Otter Falls

A picture from today's hike to Otter Falls, in Seven Devils, NC

Just a short hike. "You’ll be fine," my friend Christy told me, "it’s a nice smooth path just some steady upgrade." Only after we'd finished the hike and returned to the parking area did we see the word "strenuous" on the sign.

Hmmmm ...

But I am fine.

(It really wasn't all that strenuous. But I'm grateful for a couple of strategically placed benches along the path.)

https://www.sevendevilsnc.gov/parks-and.../page/otter-falls 

This Bunny

 

This bunny has been hanging out at my house the last few days. It didn't even flinch when I walked out on my deck. Have I been adopted? Honorary member of Clan Leporid perhaps?

Makes me happy to keep my yard wild.

Marking the Beginning of Summer

 

Today, May 1, is May Day, a celebration of spring. 

But to my Celtic ancestors, the day was "Beltane" and it marked the return of summer. 

"Beltane" roughly translates as "bright fire." Among ancient Celtic tribes, homes' hearth fires would be extinguished and people would gather for the lighting of a large fire, called a "neid fire." From this fire, two bonfires were lit and the tribe's cattle were driven between the bonfires into their summer pastures. Fire was seen as a purifier and healer, and the bonfires were meant to cleanse the cattle of disease, ensuring their future health and the health of the families they would feed. 

Members of the tribe would walk or dance around the neid fire then, as they returned to their individual homes, they would bring flame from the neid fire to light their hearths anew. In this way, the community were all connected to each other by the sacred, central fire.

Descendants of those ancient Celts no longer observe Beltane in quite the same way, of course. But Beltane/May Day is an important celebration nonetheless. In Asheville, NC, the Beltane sunrise is celebrated with dancing up on the Blue Ridge Parkway, at the Tanbark Ridge Overlook. I've attended a couple of these celebrations - as observer, not as dancer! - with The Asheville Morris Dancers and Ashgrove Garland Dancers. (Both Morris Dancing and Garland Dancing originated in England and are therefore not "Celtic." But who cares?) It's in the 40s in the upper elevations of the Southern Highlands, so its doesn't feel like summer. But it's a fun way to anticipate the warmer days of summer, and you just can't beat the thrill of seeing the sun finally peeking over the ridge!

The Shot Heard 'Round the World

 

My 4g Grandfather, William Foster (Forrester) born Ireland, 31 March 1748, patriot-soldier of the American Revolutionary War

"By the rude bridge that arched the flood,
Their flag to April's breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood,
And fired the shot heard round the world."
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, on the battles of Lexington and Concord, April 19, 1775

Spring at Biltmore Estate

When you have an annual pass to the Biltmore Estate, you don't mind running errands/keeping appointments in Asheville. Especially when the azaleas are in full bloom.

 

Azaleas belong to the Rhododendron genus. These flowers, also of the Rhododendron genus, are actually called rhododendrons. They're not azaleas. 

ie: All azaleas are rhododendron, but not all rhododendron are azaleas.

Couldn't resist a picture of dogwood blooms!

I love spring because it's like a parade: the different plants come along at their own pace. Azaleas in the garden were showing off; meanwhile, a few of the trees on this hill hadn't even begun to think about leafing out.

My obligatory visit to the Lagoon. I've never visited the Biltmore Estate and not visited the Lagoon, a habit started many, many years ago by my father. This view from across the Lagoon was his favorite view of Biltmore House.

What a great day! And tomorrow's my birthday!

Happy Birthday to Me!

100

 

One hundred years ago today, in the Land of the Sky, this man was born.

Happy Birthday, Daddy. I’ll love you forever.

Amaryllis

 

Photo is completely unretouched, except for cropping.

Portrait of Belle

My cousin's cat, Belle.

Beautiful, right? But looks can be deceiving.

Sometimes, she's jokingly called "Hell's Belle." And that nickname is well earned. Oh, she can be sweet, no doubt. But generally she is more salty than sweet. As I told an admirer who mistook her for a he, "She’d swat you for thinking she’s a boy. Come to think of it, she’d swat you for knowing she’s a girl. Or swat you for breathing air."

If she were human, she'd probably smoke unfiltered cigarettes and take book at cock fights.

She's an Alley Cat soul in a regal, Maine Coon body. And she sure does make life ...

Interesting.

Post-Fern Check-In, Day 6

Just yesterday, I was marveling at how well I'd prepared for Winter Storm Fern. Didn't really do a thorough job of the self-congratulation stuff; forgot to mention that the power was out at my house only once, briefly, for maybe an hour or so. Incomplete as my bragging might have been, though, I shoulda considered that I might be jinxing myself. I know better. I really do.

Jinx

Today being Thursday, Trash Day in my neighborhood, and given my disgust for stinky trash, I went outside for the first time since the snow and ice started piling up. I gingerly picked my way down the salted path and steps, and walked beside, rather than on, the obviously frozen driveway. I set the trash at the end of the driveway and turned around, retracing my steps back to the house. 

And then something happened. Not sure what, exactly. One second I was walking. The very next second I was seated on the ground. I sat there for a minute or so, kind of mentally assessing what damage may have been done. My right ankle was almost certainly sprained. (From playing sports, I have a not-inconsiderable amount of experience with foot/ankle sprains.) My right wrist hurt too; about the same degree of pain as the ankle, so that's probably sprained as well.

The wrist wasn't strong enough to raise me to standing position on the slippery ground, so I eased myself on to my knees and army-crawled back to the carport. Even on the dry gravel under the carport, though, I couldn't raise myself to standing position, so I crawled a bit further to pull myself up using the tire of my SUV. Great. Now three things are hurting: ankle, wrist, and now chest.

I won't be headed outside for a while, that's for sure! I can get by with my left hand; I can walk by planting my left foot and dragging my right; if I need to cough or sneeze, I can press on my sternum to ease the pain.

Little Miss Storm Prep will add crampons to the list for next time.

Oh, and the trash? Yeah, the story ends with a tragi-comic twist: They didn't pick up the trash. When the ground is covered in a blanket of snow and ice, and your trash bags are white ... I guess it's no surprise.

Post-Fern Check-In, Day 5

 

written while drinking a mug of Yorkshire Gold

Things are going pretty well here. My storm prep might've proved to have been a little bit of overkill ... but overprepared is ALWAYS better than underprepared.

Haven't had to use any of my emergency camping supplies. Yay!

I am sleeping under the down comforter at night and wearing a wool sweater during the day (because I don't like listening to the heater run All. The. Time.)

I used the Hot Hands Toe Warmers once, out of sheer curiosity. (They feel really good!)

Have eaten all the shrimp - due in equal part to their deliciousness and to food safety (3-4 days is considered maximum). Haven't eaten all the snacks, tempting as that may have been! 

Been checking back and forth with my next-door neighbors and other friends/family and that always helps. The only thing I'm really missing right now is going to the YMCA - and I don't feel safe going there because the drive leading to and from is full of hills and I don't have 4WD. Also, there's still some ice on my driveway - why risk that?

Going on a short outing with my cousin in a little bit, mostly just to get out of the house for a while, but I'm pretty well stocked to face the snow forecast for this weekend.

The PTSD thing ... yeah, hearing the windstorm and the sound of limbs/trees falling nearby was unnerving. As I'm sure it was for all of us here, post Helene.

But that aside, I'm doing fine!

Thanks so much to everybody who's been checking in! You've helped more than you know. 💕

(Curious about the art? Basket by Bridget VanRemortel; mug by Galen Sedberry; pictures under glass by Nancy DeWolf Minard)

Prepping for Winter Storm Fern

Reusing a picture from a couple of years ago. When I was prepping for Hurricane Helene. 

Well, here we go again. Different type of storm, a snow/ice event as opposed to a tropical event but ...

And I've still got a little PTSD thing going on from that last one. Kinda think we all do.

Anyway ...

Headlamp. Check.

Candles. Check. 

Water. Check.

Hot Hands. Check. (Yeah, this ain't hurricane prep.)

Steps salted, along with a path from the door to the steps.

Sleeping bag rated for sub-freezing weather. Check. Also, medium-weight down comforter. Check.

Wool sweaters, warm base layers, 700 down fill jacket. Check, check, check.

Two dozen spiced shrimp. Huh? If I lose power, I can't cook 'em. But if I cook 'em beforehand, I can eat 'em cold. 

I've got canned soups and jerky, and a rotomolded cooler that I can store cold food in. COLD is the word of the weekend. Whooo

I've got great neighbors next door, and another great one down the end of the street. Think I'm the right level of confident - no danger of me being over-confident in the face of an ice storm! But I think I'm ready.

Bring it. 

Now the Work of Christmas Begins

x

When the song of the angels is stilled,

when the star in the sky is gone,

when the kings and princes are home,

when the shepherds are back with their flocks,

the work of Christmas begins:

x

to find the lost,

to heal the broken,

to feed the hungry,

to release the prisoner,

to rebuild the nations,

to bring peace among the people,

to make music in the heart.

x

May we be the compassionate ones, the healing ones, the loving ones, the peaceful ones now and into the new year.

x

~ Howard Thurman

Pieces of My Heart

 

Yesterday I had a conversation with a close friend back in Florida whom I dearly miss. All the years Greg and I spent on the road and I'm frequently homesick for Columbiana (OH), New Paltz (NY), Belfast (ME), West Springfield (MA), Swannanoa (NC) ... and sometimes, for the road itself. 

Add to that list my native state of Florida.

I feel very much "at home" living in North Carolina; after all, it's where my Irish ancestors settled six generations ago. But the meme is accurate: there are pieces of my heart scattered all over the place.

At The Lagoon

 

Daddy's favorite view of Biltmore. I have stood at this very spot many times, and in many seasons of my life. But today is the first day I've summoned the courage to visit post-Helene.

The nearby French Broad River, having carved new banks in the flood, is a little broader these days. And the trees are bare ... but aren't they always at this time of year? The ducks are quietly paddling around and the Canada Geese are noisily honking - as always.

Nature allows itself to heal itself.

On Rosa Parks Day

 

"You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it is right." ~ Rosa Parks

Today's Rosa Parks Day, the 70th anniversary of the day she was jailed for disorderly conduct ... for refusing to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. I'd always heard that she was just too tired from her work as a seamstress to get up and stand for the remainder of her bus ride, but that's not the case. In her words, "The only tired I was, was tired of giving in."

Read more here:

https://npg.si.edu/blog/tired-giving

The Rewards of Early Rising

Though not naturally an early riser, I've been getting up very early to work out at the YMCA. This morning, as I was coming out of the Y, I saw pink and gold in the sky and knew just where to go to capture the sunrise.

I drove up to the Blue Ridge Parkway's "Table Rock Overlook," 10 minutes away, arriving just in time to capture this sunrise.

Getting fit is its own reward, but what a nice bonus today! 

Girls' Day Out

Today was Girls' Day Out with cousin Sally and friend Bev.

First stop: Boone (NC), for the relocated "Over Yonder" restaurant. I miss its previous location in Valle Crucis: an old wooden house whose cozy rooms made for an intimate dining experience, especially if you scored a seating near the fireplace! But the debris piles and washed out bridges left by Hurricane Helene resulted in a drastic drop in visitors to Valle Crucis, causing serious financial impact to Over Yonder ... as is the case with so many businesses all over the High Country. Relocating to Boone, a much larger town that attracts many more tourists year round and is a college (Appalachian State University) town to boot, was the logical financial decision. The new location has its charms; it's somewhat reminiscent of a ski lodge. And the food is great: very imaginative culinary creations made for some hard choices.

Lunch having been finished, we did make the trip back to Valle Crucis, whose main attraction is and has been since 1882, the Mast General Store. Its old post office still functions as a post office and you can buy a cup of coffee for a nickel. For each of us it was the first trip post-Helene.

The other two did some Christmas shopping; I, meanwhile, enjoyed poking around; seems like I can always find something charming or curious there! The candy selection is amazing; it's surprising to find that candy from the Penny Candy days is still made, and you can find those Penny Candies and much more, at Mast.

I pass on the candy (never have been much into sweets) but cannot resist the socks. My sock drawer is full almost to bursting with socks, most of which were purchased at Mast General Store.

Eventually we tore ourselves away, in order to make it to the Snowy Mountain Christmas Shop in Newland before it closed for the day. 

It strikes me, as I recount today's activity, that certain "touristy" businesses are just as attractive to locals as to visitors. Sally and Bev are lifelong residents of Western Carolina; I have visited the area since I was a little girl, and moved here five years ago. I can be at any of a number of tourist attractions - the aforementioned Mast General and Christmas store, along with Biltmore Estate, Grandfather Mountain, the Blue Ridge Parkway, to name but a few - in an hour or less, yet I never tire of visiting these places.

After the Leaves Have Fallen

 

Comic Book World Is So Much Easier

"In comic books, it's usually pretty easy to tell the good guys apart from the bad. But in the real world, anybody who tried to be Captain America right now would wind up despised by half the country in under a week. How do you fight for Truth, Justice, and the American Way when we're tearing ourselves apart over what those things mean?"

~ John Luzar

Memories of Maggie's Music

Just learned of the passing of Maggie Sansone, one of my early dulcimer mentors.

Through her Maggie's Music label, through her performances, through her workshops, she was a huge influence in the lives of so many musicians. I'm really grateful for her encouragement and her friendship. Sad, but memories have me smiling through my tears.