Day 1: April 20, 2024
To TN

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I left home on Saturday with no planned route and no schedule beyond being in Shreveport Monday afternoon. Traffic was light through Cincinnati and over the Ohio River.

I'd forgotten to stop by the ATM near home so drove to one just off of the expressway in Kentucky. Once there, I remembered having a good breakfast at a spot nearby so headed there for another one. Stringtown Bar and Grill is in Florence, KY, but takes its name from a 1900 novel titled Stringtown on the Pike. Fifteen years after the book's publication, the Pike, a.k.a., Main Street, would become part of the Dixie Highway.

I turned right just before entering Nashville, TN, and hoped that promising to be aware of work zones all week would be sufficient. It wasn't.

Even though traffic was rather heavy on I-40, it was initially possible to get a fairly scenic view clear of trucks but not for long. I had recently passed a sign announcing "STOPPED TRAFFIC 5 MILES AHEAD" when I came upon the long line of stationary vehicles in the third picture. The sign was not wrong, however. Traffic was stop-and-go -- mostly stop -- for the next 4.25 miles and 48 minutes. I am aware of work zones. I am aware of work zones. I am. I am. I am.

I had thought of making it to Jackson or maybe even Brownsville by day's end but my stretch of 5 MPH travel made me think differently. I pulled into a rest stop to reconsider and read some good reviews about a motel at the very next exit. The motel (Days Inn) was alright but I the only saw one restaurant sign. The desk clerk confirmed that the Arby's and a pizza delivery service was the only food choices. Intending to get directions to the Arby's, I picked up my phone and asked for restaurants and was surprised by a listing for a bar and grill with some very good and recent reviews. I followed the directions to a place that looked more like a strip joint than a restaurant and lettering on the door reinforced that. Inside, the bartender told me that Diamond's Bar and Grill had been in operation quite awhile but "the naked ladies" had been gone for "about a year and a half". It's now a hangout for pool shooters.

The reviews had been right about the food. My hamburger was quite tasty with crisp lettuce and onions. It did take awhile to get it but that was not because of slow service. The small kitchen was simply backed up. Smoking is allowed and it did happen but not too much and not enough to bother me. Karaoke began shortly after I entered to entertain me during my wait. Selections were varied and included a fellow doing Alice Cooper's I'm Eighteen who was much closer to my age than to eighteen. That might have been the highlight but there were other contenders.


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