Savannah, GA 10/21 0 driving miles; 10 walking miles

A nice slow morning began a little after 9 AM with coffee, yogurt, and a kolache at a downtown coffee shop called the Coffee Fox. It wasn't Starbuck's, but I didn't hear Ed complain too much. Interestingly enough, the coffee shop sits on the foot print of a former revolutionary era tavern where local anarchists talked treason and plotted independence. Northerners are taught in grammar school about the Boston Tea party, but we get precious little detail of the exploits of Southern patriots like Francis Marion and Nathanial Greene. It's another unfortunate gap in our system. Ready and willing to be enlightened, we met our walking tour guide, Savannah Dan at the base of the monument to Nathanial Greene who we learned basically chased, dodged, and harassed Cornwallis' army until it was worn to tatters. Savannah Dan was much less political (Though I'll wager no less passionate) than our guide in Charleston (Tommy Dewes). Dan focused more on the revolutionary era for detail, added some colorful detail about preservation, made a few self-deprecating comments about his apparent lack (appreciation) of culture ("The longest three hours I ever spent was listening to opera in this theater"), but mostly he spent his time as a walking Chamber of Commerce shill, recommending various eateries and tour spots as we passed them by. The closest he came to anything "snarky" was when a woman in the group asked him why there were slave quarters in one of the grand homes if this was a free state. He responded with a practiced barrage that began with the rationalization that Savannah gave in to the economic pressure of the pre-industrial years when Georgia joined the rest of the slave  holding colonies in 1751, ending what amounted to 18 years of Georgia's run as a free state. His response: "The South lost. Slavery is bad. But don't you worry. We got NASCAR, sweet tea, Leonard Skynard, The Allman Brothers, and a 2.5 Billion dollar tourist industry. We're doing just fine." I'm eager, though I doubt the opportnity will arise, to ask any passionate Southerner, black or white, if they think institutional racism, practised segregation, and undeniable inequity will ever be eradicated in America. I know it's alive and well in the community where I live, though many of my ilk would claim otherwise. I also know that though I consider myself fair minded and equitable, I've really not been tested. I live in a place where most people look like me, and those who don't are shuffled either by systemic economic pressure or by some ingrained, unspoken code to "their" side of town. Not only that, but many who look like me also grew up poor like me. They, too, are shuffled and gathered in particular parts of town. I like to think it's more about inequity than race, but once again, I can't really be tested where I live. One other observation before I get off this box. Everywhere Judy and I have traveled, we've noticed several incongruent things. First, mostly we see folks living the dream. The old ones like us are wandering around, and the young ones are chasing their younger ones around to soccer, church, scouts, and all the other things we did back then, too. We also see, wherever we go, a certain number of disenfranchised from those who literally live on the other side of the tracks to some young inexplicable yet maddening pan handlers to some who for whatever reason find themselves in dire straights. On the social front we see unsettled things as well. In some places, people meet our eyes and greet us warmly. In other places, we meet dour faces and surly attitudes. I can explain none of this; I'm simply observing what I see through my own "prism" (As Ed says, "We all see things through our own prism"). But one thing I hold onto is the belief that the American Dream is alive, despite whatever obstacles present. As a second generation son of an under educated "Bohunk" from Slovenia, I can say two things. First, I'm living proof the Dream is possible. Second, life is good, especially today.

 A good start to the day.

Savannah Dan.

Some poltical irony.

Oglethorpe in his perfect military stance defending South Carolina from the wicked  Spanish.

 Art shot of the day (You can put lipstick on a pig...).

A couple of cute girls down by the river.

A stolen moment in a local courtyard.

Another one (They're exquisite).

Home made dinner in our own little courtyard.

Steak from the "Barbe". Under the watchful eye of Judy.

Deb and Ed.

And a plate of thin gruel.