ETSU was still closed for official tours, but you can easily walk all over the campus because it's not that large, so she was able to get a feel for the college even without a representative giving us a tour.
Our main objective was for her to get a good glimpse of the Gray Fossil Site because if she chooses to apply and gets accepted at ETSU, then she will end up spending some of her time working at the site. She contacted Dr. Steven Wallace, a professor at the university and the original director of the site when it first opened. He was kind enough to meet us and give her a thorough tour along with ample scientific explanations that went over my head but that she firmly grasped. He also took us into the expansive and amazing upstairs lab where we met the main preparator, Shawn Haugrud, who wowed her even more with lots of information. I was most intrigued to learn that since the soil of the dig site is clay, all the fossils there have been crushed into thousands of pieces that then have to be reassembled much like a very complicated 3D puzzle that may or may not contain all the necessary pieces. They are doing some cutting-edge things at Gray, and I know my daughter would both benefit from working there and be beneficial to the cause because she's very diligent with her work and already has a lot of experience working with tiny fossil fragments.
The dig site itself is behind the building and isn't much to see yet because they estimate that they've only uncovered about 1% of what is there. In that 1%, though, they've found a staggering number of fossils, so there is work to be had at this one site for years and years and years and for many current and up-and-coming paleontologists.
Naturally, I can't travel anywhere new without checking out the local bookstores. I hit up Book Lover's Warehouse, Mr. K's Used Books, and Moody Books. The latter has been around for almost 50 years and specializes in theological books for the most part. I didn't really find anything to my liking there, but I enjoyed seeing it. I most enjoyed Book Lover's Warehouse, and I would love to return to spend a full day there. Of course, I returned with some books to add to my home library. I also stopped at the Barnes and Noble to acquire the newest Pulitzer winner for fiction.
Another place that is a must-visit for me is the local Harley-Davidson store. I stopped in and bought myself a much-needed full-face helmet from an exceptionally friendly and knowledgeable woman named Paige who has worked in the Johnson City store for 21 years. She was extremely patient with me as I tried out all the gizmos on the helmet, and she made sure that I was satisfied with the fit. According to helmet measurements, my head is a small, which I find so strange since everything else on me (according to fashion sizing) is extra large and double digits. But my head measures 22 inches which puts it in the small size range. Believe it or not, sizing for helmets goes from XXS all the way to 5XL. I am only a smidge over the XS size, so I tried on both the XS and the S repeatedly until I was certain that I wanted to stick with the S. She's an experienced rider who also is a small for helmets but prefers an XS for added snugness, so she wanted me to be certain. The XS was just a bit too snug for my liking, though, I finally decided. I also left with another HD t-shirt for my collection and another poker chip (which didn't do anything for my desire to get one from every state since I already have an TN one from Nashville, but I really liked the chip and the Johnson City HD store).
No trip is complete without sampling local fare. We ate some great food while we were there. Since we arrived kind of late and many restaurants still weren't open to dine-in, we opted to eat at the Waffle House that was right next to the Hampton where we stayed. We'd never eaten in one before. I chose to actually try one of their waffles. It was pretty good, actually. We also ate at Aubrey's, a great restaurant serving American food as well as pasta which is what we ate; Southern Craft, where we sat at the bar and had some delicious libations as well as yummy barbecue; and Main Street Pizza, where the spaghetti and sausage meatballs was to-die-for delicious. At each place, we had incredibly friendly and helpful waiters who added to the dining (and drinking experience).
Just a few miles west of Johnson City is the town of Jonesborough, which is the oldest town in Tennessee and home to the International Storytelling Center. The events for that are held in the fall, I believe, but the main street is quite historic and full of interesting places like the Christopher Taylor house where Andrew Jackson lived for a year. We ate at the Main Street Cafe, strolled through the town a bit, but a couple of the stores I would have liked to have visited were closed, so we left empty-handed but enjoyed the time spent there.
I'll leave you with one last selfie taken from Winged Deer Park in Johnson City. Hopefully, I'll be returning to the town or area in a year or so, either to visit or to live.
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