Thanksgiving in Charlotte

I headed off to Charlotte, NC this Thanksgiving. The trip took a little longer than I expected because of a rockslide in the mountains that shut down I-40, but I got there in time for Thanksgiving dinner with Robert, Charity, and the kids.

Charity, Robert, Elise, Aidan

That's some good turkey.

They fixed a huge dinner. I had taken some extra time off work so I spent the next 3 days in Charlotte.

Me by the lake

Aidan, fascinated by the mussels on the shore

One night we went bowling.

And then another night we went to the Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery, right in the downtown. This place has excellent steaks. This time I had the steak and frites.

Downtown at night

A view from the Rock Bottom

Dog driving car

We even saw a dog driving a car.

Charlotte's not a bad place to live. Descent-sized city, mild climate, and not too far from the beach during summer. Last time I came it was during Labor Day and we stayed at Ocean Isle Beach, just north of Myrtle Beach.

We had a good weekend together, it was good to see friends again.

Nido

At the Hispanic food section at my local Walmart Neighborhood Market I found Nido. In West Africa we grew up with this stuff. We used to buy the big tin cans at the boutiques at the marché. The big tin cans were always put to good use afterwards too. They would serve as storage bins, flower pots, homemade weights which we would fill with cement for lifting...

I particularly remember I got suspended once from boarding school for playing a Nido can (well, it was more for the lyrics, long story). Our "band" didn't have proper drums... Ah, the good ole days.

These days I still buy powdered milk because regular milk always spoils in the fridge. I hardly ever drink milk. The only thing I use it for, really, is to to mix it in the macaroni and cheese and to put cream in the coffee. A couple of spoons of Nido and a splash of water works great, and you never have spoiled milk.

At El Palenque

Lunch at El Palenque. Stephanie's sort of good-bye party.

(L to R) Me, Wade, Renee (hidden), Rob, Manny, Stephanie, Paco, Teresa, Annie