Verizon showed multiple bars of phone signal, but no internet service. We had never seen that before at any part of the country we've passed through. And at this point in our lives, it's almost impossible to live without the internet! Sad commentary on how dependent Nancy and I (and modern Americans in general) are on wireless technology. Luckily, our DirecTV satellite signal was good, so we were able to watch TV, including my Warriors and Sharks games. Otherwise things would have been even more miserable. Pathetic, I know.
Once again the road out of Lynch was narrow, steep, and twisty. It took us over Black Mountain, the highest in Kentucky, whose 4100 feet elevation isn't impressive in comparison with the Sierras or Rockies, but I was relieved when we pulled onto divided highways for the remainder of the drive that took us to Boone, North Carolina.
The reason we chose to visit Boone was that it was recommended as a possible landing spot to us by Wyman, originally from North Carolina, who with his lovely family very nearly bought our home in Ben Lomond. We knew almost nothing about the community otherwise.
Turned out, Boone is a very nice town. It is the home of Appalachian State University. Nancy and I walked all over its beautiful campus and were impressed by its varied brick-based architecture. The internet (available here, thank God) told us that its student enrollment is similar to that of UC Santa Cruz.
The downtown is nice enough - what you'd expect in a college town. One of its restaurants is called F.A.R.M (Feed All Regardless of Means). Everyone who walks in will be served a meal, even if he or she can't afford to pay the suggested donation. Sweet Nancy wanted to support that worthy cause, so we had a very nice lunch there, and happily donated to excess.
Most of the customers looked solvent enough to pay for their lunches, but we saw a couple of individuals who appeared down on their luck and might have been homeless.
The restaurant personnel are almost all volunteers. Nancy chatted with the cashier, a middle-aged lady who had moved to Boone from Los Altos, California, loves it here, and helps out at the restaurant almost every day. If we happened to relocate to Boone (unlikely), Nancy would almost certainly volunteer her time. As much as we like the town, it probably doesn't have quite enough action for a couple of dynamic types like Nancy and me.
Hello sweet Nancy and Craig! Will you be in the Pacific Northwest at all this summer? If so, and if you are near Orcas Island, please inform us! We would love to work out a visit if we are there simultaneously. Love you guys, thanks for the interesting blog - we are traveling around the country with you vicariously~Sue (and Howard)
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