Of Ducks and Ribs

The highlight of our Labor Day afternoon was a trip to the Peabody Hotel on Union Street in downtown Memphis. We arrived at about 3:45 to score a good seat in the mezzanine. We've been here twice in the past, so we had an idea of where to set up shop. When we arrived, five ducks were leisurely swimming in the lobby fountain.

At precisely 5:00 pm, the resident Duckmaster, currently only the fourth Duckmaster since the position was created in 1949, positioned the red carpet covered steps, and the duck walk began!

A great deal of care was taken to prevent spectators from getting too close to the famous ducks, but one young fellow just couldn't contain himself!

Until he was corralled by his mother!

And into the elevator they went, to return to their penthouse residence!

Across the street from the main entrance of the Peabody is a narrow, big-city stinky alley with a very famous resident.

The Rendezvous.

Unfortunately for us, the "Vous was closed due to the holiday. We were really bummed, because even though we've eaten here twice in the past, we were so looking forward to another of their famous plates of ribs! The fact that we had paid $10 for the evening's parking only complicated our disappointment.

However, this is Memphis, so there must be another Rib Joint around somewhere.....

Ahah! What should come up but the Memphis Barbecue Company. The irony of a BBQ place with the city of Memphis in it's name, but actually located in the state of Mississippi does not escape me, but hey, I'll just ignore that as the BBQ we had here was delicious, if a bit bland. We were seated near the kitchen (we took the first available table after a 1/2 hour wait), but kept ourselves occupied by reading the signs and nibbling on complementary warm pork rinds!

D and I both ordered 1/2 rack of their award winning baby back ribs. Donna wanted turnip greens and baked beans with here ribs, and I ordered corn on the cob and BBQ sphagetti (yep, that's right!).

The ribs had a delicious flavor, smoked over pecan wood for 5 hours so that the meat fell of the bone. I have only one concern about the ribs. I'm of the opinion that ribs done properly should require a bit of a tug and then come cleanly off the bone, not just fall off the moment you even motion in their direction. You shouldn't need a knife, and you shouldn't need a jaw workout to clean a rib, but you should need teeth!

The pork rinds were done to a turn, very lightly salted, Julie, and perfectly crispy, and we polished off the rinds included with our meal. The only thing left was to get a to-go bag of what my Mom used to call Cracklin's and beat feet for the door! We are happy campers! I think that the 'Vous may have lost some customers!

Tomorrow is a down day. Laundry, haircuts, and a trip to the market are in order before we leave here on Wednesday for points north. We'll catch you on the flip-flop!

Bass, BBQ, and Amos

Having been in Memphis in the past, we haven't been to excited about seeing Graceland or Beale Street or Elvis' statue, but we managed to find a couple of things to see on Sunday.

Our first stop was the Memphis Pyramid. Originally built in 1991 as a 20,142 seat arena on the banks of the Mississippi River, it was home to the University of Memphis Men's Basketball team and the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies until 2004, when the Grizzlies moved to the nearby FedExForum. Interestingly, on it's opening night in 1991, the floor flooded and crews were forced to sandbag the perimeter of the building. After the Grizzlies left, the 321 foot tall structure went dark until 2008 when the city of Memphis and Bass Pro Shops reached an agreement to renovate the structure into the worlds largest, by volume, Bass Pro Shop.

The observation decks at the top provide a tremendous view to the west and south.

While the entrance is impressive,

The largest stone fireplace I've ever seen is almost overwhelming!

Then we came to the Cypress Lagoon....

and the world's tallest free-standing glass elevator...

and the live alligators!

Kids had a great time testing their shooting skills at the arcade!

From the observation decks, where there is a restaurant, of course, the view upriver goes on forever.

And down river, you can almost see the Gulf...

A couple of small boats pulling tubers were playing in the estuary just below the pyramid.

The floor of the observation decks is glass, so it took some persuading to get D out to the edge....!

With a last look at downtown Memphis from the Pyramid, we headed down and out to our next stop.

Lunch time was upon us, so we stopped at the #1 rated Bar-b-que restaurant in Memphis, Central BBQ. Of course we had to wait in line to get in, but once in, the food and the service was good. It's a casual place, order at the counter sort of thing, but it was indeed an experience, as we sat at a table for six and struck up a conversation with a local couple that eat here every Sunday after church.

Our third stop was at the iconic Memphis Peanut Shoppe. Unfortunately the number one candy store in the city was closed for the holiday, so we'll have to re-think our departure date!

Our fourth and final stop of the day was inspirational and emotional.

St. Judes Children's Research Hospital in Memphis is a tribute to Danny Thomas, and considered by him to be his most important achievement in an illustrious career. Today, a small memorial on the hospital campus commemorates his work in founding St. Judes Hospital.

Founded on the premise that "no child should die in the dawn of life", the research hospital is credited with saving the lives of thousands of children, and with providing care at no cost to the family.

Born in Deerfield, Michigan, in 1912, as Amos Jacobs, Danny never forgot the ethnic Lebanese neighborhood he grew up in. An uncanny knack for telling funny stories about people in his town, together with the ability to mimic accents, brought him local fame in bars and nightclubs in and around Detroit.

Knowing that his career was stalled, and needing to make a change, he attended Mass in Detroit just as his new daughter, Marlo was to be born. He needed $70 to get Marlo and his wife Rose Marie out of the hospital, so he prayed to St. Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of hopeless causes, saying that "if you will show me the way in life, someday I will build you a shrine". He put $7 of his last $10 in the offering bin, praying that he "needed it back, times 10". The next day he was offered a gig paying $70 and Danny never looked back. St. Jude opened it's doors in 1962. 

Although named for St. Jude, the hospital is not a Catholic hospital, and is an accredited non-profit institution. The sole purpose of the by now huge facility is to further research in childrens cancer cures.

Danny and his wife Rose Marie are entombed in the garden adjacent to the golden-domed memorial building.

We returned home to enjoy a wonderful sunset while at the dog park.

Sasha didn't notice the sunset....

Just enough storm clouds in the distance to make the sunset interesting!

I'm writing this on Labor Day, in the afternoon. We've not done a great deal today other than take a long, long walk with Sasha through the neighborhood. We have some plans for this evening, so I'll post later on.

Memphis, TN

Well, actually, we're in Southaven, Mississippi, just a few miles south of Memphis. The rent is cheaper here....

We left Red Bay yesterday at about 11, after checking with an rv salvage yard for a part for the broken washing machine. No luck on the part, but at least we had the opportunity to ask. Mississippi state highway 23, the Tammy Wynette Memorial Highway, took us south to US 78/I-22. Tammy was born in Mississippi, in the country just a few miles from Red Bay, so claims Red Bay has her hometown. US78 runs through Tupelo, the birthplace of Elvis Presley, and Blue Springs, the home of the assembly plant for the Toyota Corolla in the US. From there the highway runs through miles and miles of farmland, mostly planted in soybeans, and then on into Southaven in almost a straight line to the EZ Daze RV Park. We are in site 10, the same site we "lived" in several years ago when we were here and it is still a very nice park. All interior roads are paved, and the sites are concrete with grass all around. The dog park is a huge fenced area around the catch pond for the parks storm drain system, so I imagine it contains water at times, but now it is beautiful grass with steep sides. Sasha loves running up and down the "hills"!

This morning, after Sasha had her morning workout in the dog park with a boxer and a schnauzer, we left to go south. We didn't have much of a destination in mind, but soon stopped in the little burg of Hernando, named for the leader of the DeSoto expedition that went through here in the early 1500's. DeSoto is the first documented European to cross the Mississippi River. In any case, in front of the Hernando County Courthouse, on Saturday mornings, local vendors get together for a farmer's market. Since we were there, we stopped and walked around.

We got into a conversation with a gentleman who was a retired military officer. He is cutting and selling specialty hardwood for use with smokers and grills. He had apple, peach, hickory and osage orange wood for sale, and gave us a small bag of apple shavings. The profits from his sales go into his grandson's college fund, so it's a good cause!

Leaving Hernando on US51 going south on a Mississippi Scenic Highway, we were enjoying the green fields and groves of trees when we came to a "road closed" sign. Turns out that a bridge is out; the best way out was a return to Hernando, but we couldn't do that....After visiting the town of Love, Mississippi and crossing I-55 several times, we found ourselves right where we started from...Hernando. It's great to get lost!

We ended up in Tunica, Mississippi, a small town that has evolved into a casino/gaming center on the Mississippi River. We stopped at Fitzgeralds to enjoy their lunch buffet, and rolled out of their vowing never to eat again!

Just adjacent to Fitz's is the Tunica River Park. This is a nicely done area to look out over the mighty Mississip!

The River is a mile wide here, and about 40 feet deep, although that varies with the seasons. We missed seeing a couple of river barges pushing their cargos upriver.

After a looping return trip along the Great River Road, we cut through the south part of Memphis and returned to Nessie. Sasha was waiting anxiously for her afternoon walk. We promised her a run in the dog park when the sun goes down!

Red Bay, Alabama

Forty-five miles southwest of Muscle Shoals lies the thriving metropolis of Red Bay, Alabama. This town of some 3,500 souls lives and breathes two things: Sunshine Dog Food and Tiffin Motor Homes. Sunshine is a huge mill that produces dog food under a variety of names from local crops. Tiffin Motorhomes is the other major employer in town and produces 12 motorhomes a day of various configurations. Over 1,500 people are employed by Tiffin at the Red Bay plant and at satellite shops. For example, the paint shop is in Mississippi, just six miles from Red Bay, and employs a sizable work force.

When we arrived here Tuesday afternoon, we set up at the Red Bay Self Service RV Park just west of town. One of four rv parks in town, it is a gravel lot cut out of a hay field, but does have full utilities and level sites. The cost is $20 per night, as most of the "inhabitants" own Tiffin motorhomes and are here for some type of service work, so they don't need or want a lot of amenities. This is not a place where anyone wants to be, so it becomes a bare minimum existence until work can be completed. Of 18 or 20 sites at this location, we have the only non-Tiffin motorhome. We're the token "off-brand" in a sea of Tiffin products. The other parks in town are likewise just holding lots for people needing service and they are full! We drove around Red Bay Tuesday afternoon (15 minutes start to finish) and noticed a lot of gloomy faces. In talking to some of the neighbors last evening we were shocked at some of the stories.

One gentleman had need of a bit of paint and body repair. After arrival and inspection, the estimate came in at $22,000! He agreed, reluctantly, and work began, but when it came time to paint, the paint shop covered up all the ventilation holes for his rv type refrigerator and caused it to malfunction. He's left with melted ice cream and thawed steaks and is waiting for a new refrigerator! Another couple came in for an air conditioner replacement a week ago, and now is waiting for a second a/c unit (somehow it got messed up while the first was being replaced) and a new top for their slide out because the workmen tromped on it while on the roof and damaged it! We're hearing stories of Tiffin employees doing unauthorized work during their shift in the factory directly with the customers. Major no-no!

Anyhow, we came to Red Bay to take a tour of the assembly plant, so today, Thursday, we arrived at the Tiffin Visitors Center just after 9:00 am, prepared to watch and learn.

With a 1976 Allegro Bus at the side, and manually operated gas pumps in the front advertising gas for 14.2 cents a gallon, we were immediately taken back to the days when Bob Tiffin started his fledgling company in an abandoned cotton warehouse, using parts purchased from a defunct mobile home builder and help from family members.

Can you say green shag carpet?

Our first stop on the tour was in the cabinet shop, where all the cabinet pieces are made from large stacks of Cherry or Alder boards. Hundreds of pieces are made, molded, and marked for use on a specific motorhome.

Large CNC (computer numerically controlled) machines make cutouts in everything from the large slabs of fiberglass used for sidewalls to countertops.

Then on to the frame area, where welding and bracing is done and coated to prevent corrosion.

And large plastic inserts are installed to prevent moisture from getting into the storage bays.

Another CNC machine automatically cuts window and door openings in a complete fiberglass/foamboard insulation unit. Miscellaneous small cutouts for lights and the like are done here as well.

Complete roof assemblies are created using a tubular aluminum frame with large pieces of shaped foam insulation glued to it. The foam pieces have been cut for a specific motorhome, and have light and a/c provisions built in. Here one roof is waiting to move to the assembly area, while another is built on the table below.

Add together a whole bunch of metal, armloads of foam insulation, a huge chunk of fiberglass with glass in it,

two and a half miles of electrical wire already woven into a loom specific to each coach,

stir in roughly three weeks of labor, and a motorhome pops out of the oven! Give it a little TLC and a quick cleaning, and off she goes to a proud new owner!

D and I spent about an hour after the factory tour looking at motorhomes that had just been completed. We were investigating floor plans, colors, and amenities to see if anything struck our fancy. While we would not disparage Tiffin products in the slightest, we decided that their products need just a little more TLC for us to be ecstatic over them. I guess we'll have to go home "with who brung ya" for now.

Taking a last look around town, we saw the old, and now closed, Red Bay Hotel. The town is nowhere near the ocean, so the name is a bit misleading. The "Red" come from the red dirt in the area, and the "Bay" refers to the huge quantities of Bay trees that existed here in the past, but are now mostly gone; much like the Red Bay Hotel.

Across the street from the hotel is the Mason Jar on Main restaurant. Now, you gotta understand that there aren't a lot of restaurants in town, but what few there are have a great reputation for good food. The Mason Jar is no exception. Only open until 2 pm, it's a lunch spot with hamburgers and sandwiches and the greatest sweet tea we've ever tasted!

Our lunch was served with Wickles Pickles, an Alabama business, and let me tell you, we loved them! Turns out the nearby Big Star Market carries the brand, so we hopped on over to pick up a jar or two! There's just something about a sweet, spicy pickle chip with a hint of jalapeño pepper and a crisp texture!

We'll say goodby to Red Bay tomorrow morning. Mission accomplished. There's a couple hundred miles of road out there that we haven't been on, so we gotta get going!