Newbie at a Ukulele Festival
Lacy at the Friday jam. You may hear that playing a uke (ook) is easy. After six months of lessons, sometimes taking them twice a week, I can honestly say, “I don’t agree.” I can also say I’m glad I didn’t take up a different instrument at this seasoned age of 70,...
Imperfect Pottery Party
Considering a recent “back to the past” moment, I am planning two important events. One, a group trip to see Georgia O’Keeffe’s Ghost Ranch and the Pueblo people’s cave homes and more immediately, an Imperfect Pottery Party. I had a glimpse, a small window into the...
So clean, I ate off the floor!
The Dutch Oven, in Hillsville, Virginia, is so clean, I ate off the floor! My floors are not always clean but I still practice the 5-second rule. Grant Miller dropped a donut off the stick while transporting them to the serving tray. I swiftly volunteered to eat...
Perchance to Dream
Originally published in The Big Blue, Vol 1 Issue 2. 2007. The Frey's no longer operate their B&B. Perchance to Dream... By Mitone L. Griffith In 1999 after years of entrepreneurship in Charlotte and tired of the big city life, William and Candace Frey sought...
Camping on the New at the Blue
Great fishing--check. Cool camping in a real tipi--check. Canoeing, kayaking and tubing down the second oldest river in the world--check, check, check. Donnie & Janie Turner are the couple who have it all. They own Blue Cat on the New, an outfitter on the New...
Weird Night
by Debbie W. Parvin I think that Halloween is hell: Masked midget humans ring our bell and in a sing-song "Trick or trick!" the monsters grab wrapped things to eat. A vegetable sits on the porch; The humans gut it, put a torch inside. And there it sits all night,...
Ghosts of Major Graham Mansion
PUBLISHERS NOTE: This article was written and published in the Big Blue Magazine in 2008. The mansion now puts on a Haunted tour every October. Though they held another GrahamFest this year, the link to the GrahamFest website is no longer active. You can find out more...
Tater Secrets & Blueberry Dreams
It's that time of year again. The weather is warming up and folks around here start thinking about those "dinners on the ground" like they used to have long ago. That's Primitive Baptist talk for an outdoor buffet-style food gathering, a potluck with delicious...
Rocket Propelled Ginger Beer
Contributed by Sandy Troth, Fries Virginia As I had been dabbling in a variety of fermentation techniques which resulted in yummy food stuffs and drinks, I stumbled upon Ginger Beer. Denny and I both found it to be very soothing to the tummy and quite tasty and it...
Covering Main Street Hillsville VA
“How wonderful there’s a Ridge business again on Main Street {Hillsville},” reminisced Ruthie Ridge Griggs, life-long resident of Hillsville and daughter of C. E. Ridge, owner of a onetime staple of Hillsville’s Main Street shopping, C.E. Ridge’s 5 & 10 Store....
