A 12-gauge Single Barrel Shotgun Daddy said I could go hunting with him when I was 13 and how I looked forward to that date. For years, I had watched in awe as Daddy came home from his hunts and emptied his coat of quail and rabbits. I sat beside him as he cleaned them and admired his skill in dressing his kill. Then, one day, he said that I may be able to go hunting sooner if I … [Read more...]
Delicious Fried Panko Chicken
I cooked some fried chicken breasts last week that would rival Chick-fil-A. It was crunchy, juicy, and delicious and it all started with split chicken breasts, skin-on, bone-in. Those neatly trimmed, pre-packaged chicken breast loins are expensive, and they can be fairly tasteless. A far better buy – and a better cut, I think – is a package of two split chicken breasts with skin-on and bone-in. … [Read more...]
Old Businesses of Charlottesville
Leggett’s Barracks Road Lots of great businesses have come and gone in the 50-plus years I have lived in Charlottesville. Bear with me as I recall a few of them in the coming weeks. First up – Leggett’s Barracks Road. At one time, Leggett was an old, downtown department store chain. They chose middle-size cities like Lynchburg, Waynesboro and Danville and offered inexpensive … [Read more...]
Scoliid Wasps Also Enjoy Mountain Mint
Last week, we saw a Mason Wasp among the many pollinators that visit our patch of Mountain Mint. The bees and wasps flock there every day where we recently saw another interesting creature - a Scoliid wasp. In addition to being a pollinator, the Scoliid wasp is extremely beneficial to your yard and plants as it helps control June beetles and other grubs. Most prevalent during the month of … [Read more...]
Smoking Grass
No. Not that kind of “grass”. Real grass, like comes on a lawn – or did before last summer’s smoking hot heat and lack of rainfall. Grass on almost every lawn now has brown patches and scads wire grass, which doesn’t mind drought conditions or intense heat. Driving through our neighborhood, lawns look like war zones – except for lawns that have zoysia grass. They look just fine because zoysia … [Read more...]
Reagan: See it!
Nancy and I don’t often go to movies. That’s because they don’t make movies I would like to see. One movie, however, came out last week that I wanted to see. Reagan - basically, a biography of Ronald Reagan, our 40th president. The liberal Hollywood critics panned the movie. They vigorously oppose any film with a hint of religion or patriotism, but the movie they despised grossed $10 million for … [Read more...]
Fall Turnover
As the season changes, so do the fishing patterns in the lower Chesapeake Bay. The arrival of fall brings cooler temperatures and winds that stir the bay’s waters, leading to a phenomenon known as “Fall Turnover.” This mixing of water layers distributes nutrients and oxygen more evenly, affecting where fish can be found. This transition presents opportunities for catching a variety of species as … [Read more...]
Mason Wasps and Mountain Mint
Recently, Nancy observed a striking bee-like creature feeding on our patch of aromatic Mountain Mint. The black and white bee with purple wings is actually a wasp – a Mason Wasp. They are found in the Eastern part of the United States in mid- to late summer, a frequent visitor to nectar producing plants such as goldenrods, snakeroots, and mountain mint. The striped wasps are solitary creatures … [Read more...]
Great Fishing For Labor Day
Black sea bass enthusiasts have found the ocean wrecks to be fruitful grounds, with lots of nice fish available for those heading offshore. Flounder fishing has been particularly rewarding, with the lower bay areas such as the HTRB and the CBBT yielding impressive catches. These locations, along with the ocean wrecks, have become hotspots for those targeting flatfish. Cobia … [Read more...]
The Guns of My Life
A Smith and Wesson 38 Special I have been around guns – rifles, pistols, and shotguns – all my life and some stand out in my library of memories. The first one was a Smith and Wesson 38 Special. It was Daddy’s FBI pistol, and it was always either in his holster on his hip or on his dresser, and it was always loaded. Daddy always said that more people were killed with “unloaded” … [Read more...]
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