Checking in at Dunn, NC

Bright-leaf tobacco, just outside Dunn, North Carolina

Dunn, North Carolina: a sleepy old railroad town surrounded by long fields of cotton and bright-leaf tobacco. We were there for a few days to visit nearby family and opted to stay at a hotel. [Big mistake.]

Normally, I have good luck with Holiday Inn Express but the one in Dunn was abnormal. For starters, there was no hot water in the shower. We had to take a get-in-get-out rinse as if the drought was still on. The first evening back at the hotel, neither of our room keys worked. Nor did the emergency key at the front desk. Apparently the latch on our door needed new batteries. Since there was no maintenance man on call, the night clerk put us up in a different room down the hall, which also didn’t have hot water.

The next morning - still in my same clothes -- I went downstairs to look for coffee and some hope of getting back in our room. It felt strangely disorienting to be separated from my luggage by a couple dead double A's. Also, I don't make a habit of wearing the same clothes two days in a row. Some people have no problem wearing yesterday’s underwear. But not me. It's gross. The new desk clerk, an eager young woman built like a loaf of bread, was able to break into our room using a long metal hanger thingy that slipped easily under the door. While I was glad to hug our luggage again, it was cold comfort to know anyone with that kind of larcenous pluck could get into our room. Still, bless her.

On the upside of our stay, the linens were clean, towels were fresh, and the air conditioner worked. Also, the hotel served a decent breakfast and their fitness center had a state-of-the-art elliptical machine. Always a plus. By the end of day three, the hot water returned and our door latch was fixed. Then out of the blue the TV remote stopped working. I can't say for sure but I think the maintenance man swapped out the batteries.

For pictures of our Savannah, GA trip -- which was WAY better than Dunn, NC -- click here.

Or this one. 

About that Chocolate Cake

Wellesley Chocolate Fudge Cake

Is it ever wrong to have too much chocolate? Even though it gives me headaches -- and for years the pain has been worse than the pleasure -- I still can't give it up without a fight. Or at least a struggle. As a child I'd hide cans of instant frosting in my closet, and sneak a spoonsful late at night.Years later when I'd entered the burgeoning workforce and received those thin young paychecks, I'd always buy chocolate first. As a treat, you know, for muscling through a 32-hour week as a clueless cashier.
And even today with the blistering headaches, I've managed to convince myself that eating some chocolate every days is still okay. So when Cook's Illustrated published their kick-ass recipe for Wellesley Fudge Cake, I didn't even try to deny myself.

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Stir-Fry

Stir-Fry

Now that we're living in a 2-room hotel suite, my list of meals to prepare has grown noticeably thin. I have two burners, a microwave and approximately 3 square feet of counter space. No more stews or soufles, no casseroles, cookies or crumb cakes. Instead, I lean heavily on omelets, panini and - thank god - stir fry!