When we went to WVA for a family gathering back in May, my daughter Laura managed to catch a couple small tadpoles while she was fishing Second Creek. She put them in a cup of water and brought them back to Charlottesville, knowing we like to keep our goldfish pond stocked with frogs and all the big fellas had departed. This week, I saw a tiny frog hiding among the lily pads and figured one of … [Read more...]
Air Fryer Hard Boiled Eggs
I hard boil a lot of eggs – for egg salad, deviled eggs, for snacks, for chicken and tuna salad, and my go-to method has been to steam them for 15 minutes on the stove top. Steaming makes for easy peeling, even on fresher eggs. But there is an easier way. I saw in one of the recipes I was using, a way to hard boil eggs quickly and easily in an air fryer. I decided to try it, figuring the worst … [Read more...]
Bringing in the Sheep(shead)
Sheepshead aren’t the easiest fish to catch. Their take is swift and soft. Some fishermen say that in order to catch a sheepshead, you have to set the hook before they bite. And they fight like John Deere Tractors once hooked. The 19.3-pounder above must have put up a mighty battle before coming to net. The sheepshead action is good, with many nice-sized catches reported. Fiddler crabs, … [Read more...]
Shaver’s Music Shop
The hands-down most popular retail establishment in Lewisburg in the 1950’s was Shaver’s Music Shop on Washington Street. Kids made daily or almost daily visits to the small store to see if their favorite record had arrived or if there was a new hit out that they wanted to hear. Burr Shaver, a talented local musician, ran the shop and was one of the best salesmen in the history of Greenbrier … [Read more...]
An Electric Canner
It was Nancy’s birthday and I wanted to give her something special. She enjoys (really and truly) canning and I have given canning paraphernalia in the past. I even gave her an apron with her nickname,“Pepperella”, on it since she loves to can peppers. I scanned Amazon for canning gift ideas and saw an electric canner. I didn’t know such things existed, but I rolled the dice and ordered one. She … [Read more...]
Water Snake or Water Moccasin?
With summer in full swing, many people will take to the water, and often people will come flying out of the water. “Get out. There’s a water moccasin!” Possibly, but doubtful, and practically impossible unless you are in the southeast swamplands of Virginia. Overwhelmingly, snakes seen in the water are simply harmless water snakes – northern water snakes, most likely. Here’s how … [Read more...]
BLT Mac and Cheese
I made a fun dish last week. I made a BLT Mac and Cheese Casserole. One thing that encouraged me to experiment was our abundance of cherry tomatoes (the tomato part of the BLT). It fairly easy to put together and rib-sticking good. Here’s my take on BLT Mac and Cheese Casserole. For starters, boil a pound of elbow macaroni and drain. Next, stick a pound of bacon strips in a 375 oven till … [Read more...]
Wren-field: The Real Spider Man
Recently, during a rare downpour, I saw “Wren-field” pecking away on the window ledge. He had found a juicy spider. Wren-field is the name I have given to my resident Carolina Wren. He, or one of his ancestors, has called our yard home every year we’ve been living at 214 Brentwood Road. While we’ve only lived in one house for the last 50 years or so, Wren-field has had many houses – sometimes … [Read more...]
Cast Iron Seasoning
We were at the Crozet Arts and Crafts Show recently and ran across an interesting product – a Cast Iron Seasoning Compound made by BCW. Everybody knows you’re supposed to “season” cast iron cookware, but few know exactly how. This 100% natural product is made from grapeseed oil, sunflower oil, and natural beeswax, Simply apply a thin layer to the entire skillet, then wipe off the excess. Put … [Read more...]
The Spaniards Are Hungry
Spaniards. Spanish Mackerel. They’re well up into Bay waters and if they see a Clarke Spoon, they’ll eat it. I can remember about 30 years ago when Spanish first began to poke their snouts up into the Chesapeake Bay. Before that, they stayed in the ocean – mostly to our south. Today, the mackerel make an early appearance in the Bay and head well past Deltaville and Sting Ray … [Read more...]
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