Why are these folks looking so glum? They had to leave their favorite reptile in the rental car because it was not allowed at the Bele Chere Festival in Asheville. Current laws most often reflect attempts to deal with past behavior. Evidently it was not sufficient to ban animals at the festival because some fair-goer argued his snake, frog or crocodile was exempt. It made me wonder what was in store for us in downtown Asheville.
I did not have to wait long before spying this oddity: a painted statue who only came to life sporadically when a tourist dropped money at her feet. She then started singing gaily and dancing with all four legs.
It was actually a pleasant day and we did not feel the need to cool off in the Foggy Mountain Cooldown. One North Carolinian, upon learning where I lived said, "It's cold up there," to which I replied that it was 104 degrees the day before. I don't think it reached 90 in Asheville.
Speaking of tattoos, Asheville was home to many exotic shops including tattoo parlors, a store selling diamond toe rings, another touting herbal remedies, massage centers, wine cellars, and loads of art galleries.
After a decent night's rest, we hit the road bound for Fayetteville to see where Reed lives and works. We stopped at a road-side stand for some peach ice cream. I got a kick out of the young man's t-shirt. Ahh, only the NRA could put it all together in one misguided slogan. George Carlin had a radical solution: put all the gun-lovers in Kansas, fence it off from the rest of the world, and let them shoot, maim and kill to their heart's delight. Sorry about that, Kansas.