Windows down, warm and sunny on the road is my perfect kind of day, so naturally the drive from Charlotte to Nashville in the green nature gorgeousness made me very happy yesterday. I highly recommend the 6.5 hour trek to anyone who hasn’t been through Western, NC/Smoky Mountains.
One little hiccup though, was that my malfunction indicator lamp came on in my trusty little Civic:
My car is my constant and these lights never come on so I was worried for a few seconds there. Thankfully at this point nothing seems to be wrong. (It’s a Honda and I never go without AAA so I’m not afraid to keep on trekking.) This light can come on if something as simple as your gas cap isn’t screwed on tight enough. I made stop into an Advance Auto Parts and had them hook up a code reader just in case to make sure I was good to go and nothing seemed alarming so I kept moving! 183k plus and counting.
It was near 90 degrees, so when I stopped outside Asheville, at one of those gas/McDonald’s stations to fuel up the BLR-Mobile, I went inside to grab a diet coke with lemon. (Always a craving on a hot day.) The young kid behind the counter handed me a cup and winked as I pulled out my money to pay, shaking his head and offering “Have a nice day!”
Why thank you, young one. I promise to pay it forward:
A full tank of gas, full diet coke, and full water cup and I was on my way through this beautiful scene:
…and drove through sunset as I rolled into Nashville:
Not too shabby for a bug-splattered windshield.
There’s nothing like a Great America Road Trip. If you’ve never just jumped in the car for a few days with no plan- do it. It will change your life.