13. Forsyth County -- Winston-Salem -- 4/14/06

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forsyth_County%2C_NC

From downtown Greensboro, I got on old 40 (now Business 40) and took the narrow, tunnel-like interstate--similar to the one through Greensboro, except scarier--through downtown Wimpstom. When I was in high school, I was in jazz band class, and we had a Christmas songbook. My band director would make up new song title names like "A Dusty Field" for "Adeste Fidelis." One of the ones we liked to play was "Good King Winston-Salem." So anytime I hear the song about our friend Wenceslas, I think of this city in Forsyth County, and vice-versa. I was humming the song as I walked around downtown.

Winston-Salem also has more band dorkiness associated with it...the only time I saw DCI (Drum Corps International) live, at Winston-Salem State University's Bowman-Gray stadium...complete with a racetrack around it. It was pretty cool.

I'm actually a big fan of Winston-Salem. It has a good earthy feel to it, and it even has Old Salem, which I have enjoyed walking through. I like the contrast between the old town and all the new skyscrapers and stuff. I have 2 friends that are of Moravian heritage from the area, one of whom's relatives is the namesake of Kernersville, also in Forsyth County. And this is also where Wachovia Bank started. And lots of cigarettes have been made here. AND, the longest plank road in the country ran from Fayetteville to Winston-Salem...once again because it seemed cooler than the railroad at the time. There's not really a direct route from Fay to WS anymore. Oh well.

I drove around the courthouse for a while to make sure I picked the best side for a picture...but both sides looked the same. I liked this side because there were fewer people, and you get the cool skyscraper juxtaposed in there. I don't know if there's another courthouse around, since this one sure seems tiny for such a big county! I called my Moravianish friend Patrick and asked him, and he thought that was probably it (though he's from Stokes County).

12. Guilford County -- Greensboro -- 4/14/06

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guilford_County%2C_NC

Yo yo yo! It's time to get this show on the road! This past weekend, I got up to 61 counties with the help of one of my good friends from college, Jim. He's from Guilford County, and so I dedicate this post to him, since I did this county by myself. This goes out to all you krazy Guilfordites out there as well!

So, ladies and gentlemen, after my fabulous stop in Graham (and driving around in circles...I had to pull out my GPS to get out of there), I hopped on I-40 and headed on to Greensboro. I had never been to downtown in Tha Boro, and I thought it would be a little intimidating. But, it wasn't. I liked the street signs down there. I forgot what they look like, but I remember thinking, hey, they're pretty cool (kinda like how peanut butter/chocolate ice cream is cool...in both taste and temperature).

I pulled into an alley-like road in front of the courthouse, and tried to take a quick shot before the folks standing to my left smoking got a chance to ask what I was doing. I hopped back in the car, and was on my merry way.

Guilford County used to be known for the traffic jams as both I-40 and I-85 traffic funneled down the same tiny highway that runs through the city (named Preddy Blvd., it looks like it was a nice blvd at one time that they decided to run an interstate through. As a matter of fact, the onramp I used to get back onto the road took me through a neighborhood--not as a ramp, but as a neighborhood street--where I practically made a right turn onto the freeway). Now, they've split the two interstates apart a little farther east to ease traffic through the city. Man, it helps! Greensboro was halfway between Asheville and Fayetteville growing up, so that's neat-o. Speaking of "neat-o", O. Henry is from Greensboro. His stuff is CRAZY. I got a compilation book of his work from the library last summer, and man, that's some interesting bathroom reading.

I learned in one of my Geog classes that Greensboro is prone to water problems because it sits at the top of a watershed, so all the water runs away from it, and in small quantities since all of the nearby rivers are just starting their journeys. Whoops.

Guilford County also contains High Point, which calls itself the "Furniture and Hosiery Capital of the World," and is the highest point on the Charlotte-Goldsboro RR. The RR ran into the old plank road that went to Fayetteville...that's one thing I find so funny about Fay...Fay decided that the plank road was a better investment at the time than the RR, which is why it took Fay so long to get off the ground and get a RR (and later an interstate). Anyway, High Point has a bi-annual furniture mart which attracts tons of people...though it has threatened to move to Las Vegas (BOO!). Las Vegas is NOT a town or county in NC, and therefore is lame. Well, ok, it could be cool (so I've heard...never been!), but furniture belongs here! Besides, there's a huge chest of drawers here, too, which goes nicely with the large chair in nearby Thomasville (Davidson County).

The courthouse looked good for being near in a Revolutionary War battle in 1781. Oh? This isn't the same courthouse? And the old "Guilford Court House" was in a different spot? Well, then. Then what was that guy doing wearing a red coat then? Huh? Didn't I smell tea and crumpets? Yeah, the rebels got pretty crushed in Guilford. Maybe next time. Hold your heads up!

11. Alamance County -- Graham -- 4/14/06

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamance_County%2C_NC

Alrighty, kind reader, it is time for you to switch time periods. We have just enjoyed a stint with Laura as my copilot on a 6-county tour of Eastern NC, but as you can see in this picture, I am by myself again! You now have to leap forward in time six days later to the following Friday, April 14. I am on my way to Swannanoa, NC to visit my parents (it's near Asheville in Buncombe County). Of course, on my way, what am I going to do? That's right! Find some courthouses!

This trip was a doozy. I hit 8 courthouses on the way, 1 the next day, and 4 that Sunday. So this section of my blog contains Courthouses 11-23.

SO...Alamance County! If you look up counties in NC, this one comes first alphabetically. It also is the home of the Battle of Alamance, but not Burlington Coat Factory. Growing up, I thought this was a boring looking county on the map...just a rectangle. But now I enjoy it because it's home to cheap gas! I (and many others) hold my breath from Chapel Hill to Alamance County with the gas gauge dropping quickly below empty, just to save some change. It reminds me a lot of the Seinfeld episode "The Dealership" from Season 9 where Kramer, running on empty in the car he's test driving, passes the dealership with the car running on empty at the end of the episode with a maniacal laugh. I do that every time I pass the high-priced gas stations in Orange County until I cross that Alamance line. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

On this very day, I drove right up 54 from Carrboro into downtown Graham. The only other time I had been in the downtown of Graham was during a Trombone outing to a Burlington Indians game, and we drove through here for some reason. Many people assume the county seat is Burlington, but...it's not. You're wrong. Or you're right...depending on which you thought it was. But hey, Junior year in college, I was asked in an Urban Planning class what "GIS" stood for (Geographical Information Systems), which was my major in college, and I got it wrong. I forgot what I said, but I really did think one of the letters stood for something else. Whoops.

Anyway, in Graham, I drove around looking for the courthouse, which happened to be in the middle of a traffic circle. Looking back on it, it seemed like the circle or the steet layout seemed mighty rectangular...but maybe I'm just crazy.

But I pulled off to the side, hopped out, and walked to one of the corners where there was this nice little garden thing and people eating outside. I'm standing in that thing, and taking my picture. It took a little while, but I got it, finally...I was a definitely trying to avoid looks from "muggles."

I also didn't take notes on these 13 courthouses, so I'm running off my memory. Yup, I took notes at a lot of courthouses so I could blog this stuff. If I happen to miss something, please remind me! Oh wait, I was there by myself...but leave a comment if you happen to want to say something about these (or any counties). REP YOUR HOMETOWN!

10.5 NC State Capitol -- 4/8/06

http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/capitol/

Hey, how could I drive through Raleigh/Wake County taking pictures of courthouses without stopping to take a picture of the State Capitol?! "Easy...Charles, the State Capitol is for the legislative branch, not the Judicial Branch like the courthouses, you moron." You're right, but people also think Canada is its own country. Oh...it is? Well then. You win some, you lose some...6 million or 1-million-half-dozen-of-the-other.

I've been fooled a few times while on my quest for Courthouses. For instance, I thought the Caswell County Courthouse was redone and put back into use as a courthouse. Nope...it was redone and put back into use (which it says on the building), but according to their website, it's currently the County Attorney's office. The Capitol, I'm sure, has also fooled many people by not being upright. The legislature actually meets in the Legislative Building next door...which was hit with the 60s virus as well. But we love to talk about our Capitol...even though the legislature doesn't use it for their meetings. But come out and see our Capitol...some of the statues were dressed in Carolina Hurricanes jerseys during the playoffs...it's nice to know Andrew Jackson is a Carolina Hurricanes fan. [Interesting note--This blog was written on June 8, Andrew Jackson's death day....RIP Old Hickory.]

My grandparents used to give tours here (my grandfather gave my 4th grade class a tour), and there's a desk with his name in it. And I have a picture of it in my apartment. So cool, and built with granite from nearby.

10. Wake County -- Raleigh -- 4/8/06

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wake_County

On the way back from Smithfield, the sun was starting to go down, but we decided to get our sixth courthouse of the day...Wake. The county seat of Raleigh is also the state capital, which you probably already knew. RUFF RALEIGH! Wake's courthouse is definitely a building put up just to keep up with the growth of the area, and it definitely has a taste of the 60s in it. We parked in a parking lot to the right and to the front of my bright white head. The parking lot says we're not allowed to park there, and we're facing the sheriff's department. At this current time, there is a deputy walking in the general direction of Laura's car. So we took the picture pretty quickly and starting walking at a brisk pace back toward her phat ride. But I think the deputy was going home or something, and couldn't have cared less that her car was parked where it was. (Note: I originally wrote the previous thought having to do with "my" car. Laura kindly reminded me that she "drove over 200 miles that day" and she requested the pronoun change. Though normally I would veto such a request since autobiographies are full of inconsistencies to make life stories sound better, I guess I'll let her win this one. Speaking of which, I also owe Laura a meal since she paid for gas...but I think it sounds better if I wrote in my blog that she owes ME dinner. So Laura, you owe me dinner--especially now that I fixed that error for you, which makes my post sound less cool. I think some Eastern NC BBQ sounds good!)

You know, Fayetteville, where I'm originially from, is the place where NC got its start. The US Constitution (not the boat...the document) was ratified there, UNC was chartered there, and Raleigh became the state capital there...by one vote over Fayetteville. What would the state be like today had Fayetteville been the state capital? Hmm...I need a dream sequence here. Well first of all, Fayetteville would have more than 1 interstate. And Fayetteville would probably have the Carolina Hurricanes hockey team (GO CANES!) instead of the FireAntz (I was there during the Force days, but GO FIREANTZ!), and there'd be boats on the Cape Fear River, and cool water parties, the Triangle would be between Fayetteville-Lillington-Raeford (or Clinton or Spring Lake...haha) and Yankees...oh. Yankees. Well, it's not all it's cracked up to be. Raleigh was made the capital because it was more centrally located and it was donated farm land in the middle of nowhere. According to Wikipedia, "The site was chosen as being within ten miles of Isaac Hunter's Tavern, a tavern popular with the legislators of the time." Also, "Raleigh is one of the only cities in the US planned and built specifically to serve as a state capital." Just like our dear friend Brasilia, Brazil. Charles, did you really just relate Raleigh to a city in Brazil? Yes, I sure did.

But Wake County is a fun place, lots to do. Raleigh-Durham was voted 4th best place in the country for singles by Forbes.

9. Johnston County -- Smithfield -- 4/8/06

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithfield%2C_North_Carolina

It seems that each time I've gone out on a Courthouse Chasing trip, it rains. And rain it did in Smithfield. But we're troopers, and so we got out and wandered around in the rain.

When I think of Smithfield, I think of Selma. They just go together. Selma is the town just up the road, and there's a big outlet mall around there. And the students share a high school..."Triple S"...Smithfield-Selma School. I really would like to know if there's any beef between the two towns. I don't know too many folks from Johnston County. I have relatives up on my Dad's side from there, but besides being the new bedroom for Raleigh, I have a lot to learn! If you're from Smithfield/Selma, let me know why I'd rather live in your town!

The Courthouse is part of the NC Civil War Trail and General Sherman occupied it and announced Lee's surrender here.

8. Wilson County -- Wilson -- 4/8/06

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilson_County%2C_NC

Leaving Tarboro, Laura and I decided that we needed to get our grub on. Courthouse chasing takes a while and really makes you hungry. When you're in this part of the world, there's only one thing you're allowed to eat: Eastern North Carolina Pulled Pork BBQ. That's right...Eastern. It's the junk.

People may debate this, but Eastern NC BBQ headquarters is in the big city of Wilson (there should be no debate on which is better, Eastern or Western NC...it's definitely Eastern. Alright, I have to admit, the debate is fun). Wilson is where the tobacco meets the pigs in the county with the water tower with a rooster on it on I-95 ("Wide Awake Wilson!"). It's NC agriculture in a nutshell...minus the apples.

Laura and I decided to get the courthouse and head on over to a BBQ joint. In Nashville, Laura's teacher co-worker person said that we should try Bill's BBQ. I grew up eating Parker's BBQ while driving along I-95. I thought, hey, Bill's is worth a shot.

Hold on, before we get to the BBQ experience, we have to talk about the Courthouse!

This one was pretty easy to find, and it was surrounded by cops. Cops everywhere. You folks in Wilson need to start obeying the law, or something! It started raining, which is one reason we're standing under the awning, but we also needed to get back far enough to get the courthouse in the picture. Reminds me of a train station. If you look closely at the clock, it's approaching 2pm, which means it's TIME TO EAT BBQ!

Now, let us take some time to explain NC BBQ. It's good. I'll save my breath a little bit: if you are unfamiliar with NC BBQ, do not pass Go, do not collect $200. You must stop here and click on this link: http://www.northcarolina.com/stories/bbq.html

Hi! Welcome back! I'm so glad we're now on the same page about NC BBQ. Mmmmmm. Oh? You didn't actually read it? Here's another chance, because what I'm about to talk about won't make much sense if you didn't read it: http://www.northcarolina.com/stories/bbq.html

Alright. Good! Now I can explain Bill's! Like I said, growing up, we'd sometimes stop at Parker's BBQ which is crowded, good, and humble-looking, but we decided to try out Bill's. Bill's was almost like tourist trap...the complex was huge! They even have a convention center! One part had burnt down, but they still had the buliding just for walk-in take-outs, and the line of cars wrapped around the enormous parking lot. There were at least 20 cars in line, and the board in which you place your order was on the far side of the parking lot away from the building...so you can place your order 15 cars back.

We went into the buffet area of the restaurant. I hadn't really been to a BBQ buffet before...I've been to plenty of pig pickin's, which are practically buffets, but not really a big buffet like this. Not only could you get the BBQ chopped already on the buffet, but there was a cooker with the pig on it right on the buffet line as well. I thought this was the coolest thing ever...an indoor pig pickin'. Even the sweet meats were included. My mom loves innards, though I didn't inherit that trait. Man, I enjoyed my BBQ mixed with cole slaw with hush puppies, potato salad and banana pudding. Oh man, it hit the spot.

But Courthouse Chasing wasn't over for the day...not in the least! On to Johnston County!

Up to 53 as of June 4!

Yes, I still exist! I'm up to 53 now as of June 4, with #50 being DARE! I will get posting again soon. Take it easy!