Dolly and Dollar General

I stopped by Dollar General for a few last-minute toiletries before my trip to the mountains last weekend, and I couldn't help noticing that DG had some adorable Dolly Parton kitchen wares for sale. Do you like Dolly? I guess I've been a fan my whole life. I liked her in her country phrase, I loved her in 9 to 5, and when she lost her husband recently, I had Dolly on my prayer list, so I suppose "widowhood" is one of the few things Dolly and I have in common. (I note with interest that she says she's staying busy and that while she misses Carl, she tries not to dwell on it too much. Same, girl. Same.) Anyway: Dolly has tea bag holders at Dollar General!

I thought this one was cute, and if you look closely, you can see the iconic Dolly butterfly logo. Dolly's name is all over the place in Pigeon Forge since Dollywood is nearby. I went there when the park was still known as Silver Dollar City, so I probably need to go back sometime and check it out under Dolly's leadership. Her brilliant instincts as a businesswoman have long impressed me. I'm still astonished that she said no to Elvis recording "I Will Always Love You" because she would have had to give up the rights to the song. Since Whitney Houston went on to record it years later, making lots of money for Dolly, that ended up being a brilliant move, didn't it?

And I adored her in the movie 9 to 5, which is why this Cup of Ambition tea bag holder is my favorite! These were just $1, and they're apparently quite sturdy. The young man who checked me out dropped them both into the bottom of my bag, and when I heard the clank, I took them back out to check for chips, asked for a couple of plastic bags to wrap around them, and they made it safely home. They may just be $1 purchases, but hey, it's Dolly!