Interstate 40.



The sign on the wall tells us that in 1988, "the Tennessee General Assembly Memphian Ward Archer, a businessman and musician, elisted the support of Memphis State Senator Steve Cohen and Jackson State Representative Matt Kisber to sponsor the legislation. The designation recognizes the role of West Tennessee in the growth, development and burgeoning popularity of American music."

We made the turn off of I-40 to Camden and saw a sign pointing to Country Hooters (burgers, babes and brew).



However Sista was sharp enough to see a small sign to the memorial for Patsy Cline, Hawkshaw Hawkins and Cowboy Copas, pointing to the site where their plane crashed March 5, 1963.



Detour over to Sista's site where she has more about Patsy Cline...

Here's a Flickr link Bloggers Without Borders for more photos.

More later...