Fast Cars and Fast Storms (September 2024)
Darlington, SC
September began with a trip to Darlington, SC. One of my bucket list items was to get my wife to attend a NASCAR race with me. Mission accomplished thanks to our daughter-in-law who gifted us with tickets to Darlington Raceway and the Southern 500. We also took our grandsons with us to their first NASCAR race. The prerace included paratroopers, jet flybys, and other entertainment. Tammie enjoyed the race and said she would do it again.
Date Night
Saw Reagan, the movie, then out to eat at Stax Original Restaurant. Reagan was a very uplifting movie. He was obviously a good and effective president, but it was an interesting reminder that as a conservative he was treated badly as president by the media.
Travelers Rest
We live in Travelers Rest, SC. We have a golf driving range right in downtown TR. My grandson has begun playing at I took him to the driving range one evening. My granddaughter talked me into one last swim in our neighborhood pool. Yes, it was cold.
Russ Sorrow Memorial
We spent this 9/11 as guests at the Crime Stoppers of Greenville James Russ Sorrow and Fallen Officers Memorial Award Banquet. Crime Stoppers of Greenville presented the Shield Award to Detective Jenna Willson of the Mauldin Police Department and the Russ Sorrow Award to Lieutenant Jason Weibel of the Simpsonville Police Department. Russ Sorrow (EOW 9/19/96) was the last Greenville City Police Officer to die in the line of duty before Allen was killed in the line of duty on 3/18/16. The banquet honored Officer Sorrow and the nine other Greenville County law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty since his death.
We were honored to sit at a family table that included the brother and sister-in-law of Greenville County Sheriff Deputy Marcus Whitfield (EOW 8/13/99). Thank you to all law enforcement and first responders and their families who have sacrificed so much for all of us.
North Carolina Waterfalls
During the middle of September, we took a day trip to western North Carolina. We decided to spend a day visiting several waterfalls. We began the day in Hendersonville, NC eating at our favorite breakfast restaurant, Kosta’s Fireside Restaurant and Pancake Inn. Their blueberry pancakes are the best we have ever had. We then visited Sequoyah Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Dry Falls, Glen Falls, and Silver Run Falls. We haven’t had much rain lately so the flow was down a bit, but each waterfall was still fun to see. We are truly blessed to live near so many beautiful places.
Sequoyah Falls is actually a dam spillway. But it is still an amazing site. Bridal Veil Falls is unique because you can walk behind it. In the past, the walk behind was actually a road which made this fall very unique. However, because of danger to drivers from falling rocks and I suppose problems paying attention to driving, it became a pullout instead of a road. Dry Falls got its name because you can walk behind it and stay dry (see the video below). Glen Falls requires about a 1 mile hike to get to the falls. This is really a series of three staggered falls. This fall was the most photogenic. Silver Run Falls is a 25 foot waterfall. You can get right to the base of the falls, and it is a very popular swimming location with a great pool at the foot of the falls
Hurricane Helene
Our September ended with a very fast and furious visit from Hurricane Helene. While the greater damage and loss of life was to our north in North Carolina, we did suffer deaths and damage here in the Upstate of South Carolina. Our neighborhood was without electricity for 6 days. We didn’t have any damage to trees at our house, but it was impossible to travel more than a 1/4 mile on State Park Road because of the number of trees down. It took several months for the cleanup to be completed. The first picture below is from the retention pond behind our backyard. The water nearly reached our back fence. The other pictures below are from local people submitting to local media. For a week it was throwing away spoiled food, cooking on the grill, taking cold showers, and spending many nights in the dark. We were fortunate that the temperatures were moderate. I think a lot of people rethought how prepared they were for an emergency.
