Front and Center

Hey everyone,

We made it safe and sound to Dalton Georgia last Sunday.  An uneventful 80 or so mile drive through the North Georgia countryside and a bit of I-75.  We're staying at the KOA just south of Chattanooga. It’s in the little town of Ringgold, Georgia about 3 or 4 miles south of the Tennessee border and about 15 or so north of Dalton.  The owners, Nora and Danny, are a very outgoing couple and take a lot of pride in their park.  Margo and I had a plan before we arrived to play hardball and tell the campground people that we wanted to tour all the sites and then choose our favorite.  We pulled in and immediately were overpowered by their enthusiasm toward having an Airstream in the park.  Danny, a man twice my size and beaming in his bright yellow KOA company shirt (and matching khaki shorts), had total control of the situation.  “That’s a fine looking trailer there folks.  Nora and I decided when we heard you were coming that you were going to be front and center on site 43.  Yes sir, that’s a fine trailer.  Everyone coming in and out will see it first thing”.  We couldn’t even get a word in edgewise before he crushed my hand in a handshake and that was that.  So much for playing hardball but as it turned out site 43 is wonderful and yes, LuLu is on display for everyone to see.

Site 43

The view out the front door. Meadow dog park.

My first week in Dalton went well.  I got the lay of the land in a few days and by the end of the week was feeling pretty comfortable about things.  I’m the only person from the company here so I’m on my own but I work closely with the local gas utility and all of the people I deal with have been really helpful.  I go by the utility office at the end of each day to file my paperwork and now I’m starting to get to know a few of the guys.  My brand new shiny boots, uniform shirt and reflective vest I wear are starting to get worn in so they don’t cover their eyes and squint as much now when they see me.  More on my daily routine in another post.  I’m snapping pictures of things and making observations so I’ll tell you all about that down the road.

We headed down to Ringgold today to check out the Saturday farmers market and look around downtown.  It’s classic small town America.  Exactly what we had envisioned we would see.  We spent some time in the local downtown shops, housed in a building circa 1920.

Downtown Ringgold

Downtown Ringgold

View from the railroad depot.

Margo had a blast in a local "retail therapy" shop called Uniktings and lunch at the local coffee shop (Caffeine Addicts) was excellent. We then had a look at the railroad depot, which still shows evidence of bullet holes and other damage from the Civil War.  There’s a lot of  war history here, being the site of many decisive battles and the Great Locomotive Chase of 1862.  I won’t go into the details here but there’s a great Wikipedia article at this link.



Next weekend we plan to head up to Chattanooga.  There’s a lot to do there including a world renowned aquarium, Lookout Mountain, Rock City (think the red "See Rock City" bumper stickers and birdhouses) and many other local things going on.  Stay safe until then.