And then there was just us

Thursday, June 6, 2024

Gary and Julie have tickets to a show tomorrow night, so they planned to leave today. Lucky for us, they weren’t in a big hurry and we got to have a nice lunch before they went. Keith found a place very close to us called the Pickin Porch Grill, which was rated number 7 nationally in Hidden Gems on Trip Advisor. Number Seven certainly seemed like we needed to check it out and we were not disappointed. I ordered pulled pork on french fries “nachos”. We discussed it and pondered it and there was definitely more than a pound of meat on my tray sized order. It was so good – and will be so good when Keith and I have it for lunch tomorrow. It was located in the back of a “crafter’s market”. We weren’t exactly sure what that meant, but it was a store full of stuff to look at and we enjoyed the looking.

They set out for home about 2:30 and then it was just us. It was pretty sad. We had so much fun with them. We discussed that we don’t actually have to drive all the way to Missouri (do you know how close we are to Arkansas? I looked at a map today. So close) to visit with each other! I will be keeping that in mind!

I went searching for a mailbox to mail a postcard. I walked up to the main building, but the only guy there said there was no mail there. I asked him if they got mail there…he said no. He might not have known what was going on. I walked back and visited the rec center. Apparently there is an indoor pool as well as an outdoor pool. We just didn’t have time to get to any of that stuff. I went upstairs and found an arcade room and a snack bar. I asked the snack bar ladies if there was a mailbox and they enthusiastically walked outside with me to show me the mailbox. Well, to point to where the mailbox was behind the tree. I walked over and looked. I went up and down the driveway and looked around bushes and trees and flowers and signs. I was just about to go back and ask again when I saw it. It is right before you would turn into the driveway – the way we have been going every day since we got here -and I literally WALKED RIGHT BY IT going to the first building. I might have scraped my arm on it as I was walking by, because I was keeping very to the side of the road. Observant? NO. It looks just a like a residential mailbox and the flag was still up when we just came home in the dark of the night. I will check on my postcard tomorrow. I know where to go.

We talked about which show we should go to tonight and could not come up with any decision. Keith worked late to make up for going out to lunch, and then we decided to go to the Shipwreck Museum (why does Branson have a Shipwreck Museum? No idea) and walk around a pedestrian mall. It was great fun. We enjoyed the hurricane tube and making ourselves into pirates. Keith couldn’t pick up a coin with a robot arm, so I didn’t try.

We went to Crepes and Cream. I had an absolutely enormous crepe rolled around cheesecake and strawberries, while Keith sampled the rolled ice cream. They put liquid ice cream mixture onto a frozen surface, add the toppings, and smash it around until it is ice cream with stuff in it (almond joy stuff for Keith), then they spread it out, then they roll it up. The texture is amazing. It was hard not to stop tasting it.

We shopped in lots of stores and ended with a light, fire, fountain, and music show that was lovely.