Georgia, Sweet Georgia

I didn't have the beautiful jazz orchestral sounds of James Brown's classic hit, "Georgia on my mind," on my mind when we turned our little Equinox southeast toward our winter retreat. But it fits. The word that best describes Georgia this time of year is lovely. It's all a matter of timing. My sister lives in Georgia and assures me that my pale upper midwest physique would melt during the Georgia summer. Even though parts of me could use some melting, I'm content to take her word for it. But in winter, lovely is a word that gets a lot of air time when we visit.

For us, it's about the weather. Georgians think their winter is cold, and I'm willing to let them continue in that delusion. The four or five times the temperature descends through the forties toward the freezing point sends them all scurrying to dig out their down coats and long underwear. I've learned to see this as sensible because their bodies have acclimated to sultry summer temperatures that would have cooked off the last stitch of my clothing 20 degrees before hitting an afternoon high. However, in a Georgia winter, I can go out in a balmy 42 degrees and find the weather lovely.

We delayed our trip to Georgia a month this year because we went to Seoul, Korea, in January. Oddly enough, Korea knows how to do winter in a way felt by the upper midwestern physique. However, South Dakota arranged sub-zero temperatures for our return at the beginning of February to ensure we knew who was boss. It was time to head for Georgia.

My wife and I poured over the Internet weather sites trying to predict the travel conditions along our route. We determined that our planned exit from South Dakota was at least 24 hours late to escape a bad winter storm closing in from the west. So we rushed packing and headed south a day early. Every mile of bare road enhanced our smug feelings as texts from friends revealed the ferocity of the storm that froze South Dakota solid.

Remembering last year's terror of freeway travel through Kansas City, Saint Louis, and Atlanta, we plotted a new route far from metropolitan traffic this year. It added a few hours to our trip and years to our lives. As another bonus, we saw some beautiful new country all along the way. Incredibly wonderful was the unique path we chose over the Great Smoky Mountains for the last leg of our journey. It says a lot about me to know that I will go to such lengths to avoid heavy traffic. "Old fart" comes to mind. But carpe diem! You got to get old sometime, might as well take advantage of it to excuse idiosyncrasies. 

We arrived in the Peach State safe and hungry. Being famished is the best way to come to Georgia because it shines as a culinary wonderland. We immediately turned our attention to our favorite Georgia eateries. Topping the list was Rachel's Southern Style Restaurant. Oh my goodness, the Fried Shrimp dinner is to die for. Cholesterol concerns might make this assessment uncomfortably literal, but the carpe diem principle still applies. Fried shrimp was our dinner every Tuesday night this year. It took a little while to get the sides sorted out, but we learned our favorites were Mac 'n Cheese and Sweet Potato Casserole. However, we had to get our order in before 5:30 to ensure we got the Sweet Potato Casserole. They ran out of this scrumptious side dish every evening, erasing it off their blackboard menu early. Rolling up to the order counter and seeing a blank spot on the menu where Sweet Potato Casserole should have been was a real downer. As compensation, all the places for the caloric assessment of menu items were also blank.

Kiki's scones are another Georgia treat we love. Last year, I was shocked that my wife, who has steadfastly insisted that she dislikes scones, loved them from the local Watkinsville bakery. She is still trying to figure out why. I'm just content to see the smile they put on her face when she savors an Almond cherry scone.

Y'all know we love barbecue, and now we have a new restaurant to add to our favorites. The Saucehouse restaurant near downtown Athens is a truly unique place to eat. It can't decide whether it is a buffet, a bar, an outdoor cafe, or a wedding destination. Despite the venue confusion, the food is fantastic. The pulled pork, sliced brisket, and ribs are delectable, with various presentation styles and many soupy sauces that get into every meaty crevice. The side dish choices speak loudly of Georgia's southern culinary roots; fried okra, collard greens, Georgia hash, and peach cobbler. We tended to go there following Sunday worship, an excellent extension of the liturgy.

Georgia weather does some nice things for fishing. Georgians talk disparagingly about winter fishing, but I can't see it. Winter fishing in Georgia is like the summer fishing I'm used to. Since my winterized boat is in Idaho, I'm stranded on the shore of Georgia lakes and rivers. After a bit of research, I came up with an exciting solution. Shore fishing for catfish is a thing. There are entire youtube series on it. From my dad's stories about running catfish trotlines in Kansas, I should have known anyway. As it turns out, Georgia has more than its share of catfish, with many nosing around within casting range. Catfishing is a pleasant pastime involving a little casting and a lot of sitting around in a lawn chair reading a book. Waiting for a willing victim to happen along and take a fancy to my bait is not hard at all. The catfish I encountered seemed wily fellows since they took in a sizable chicken dinner at my expense. But perseverance proved fruitful when a two-pound blue catfish found its unfortunate way onto my hook and into my frying pan. It was a sweet Georgia victory, and just wait for next year!

Our lovely time in Georgia passed quickly without any blog posts from this old nomad because we have been moving the blog to a new site. The Midwestern Nomad Blog has found a new home on the Midwestern Books website. It's a much prettier place and allows readers to see the books we publish if you're interested. We finally finished the move just in time for a blog post as we headed home to South Dakota.

It's still cold in the north, with snow in the forecast. But we knew all about that and needed to spend Easter with our family in North Dakota. Our nomadic swing into Georgia doesn't get us out of winter altogether, but the short respite from the cold, snow, and ice sure is nice. As we left, I wore my red University of Georgia hat. I wear it occasionally throughout the year. It reminds me of how lovely Georgia is in the winter. My Georgia nieces think I wear it as camouflage to fit with the good ol' boys. And honestly, it works for that. But really, my Georgia hat is all about being a Georgia Bulldogs fan. That is the national champion Georgia Bulldogs for two years running, just in case anyone has forgotten. And I'm already looking forward to next year's return to this lovely place to celebrate with the local Georgians, a great football team, no matter how they do in the next season.