Cleaned a lot of plates in Memphis, pumped a lot of pane down in New Orleans...

I can't believe it.  As of yesterday, I've booked a cross-country train trip.  Once I take that trip, I can cross that off my bucket list.  If there was an "Amtrak Passenger of the Year" award, I would totally be battling our Vice President for it!  (Sorry Mr. Biden, I am very grateful the fact that you are a good VP and totally whomped Paul Ryan in last week's debate and wrote one of the single greatest pieces of legislation in really modern history, the Violence Against Women Act.  But how about letting someone new be Amtrak's best passenger?  And by the way, Alex the Advocate's says Reauthorize VAWA now!)  I've been planning this trip to New Orleans and Memphis since the summer, and now it is coming to fruition.  It's going to be centered around music and history--I'm planning to visit Sun Studio, Stax Records, Graceland, all the New Orleans landmarks, Mardi Gras World, and the Civil Rights Museum.  Then I plan on doing some ultra-regional things: trying Memphis barbeque, dancing till dawn at a juke joint (discovered a few with acoustic blues), enjoying a jazz brunch, partying on Bourbon street fueled by Cafe Du Monde coffee, and going to a cooking class.  (Maybe my next dinner party will include some of those recipes?) 

I really hope that it's as exciting as I am anticipating.  And that I am capable of going a week without sleep!  Cafe du Monde had better be all stocked up and ready for my arrival.  Oh well, sleeping is what my room on the overnight train trip is for!