Red clay

We were playing Ray Charles's "Georgia on my Mind" at the store the other night, and for the first time that I can remember, I felt nostalgic for the south. Not just the friends I have there still, but more for actually being in the south. I miss being able to drive over the border between Florida and Georgia and thinking "this is my home." I went on so many road trips in georgia or driving through georgia on the way to knoxville, and the memories I have of those are some of the most vivid and detailed memories I have.
The one that jumps out at me is a road trip I took to Savannah with my roommate Greg. We thought, because we were told by our other roommate, that there was going to be a huge St. Patrick's Day parade there. Seemed like a fair enough reason to go on a 4 hr road trip. PIus, I had a thing for this Irish girl at the time. (I like Irish women, I guess.)
Anyway, we left really early, like at five or something. Greg took the first driving shift, and our way through Waldo, Fl., which is one of the worst speed traps in the country, and promplty got himself a ticket. Kind of a buzz kill, that. We drove on, and once we got to Savannah, we found out that we missed the parade by one day. Turns out our roommate had gotten the date wrong. So, we spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around what is one of the most beautiful towns in the South.
On a side note, Greg had a picture of a girl he was kinda seeing at the time that was taken in Savannah. It had a street sign in it, so we were able to track down the street and were able to take an almost exact copy of the picture.
I had driving duty back home, and on the next day, while I was driving through Gainesville, I was nabbed for my one and only speeding ticket. Greg got a pretty good kick out of that when I came home with that news.
I also took several trips from Gainesville to visit my sister in Knoxville. I have such a clear memory of those trips, even down to the Wendy's I would eat at off the bypass by Macon. Also, when I stay in Knoxville, I would invariably visit Gatlinburg. Now, my memory of that place is too detailed. There's a small mall there, and I would make a point of going to the used music shop at the bottom floor. I also remember buying a pack of Gitanes at the tobacco shop on the thrid floor. I remember everything as if I just experienced it yesterday. It's really strange ,and I can't quite explain.
I had a chance to live in Knoxville once I finished school, but I decided to come up here, And before I knew it, I had a job and was settled in. The last five years have certainly seen there up and downs, and although it's never really useful to think of what could have been had I stayed in Tennessee. I think it would have been a bit easier to meet people. I'd have loved being in such close proximity to a huge national park. Who knows...I could be married with a kid by now.
However, it's balanced by the fact that I can take a train into NYC whenever I want, have a slice of the best pizza anywhere, and experience a bit of the best city in the world.
I guess it's better to grab joy in what you can have than think of what might be, as that's an illusion.