Coffee, trees and cheese

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Coffee, trees and cheese

When you walk around town it’s easy to see that the people of West Jefferson have embraced their creative selves. There are several beautiful murals around town, and the Ashe County Arts Council does a fine job of promoting the many talented artists in the region with an active program schedule.

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A Late Drive, An Innkeeper and A Lighthouse

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A Late Drive, An Innkeeper and A Lighthouse

Imagine driving late at night across expansive bridges, knowing that you are crossing a great body of water, but you can’t see it, and then you are driving on a sand blown road. Curiosity gets the best of you, so you stop and roll down your window. It sounds like you are completely flanked by water...

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An Invitation to Dinner and a Few Secrets

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An Invitation to Dinner and a Few Secrets

It was at Duke that Priess caught the eye of the Central Intelligence Agency, and not long afterwards he found himself working for the CIA in Washington D.C. It was there that he began his journey that would eventually put him in the position of working on the top-secret document known as the PDB, the “President's Daily Brief,” or simply referred to as “the Book” by those in national security.

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Southern Peaches and A Life Less Boring

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Southern Peaches and A Life Less Boring

Gaffney is also home to the 135 foot Peachoid water tower. If you have ever traveled I-85 and gone past Gaffney you have seen it. It was built in 1981, and it holds one million gallons of water.   The Peachoid was the center of the popular Netflix show House of Cards, Season 1, Episode 3. The fate of the Peachoid was in question, but it survived and we all learned a valuable lesson about texting and driving.

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Bagpipes, Tree Tossing and Traditions

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Bagpipes, Tree Tossing and Traditions

In my visits to the Highland Games over the years, I have met many people of interest and learned much about the origins of many of the things that we do in the Carolinas. I've met great story tellers, musicians, shepherds and athletes who enjoy the caber toss, which is the sport of tossing a tapered pole made from a large tree...

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A Yellow House, A Blue Jay and Two New Yorkers

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A Yellow House, A Blue Jay and Two New Yorkers

...In addition to myself, seated at the table was a retired couple form New York, who now live in Asheville and are very happy to be in the Carolinas.  There was also a couple who live near Raleigh, and they were excited because the evening before they had seen the Rocky Mountain Elk near Cherokee. The last couple at our table lives in the Memphis area and they talked about the wonders of BBQ from their hometown; they also had great stories of Elvis and his kind nature with everyday people.

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