There is something called the World Cup taking place right now. It is like the Super Bowl for the entire world, except for the United States, which only accepts a long-pointed ball as a real football, and not a black and white volleyball. The World Cup is a soccer championship, and soccer is a strange game. I’ll try to explain it to you. For starters, in order to play soccer, young men have to … [Read more...]
Game Department Busted
The Division of Wildlife Resources – I still call them the Game Department – is broke, busted, penniless. They had to borrow nearly $7 million from the state to make ends meet at the end of the fiscal year. The Pooh-Bahs in Richmond said, “We’ll loan you the money, but you’ve got to raise license fees.” The DWR is responsible for enforcing fishing, hunting and boating laws and managing all the … [Read more...]
Spanish Armada
Some nice Spanish mackerel are being caught from the coast off Virgina Beach and well up into Bay waters. Trolling techniques with Clarke Spoons are most effective. Water temps are now around 70 in the Bay where bluefish, flounder, stripers, spot and croakers are all biting. The cobia season is in full swing, and some big boys have been landed. Some impressive bull drum have been caught recently, … [Read more...]
Only God Can Make a Tree
My life is dotted with the memories of certain trees. Yes, trees, those so beautifully described by Joyce Kilmer.The first tree that had special meaning was a huge oak tree on Grandview Avenue in Beckley, WV. I was about 7 or 8 and played with two slightly older boys – Dicky Guy and Billy Richmond. We played three things back then – Army, Navy and Air Force. We shot attacking German … [Read more...]
Butter Corn
The corn’s a’coming. Fresh corn on the cob. Tis the season for sure. There are dozens and dozens of ways to cook corn on the cob, and I’ve never tried a recipe that wasn’t good. Baked, boiled, steamed, grilled? Fresh, sweet corn on the cob? How can you go wrong? But recently I saw a recipe from Spicey Southern Kitchen that is likely to go to the front of the line in my recipe cards. It’s … [Read more...]
Signs of Our Times
Chick-fil-A for Governor
I place into nomination Chick-fil-A for Governor of Virginia, or for Mayor of Charlottesville, or for Postmaster General of the United States. If the folks who run this well-oiled machine ran any government organization, the people would be far better served. Chick-fil-A has efficiency down to a science. Nancy and I were both under the weather with nasty colds and decided to let the fast-food … [Read more...]
(A lot of) Canadian Bacon
We saw our son Jimmie recently at a family get together and he said he had bought me a 3-pound log of Canadian Bacon. That’s nice, but why?An impulse, he said. I guess I looked like I needed a 3-pound fix of Canadian Bacon even though I haven’t eaten that much in my entire life. When I got home, I hacked off a few slices, put them in a hot frying pan with a bit of olive oil and wolfed them … [Read more...]
A Mountain Mint Farm
We have a Mountain Mint Farm. What started as a couple plants of Pycnanthemum Muticum, commonly known as Mountain Mint, is now a bumper crop in our garden bed near the pond. Bring it on, I say, because with the spread of mountain mint comes swarms of pollinators – bees and lots of butterflies. Mountain mints are aromatic plants with dramatic grey-green foliage and a distinctive minty scent. In … [Read more...]
Living With Bluebirds
I have been living with bluebirds for over 30 years. I had never seen a bluebird in our yard until a pair first came to our water bowl. Bluebirds love water and that’s the first way to attract them. The next spring we had a small pottery-type bird house hanging on an old clothesline pole (yes, it was that many years ago.) One day, I noticed a bird with brilliant blue plumage going in and out of … [Read more...]
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