Where I'm at

Beaufort, Something Carolina.

Yes, I know I just left Beaufort, Something Else Carolina. But after my detour to find lunch in Lexington, Something Carolina, at Lexington Style Trimmings (during which time I should probably mention that I had the honour to ask directions of a woman who called me baby who was driving a 1995 electric blue Plymouth Neon), I fell in love with my waitress. She convinced me to make my way to the Inner Banks. There is an island with wild horses that is kind of alluring, but mostly I just wanted to be in a place with the same name as a place I fell in love with that sounds like another place entirely.

See here: This is the Beaufort in South Carolina: ˈbjuːfərt (BEW-fərt)

This is the Beaufort I'm at (in North Carolina): boʊfərt (BOH | fərt)

I don't remember if she convinced me of this before or after my second plate of hushpuppies (which she didn't charge me for), but it was before she sent me away with sweet tea for the road.

I did a stupid amount of driving today. 700 (mostly unnecessary) km, but it was lovely. I am in NC, after all.

(Also, I somehow had breakfast in Lexington, Something Carolina, and then had lunch in Lexington, Something Else Carolina, but following the highway signage was really confusing. I had to pull off the highway to regroup more times today than I ever have in my life.) (In my whole life!)

Two Beauforts, two Lexingtons, two Carolinas. I'll make my way to a new place name tomorrow.