Charlie 🦮in Athens and Folkston Georgia

We left the Motel 6 in Cleveland, Tennessee to head to Athens to see Clarence and find out if he was going to travel with us or not. Our first stop was Dunkin Donuts where Charlie had his first pup cup. 



Our first stop when we got to Athens was a trail by the river where I’ve run many miles so Charlie could stretch his legs before we got to Clarence’s. He was at work but his roommate Rick was home and I knew where the key was hidden. 



After driving from Oregon to Georgia this is what greeted us at Clarence’s. A locked gate so I couldn’t even get to the hidden keys. 😳



So I decided to walk downtown on college to get us something to eat. I knew they had a Chik Filet we could get a sandwich and nuggets at. It wasn’t very far but I had to take a break at the courthouse. Coming back I had to take a break halfway up the hill. It really stinks when I think of all the miles I’ve run here and now I get tired just trying to take a short walk. When I was here after my knee surgery and couldn’t run I was still walking 7 1/2 miles a day all over Athens. 





When we got back to the house Rick was home so Charlie and I hung out in the backyard until Clarence came home from work. 



We went out to have a couple beers at a new wing place that used to be the donut place I sometimes went to when I went to Athens. I didn’t have any wings because I was already full of chicken. We ended up back at the house catching up and Clarence was still trying to decide if he was going on to Fred’s and Florida with me. His townhouse had been sold and he needed to find a new place to live. That was proving to be really hard to do. Charlie moved right in. 




The rest of our time in Athens was pretty much the same, waiting for Clarence to get home from work or delivering meals on wheels. We went out for a burger and beer at a place called Clocked. I had a pimento cheeseburger and it was good along with a local draft. 



Clarence finally got a place to rent in the same complex he lives in so we celebrated with some wine and I took some pictures to memorialize his backyard before he tears up his plants and gravel to take with him. Compared to all of my previous trips to Athens between my lack of energy, Clarence’s work schedule and stress over finding a place to live this one was a bust. 🤷‍♂️



Next stop Folkston, Georgia to see Fred and Leah Mershon. The best part of this trip, except for family time, was seeing how healthy Fred looked. His fight with bladder cancer after dealing with viral meningitis had his family convinced he wasn’t going to make it. They think his cancer is in remission even though he still has to receive treatments and follow ups for the next 18-24 months. It was great seeing how well he looked and spending time with him, Leah and their daughter Jill (Stacey’s) family. 







Charlie had to be introduced to more new dogs but as usual he quickly made himself at home. 



We had a really nice cookout at Jill and Toby’s one night. It was amazing how nice their house turned out. 





The next morning Leah made Bloody Mary’s but put in to much horseradish and after we tried to drink them she had to strain them out so we could enjoy them. Saturday night Fred and I went out for pizza in Hilliard because Leah went to Jacksonville for a granddaughters dance recital. We took the Shelby Mustang. It was a nice trip but I wish Clarence had gone down with me. 






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