We made plans for a visit on July 20, 2016 and SusieQ wanted to know where we wanted to have lunch at and I told her the Hibachi Grill & Supreme Buffet restaurant in Danville, Va. was fine with me and she said that Doug had won a little bet with her because he thought we would choose that particular restaurant.

We left Wadesboro sometime around 0700 hours and stopped in Biscoe at The Waffle House which has very good food, excellent service and enjoyed their All Star Breakfast meal.  Our waitress was Lizabeth and she was a people person giving us fantastic service and earned a sizeable tip.

The scenic ride on Interstate 220 North is fast with allowed speeds up to 70 MPH but the normal flow of traffic does exceed that speed limit by many travelers.  We chose Wednesday, figuring the traffic pattern to and from the beach would be much less and it certainly was.  It was evident that most of that area had been getting good amounts of regular rain because the corn and soybean crops were very green and healthy looking.  I observed  a large barn loaded with round rolls of hay which is another indicator of good rainfall.  The drive going to Asheboro, NC is inundated with small and large farms along the way and makes for a relaxing and picturesque ride.

We arrived at the Pettigrew home sometime after 10ish and my bride and Sister SusieQ immediately got into SusieQ's craft section.  SusieQ and Doug converted a large sunroom into their main craft and entertainment room, whereas both SusieQ and Doug spend many hours enjoying their hobbies, crafts and just relaxing.  

Below a few pixs taken while in the entertainment and craft room:

I thought I had a few small tools but SusieQ has me beat by a mile or two.  She has another box of cutters, pliers and wire forming tools of all types for her jewelry and craft work along with many clear labeled tote boxes full of craft materials and supplies!

Douglas aka "Brother Doug" is artistic in his own way and enjoys bowhunting, black powder hunting, reloading, rifle and shotgun hunting for the Eastern Whitetail Deer and Wild Turkey.  He also enjoys harvesting grey squirrels also know as tree rats and tree chickens with the .22 caliber rimfire rifle.  Most importantly, we both enjoy the "fruits of our harvest" especially when on a plate in front of us.......grin if you must!

Another pix of one of his displays:

I believe Doug has some Native American DNA in is lineage and plans to have a DNA test done to verify what has been told to him by his Grandparents.  We both should have some Native American DNA in our system since we enjoy and appreciate that culture; hunting with the bow and arrow, love of the outdoors, our natural resources and the respect that the Native Americans had for the land that once belonged to them.  The Native Americans had an acute awareness of our creator and gave tribute to him in their own religious ceremonies and it is tragic that entire Native American cultures were exterminated from the North American continent as documented in history to allow for the westward expansion.  Many tens of thousands of Native Americans were slaughtered (genocide) in the process by that expansion.  Those that yielded and/or rounded up by force, were herded and placed on distant reservations in some arid locations that wasn't fit for man nor beast!  I could write a book about that era but much has been written already.  A good place to start is Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee by Dee Brown.  It is to my understanding our NC Native Cherokee Indians have faired the best who escaped to the NC Mountains and avoided the 1000 mile journey (trail of tears) to Okalahoma of which it is estimated that out of the 16,000 that were marched there, around 4,000 died along the way.

Above, a stone hand knapped blade knife I had commissioned for "Brother Doug" as a Christmas gift.  I recommended to Brother Doug that he affix the knife in the case with silicone glue instead of using the small deer antlers to support the custom hand knapped stone blade knife with cedar and sinew bound handle for more eye appeal and definition to the shape of the stone blade knife.

"Brother Doug" will remind you of the movie actor Wilford Brimley....he does get asked for his autograph when at the beach in NC and also in the NC Mountains.  Doug is a retired Correctional Sergeant for the NCDOC and he would overhear inmates saying, "Here comes Sgt. Brimley" and when he would get closer, they would say, "How are you today Sergeant Pettigrew", grin if you must!

I had to Google up the manual for the ole Canon 30D 35mm DSL camera to ascertain how to set the camera in the timer mode......"You don't use it, you lose it" and more true than ever in my case!

Below is a self-portrait of the Porters and Pettigrews:

SusieQ took the below pix with her Obamaphone...I call all cell phones Obama Phones!

My sister SusieQ drove us to the Hibachi Grill & Supreme Buffet restaurant in Danville, Va. where we enjoyed a wonderful buffet.  I have pixs of the restaurant on the Pettigrew visit page from last year. 

After that fine meal, we returned back to the Pettigrew home and continued our visit and SusieQ and Doug will certainly make you feel right at home.  Doug and Susie are down to earth genuine people (not wannabes) who do not have to put on any airs; what you see is what you get!  They both are very giving and loving and have their own behind the scene mission helping various organizations and others and reminds me of the scripture Matthew 6:3.  Before leaving for home, SusieQ gave my bride a couple Dreamcatcher craft items for our youngest Grandson, Xander McKnight Gonzales.

SusieQ and Doug had a counter full of home grown tomatoes and sent a bag of them home with us.  They had some Cherokee Purple heirloom tomatoes and definitely wanted us to try them.  They are not pretty to look at but according to SusieQ and Doug, they are delicious and we will find out very soon.

Cherokee Purple tomatoes in the back ground.  Below Dreamcatcher symbol art.

My bride and myself enjoyed a wonderful visit with SusieQ and Doug and left their home around 3:30 in the afternoon.  The return trip was a pleasant ride and my bride "cat napped" for a good portion of the ride home.  I changed the route and turned off 220 and took the exit to Highway 134 to Troy, NC which is a two lane road.  From Troy, NC to Wadesboro, NC going through Mt. Gilead, NC is all two lanes of traffic and about 10 miles or more shorter but the 220 route is much faster being 4 lanes the entire route and accessing Highway 74 East in Rockingham, NC being 4 lanes as well.

We arrived home sometime after 5:15 PM and made excellent time.  The round trip per the odometer was 238 miles.

In closing, "Two of the Greatest Ships that ever Sailed, Friendship and Fellowship" and without family, friends and Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior in our daily Lives, there would not be much meaning to Life itself but an existence!

UPDATE:  The Cherokee Purple heirloom tomatoes made awesome sandwiches this afternoon.

Web published by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 07-21-16.