Although MTTS has passed through Charlotte and Richmond over the past two days, Jenny and I decided to take a detour and visit my parents in Chapel Hill, NC instead. As a result, we ended up missing a few MTTS events (though Richmond was a "Night On Your Own").
Saturday morning started with a fairly typical "Where should we go to eat for breakfast?" discussion but in light of some shopping needs, we decided to pass on Saxapahaw and Pittsboro to go to the Foster's in Durham for breakfast. It was a pretty nice day out so we were able to sit outside. Food was as good as usual - I had huevos rancheros and Jenny had pancakes. Minerva got a few scraps as well so was also pleased.
I was surprised that Foster's wasn't any busier for a Saturday morning but my mom told me that the bakery next door, Gugelhupf, had recently started serving hot food and was stealing business away. I remember it being a very good bakery when I went in the past so am not surprised that they'd be successful as a breakfast joint as well. Perhaps next visit, I'll try them out.
After breakfast, Jenny and I headed out for some shopping. Both of us wanted to get a new pair of shoes; hers were bothering her and giving her a blister while I just wanted a more convenient alternative to the boots I brought. We wanted to continue our Row by Row trek and had pinpointed a quilt shop in Chapel Hill to visit as well. Tomorrow, we're planning on going to Durham to visit the Funcom office. Funcom makes our favorite game, The Secret World, and I'm planning to wear a Daimon Kiyota outfit but needed a white tie. Jenny made a TSW-themed quilt to give them so we also needed a dowel to hang it. Lastly, Minerva needed a new squeaky ball as she lost her other one last night in one of the drainage pipes in our back yard.
We ended up spending most of the day fruitlessly shopping. We ended up empty handed when shoe shopping. Jenny has wide feet and we weren't able to find anything suitable for her, even after visiting Marshalls, TJ Maxx, Super Target and Walmart. I also wasn't able to find a white tie so ended up with a light gray ("steel") one instead. We did pick up a wooden dowel from Michael's and new squeaky balls and cookies for Minerva from Target so the trip wasn't a complete failure. After a little difficulty, we also were able to find the quilt shop and pick up another Row by Row pattern.
We spent the evening visiting my stepbrother Greg's boat and houseboat. Both his children were away and his wife was at home taking care of her sister so it was just five of us (Greg, my parents, Jenny and I). He's had the boat and houseboat for a while and I know both my parents and Kat have visited numerous times but it was actually the first time I have visited.
After a warning from Greg about carefully getting on the boat, he took us on a tour of Jordan Lake. I've visited it a few times before but never out on the water and never seen it in its entirety so it was a fun experience. The weather held so it was a comfortable temperature and the wind as we zipped by felt great. It was strong enough that a couple of times, I almost lost our pizza box. I don't think we actually have a picture of it but it did wonders for my hair. Jenny compared it to Kim Jong Un, leader of North Korea, so I'm not sure if that's a comparison I particularly like but it did feel nice getting the breeze.
While cruising around, Greg pointed out a bald eagle and an osprey competing for food. The eagle let the osprey nab a fish from the water but then threatened it into dropping its prey and snatching it up itself. I've seen bald eagles from a distance before but in the boat, we were able to get quite close. I remember when bald eagles were considered an endangered species so it's good to see that they've been since removed from the list and populations are a healthy size again.
Once we completed a circuit around the lake, we went back to Greg's houseboat. Having never been on a houseboat before, it was more spacious than I expected. We relaxed a few minutes inside before moving out to see the sunset. We got a great view of it setting over the lake, perhaps one of the prettiest scenes we've seen thus far on our trip. After feeding and watching fish around the boat and enjoying Greg's sound system, we headed home for the night.
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