Snowing in Meat Camp

 

Life is Good

Tuesday - Home, and what I brought with me

 Home.  ❤

776.2 miles (roundtrip) and 7 days later.

I'm home.

Someone once said, "there's no place like home."

Dorothy, honey, you know it's the truth.

https://introvertdear.com/news/why-theres-no-place-like-home-for-introverts/

The long drive home from St. Helena Island to Meat Camp was approximately 341 miles, and with a few brief stops to refresh my weary bones, took me about seven hours.

It's been a long time since I did that sort of drive alone.

Usually Donald does the driving.  He enjoys driving.

Me?  Not so much.

Although, driving long stretches I do sort of slide into a Zen mode which is good for thinking and reflecting.

I had lots to reflect on driving back home to The High Country after my week in The Low Country.  These two areas could not be more different.  They both have their own essence of nature and character.  Their differences are sharp, crisp, and in some demesne, quite stark.

After some time to ponder my week in order to form words coherent enough to put to paper, I'll share my thoughts.

In the meantime, I'll do what I do here so often and share some images.

I am like a lot of people when it comes to traveling; I pick up souvenirs.  Things that hold particular meaning and remembrances of the place of origin.

Images embedded in my mind of the experience.

Of the culture

Of the people trying their ever best to save pieces of their culture that are in danger of disappearing.

And while I bring home memories important to myself,

I hope I show respect for the cultural integrity of The Low Country in my photos and in my words.

My Life is Good

Let me never forget

What's happening at our house . . .

 

I love our little community of Meat Camp, NC.

From Wikipedia:

"Meat Camp is situated along the Old Buffalo Trail and was established before the Revolutionary War.  As the story goes, Meat Camp was the location where hunters stored their dressed animal carcasses in a cabin that served as a primitive packing house."

This is Elk Knob as seen from our bedroom window.

You can read this piece I wrote about Meat Camp for Jungle Red a few years back. - https://www.jungleredwriters.com/2014/09/oh-kaye-talks-about-life-in-meat-camp-nc.html

We have a little country store, Plan B, for essential items when we don't want to drive all the way into town.

And here's the view from Plan B yesterday.

Fall in Meat Camp is pretty special.

So.

Moving along . . .

I'm heading out of town next week.  Leaving Donald and Annabelle in Meat Camp while I spend a week in South Carolina in the beautiful Low Country where I'll be attending The Pat Conroy Literary Festival.

Which prompted me to get a much needed haircut, and some very subtle highlights and lowlights.

Ellie Miller did her usual terrific job.

Today I'm tossing a few things together, cluttering up our sunroom with things that  I'll be taking with me.

In the meantime, here's what the leaves around our house are looking like.

Gorgeous!

And here's what the cluttered sunroom is looking like.

It'll get worse before it gets better when I leave on my trip.

I will have some decisions to make about what goes into this hanging bag . . .

And bless Annabelle.

She is a little confused by it all . . .

Stay tuned - plenty more to come.

Life is good.

Sunday in Meat Camp

 It's turned a bit cooler and breezier in these mountains.

It's been a week of terrible sadness for Israel and the entire world.

Another week of clown shows of politics from a bunch of Republican congressional members who care more about their own selfish self-interests than the good of this country.

And in a show of true selfish self-interest from me -

I Have a Terrible Cold

I have a terrible cold,
And everyone knows how terrible colds
Alter the whole system of the universe,
Set us against life,
And make even metaphysics sneeze.
I have wasted the whole day blowing my nose.
My head is aching vaguely.
Sad condition for a minor poet!
Today I am really and truly a minor poet.
What I was in old days was a wish; it's gone.

Goodbye for ever, queen of fairies!
Your wings were made of sun, and I am walking here.
I shan't get well unless I go and lie down on my bed.
I never was well except lying down on the Universe.

Excusez un peu… What a terrible cold!… it's
physical!
I need truth and aspirin.

(14.03.1931)

written under the pen name of, Alvaro de Campo

© by owner. provided at no charge for educational purposes

On the more positive side of things, I leave in just over a week for South Carolina.

Am I excited?  You betcha (considering the fact that I should be over this nasty head cold by then).

Before leaving, I have a busy week.

I have an appointment to have my hair cut and streaked.  

An appointment for a manicure/pedicure.

And an appointment with my closet and suitcase to decide what to take with me.  Since I'll be driving, the sky's the limit!  I can take as much as I want to.  Dresses and Shoes, oh my!

I also have an appointment with my kitchen.  

Donald and Annabelle will not be traveling with me, so I'll be cooking up a pot of spaghetti sauce for Don to enjoy while I'm gone, as well as making sure there's other things here he'll fix for himself.  And a few special treats.

In other good news, I loved waking up to see pictures of Travis and Taylor out on a Saturday night date last night. ❤

They are adorable.  

Now, me and my cold are going to curl up with a fresh cup of coffee and a good book.  

The book?

An ARC from NetGalley.

The next book by my pal Hank Phillippi Ryan, One Wrong Word.

Life is good.

Even with a cold.

An October Sunday in Meat Camp

I love October.

• "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." 
• — Lucy Maud Montgomery, Ann of Green Gables

It's a perfect day here in these mountains.

I'm enjoying coffee on the deck

Donald couldn't resist getting on his bike to take a ride.

Annabelle thinks it's a great day for being outdoors sniffing new smells.

Life is good.

And there's a bowl of apples calling my name.

Apple Cake Time!

From my favorite recipe.

You can tell I've made this a few times, huh?  😁

Apple Pound Cake

Ingredients:
2 cups of sugar
1 1/2 cups of cooking oil
3 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup coconut (I do not use the coconut)
3 cups tart apples, peeled, cored, and diced (I do not peel the apples)
1 cup pecans, chopped (I usually do not use the pecans)


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the sugar and oil. Beat with an electric mixer until well blended. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until fluffy. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the sugar mixture and blend well. Beat in the vanilla and coconut. Fold in the apples and nuts. Pour into a greased 9-inch tube pan (I usually use a Bundt pan). Bake for 80 minutes, or until the cake tests done (may not take 80 minutes). Turn onto a wire rack to cool. (this recipe does not call for leaving the cake in the pan to cool before turning it out, but I do that.  For about 15 minutes.)

Happy Sunday, Everyone!

Loving Sundays

 

This is what a lazy, rainy, cool & breezy Sunday afternoon looks like at our house in Meat Camp, NC

A Day in Town

 Yesterday was a gorgeous day and I spent most of it in town running errands, shopping, and having a "Kaye Day."

Manicure, hair cut, and a cute new denim dress from TJMaxx.  

It was a good day, one that included an over-due visit with my friend Ellie Miller in her new salon, Muse.  THE most perfect spot for Ellie and her clients.  Welcoming, relaxed, intimate, professional.  

But, honestly?  I almost cried at how very ugly some of Highway 321 from Boone to Blowing Rock has become.

How many car washes and quick oil change places does one small town need?

Ugly.  Ugly.  Ugly.  

"Progress" has hit Boone big since we moved here in 1996.

I miss the look and feel of the small mountain town Boone was.

Which is why I'm perfectly content to spend most days at home in Meat Camp, which I love dearly.

Life is good in Meat Camp.