We recently enjoyed a perfect dining experience at The Outback Restaurant on 29 North. It was not just perfectly good, it was perfect. Food, service, everything. Just perfect. Our server was Betty. She greeted us with water almost immediately and there was none of this, “How are you guys, tonight?” She was most professional, introduced herself, offered to get us drinks and in short … [Read more...]
Mexican Veggie Pie
This is Cinco de Mayo week. Cinco de Mayo (May 5) is a big deal in Mexico, commemorating a great victory in the Battle of Puebla during the Franco/Mexican War in 1862. It is a day of great pride for the Mexican people and a day when Americans eat about 100 million avocados and pretend they know how to cook Mexican food. This includes yours truly. However, slowly but surely, I am able to cook … [Read more...]
Cobia Hit the OBX
The Cobia have arrived. Captain Ryan out of Manteo hit the jackpot as he was coming back to port and caught his limit of cobia. Not only are the cobia hitting, keeper-sized puppy drum are thick in the Albemarle Sound. Capt. Reese Stecher (beachbum.fishing) says that the problem often when catching puppy drum is that they are either too big or too small, the slot being 18-27-inches. … [Read more...]
Special Entertainment
I was treated to a dazzling display of special entertainment this week. My wife, Nancy, performed a little synchronized swimming act in our very own goldfish pond. It happened this way. Nancy had set up a row of chairs beside our pond for front-row observation of our frogs and goldfish. The chairs were less than a foot from the pond and I warned that someone could lose their balance and fall in. … [Read more...]
Return of the Catbirds
We have birds that stay with us throughout the year, like the Cardinals and Finches. We have birds such as Cedar Waxwings and Eastern Towhees that just stop by to say hello and we have some seasonal birds. The Snowbirds, for example, come in late fall and leave in the spring. Our Hummingbirds, of course, are summer visitors and the Brown Thrashers leave in the fall and return in the spring. So … [Read more...]
Cliff View Inn
Cliff View Inn is a delightful lodge on the Jackson River, about 5 miles north of Covington. It offers 9 bedrooms and 9 baths, great views of the looming cliffs and is surrounded by an 18-hole golf course. My close group of friends who have been getting together on camping expeditions and trips for 41 years have been staying there, renting the entire inn for the past 15 years or so. … [Read more...]
Old Fashioned Rice Pudding
When I was growing up, it seemed we either had rice or potatoes every meal. Mom was a southern-style cook and we had lots of dishes with gravy, so naturally we needed one of those starches. When Mom cooked rice, she didn’t drop one of those Boil-in-Bags in the pot. She cooked a whole pack of rice. It was dirt cheap, like a quarter for a one-pound package and that makes a lot of rice. We … [Read more...]
Food Savers Really Save Money
I had a Food Saver years ago. I used it often and regularly. Then, one day, the sealer no longer worked, and a Food Saver is of no use if it can’t seal packages. I went without for a while, then saw a Brand-X Food Saver that was considerably less than the real thing. I bought it and it never worked. So for maybe 10 years I have done without and relied on Zip-Locks. Last Christmas, my … [Read more...]
Red Headed Woodpeckers
Jill Smith of Fluvanna County said that she has had a special visitor at her feeder for five days in a row – a Red-headed Woodpecker. That’s like seeing Elvis at the mall five trips in a row. Many confuse Red-headed Woodpeckers with the far more common, Red-bellied Woodpeckers. Red-bellied Woodpeckers indeed have a red head, but only partially. A Red-headed Woodpecker has a fire … [Read more...]
Burn, Baby, Burn!
There is a good reason why there are fewer whitetail deer in the National Forests west of the Blue Ridge. Fire, or the lack thereof. It’s the same reason California endures horrendous wildfires each year – it’s due to the lack of controlled burning. According to the biologists of Virginia Division of. Wildlife Resources, we’ve been conditioned to think of fire as solely a destructive force, … [Read more...]
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