Late yesterday, Taylor (from Whiteboard) shot video of the stream that feeds Toccoa Falls. We rarely go to this part of the falls because it is dangerous but sometimes it is fun to market the view. This is what we are getting ready to do. So I had Taylor on one side of me and . . .

this view on the other side. It is the gorge below. As Chipley would say, “That is Sccaarr-wee!”

The dark color at the top of the screen is purely “dead air.” Taylor’s friends were behind him shouting, “Dude, be careful.”

I went for a ride on Saturday afternoon and ended up in Homer, Georgia. I’ve never been there before, but the moment I saw this gas station, I knew I would have to get out of the car and take photos. Cocoa sniffed around the neatly trimmed park and both of us were amazed by what we saw, especially beneath the older wooden building in the photo above. I know . . . what was I doing looking under old buildings? We could see lots of antique “finds” at the edge of the building and had to investigate.

The is the old Banks County Court House. Just being in this setting made me feel like I had stepped back in time. I asked Cocoa if she wanted to climb the stairs to the balcony with me, and she hesitated. True confession: the steps were a little frighting—very narrow and steep. The courthouse is one of the oldest in Georgia. It was built in 1870 and restored in the 1980′s. Today, it houses the offices of the Banks County’s Chamber of Commerce.

Here is a photo of one of the building’s columns. The exposed the brick really shows the age of this courthouse. The outdoor pavilion in the background is where I imagine many town events have taken place.

Chip refused to climb the steps. Cocoa went unwillingly but trusted me in the venture. This is really an interesting town, and I plan to return soon. The main Web site also lists a covered bridge, which is a rarity in Georgia since Sherman burned most of them on his march to the sea. (Yikes!)

My best guess is that this house escaped the torch, too.

One of my favorite breakfast places is BJ’s located in the downtown area. Usually, I see people there I know—people who live and work in this community. Across the room in this photo is Dr. Bob and his wife Frances. We go to church together—what fun! The guy who is my dentist came in with his wife. As I was leaving, he said, “See you later.” Gulp.

I don’t eat like this way often. Even though I would love to have French toast and fresh sausage at BJ’s every Saturday morning, I refuse to do it. . . . just refuse it! (Be strong my waining heart!)

Breakfast and then it was time for a little county music on the city corner. Honestly, I want to do something fun and cool like this when I get to be this guy’s age.

Later, we all headed out to buy fresh strawberries. These are wonderful!

I noticed that fresh Vidalia onions are available. Here’s a secret. Don’t buy anything that does not have a label like this one. A few weeks ago, I bought an onion that said it was a Vidalia but it wasn’t. Morgan Farms is located in south Georgia—the real home of Vidalia onions! Don’t be fooled by big corporations that say theirs are Vidalias. Nope. Everyone in Georgia knows the difference is in the soil. And these onions are great when grilled outside on a grill with smoked apple wood.

And then there were peaches! These are from south Georgia, too, but the guy who owns Jaemor Farms made sure I knew theirs would be ready in two weeks! We’re having an early Summer!

Here’s my beautiful Cocoa Joy. She was with me every moment of the day. Well, not at BJ’s but she was with me the rest of the time. I can’t leave Cocoa behind.

Dukes Creek located in White County is a very historical area. It is the place where the gold rush in Georgia began. In 1540 Hernando DeSoto visited the area and at least one of his men returned around 1560 to mine gold. When Georgia became a colony in 1730, the Spanish no longer came to the area. Gold was rediscovered south of the falls in 1828. The path to the creek is just off the Richard B. Russell Scenic Highway which connects Brasstown Bald with Helen, Georgia.

The pathway to the falls is relatively flat. It descends 400 feet and switches back three times. It’s a fairly easy hike to the bottom where you are greeted by this scene and much more—at least three viewing decks and plenty of white water. Cocoa gives this hike five paws. It is easy and only moderately difficult. Chip would give it four paws because you can’t access the water via the decks. :0

I know friends (Reba) love seeing the dogs in places like this, and I hope that will happen by later tonight. Cocoa is going with me to a couple of events today. But for now, I thought I would post a few photos I took the past week at a small photo shoot of TFC students on top of Currahee Mountain.

I admit from this angle it looks like we were in a dangerous position, but I promise there were ledges beneath us. If we had fallen, we probably would not have died, but it certainly would have hurt. Willis (in this photo) did jumped down to a ledge.

Here’s the view our students love the most—the one in front of them. They are not allowed to go to the top of Toccoa Falls so I believe they have found this place as a second choice for adventure. It is also a place they can go and be college students. I understand that totally.

They even allowed me to join them, which was pretty cool.

“God will prepare everything for our perfect happiness in heaven, and if it takes my dog being there, I believe [she'll] be there. —Rev. Billy Graham

This photo isn’t the best because we were in very low light plus it was taken with my iPhone. Still everyone was all smiles, and it was great being with friends from First Baptist Atlanta again.

People always want to know where Cocoa and Chip stay while I’m in Atlanta. I explain that they truly have it made at Bark Avenue, but I guess you have to “see” the atmosphere of the place to understand what I mean. This was taken in the lobby and is pretty much the way things are for all the puppies that stay here. It is really “ruff” stuff. Okay . . . not every room is exactly like this with leather sofas! But it’s pretty nice—flat screen TVs and much more.