I was still 4 when we were transferred to Beckley, WV. Daddy worked in an office with two other FBI agents. His territory covered 4 counties and he often was gone for several days at a time, often to the home office in Pittsburg. As I would come to learn, a lot of the work that Special Agents for the FBI did was investigative. If a woman from one of his counties applied for a Federal job in … [Read more...]
Saved By The Fishbites
We were on our way to Urbanna and hopefully a few days of good fishing. I have been hearing great reports on spot fishing and spot are among my favorite fish to deep-fry. As soon as we hit West Point, I saw a sign for blood worms, the bait of choice among spot fishermen and I quickly pulled in. “Sorry,” the lady said. “We are out of bloodworms and supplies have been spotty. Nobody has them. I … [Read more...]
One-Pan Spatchcock Chicken
My son Jimmie ran across a recipe from Natasha’s Kitchen that he thought well worth sharing. “I fixed this the other night and it was damned good,” he said. “The only thing I did differently was to brine the chicken for 4 hours (should have been longer) but it turned out GREAT - crispy skin, juicy meat perfectly done and the veggies were just as good. Cutting large carrots into 1 … [Read more...]
Grill Tips
Fire up the grill and get some steaks going. We do a lot of that these days as more and more of us stay home to eat. The only problem with grilling, though, is the clean-up and preparation of the grill. First you scrape and scrape, then you burn off the residue, then you spray Pam on a hot grill and hope for the best. My son-in law, Brent Ham, says I have been doing it all wrong. Brent says … [Read more...]
Portside Grill in Urbanna
If you find yourself in Urbanna after 4 PM and you’re hungry, and if you’d like to sit and relax and soak in some spectacular scenery and enjoy a fine dining experience, head down to Urbanna Creek and visit Portside Grill. We have been coming to Urbanna for nearly 15 years, generally to the Oyster Festival in November, but this year we slipped away for a long weekend to enjoy a little … [Read more...]
Lost in a Corn Maze
I’ve always thought that corn mazes were kind of creepie. Wander a few rows deep and you can hear voices coming from somewhere, but only the corn knows where. I get a little claustrophobic when surrounded by cornstalks and who knows what else. That’s why I only go to the Kiddy Corn Maze when I visit Liberty Mills Farm’s Corn Maze – at 34 acres, the biggest in the country for 2020 and … [Read more...]
More Baby Goldfish
Within a few weeks after installing our new goldfish pond this spring, our 8 original goldfish grew to 16, then 24. Our 4 year-old fish had spawned at least twice. I read that goldfish could actually spawn once a month between May and August and we wondered if the goldfish stork might deliver even more. Well, he did. There is one (that we can see) tiny little goldfish, born in the last … [Read more...]
Bye Bye, Red Drum
Red drum are starting to migrate out of the Chesapeake Bay. As they depart, surf anglers will be able to get in on the action as well. Frank Marble said the first large drum, 47 inches, was landed on the Little Island Pier in Sandbridge a couple of days ago. Look for some nice fish to be landed in the Sandbridge surf. Cobia reports are scattered around the lower Bay. Captain Todd Beck … [Read more...]
Headed Out West
I was four years old. Daddy George had proposed to and married my widowed mother and the FBI gave Special Agent Patterson his marching orders. We were headed for Seattle. I can’t remember what kind of car we had. It was an FBI car with a big engine, and it was black, probably a ‘48 or ’49 model Plymouth or Dodge. I can remember that it was a very long drive from Raleigh, NC to Seattle – every … [Read more...]
Abe Lincoln Tomatoes
The first year I planted Abraham Lincoln tomatoes was a fluke. I had tried to grow some tomato plants from seed and they didn’t do well, too spindly, so I headed for Snow’s Nursery. I saw two tomato plants that looked healthier than the rest and bought them. I noticed that they were Abraham Lincoln tomatoes and I picked literally bushels from those two plants that summer. Not … [Read more...]
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