Florida Mussels Get a Reprieve - It Rained in North Georgia

New Year's Eve started out quite foggy and did not burn off until about 11 AM. Temperature was in the 30's F which is not very inviting to riding my bicycle. I only need another 124.1 miles today to hit my goal so guess I won't quite make it.

Now if I could do the goal on an insurance year, my first ride in 2007 was not until the end of January. If my effective date was 01/28/07 to 01/28/08, I might be able to get in the 124 miles. But, I'll keep it on the 2007 year and start sooner this time to do the 2008 in 2008.

Fog shot off my back deck followed by the best news of the weekend which was 2.5 inches of rain on Friday and Sunday combined. Lake Lanier is up about 6 inches this morning but it is still not enough to rescue the mussels.



This is a view of the mountains from one of the roads in north Hall County. Rough life for the folks who live here to have to look out their back windows and see this view everyday. Or, when it snows in the mountains, see the snow on the peaks.

Shoal Creek was running at a good rate at the crossing on Hwy 52 east of Brookton. Last couple of weeks, it only had a trickle. At the point the creek disappears is a 200 to 300 foot or so drop. Good news for the Florida mussels - this water will end up in Lake Lanier and then most likely be released to keep the river level up south of the Florida state line.

Lake Lanier Mussels No Longer Endangered - They're Dead

I don't normally get political on my blog but after driving around Lake Lanier on Saturday, I have to weigh in on the overwhelming lack of concern from the Florida environmentalists about the plight of the mussels that are being killed by lack of water in Lake Lanier. Nowhere do I find articles bewailing their plight. Senator Shelby from Alabama is now blocking attempts for the 3 states to reach a water sharing agreement and this may well continue to lead to more Lake Lanier mussels being left high, dry and dying.

While water continues to be released downstream for the sake of the Florida endangered mussels and the Gulf oysters, millions of dollars are being lost by local businesses on Lake Lanier. Boat ramps are closed which is costing the bait and tackle shops along the lake a lot of income. The 1996 Olympic venue is high and dry and may well not have the water level necessary for the spring training trips made by many of our northern colleges to this area.

The pictures below (it was a dreary day as all days are now that the water level is so low) shows the water level at the Clark's Bridge boat ramp and the Olympic scoring tower as well as some of the poor mussels that have been left high and dry.

My real questions is: Prior to the mid-50's and early 60's when Lake Lanier, West Point Lake, and others on the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers were built, what did the Florida mussels do when there was a drought and what did the oysters do when the water flow was so low? Or, did we never have droughts in the southeast and the rivers always ran full? I grew up in Texas and remember droughts there but have to feel that the southeast was never without ample supplies of water based on the reaction from our southern neighbors.

For a bit of history about droughts and the river system feeding the Appalachicola, visit the websites below.

http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/drought/drght_history.html

http://www.sam.usace.army.mil/op/rec/acf/history.htm

http://www.rivercenter.uga.edu/education/k12resources/basinsofga2.htm

And the moon continues to come up over Lake Lanier as viewed through the trees from my back deck. And, as surely as the moon rises, rain will come again and refill Lake Lanier. But, it will be too late for the mussels of Lake Lanier. Maybe we can import some from Florida to restock when we once again have a full pool.

Its Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Well, this morning added to the saga that started with the strange Christmas card we received yesterday. Got a card from a couple who will remain unnamed wishing us a Merry Christmas, telling us they had fun at the party last weekend, wondering what Carl would do with all that cheese, and stating that Jim might know where it went. Interestingly, we were not at any party with a Carl who got a lot of cheese nor a Jim who might know more about it. Called the people in the phone book by that name and they swear to know nothing about the card but indicated that there is another family with the same names as theirs because they used to get debt collectors calling them. We had a similar thing happen with another Loveless that lived here so ???

Anyway, got up this morning, went downstairs, and looked out the window to discover that it had snowed toilet paper during the evening and that icicles were hanging off most of our trees, covered our bushes, and been able to wrap around 0ur cars. Will give whomever credit, they even made a pattern across my camper top which is off the truck right now and had it looking like ribbons had been tied over it.

We do not have a clue who did this and wonder if it was the wrong house since we have a high school teacher living nearby. With no teenagers or college students living at home, it was just a bit weird but exactly like something I would have done or might do again just for fun. Whoever tossed the big roll over the powerline which is about 30 to 40 feet above ground should be recruited by the Falcons since they could use someone with an arm.

Now for the big question. How do you clean this stuff our of the trees? It is simple. Take one each lighter and light the end of a stringer. Stand back and watch it flame like a fuse and disappear. It had rained last night so could not do this immediately but did a few of them tonight and it is almost as much fun as setting off fireworks. There are no leaves left on the trees and the paper burns so quick that it can't catch the bark on fire so there is little to no danger.

We were able to recover the plastic back that the paper was brought to the house in. I have given that to a good friend in the local police department who is going to have it scanned with the new technology using laser and infrared that makes it easy to identify fingerprints on materials that are otherwise difficult to lift prints from.

Debbie's Birthday Weekend - Windy and No Riding

This was Debbie's Birthday Weekend - age not to be announced in a public forum but she does not look as old as she is in spite of putting up with me for 32 plus years. That Shaklee skin care is amazing.

The day started with a beautiful sunrise as we looked off the back deck. Hard to believe that downtown Gainesville is a short 3.5 mile drive.


She spent Thursday with a good friend from high school eating and shopping in Dahlongega, the Dawsonville Outlet Mall, and locally here in Gainesville. On Friday night, we went to Zanzo's in Clarkesville. This is one of our favorite places to eat and once again, we had a great meal.



There was no bicycle riding this weekend. It was wet, it was cold, it was windy. So I did the sensible thing! I went with Debbie while she got a massage and I got my feet worked on. The reflexology seemed to help so I am willing to do that some more.

On Sunday afternoon just before sunset, I was able to get a picture that will impress some of my friends and cause others to wonder why I would take such a picture. Then, I got really interested in the history of this fine establishment which has provided the Loveless family several emergency meals on our trips to Florida during Christmas holidays or to Texas when it was late at night, we were in Vicksburg, MS and nothing else was open for starving children to find sustenance.


Thanks to Atlanta Magazine for the bit of info below.
W - Waffle House is as Atlanta as Coca-Cola, CNN, and Delta, only more demure.
A - Avondale Estates, the English-inspired planned city founded in 1924 just east of Decatur, is where it all started.
F - From urban strips like Buford Highway to interstate outposts, Waffle House beams right up there with the rest of commercialized America -- with the Exxons and Burger Kings and KFCs -- but with such a stripped-down unpretentiousness as to be almost invisible.
F - Forget about the drinks, though. Let's talk about money. Yours and theirs. You can still eat to the popping point for less than ten bucks.
L - Listen to how they do it. "All our food is cooked up front and right in sight," Tom Forkner said the other day.
E - Employees learn how to flip the burgers and scatter the hash browns, but more than anything else, Waffle Housers learn about customer service.

H - How does a Waffle House get born? How do they decide where to put it? Well, it's got little to do with elaborate studies and talk of paradigm shifts.
O - Other chains remake themselves - modernize. Waffle House recently added biscuits to the menu, and butterscotch waffles, and deli turkey.
U - Ultimately, Waffle House might end up in all fifty states, but for now most of its locations are in the South, and more than 200 of those are in metropolitan Atlanta.
S - Search the Internet and you won't get very far without coming across an international outpouring of Waffle House love.
E - Eggs lead the category of most-served menu items. Since 1955, Waffle House has dished out more than 1.5 billion of them - more than hash browns, more than waffles.

"You never lose a customer who is satisfied!" Don't we wish some of the WaHo competitors understood that.
This is the link for the entire Atlanta Magazine article - http://www.atlantamagazine.com/article.aspx?id=17916

This is a history link from the Waffle House website:
http://www.wafflehouse.com/whhistory.asp

Quillians Quickie 25 and the CCG 66 - Clermont - Cornelia - Gainesville

Ride - Party - Ride - Party

Special Message at the bottom of this post

Saturday started out like most Saturdays when the weather is nice. Decisions had to be made about where one should ride the bicycle that day. The weather was a little misty but that was not going to deter me from my quest to ride 2007 miles in 2007.

Should I ride from Murrayville since I had to go by the bank to get that stuff that stores require when you want snacks, drinks, end of ride food, etc. As I approached Murrayville, the mist got a bit heavier so I made an executive decision to move on toward Clermont. The mist got heavier the closer I got to Clermont. I decided to delay the ride and make a run to my favorite bike shop.

This is the inside of the expanded Habersham Bicycles in famous downtown Smithville off Georgia Highway 365 before you get to Cornelia. And, no trip to HB is complete without seeing the master mechanic Brody pictured below. He and I engineered adding a new flasher light to my bike so now I can be seen from quite a distance away. Still doesn't mean someone will not run me down but they can't say I wasn't lite up.

Finally, the weather cleared up a bit, the mist stopped, and I made my way back to Quillian's Corner for a quick 25 mile ride. It may have been the least traffic I've encountered since I think most everyone in the North Hall school zone was at the Georgia Dome watching the semi-final football game between North Hall and Cairo (Karo for you none learned people). Unfortunately, it was not a successful outing for the Trojans but we are proud of them for going this far. The picture below was just one of many I saw with Trojans painted on the grass in yards .

The scene below was just a nice view of a small pond that is down about 3 to 5 feet versus the level of Lake Lanier which is down about 20 feet now.

And then, it was time for Party #1 at Chateau Elan and compliments of Summit Consulting. A good time was had by all or so I've been told. Beautiful presentation on the chicken, steak, 2 spears of asparagus, 1 baby carrot, mashed potatoes, and a medallion of some kind of squash,

After dinner and an evening of Casino, it was time for the entertainment. We were provided a fantastic band (name unknown at this point - I'll ask). But, we almost lost an underwriter who really stole the show from the paid performer. Ciecily Thornton did a great job of singing Old Time Rock and Roll. The paid performer had to rip the mike out of her hand and we all think it was because she knew when she had met her match and might lose her job.

And then, it was home for the night and an early morning on Sunday to make another decision of where to ride. The weather was much better and I finally decided to do the CCG loop which I have planned for over a year. Note to self - next time do it in reverse since the climbing at the end of this ride was not what I really wanted to do.

Started in Clermont and made it to Cornelia just in time to get caught in the after church traffic at the intersection of old US 441 and GA Hwy 365. Everyone in those powered vehicles were considerate and I made it to downtown to visit the Big Red Apple and take the obligatory picture.

From downtown Cornelia, I took the Old Gainesville Highway (I guess you call it that). We call it the Old Cornelia Highway from the Gainesville side. After climbing a long hill out of the Oconee River valley, I arrived in Rabbittown which is best known for the Rabbittown Cafe and the big rabbit statue. Rode on in to downtown Gainesville and returned to Clermont via Clarks Bridge Road. Nothing of signiicance on that trip except two bicyclists blew past me on the climb up after crossing Lake Lanier. I am sure they were fresh and had not been 54 miles at that point. Otherwise, they would have never caught me - RIGHT!

Back to the party life after the ride. We had our Sunday School class Christmas Party and again, a good time was had by all.

Now, for the special message.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

From a home near Rabbittown.

Sunrise Over the Sautee-Nacoochee Indian Mound

Thanks to Lisa and Jim Hancock for this picture which Lisa took on her way to work at Unicoi State Park. Sometimes, an out of the way trip to a great biscuit place results in fantastic pictures. The legend of Sautee and Nacoochee is below the picture. Visit the link for more info about the area.

The Legend of Sautee and Nacoochee is well documented. The first White settlers, coming up the Unicoi Trail, now known as Georgia Highway 17, heard the story as they stopped to rest in the shade of the giant white oak, still standing adjacent the Old Sautee Store. (Hwy 17 & 255) One among them, George Williams, a young lad at the time, retold this story in his memoirs. The Cherokees considered themselves to be a superior race, as indeed they were. Handsome, tall and intelligent, they even had an alphabet, the first in America. They were not nomads, they built log houses and tilled the soil. They had but one grievous fault. This superiority was allowed to show. Naturally, this did not endear them to the neighboring tribes. One of these, the Chickasaws, was constantly at war with the Cherokee. However, there were moments of relative calm. During one such truce, a band of Chickasaws was allowed to cross over Cherokee land, provided they stay on the Unicoi Trail and rested only at designated spots. One such spot was where two trails crossed at the junction of two lovely valleys, the same place where - a century later, a young George Williams stopped.

As the Chickasaw band rested, in the shade of the giant oak, around them gathered curious Cherokees, trying to get a closer look at the dispised Chickasaws. Soon they were trading insults and obscenities. The Cherokees were hoping to bait the Chicasaws into making an overt act. But, the Chickasaws were too cagey to be trapped by such obvious maneuvers. One of the Chickasaws stand aloof from this bickering. It is Sautee: young, handsome and a chief's son. He dreams of the day when he will be chief. And has the authority to negotiate permanent peace with the Cherokees. Some of this greatness must have shown, for Nacoochee, the Cherokee chief's 16-year-old daughter, is so taken by this handsome stranger that she stares unashamedly. The their eye meet. The magic alchemy of love does the rest. Not one spoke spoken word- and yet a tryst was made. That night Nacoochee steals away from her father's log house to meet with Sautee, under the giant white oak, now known as the Sautee Oak. By this time, they are helplessly and hopelessly in love.

The rest of Sautee's party, counsels against this madness. No good could come of this flagrant violation of their truce. If Wahoo, the girls's father, learned of this meeting, all would be doomed. But, then, as now, teenagers feel they must defy the establishment. "Run, if you must," Sautee tells his followers, "but, I remain here with Nacoochee. Together we will make Wahoo understand. This must be the first step to a lasting peace between our two nations." The young lovers then flee to nearby Yonah Mountain. There, in a secret cave known only to Nacoochee, they spend a few idyllic days. They have their love. They have each other. But, destiny calls to a larger purpose, peace between two great tribes. To this end, out they come to face Wahoo. With such a just and lofty purpose, how could they not succeed? Wahoo is a great chief and has great wisdom to handle all problems. But this time, when compassion and understanding are most needed, he is blinded by hate and chagrin that his beloved Nacoochee would choose Sautee - a Chickasaw- to a Cherokee brave.

He ordered Sautee thrown from the high cliffs of Yonah Mountain, while Nacoochee was forced to look on. Life without her Sautee holds no promise. Nacoochee tears away from the restaining hands of her father and she, too, leaps from the high cliff. There, at the foot of the cliff, the young lovers are joined again. Their bodies broken and dying, they do not surrender to death - - - not just yet. They find fierce strength in their love. They drag their broken bodies together. Then, locked in final embrace, they die. This is how Wahoo finds them. Too late, a flash of understanding comes over him. Too late, he is aware of the greatness of love. Too late, the lost opportunnity for a lasting peace with the Chickasaws. Wahoo is now overcome with remorse. He has the two bodies, still locked in death, laid to rest on the banks of the Chattahoochee River, there to remain for eternity, at a burial mound that still stands at the junction of Georgia Highway 17 and Geotgia Highway 75. So that the lesson to be learned from this tragedy may never be forgotten, he renames the two valleys where first the young lovers met, one for Sautee and the other for Nacoochee.

Quillian's Corner 54 - 254 to Go

It was a beautiful day for a ride considering it was in the 50's for much of the ride and there was a bit more wind than my good friends at The Weather Channel predicted. I did not see another bicyclist on the entire ride which is unusual on a good fall day. I did see a couple of parked vehicles with bike racks at the ususal places such as Dewberry #1 on Clark's Bridte Road.

The picture below is one of several nice estates on Ransom Free Road. The cows all looked contented. But, I did not see any Carnation signs.

There was historically significant happenings on Friday night at The Brickyard at North Hall High School. The North Hall Trojans football team qualified for the first time ever to play in the state semi-finals at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The game is at 3 pm on December 8th. We hope that the Syrupmakers from Cairo, Georgia will only use their syrup to have sticky feet and waffle on offense and defense. These are a few of the spirit signs that family and students put up at the intersection of Jim Hood Road and Mt. Vernon Highway.

This somewhat huge rocking chair is located near the intersection of Persimmon Tree and Georgia Highway 52. Seeing it for the zillionth time just made me wonder where Edith Ann is now? If you don't remember Edith Ann, you are a youngster. You can Google Edith Ann and find all kinds of info.

Watch Edith Ann tell about making a sandwich

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocBO0fr1Ui4

When Mother Nature Won't Cooperate or How I Still Get in Some Miles

Thanksgiving weekend was brutal when the desire to ride was there but Mother Nature was not willing to give me a break and maintain the global warming in this area.

Friday was nice but very windy and did not get above 50 if I remember correctly. Too much turkey will make the brain forgetful, not to mention sleepy. Saturday was cold, Sunday was cold and wet plus we helped set up the Nativity Scene at our church. Monday was rainy and had heavy fog in the PM. This all adds up to no progress on the needed 308 miles to hit my goal.

Well, when you need to be sure the feet hit the pdeals, you go indoors and ride one of these things pictured below for an hour or so at a fairly intense pace. There is no coasting so to get the miles in - I do about 10 miles per hour - you pedal constantly. I try to maintain an rpm of 70 or above with a fairly strong resistance. This is not the model my gym has but looks similar. We do have TV entertainment during the ride or I can listen to my version of an Ipod - my old little bitty FM radio with earphones. How antique!!!

Thanksgiving 2007 - Part II

Well, you are saying - Where is Part I. That was Tuesday evening but I failed to get pictures. Wes and Lauren were here for dinner and we did roasted chicken and all the fixings. Wes had to work yesterday and today at the Cracker Barrel in Villa Rica so could not be here for the main event. The picture below is the start of Thanksgiving preparation. Debbie raked the leaves on Sunday and left the big pile for the leaf eater to come by and pick up. The leaf eating crew did not make it so this was part of the Thanksgiving decorations. I told her to wait because the trees dropped more leaves and the yard is once again covered. I just think she likes raking leaves. My preference is to run the lawn mower over them and make mulch.

Rough life we have here having to look out our back windows and see such beauty in the fall. We had a storm and about 1/2 inch of rain early today but by the time I was ready to put the turkey on the grill, the storm had passed through. Warmed up nicely until about 4 pm and then, the temp dropped and is now 42 at 9:45 pm. Enough to make me want to go visit Cousin Paul

The meal is getting closer. If you don't recognize the scene below, you may have been eating at Waffle House or Cracker Barrel. Please make note that the Publix Pilgrims are visiting again. Debbie broke out the finest for the meal. One problem with the finest - you can not, I repeat, can not wash this stuff in the dishwasher. Maybe another reason to go to the Waffle House.

A partial family photo - clockwise - Phil, Debbie, Brooklyn, Kyle, Kathy, Kayla. At the bottom, you can see what everyone was waiting for.

No Thanksgiving should go without some emergency. About 3 hours into cooking this 15 pounder, the propane tank decided to become empty. The BP convenience store about a mile and a half from the house came to the rescue. A quick trip there to pick up a replacement tank got the grill going again and Tommy Turkey made the trip to the table on time. Sorry, I did not get pictures of the traditional afternoon nap taken by all.

Cool 40 Miler - 308 Miles to Go

Started out from home with the temperature in the low 50's. It warmed up a bit but the new cool weather clothing from REI made it much more comfortable. My riding buddy, the wind, decided to meet me about half way through although he had not been expected and got the wind chill down in the 40's. He was also able to get the clouds to come in and block out the sun so it got rather cool. Pictures are in the first half of the ride which is why there are blue skies.
The picture above is from Mossy Creek Golf Club near Clermont, Georgia. As you can tell from the flag, the wind is blowing a good clip. Only golfers and bicyclist brave the cool weather to do what we like.

The following scenes are just along the ride and before the clouds moved in. I cut the ride a bit short this weekend due to the cooler weather and the wind. Wanted to get 50 in so I would have less than 300 to go for 2007 in 2007. Oh well, there is Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday after Thanksgiving.

Unicoi State Park near Helen, Georgia - Fall 2007

Friends Jim and Lisa Hancock took these pictures while participating in a Friends of Unicoi workday last weekend. Lisa also works as the horticulturist at the park. Unicoi is nestled in the mountains of northeast Georgia and has lots of outdoor activities. There are hiking and biking trails, camping, cabins, lodge rooms, and lots of other outdoor activities. The colors were at their peak last weekend.

Pictured above is a view of the lake and one of the hiking trails.

Another view of the lake looking toward the mountains. Hard to tell which way is up.

Save the best to last with a view of the colors while looking out across the lake.

For more info: http://gastateparks.org/info/unicoi/

Kayla's Birthday and my 50 Mile Cool Ride

Well, the weekend of 11/3-4 did not see me getting in any miles toward the 2007 in 2007 goal. But that was OK since we traveled to Tennessee to see the two grand daughters. Kayla turned 5 and what is more appropriate for a birthday picture than one showing the cake with all the candles along side the pile of loot. This followed an outing to Chucky Cheese for pizza and games.


Of course, sister Brooklynn wants to be involved and she will be turning 2 in December. Oh boy, another party!

On Sunday, it was off to see Kayla's last soccer game of the season. She had just taken a goal kick and notice the eye on the ball as she follows it. Her father is an assistant coach. This is justice since I spent several years coaching his team and driving all over creation to games when he made a select team. Ah, the good old days!

End of game medals for all and Kayla with a couple of her teammates. A good time was had by all.

Now, for the serious stuff. Saturday, November 10th. I waited for the weather to warm up a bit before hitting the road for a 50 mile plus ride. Rode all over the place to get in 50. The link is a map of the ride in case you want to vicariously join me. http://www.allsportgps.com/Data/ActivityDisplay.aspx?tripId=117348

Picture below is another view of Mt. Yonah from the sotheast. I'll eventually ride on the north side and get a view of it from that side. It was a beautiful day but a little windy which brought down the wind chill factor. Must make a trip to REI to get leg and arm warmers if I am going to continue this insanity all winter.

Sign below says it all after I finished the ride. As I finished the ride, I got to meet Docskeet who frequently posts his rides on www.allsportgps.com. Had wanted to meet him since he does some interesting rides also.

Weekend With Limited Riding

Did not make much progress on the goal to hit 2007 miles in 2007 this last weekend but am over 1600 miles. Debbie was invited to participate in a Kid's 1st Health Fair. It was outdoors and was a bit cool when we set up the display at 7:30 AM. That also meant I was out of bed well before my normal time on Saturday. We had quite a few visitors to our booth and all our children's toys that we took in for the free lead test came up negative. So, I guess I can continue to chew on the wooden blocks, etc.

While she worked the booth, I took the Giant OCR to have new tires and tubes put on. Got the Maxxis Detonator touring tire and my design is on the bottom left. Hey, it matches the color of the bicycle really well and I am now a color coordinated rider. Red jersey, black shorts, red tire treads. What more is there.Went riding on Sunday and got to mile 14 when there was an awful sound - front tube blew out. One of the hazards of putting on new tires until they seat. Tube worked out under the bead and you know the drill. Wheel off the bike, tire off the rim, tube pulled out, check for glass or something else in the tire, tire back on, tube back in, pump like crazy with the little biddie pump to get enough pressure in the tire to keep going. I rode 4 miles back to the start and called it a day since I did not have another spare tube with me. Now have 3 spares.

This is a picture of a cactus plant in Georgia near the start of my ride on Sunday afternoon! This is a cactus! The picture below is a Texas Cactus out west of Austin, Texas and looks like it needed a little help from Georgia to get to be a big boy. Texas shot is from 2003 when I was visiting Liberty Mutual offices in central Texas. We were on our way to Fredericksburg for a tour of a local German restaurant and a bit of Shiner Bock. That is my story and I am sticking to it.