Georgi!
Georgi visted last weekend. Not the one that just passed, but the one before that. 
I was going to write about it earlier, but I was waiting for photos to go along with it. Georgi is going to upload them for me, but given her busy schedule (she just took over a new store) and lack of free time, this may take a bit.
We had a great time. Georgi got in late Friday evening, and we went to dinner and talked and talked. I thought the Perkins we went to closed at midnight, but apparently they are open 24-7 now. This explains why the geeks sitting at the back table chose this venue for their intense game of D&D. As opposed to the geeks in the back booth who did not play D&D (that night) but did let time slip away from them. We finally got home around 3am.
Saturday morning Georgi and I hung out and talked over coffee while Richard got a little more sleep, then after bringing Richard caffeine to rouse him, we went out for sushi at what has to be the best bargain in Knoxville, an all-you-can-eat sushi place….$7 per person. Afterward we loaded up on water then went hiking in the Smokies, walked around Gatlinburg looking for the store that had the Vote for Pedro t-shirt that Georgi wanted to buy for Karriem, tried funnel cakes, and watched Richard eat a foot long corndog. I didn’t think you could retain any level of manliness while munching anything that shape and size, but apparently it can be done, and you can even walk away with your dignity intact. Then we had dinner at the nearest Denny’s (in Pigeon Forge Tennessee). We hadn’t had Denny’s since we moved here because they closed the one in Knoxville a week or so after we arrived. So, that was our Saturday.
On Sunday Georgi was planning to get an early start back after breakfast. Unfortunately, we all forgot it was Mother’s Day, so finding a place to eat that wasn’t overrun was quite a task. We finally found an O’Charley’s in Farragut that looked safe, so we had brunch/lunch and said our goodbyes.
It was a great visit, but all too short. We have resolved to make sure we don’t let an entire year go by again. Georgi is an awesome person, and one of the best friends you could ask for, so it should be an easy promise to keep.