Appalachian Blessings
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My Annual Suffering Inoculation
The summer after I turned 30 I was stung by a couple of yellow jackets. And ended up in the emergency room with full-blown anaphylaxis. After seven years of allergy shots my doctor decreed that my resistance was, "as good as it gets." Turns out they don't give you a...
Appalachian Thursday – Turkeys, a dog, and poetry month
April is National Poetry Month. You probably knew that 😉 I think MOST of my poems fall into the Appalachian category in some form or fashion. Here's one inspired by a walk in the woods with a dog and some turkeys . . . Sure do miss my Sammy . . . HOLDING BACK He’s an...
Close the Laptop and Enjoy Some Family Time
My older brother and his family came to the mountains from their home on the coast of South Carolina for spring break. Of course, dogwood winter showed up to greet them with a blast of cold air that pretty well froze their thin, southern blood! Nevertheless, we got...
Appalachian Thursday – Ramp Recipes
It's ramp season once again! The patch on my neighbor's property is flourishing. I dug a few ramps Sunday and added a few to a tomato and avocado relish last night in place of green onions. That's my preferred way to use them--as a seasoning or embellishment. But...
Stepping Into Another Time
This past Saturday I had a chance to travel to the 1700s French & Indian War at Ft. Dobbs near Statesville, NC. Friends of mine are reenactors who planned to attend the War for Empire weekend with their Dragonfly Traders tent. Lorraine offered to outfit me. Well,...
Appalachian Thursday – Early Spring Blooms
Autumn used to be my favorite season, but as I get older I'm enjoying spring more and more. Maybe it's the relief from the cold. Maybe it's more hours of sunlight. Or maybe it's the wildflowers! As kids we'd keep an eye on the daffodils growing above the house so we...
April Fool’s in Appalachia
Just in case you didn't notice, today is the first day of April. OR April Fool's Day. I've never been a fan of April Fool's jokes, but there IS a long-standing tradition of natives of the mountains (or most any place) playing tricks on outsiders who aren't familiar...
Appalachian Thursday – Spring Planting (by the signs)
It’s finally March and while we still have redbud, dogwood, and blackberry winters to go (at a minimum), country folks are thinking about plowing the garden. When I was a kid my father and one of the more mature ladies of the church would have pretty much the same...
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