Monday, September 28, 2020

Lunch on high

 Up on the Blue Ridge Parkway, that is...




While waiting to go to the dining room at the Pisgah Inn, we strolled on the viewing area where many rockers invite people to enjoy the view. There weren't that many people, but we never sat in rockers. We had a reservation and had noted (can't have anything but a request) that we'd like to be by the windows.


This is the very small Lodge with rooms for overnight visits. 


So we climbed the stairs up to the dining room a few minutes before our reservation came...and had time to browse a bit in the gift shop.

And we got a wonderful table looking out at the bluish tinted mountains in the distance.

Helen and I had worn our masks the whole way driving there, and didn't take them off until we started eating.  Unfortunately though the distance toward one direction to the next table was almost 5 feet, the one behind us was only 3 feet and apparently had a reservation for 3, with one person just a couple of feet from us. So we moved to the far side of our nice big round table, which provided enough room that we weren't breathing on anyone, nor were they. This was the first time I'd eaten in a restaurant "inside" as a COVID avoiding person, and I sure wanted my distance. So did Helen.

We enjoyed our salads, and our desert of French Silk Pie, and forgot to take photos of them. I fell off my diet with the pie, but avoided the dairy of a scoop of ice cream with it. That didn't used to get included. But Helen had hers.


The Pisgah Inn is located above 5000 feet, (as shown above in a photo from their site on line) and the mountain can be seen from many places in Asheville. There are also hiking trails, and a campground, which we weren't interested in.

TODAY'S QUOTE:

If we live in the moment, we are not in time. 
If you think, "I'm a retired person. I've retired from my role,"
 you are looking back at your life. It's retrospective; it's life in the rear-view mirror.
 If you're young, you might be thinking, "I have my whole life ahead of me. 
This is what I'll do later." That kind of thinking is called time-binding.
 It causes us to focus on the past or the future 
and to worry about what comes next.

Getting caught up in memories of the past or worrying about the future
 is a form of self-imposed suffering. Either retirement or youth 
can be seen as moving on, time for something different, something new.
 Aging is not a culmination. Youth isn't preparation for later.
 This isn't the end of the line or the beginning.

Now isn't a time to look back or plan ahead. 
It's time to just be present. The present is timeless. 
Being in the moment, just being here with what is,
 is ageless and eternal​.​ 

 Ram Dass


13 comments:

  1. ...talk about a meal with a view!

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    1. It was hard to turn our backs on it while we ate...but we were talking too, and turned our heads frequently.

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  2. Hello,

    I have heard of other bloggers talking about the Pisgah Inn. The views are fabulous. A beautiful place for lunch/dinner. The pie sounds yummy! Take care, enjoy your day! I wish you a happy new week.

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    1. It is only open in the late spring to early fall, since weather up there can get bad during cold months. With the distancing between tables, they have a limited number that they can serve at a time. But they have a little carry-out counter also which does a good business. Make reservations if you wish to visit them soon. I think Oct. 31 they close.

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  3. I think I would get high, having lunch with that view.

    We still haven't eaten inside a restaurant and have no plans to do so as the pandemic ratchets up like crazy around here. People have lost their minds.

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    1. You all are smart...since we have to eat with our masks off! Helen (a good friend who frequently does day trips with me) and I wore masks for the hour of driving to the Inn...and then on down the Blue Ridge Parkway to the next stop.(More later!)

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  4. That is such a lovely view there.

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    1. I think in the next month as fall arrives here it will be at its loveliest.

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  6. Such a beautiful view! I completely understand your apprehension about People Proximity. I feel that I need to get back to "normal" by eating inside (or even outside) a restaurant. But I'm not quite ready yet. I want my favorite restaurants to stay in business after all. I love French silk pie!

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    1. Our outdoor eating days will be limited, even with outdoor heating systems, when the cooler weather comes next month. So I'm glad we were able to go to a socially distanced restaurant. I think most of the ones open in this area now do try to keep people separated pretty well. And of course the wait staff are all masked.

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  7. Replies
    1. I plan to go up on the Blue Ridge Parkway a lot more in the next few weeks, when the leaves start to change. Since my maples here in Black Mountain have started turning orange, I'm sure the further north and higher in elevation will soon have brilliant colors.

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