Max Patch

Today I got back from Knoxville about 1:30 in the morning. I drove straight through again and am getting pretty good at that. I left two weeks ago, on Sunday, March 13 so that I could drop my artwork off at the John Michael Kohler Art Center for their Waysides exhibit. I looked at their other current exhibits, like Dreamscapes. I got there at night and reunited with Jojo and it was so good to see her. This week was her spring break. We got some errands done, and on Tuesday we went camping in the Pisgah National Forest and found a nice secluded spot up the mountain along a creek. We had such a nice evening cooking and talking around the campfire. The stars were out and the moon rose and passed over our tent throughout the night. The next morning we got up early and went to Max Patch and hiked the trails around there. After getting lunch in the nearby town, we went hiking at Big Creek in the Smoky National Park. We hiked up to the ridge, and a little farther and then came back. We drove back home. The rest of the week I hung out at home and worked on my painting and some website jobs because she was still busy with schoolwork. We had time in the evenings to make supper. She’s been making delicious spring rolls for us. I helped her with some of her chores and schoolwork. I decided to stay for awhile. We got to out for beers and Trail Heads. On Thursday the next week we went to Balter Beer works. On Sunday, the 27th we went to Bijou Bistro. So now I’ve gotten to try many of the restaurants in Knoxville. It is always sad to leave her but I miss the kids so much. They will be back on Tuesday from Minneapolis after going to the Waterpark of America for their Spring break. I had been gone so long that the apartment in Algoma smelled good to me. I liked the mixture of smells of my incense, cleaners, paint. I guess I get so used to it when I’m there often. It also made me think of the smell when I first moved in a few months ago and when I brought Jojo back here for Christmas as it smelled like that then. Now it’s time to get some work done on the studio and many other projects.