The best redneck Christmas ever

I spent some time the other night with a good friend of mine from college who happened to be in town. We had a lot of funny moments, including these three:

He went to visit family that he didn't know that well. Upon pulling up in the driveway, he was greeted by more chickens than he saw the entire time he was in the Peace Corps, along with plastic deer that were riddled with bullet holes. But they weren't the only thing with bullet holes - his distant family's mobile home also had them. Upon entering, the Christmas tree was Dale Earnhardt and the background noise... yep, they were watching a Jeff Foxworthy special on CMT.

The other odd thing I will relay is that there really isn't an un-awkward way to hug in a car.

And... chocolate-covered espresso beans are not meant for canine consumption. My dogs stole them from my mother's Christmas gift. They were all four OK, but were literally bouncing off the walls for hours.

Kitty problem solved

After putting out a plea for help with the kitty meowing at random times inside my house problem, the solution was oh, so simple.

All I had to do was turn off the volume on my computer's speakers.

Turns out, someone on my IM list has a cat's meow sound when they sign in or out of IM.

So much for putting tuna out in my garage...

Anyway, I felt like a doofus, but I sure am relieved to not have a cat stuck in my home.

Kitty crisis

It seems like every couple of days, something will go wrong at the house...

One of my dogs will conduct a successful trashcan raid or rip the stuffing out of a toy and scatter white fuzz all around the house, or something will start leaking or an appliance will squeak... just about any of these things disturbs the domestic tranquility...

But here's a new one.

We keep hearing a cat meowing.

It started last night and has continued into the morning. Every few hours, a meow or two. But I can't figure out where it's originating. Obviously from a cat, but I can't tell if it's somehow stuck inside my house (although I think the dogs would have taken care of that problem), inside the garage, which is enclosed and hasn't been open since Saturday, or outside somewhere. Each time it happens, I go to all the doors and check to see if I can see anything... but I'm not having any luck finding this misplaced kitty.

Anyone have a suggestion on how to 1) Find it and 2) Get rid of it?

Post-Christmas chatter

It's the first day after Christmas and "Lifestyles Land" is back and in rare form. We're tired and cranky and some of us would actually rather be here than at home.

Although most of our Christmas celebrations went off without a hitch, I think we've all taken about as much insanity as we can possibly handle.

Allison (Assistant Lifestyles Editor) has dealt with noisy kid toys and pondered why a barn her son received doesn't have a place for the sheep, which were included in the set. She was, however, super-excited about the stuffed Yoda her husband bought her and the slightly off-kilter magnets her sister gave her.

Cherish (Reporter) announced that she got the most fabulous set of pots and pans ever. (FYI, I'm more than a little jealous.)

I, however, was quite excited over the gift of a Belgian waffle maker. Yay! I tried it out on Christmas morning... my first attempt stuck to the maker and came out in little fluffy chunks. This, of course, was at 7 a.m. (not the best time of day for me) and had a little freakout moment. My sister, who got one last Christmas and who is, by now, an old pro at making them, notified me that I didn't use enough nonstick cooking spray. I'll know that for next time...

My mother also did me the kindness of purchasing a new dining room table and chairs for my house... I was a little concerned beforehand because mom's style is very ornate, while mine is a little more "Pottery Barn," but she did a great job picking it out and I like it. (BTW, thanks mom!)

At any rate, I think all of us in the corner had a pretty good holiday...

Until next time, enjoy your own gifts!

Health addition

I promised earlier this week in the paper that I'd add some information here that I couldn't fit into the lab tests package. So... here it is.

A urinalysis really does show a lot -- from infection to diabetes.
If there are white blood cells in the urine, there could be an infection.
If there are ketones, the person could have gastroenteritis (stomach upset/infection) or diabetes.
If there is protein in the urine, a person could be diabetic.
If the microlbumin if off, it could be an early sign of diabetes.

A CBC is also a pretty telling test.
In addition to the things I mentioned in the paper, it checks for several other things.
MCV - Helps determine which type of anemia a person might have. If it's low, then the patient has iron deficiency anemia. If it's high, the patient has pernicious anemia. Usually if this number is off, the doctor will also check Iron and folate levels.

An interesting bit of trivia: Dr. Robert Jones Sr. also told me that physicians can tell if a patient is drinking too much alcohol based on their blood count results.

Dr. Chris Cerjan also mentioned that all children, when they're born, are screened via a heel poke at the hospital for several diseases and disorders. The blood is sent to a state lab, where a thyroid test, a test for sickle cell anemia and tests for other rare congenital conditions are performed.

The best pretzels ever

My sister and mom and I made our yearly trek to the Amish horse sale in Troutman (near Statesville) on Friday night. As always, we looked around at the horse-related items in the buildings and the variety of buggies and wagons parked outside, then we went inside toe barns to look at the horses and mules. They ranged in size from about 100 pounds for miniature ponies to thousands of pounds for the draft horses. Prices ranged from $100 to more than $4,500 for a single animal while we were there. We also got our yearly Amish pretzels that are made out of some secret recipe yeast dough. They were, like always, fabulous?

This year went significantly better than last year, when I slid down the hill in a mixture of mud and horse manure. I won't tell the whole story on here because it involves a great deal of bad language, laughter and some poor Amish kid accidentally seeing a little more flesh than he bargained for. (It's a much funnier story now than it was a year ago.) It was also a lot warmer this year than it was two years ago when we were walking popsicles with scarves.

Anyway, it was a lot of fun and it's yet another chance for Graham to mock my agricultural upbringing, but I don't care... I got a pretzel out of the deal.

Think you might want to go? It's not over for another day or two. For more info., call the Iredell County Fairgrounds. To get there, get on I-77 and take the Old Mountain Road exit. We took I-40, so I can't give more specific directions from Shelby.

Lifelong to-do list item marked off

I've been saying since my junior year in college that I want to one day have a therapy dog.
As of last Monday, that hope has come true.
I went to the kennel club in Charlotte last Monday and had my dogs tested for both their Canine Good Citizen certification and their certification from Therapy Dogs International.
Now all I have to do is mail in their paperwork and registration fees.
I cannot even say how proud I am of my girls. Both Gracie and Lulu worked hard - during the test and during out weekly class leading up to the test.

An added bonus is that while I was at the kennel club, I got to see Tucker Summerville again.
Tucker and her therapy dog, Sam, are well-known in the therapy dog community and they volunteer at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte.
They also happen to be the subject of my final project in my photojournalism class - and thus are the reason why I wanted therapy dogs to begin with.
Tucker is a part-time nurse at the hospital and brings in Sam (and now her other dogs) to see patients on the pediatric ward. When I was there, there were children with cancer and bone diseases, along with youngsters with a variety of other illnesses. (I would love to show off the photographs, but I had to sign a waiver saying I wouldn't.) Some in pain; others facing boredom and loneliness, Sam brought an element into their day that's hard to explain. He'd nuzzle some, calm others and spread smiles wherever he went. He'd also snuggle next to worried moms in the bed and just be there with a kid in pain.
I think what he brought was normalcy from the world outside the hospital. And that was almost as valuable as prescribed medicines and IVs.
Although I didn't get to see Sam again, I did get to meet the two dogs who will be carrying on the Sheltie's tradition at the hospital, and it's easy to see that they're both going to be as great as Sam.

As for my dogs, the experience has been a great one - even before taking the test, Lulu and Gracie have been going to "therapy" on Tuesday evenings at Cleveland Pines. We've met a lot of really neat people - people we never would have met before - patients, families and staff alike.
We also get to see the difference it makes on a weekly basis. These people look forward to our visits and will greet us from wheelchairs in the hallway and beds in their rooms. They thank us every week for bringing the dogs by.
In any case, I can mark getting the dogs pet therapy certified off my life's to-do list and go on to the next big task. And who knows, maybe we can help more people along the way.

Christmas is coming, despite the warm weather

A valuable lesson was reinforced for me this weekend: Martha Stewart and I could be friends, but not best friends.

No matter how much the people at work kid around about it, she and I have big, unsurmountable differences.

Yes, we both like to entertain and we both like to cook and garden and we both have dogs.

But the similarities end with holiday decorating.

Martha is all about centerpieces, holiday trees and wreaths and decorations. I, on the other hand, have to practically be forced to put up even a Christmas tree.

Don't get me wrong, though. I like celebrating Christmas and what it stands for. I just don't like putting out seasonal towels, lights, snow globes, stockings, knick-knacks and all that jazz. It's just not worth the time and effort. Plus, it's a pain to store the stuff all year.

With that said, I decided, like I do every year, to go with my mother to the Southern Christmas Show in Charlotte. I don't particularly care for the holiday theme, but I do like all the free samples. (Martha, of course, would frown on that because it's so common, but I like them all the same.) We don't usually buy a lot while we're there, but it's a mother-daughter bonding thing that has turned into a yearly tradition over the last six or so years.

This year, there was an extra bonus -- I wrote in my last blog that I hoped Jenny Cartee would be at the pottery festival on Saturday (which was great), but she wasn't there. She was, however, selling pottery at the Christmas show.

Evidently a lot of people from the area have gone as well. Residents of Cleveland Pines in Shelby went on Tuesday and came back tired and in good spirits.

Are you thinking about going? It ends this Sunday. Want to know more? E-mail me at emilykillian@shelbystar.com or call me at (704) 669-3331.

On the Web: Southern Christmas Show at the Charlotte Merchandise Mart

Pottery show preview

It's around 5:30 Friday evening and potters from around the state and even the Southeast should wither be headed to Shelby or be here already. Potters will be setting up tonight for the annual Carolina Pottery Festival, which begins at the fairgrounds at 10 in the morning.

Never been before?

Here's what it'll be like:
People from Cleveland County and beyond will be lining up shortly before the sale starts. They'll go through Dorton and Goforth Halls, looking for the right pottery piece at the right price. One tip for buyers: If you like it, get it before it someone else does. There's nothing worse than reverse buyer's regret (also known as the regret of the person who didn't buy what they wanted). Another tip is to go in with a list of things you want to buy. It'll help you from getting into pottery buyer's overload (that's when you buy so much you can't physically carry it out).

But seriously, there are a lot of things you should check out while you're there.

June Miller's leaf platters are a thing to behold. She takes giant leaves and uses them as her inspiration. They're really cool. Stop by Doby Wright's booth. She's a great conversationalist and I enjoyed meeting her this week. Annie Thompson's work is super-detailed and is certainly worth checking out. Hal Dedmond does traditional Catawba-Valley style pottery and his wife, Corrine Guseman does really cool garden rattles. Other potters to check out include Allen Griffin, Vickie Halloran, Kaye Lowery, Bobbi Black and Vicki Gill. My favorite person is fellow GWU graduate Jenny Cartee. Although I'm not 100 percent sure she'll be there, I'm going to make sure to look for her. I'm also going to look for fellow Isothermal students and teachers. I'm sure there are more that I've left out... I'm getting too psyched up to think...

As for me, I'm looking for a few items: some sort of big bowl or platter for my aunt, a small bowl with a chopstick notch for me and I want to look at anything with fern leaves. I need good art for my small living room.

(The photo is of some of my favorite pieces from June Miller's studio)

Molasses recipes

I promised on Wednesday's Food page that I'd have more molasses recipes on here... so here you go...

Christmas Ginger Snaps
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup molasses
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put shortening and sugar in a large bowl. Beat well. Add eggs and molasses and beat until light. Stir flour, baking soda, ginger and cinnamon. Roll pieces of dough into small balls. Place into a greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle the tops with a little white sugar. Bake 12-14 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!

Dark Gingerbread
1/2 c. shortening
1 c. molasses
1 egg
2 tbsp. milk
2 c. plain flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. baking powder
Heat the shortening until it is hissing, pour it into a bowl in which the molasses has already been measured, add the egg and milk and mix lightly. Sift together the flour, salt, ginger and baking powder, and stir into the liquid ingredients, beating and stirring only enough to blend. As soon as smoothly blended, pour into two shallow, well-greased pans and bake 15-18 minutes in a moderately hot oven (400 degrees) (From an old Rumsford Baking Powder cookbook)
The following glaze works well or you can use your own:
Add 1 tbsp. grated orange peel to 2 tbsp. melted margarine, stir in 1 1/2 c. powdered sugar, 1/4 tbsp. vanilla and a few drops of orange juice, only if needed to thin. Drizzle over warm gingerbread.
Recipe courtesy of Lydia Elliott Hamrick

Molasses Drop Cookies
1 c. raisins, plumped (soaked in warm water and drained)
1/2 c. chopped pecans or almonds
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 c. soft butter or margarine
2 tbsp. shortening
1 egg
1/2 c. molasses
1 c. buttermilk
Grease baking sheets. Start over 10 min. before baking; set oven to 400 degrees. Wash raising and plump, then cool. Chop nuts. Sift flour, measure, resift four times with next five ingredients. Press brown sugar through a coarse sieve to remove lumps. In a 3 quart mixing bowl, cream butter and shortening with a wooden spoon until smooth, add sugar and cream well. Scrape off spoon, remove. Beat in egg with a rotary beater until fluffy, then beat in molasses until satiny. Remove beater and use spoon. Stir in flour mixture and milk alternately in two or three portions, beginning and ending with flour and mixing until smooth after each portion. Stir in raisins and nuts until well distributed. Drop by heaping teaspoonfulls onto prepared sheet. Bake about 10 minutes until delicately browned. Remove at once from sheet to cake rack. When cool, store in a jar or box with tight-fitting lid with sheet of waxed paper between layers. Makes about three dozen. This recipe takes some time but it is well worth the effort. Shared by Lydia E. Hamrick

Art of Sound

I thought I'd take a minute on here to plug the Art of Sound festival this weekend. After working on Art of Sound advance coverage for the greater part of three workdays this week, I feel like I know way too much about the festival. I won't, however, be able to make it to the actual event because of out-of-town plans.

Judging from the variety of musical styles, I think this year might be one of the festival's best. There are a lot of new performers and a lot of interesting groups. I would have loved to have been able to attend the traditional music/dance workshop, but such is life, I guess.

Is anyone planning on going? If so, share your experience in the comments section.

Halloween coverage preview

I thought I'd sneak all of you some of the things we're going to be doing for Halloween in Lifestyles land...

Doggie Halloween - costumes and safety tips
I've had several people from the community bring in their pooches in Halloween costumes... it's been quite the experience... Here's Becca, Maureen the copy editor's step-dog. (I like to call her Bacon, though.)

Scary movies - there are several local people with ties to the movies (Think Haunted Pyramids)

Ghost stories - I have a few tales from the Zion community and Allison Flynn is working on a project with the Paranormal Scene Investigators. Anyone else know any local ghost stories? If so, post them in the comments section.

Odd news

Smoke wakes up South Carolina firefighter who battles blaze at own fire station
BISHOPVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Firefighter Brian Eargle is accustomed to waking up to fight fires.
But Tuesday night, Eargle said he was jerked from sleep by coughing and quickly ended up having to fight a blaze at his own fire station.
Eargle managed to escape the fire, call for help and drive two trucks away from the burning building. He then pulled a hose from a fire truck parked outside to fight the blaze for about 10 minutes until his fellow firefighters could arrive and get their equipment on.
The fire, which started in the lounge of the station, did about $30,000 in damage, Lee County Fire Chief Mike Bedenbaugh said.
But it could have been a lot worse. Bedenbaugh said he is glad Eargle wasn’t hurt or killed and that he managed to save the vehicles from the blaze.
“If this fire had happened at any of our other stations, then we would have lost vehicles and the entire building,” Bedenbaugh said. “This is the only station where we have someone on duty 24 hours a day.”
The State Law Enforcement Division is investigating the fire.
———
Information from: The Item, http://www.theitem.com


Our photographer said something like this happened in Cleveland County once? Can anyone confirm or refute that?

Workout songs

I did a page for Health this week about workout songs. Here are some that I like... but they weren't good enough for my list.

FOR MY BLOG ONLY
Here are a few of the other songs I considered for my list.
"Best of You" – Foo Fighters
"Beast of Burden" – The Rolling Stones
"Are you gonna go my way" – Lenny Kravitz
"Bonnie & Clyde" - JayZ and Beyoncé
"Lose Yourself" - Eminem
"London Bridge" - Fergie
"In Da Club" - 50 cent
"We Got the Beat" - The Go-Go’s
"Touch the Sky" - Kanye West
"Pump Up the Jam" - Technotronic
"Ain’t No Other Man" Christina Aguilera
"Check on it" Beyonce & Slim Thug
Fergie "Fergalicious"
"Another One Bites the Dust" - Queen
Panic! At the Disco "I Write Sins, Not Tragedies"
Nickelback "If Everyone Cared"
Chris Daughtry "It’s Not Over"
Nelly Furtado "Say It Right"
Fall Out Boy - "This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race"
James Brown – "I Got You (I Feel Good)"

FOR OTHER PEOPLES’ LISTS, go to http://alexking.org/blog/2005/10/18/workout-music

REPACE YOUR MUSIC FOR YOUR WORKOUT at http://www.bestworkoutmusic.com/

Things to come

I thought I'd give you all an early look at some of the things I'm working on in the next few weeks. (I'll be a little vague so I don't give away all the details, though)

• There's a first-grader following in his family's footsteps. Nothing unusual about that... unless he's going 65 mph.
  
• What's the classic Halloween decoration that doubles as a Thanksgiving treat? Yep, pumpkin. Trivia, a quiz, recipes and who will and won't have them this year.
• Happy howloween - for your pets, that is. Pet costumes and how to keep them safe on the big night. (The photo is Sadie, who I dressed up last year for Halloween at my mother's house.)
  
• Top workout tunes
• Allison and I are also going to take a look at some local ghost stories. Who are we gonna call?
  
• Church doesn't necessarily have to be in a formal sanctuary.
  
• I'm also working on a story for sports about a powerlifter from Cleveland County.

Another house pic

Here's what I've done so far in the master bedroom. Although you can't see it in the photo, there are sparkles in the burgundy paint.

Dining room

Here's what the dining room looks like so far. It still needs some work, though.

Barbecue sauce

Wednesday's Food front will be all about barbecue sauces. I know most people here prefer Bridges barbecue (most like one a little more than the other, but it's a 50-50 split on which comes out on top).

While I like both of those places, my barbecue heart lies with The Pit, a dive that's close to downtown Hickory, but a little hard to find. It's not exactly on the beaten path, but I think that's part of what makes it special. I don't know if you can buy it as part of a sandwich or in a restaurant - we always buy a few pounds and freeze a bunch of it so mom can pull it out of the freezer when she needs dinner in a hurry. Stick it in the Crock Pot and let it go until you get home from work... The meat's always great, but I love The Pit's sauce. It's a scorcher. It takes about 1/2 a cup of sauce for about six sandwiches' worth of barbecue.

My other favorite sauce is for Cattlemen's barbecue... but that's a whole different animal... It's what I use when I make my own barbecue at home. I won't give away the rest of the recipe...

What are your favorite sauces?

Saturday afternoons - this one's for the boys

Although I don't get a lot of Saturday afternoons to do whatever, I did this Saturday... and it was fabulous.

I ran errands, started Christmas shopping, did some cleaning, finished painting inside the house (with the exception of a few doors) and made a trip to Lowe's, where I purchased some brushed nickel accessories for the house...

My other Saturday activity: baseball. I love watching it, but don't do it often, so I rarely know team stats, etc. Today I caught a few innings of the Yankees-Red Sox game. (For the record, I am a Yankees fan, but I'll root for whoever I like best at the moment if the Yanks aren't playing.) I don't know what innings I was watching, but I saw Jorge Posada get creamed by a Red Sox baserunner (who, incidentally, had once been a football player - and had the size to prove it). And then I saw the Red Sox lead go from two runs to like 5 in one inning, at which point I decided it really wasn't worth watching. The game was heading into blowout land. Final score: Yankees, 1; Red Sox 10. Needless to say, I was disappointed and went outside to mow.

Funky watermelons

My uncle sent me an e-mail with photos of the coolest watermelons I've ever seen - they're square! How weird is that? Evidently some farmers in Japan decided to get creative and grew the watermelons in glass boxes that shaped them as they grew. Pretty cool, huh?

Wondering why I haven't posted in a while?

Wondering why I haven't posted in a while?

I've been on vacation to the beach with my family.

Here's a photo from the waterpark (from their Web site) we played at during the afternoons. I'm definitely a fan of the lazy river (at the back of the photo).

I don't have many photos from the trip, though... my camera batteries died while I was there.

On a very good note, SPF 30 and cloudy skies kept me from getting sunburn. Yay!

New Web addiction

I've found a free Web-based Tetris game. This, dear readers, could be my downfall.

I've been a Tetris fan ever since my parents bought me an original Nintendo for Christmas in the third grade.

I've kept my system for one reason - that game.

Actually, Tetris is the reason why I'm a reasonably good page designer. It's all a matter of making the pieces fit. Of course, that's oversimplifying things a bit. But if you keep playing the game, eventually you get better. I'd like to think my work has gotten better during the past few years, and I know my Tetris game has improved - I've been to level 21.

Community garden

Julie Young is handing over the reins of the Seeds of Hope Community Garden to me. I'll be at tonight's PSN meeting to talk about it.

The flier didn't upload well, but send an e-mail to SeedsofHopeShelby@gmail.com of you're interested in learning more about it.

Closet memories

Lifestyles ran a story in Thursday's Spot about how our clothing sometimes holds special memories (and sometimes groans of horror). Everyone has had the moment when they went through their closet and remembered a special date because of a special outfit and I'll go so far as to say that we've all had one of those "What was I thinking?" moments.

Take a minute to share your own clothing memory in the comments section.

Here's mine.

My mother used to make Sunday dresses and other clothes for me and my sisters. They always matched, especially those worn for major holidays. Although I don't have any of those items anymore, every time I see us in those photos I ask my mother if it was fun to torture us. Evidently it was because there's a lot of them...

Typhoid Mary

I don't watch a lot of TV, but in an effort to procrastinate last night, I watched part of a show on etv (South Carolina's public broadcast station) about Typhoid Mary.

I'd always heard the term used to describe someone who made everyone else sick, but I'd never learned about her in school or really heard anything about her.

Turns out, Typhoid Mary was a real person - Mary Mallon, an Irish immigrant to the U.S.

She was discovered as the cause of several typhoid outbreaks. She claimed she couldn't be transmitting the disease since she didn't have it. Well, part of that was true. She was the first "healthy carrier" of typhoid fever. The New York health department sent her to an island where they housed other infectious disease patients and essentially had her in solitary confinement.

She fought back and it's probable that William Hearst paid for her legal fees in her lawsuit against the city. She lost that suit, but was eventually released. Mallon was told to never work in the kitchen again because that's how she was spreading the disease. She worked as a laundress for a while, but eventually went back to cooking. She was caught after a number of doctors, nurses and patients got sick with typhoid fever. When officials investigated, they found her working in the kitchen.

So they locked her up on the island again. She ended up dying there of a stroke a number of years later, at which time she was working in the hospital on the island in the lab.

Forty-seven illnesses and three deaths were attributed to Mallon. She didn't infect the most people, nor was she the only healthy carrier who lied and went back to work in the food industry. She was, however, the most severely dealt with - because she was obstinate and fought with the health department and because she was an Irish woman immigrant. Prejudice played a role in her treatment.

The whole thing, however, made me think: Is it right to confine someone with an infectious disease because it's in the interest of the public good?

And now the next time someone's called a "Typhoid Mary" I'll know where it came from.

Cleveland County football

Football here is like nowhere else.

I grew up only a few counties away - my high school won probably three games in four years. I probably went to as many games. I didn't even attend homecoming most years - we always lost anyway.

So when I came to Cleveland County for college, I was surprised to see that people really got into it around here. I guess it's because it's a tradition that people can pass on from generation to generation. It's good to win, but even better to be closer to the people you're around. Football is one of the many common threads in the fabric of this community.

That's something you can be proud of.

Ridin' with the king

It's been 30 years since the King's death and people are still singing his songs.

So I'm going to take a few minutes Thursday to try and convince people around Cleveland County to sing Elvis songs - on camera for shelbystar.com.

We'll see if there's anyone willing...

Here's one of my favorite songs that remind me of the King of Rock n' Roll:

B.B. King and Eric Clapton are singing this version, although John Hiatt does a good one, too.



Here's Hiatt's:


Of course, "Walking in Memphis" by Mark Cohn reminds me of him too... must be the blue suede shoes.


Speaking of those blue suede shoes... Here's the King himself:

Leaf peepers

I've noticed that there are a lot of trees dropping leaves in the past week or so because of the drought (especially poplars and maples). I wonder what this is going to do to this year's leaf watching season. If it keeps up, there may not be any leaves left by fall.

Here's the fall foliage forecast from Western North Carolina University: Western North Carolina leaf color could be spectacular -- or not.

Here are a few excerpts:

A long spell of dry weather during the spring and summer could provide some of the most brilliant colors seen in several years for leaf-lookers headed to the mountains of western North Carolina this autumn.

The key word is “could,” said Katherine Mathews, Western Carolina University’s fearless fall foliage forecaster and an assistant professor of biology specializing in plant systematics. Typically, drier weather during the spring and early summer results in a colorful fall leaf season beginning in October, said Mathews.

But below-freezing temperatures in early April – with a severe frost that damaged tender, young vegetation across the mountains – make this year’s fall color prediction trickier than ever, said Mathews.

Trees that could have been damaged:

Several nights of hard freeze around Easter weekend killed the new leaves and flower buds on early-emerging hardwood tree species, including the tulip poplars and fruit trees such as apples and pears. The later-emerging species such as oaks were not adversely affected, but the frost delayed the ‘greening up’ of the mountains overall. It’s hard to predict how the response of our deciduous trees will play out this fall.

The overall prediction:

The killing freeze was preceded by below-average rainfall in March and followed by severe drought in April and May, which is the prime growing season in WNC, Mathews said. “History has shown that fall leaf color is best in years with spring or early summer drought, when plant growth is stunted by a lack of sufficient water,” she said. “Depending upon the impact of the late frost on mountain foliage, we may see spectacular color throughout the mountains this fall.”

If temperatures in September and October cooperate and cool down, we should expect to see some brilliant fall colors this year, Mathews said.

That is, if they don't turn brown and die first.

In case there is a leaf season this year, here are peak dates:

• October 5-15: Highest elevations north of Asheville above 5,000 feet show the most color, especially at Mount Mitchell, Craggy Gardens and Grandfather Mountain.
• October 13-22: Color will increase in elevations greater than 4,000 feet, including the Mount Pisgah and Cold Mountain area, southwest of Asheville on the Blue Ridge Parkway including the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
• October 19-28: Many of the surrounding mountains around Asheville should show plenty of color this week, especially in the 3,000-4,000 foot elevation range. Take the Parkway north or south from Asheville in the Pisgah National Forest.
• October 24-November 3: The city of Asheville (2,000 foot elevation) and Biltmore Estate shows the brightest colors this week, along with areas around Hendersonville and Brevard. This would be the perfect week for a waterfall hike in Dupont State Forest.
• October 29-November 8: The color show will conclude in the Chimney Rock area (elevation of 1,300 feet). Ride to the top of Chimney Rock or take a boat tour on Lake Lure to enjoy the colors.

The color show begins in the higher elevations of the northwestern sections of North Carolina, typically in early October, and progress southward and down slopes through mid-October and early November. Yellow birches, red sourwoods, red and yellow maples, yellow pin cherries and yellow poplars will be the first colors to show. Yellows, though, may not be as brilliant, according to a forecaster, because of leaf browning in tulip poplars. They will be followed by the yellow and red of oaks and sweet gums, yellow of hickories, yellow and brown of beeches, and a variety of other color shades in the vines, shrubs and smaller trees beneath the forest canopy. Peak fall color should arrive five to 10 days after the first frost at any particular location, according to the forecaster.

Molly the mule

Here's Molly the mule before her bandage change.

Bandaging the mule

Bandaging the mule's leg

Summer cold

I don't get sick often, but it seems like my newly acquired summer cold is sticking around for the long haul. I have some serious congestion and a sore throat and I've been blowing my nose like crazy. Here's hoping it goes away soon.

Anybody else sick?

Lunch box

When I first moved out onto my own, my mother gave me a bunch of things she'd saved of mine - including a metal 1980s Strawberry Shortcake lunch box with Thermos intact.

Evidently a lot of other moms saved them, because there are lots of vintage ones up for bids on eBay. While Strawberry Shortcake boxes are fairly common on there - going for between $7 and $15 - there are other, more rare ones selling for $250 to $600. Those are for a VW bug box, Star Wars, Star Trek, The Beatles and Kiss boxes. Other boxes include Popples, Flintstones, Sesame Street, Peanuts, Scooby Doo and more.

What kind of lunch box did you have? Share in the comments section.

Crying foul and holy cow

I visited my family in Hickory on Monday and Tuesday and had quite the farm experience...

We debated which cow would have her calf first... The key is to see which one has the most swollen udders. If the udders are so full they're sticking out sideways, it'll be soon.

There's a mule with a hurt foot. Her leg has to be wrapped every day to keep it from getting infected. She's an absolute doll, even though she's sweaty. She has to be tranquilized every time her bandage is changed, which is interesting... she gets all woozy... it's funny... but changing the bandages is challenging because you have to catch her as she goes to sleep and hold her head so she doesn't try to get back up before they're changed. I volunteered for head holder duty the other night.. and quickly learned why no one else volunteered. Eau de mule isn't the sexy scent of the year.

But the most exciting farm happening was by far the wild goose - er - guinea chase.

In case you don't know what guineas are, here's a link to a site with pictures and info. on the birds.

We moved 47 guinea chicks to a different pen late Monday night. Tuesday afternoon my sister called in hysterics. While she was working on the guinea cage the entire door fell off... and out hopped/flew the entire cage full of guineas. They immediately scattered. Some went running, others flew up into trees.

The guinea rescue started shortly thereafter.

My sister and some of my family members tried tracking down the birds on the lam. They caught a few near the pen by scaring them out from their hiding places in the brush and trees nearby. They rounded up a few of the easy ones, then started looking for the more clever ones that had gone off further.

Shortly before dark, fewer than 15 out of the original 47 escapees had been found. That's when we started getting clever (and desperate). We teamed up - one person with a dog, one person with a fishing net... and one person per team to laugh hysterically while the others crashed through the woods behind the chicken lot. As it turns out, my aunt's dog is really good at finding them (a newly discovered talent), and we were able to capture another six.

I took some cell phone video footage that I'm going to try to upload... it might (and might not) work. Just in case it doesn't, I pulled some videos off YouTube so you'll know what kind of animals we were up against.

Here's what a guinea sounds like:


Here's what they do:

Ban on Crocs?

This story came from our wire service... From what I can tell, this seems to be a nationwide trend. Anyone know if the hospital here allows them? What do you think of this hospital's policy?

Pa. hospital bans rubbery clog-like Crocs for workers, calling them a safety hazard
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Crocs, the rubbery, clog-like shoes, have been deemed inappropriate footwear for workers in patient-care areas at a hospital.
Holes that ventilate the shoes pose a safety hazard, said Sharon Krystofiak, Mercy Hospital’s infection control manager.
“If there’s a chance you could drop something like a syringe in one of them, we want to avoid that,” Krystofiak said. “Some of those holes are relatively large, almost like a dime.”
Mercy nurse Kara Depasquale, 23, was wearing Crocs on Monday, when the policy went into effect. She called it ridiculous.
“I mean, I can get a needle stuck in my arm or my leg,” Depasquale said. “I work 12-hour shifts, and I’m constantly on my feet.”
Crocs, based in Niwot, Colo., about 30 miles north of Denver, sells shoes in at least 80 countries.

Got tatt?

I'm working on a story about tattoos this week - went to the tattoo parlor and to a tattoo removal place. I found out that a good tattoo from a professional will run you about $60 and up, depending on how long it takes the tattoo artist. It takes more than that to get one taken off.

I'm going to wait a week or two before I run the full story, along with video of someone getting a tattoo and video of the laser process for removing them.

I did, however, want to offer people the chance to show off theirs.

Got one you'd like to share? Is it in a place that's OK for kids and adults alike to see?

If so, share a photo of your tattoo on shelbystar.com, or rate the one you think is best between now and August 15. To upload yours, click on "Share your stuff" on the red bar at the top of the homepage, or follow this link.

Some photos will be published in The Star.

Going gray

My mom's going to kill me for this blog... well, really for the picture... but I'm doing it anyway... (that won't be much of a surprise to her, though)...

I'm working on a story about going gray and how a lot of baby boomers are choosing to go gray instead of hitting the bottles... of dye, that is. My mom and two of her sisters are proof that this trend is here.

Here the three graying beauties are... My mother is on the left.

Look for the story in Sunday's Star on the Life page.

Are you going gray? Tell us about your graying experiences in the comments section.

Sales tax holiday

I read through the list of sales tax exempt items on The Star's list... some items made sense... school supplies and such... but then there were a few that threw me off a little... SCUBA gear? rubber pants? wedding apparel? I had to giggle a little.

superstitions

I saw a thread earlier on the message board about superstitions, which reminded me that the newsroom has more than its fair share.

They include people saying the "Q" word... you know, the one that means there isn't a whole lot of noise, and any variations of that word, as well as my special cursed shoes. Photographer Jeff Melton will attest to their power, as will former photographer John Derrick.

When I was the Sunday reporter, I'd wear the shoes occasionally on Sunday afternoons before heading to work. Eight times out of ten (or so it seemed), there'd be a fatal wreck, a shooting, or a house fire either waiting for me when I got in or it'd happen shortly after I arrived.

And heaven forbid if anyone would say the "Q" word on the same day.

That's a combo that spells disaster for some hapless Cleveland County soul.

At any rate, I try not to wear the shoes too much... the obits clerk doesn't like it...

Here's a picture of the cursed shoes, taken by former photographer John Derrick.

All this reminds me of a Stevie Wonder song - "Superstitious."


Do you have any weird superstitions that may (or may not) be rational? If so, either share them in the comments section or add to the superstitions post on the message board.

Health questions revisited

A few weeks ago, I posted a blog about embarrassing health questions. After a long and patient wait for some of you, I'll start getting answers to some of those questions soon.

I didn't get as many questions as I'd hoped, but I have enough to at least start with...

The first set all deal with women's health.

Hopefully, the second set will be men's health.

Then, after that, I think it'll just be a potpourri.

All of them are anonymous. (Post them on the message board or in the comments section here.)

Anyone else have a lingering question before I take them to the doctors of Cleveland Family Practice on Friday?

Going once... going twice...

Here they are: Lulu and Gracie

I've briefly mentioned my dogs a couple of times... so I thought I'd post a couple photos of them...

Lulu (the blonde) is the brains of the operation... Gracie (black and white) is the beauty. These photos were taken when Gracie was still a puppy... she still looks the same... only bigger. Lulu is a golden retriever, possibly sheltie mix and Gracie is a border collie, lab cross.

Makes me want another puppy

Got bored... looked at puppy videos on YouTube... I probably shouldn't do that again... Gracie and Lulu might get jealous... These videos made me want another puppy... until I remembered everything mine have chewed over the past few years... linoleum floor, chairs, couches and a bar stool, along with three pairs of Birkenstocks and countless toys with their stuffing ripped out...

Here are two of my favorites:

I wish my car could run on gummi bears

I wish my car could run on gummi bears instead of gas... Perhaps some scientist should try to harness the power... haha

Weird way to work out

I've found several new and exciting ways to work out over the past few weeks. I'm in the process of moving, so these are all move-inspired. (Please note the mixture of sarcasm, humor and yes, exhaustion.)

1. Painting - Who would have thought that the simple act of using a roller or paintbrush could make you feel muscles you didn't know you had and use the heck out of ones you were only mildly aware of. Tip: standing on your tiptoes to reach the top of the wall and painting while bent over backwards really burn the calories...
2. Gardening - When the soil hasn't been tilled in 20 years, it's almost as hard as rocks - especially when it was once landscaped with small white rocks (popular in the early '70s) that are now covered with soil. This is a great workout for legs that have to jump up and down on the shovel and for arms that have to do the actual digging. Pulling weeds is also an exercise for arms, legs and backs. All that time spent hunched over with your knees bent works your legs and back, and all the pulling works out your arms.
   
3. Moving - Anyone moved recently? If so, you know exactly what this involves. It's an exercise for arms, legs, backs, and just about any other muscle in your body you can possibly strain or sprain. Trust me, you'll feel the burn with this one, especially in the summer heat.
   
4. Moving is also an exercise of another sort - patience. It's hard to remember that the people who are helping you move all that stuff are really helping, instead of being there to drive you crazy and drop sofas and boxes on your toes...
   

So if anyone would like to try these great exercises, call me. I'll put you right to work.


By the way, I should have pictures of the house up soon.

Kool-Aid, pickles and a few rambles

A few rambles...

ONE - I've been moving for the past week and should be finished by the 15th. It's been quite the experience. My plan is to rent the new house for a few months, then buy it. So far, I've spent between $700 and $1,000 on minor repairs, paint and new light fixtures, not to mention the amount of time it's taken.

TWO - I can't believe I was seen in public wearing old flowered baggy shorts and a T-shirt with paint blobs on it at Lowe's by someone I know...


THREE - I couldn't sleep, so I was checking out MySpace profiles of friends of my friends. (Here's mine - probably also dumb) I came to the conclusion that there are a lot of stupid ones out there. More than a few contained statements like this one: "I'm an outgoing introvert. I'm pretty mellow at times but engaging at other times." Are you kidding me??

FOUR - I made a trip to Wal-Mart tonight for Kool-Aid and pickles. An odd combo, right? Evidently it's pretty good, according to a story we're planning to use in the Food section on Wednesday. I'm making it as a test kitchen, so we'll see. Anybody else do any odd pickling? If so, post a comment at the bottom of this blog.

iHype

With all the talk about the new iPhone, I thought I'd check out Urban Dictionary.com to see what new iWords were out there.

Here are a few of my favorites:

• iPerbole - The hype surrounding anything Apple unveils
• iPauseworthy - Something worth pausing the iPod for (Sometimes it's hard to make the distinction between something that is and something that isn't.)
• iPeople - People who are so consumed in their iPod culture that they never are actually seen without earbuds in their ear, and an iPod proudly displayed. (I have one that I use at work when I need to concentrate and in the car, but I'm definitely not guilty of this.)

But no iHype blog would be complete without a few negative Urban Dictionary definitions of the iPod (I still love mine, though).
Here are a few:

• Everything wrong with western society contained within a small media player.
• The Most Expensive way to listen to music.
• Hard drive mp3 player whose only pro is it's aesthetic design.

This one, however, is my favorite.

• A device to offend the counter culture.

Embarrassing questions

I'm a personal fan of anonymity when it comes to health care.

If I had my way, my doctor wouldn't know my name, what my face looks like or where I live. It would free me up to ask some potentially embarrassing (and probably kind-of dumb) questions.

When it comes to asking embarrassing questions, I think most people would adopt that same stance.

But since none of that happens in real life, I'm going to offer readers a one-in-a-million chance to ask those questions - anonymously, of course.

The plan is for me to compile all those anonymous embarrassing questions - for women, men, tweens, teens... just about everybody. Then I'll take them to area physicians and get them answered for the Health page.

To do that, though, I need your questions! They can be about anatomy, sex, noises, drooping, farts, discharges... just about anything! If you're too embarrassed to ask your doctor in person, I'll ask for you.

So send them in...
ONLINE: Post a comment to this blog anonymously.
ONLINE: Use the "Talk Back" feature on shelbystar.com. (It's just above the weather.)
E-MAIL: Send me an e-mail to emilykillian@shelbystar.com.
CALL ME: (704) 484-7000 x 122
MAIL: P.O. Box 48, Shelby, NC 28151
BRING YOUR QUESTION BY: 315 E. Graham St., Shelby

Remember: You have nothing to lose - I'll never mention your name and you'll get that burning question answered.

Transformers

Does anyone remember the Transformers cartoon or have any of the old action figures? We're trying to put together coverage for the upcoming movie and wanted to do a little vintage throwback... Leave info. in the comments section or send me an e-mail. Thanks!

In the meantime, here's a link to the movie's site.

Play this... play list

My sister sent me to a cool site for creating your custom playlist....

Here's mine for now... I'm sure it's bound to change soon.

The war just hit home

The paper normally goes to press around midnight. When it does, those of us who are here check over it one last time before it is delivered to homes and racks around the county.

For some reason, I noticed a story at the bottom of the very last page in the A section. It was a story relating to the Iraq war. I normally skip over those, but for some reason, I began reading the headline: "Roadside bomb kills Hickory man in Iraq."

I'm originally from Hickory, so I read on: "Army Spec. Darryl Wardlaw "Ward" Linder, 24, died Tuesday...."

I know this guy. A few months younger than me, we worked together for a while at a grocery store -- our first high school job. He was a sweetheart. Tall, kind of skinny, a regular guy with an easy smile. I remember him as someone who stood up for other people and for what he believed in -- he got in a fight once in the store's parking lot for that very reason.

I drive through Mountain View a couple times a month, and each time I do, I think to myself that I ought to look him up and see how he's doing.

I guess I should have done more than think about it...

Ward is survived by his father and mother and a 3-year-old son, according to the story.

I hope his son will be told every day for the rest of his life that his father was a great guy who is missed.

Here's a link to the original story.

On the map

Girls Club awards ceremony

The Girls Club YMCA held its annual awards ceremony last week. Here's a look at some of the girls who were given awards.

We need your help!

WE NEED YOUR HELP!
Lifestyles has a lot of stories planned for the next few weeks, many of which need input from you.

Although I'm not sure how much of it will work out, here's a look at what we have planned, along with various pleas for help.

1. We're trying to have more content on the Web, like video and audio recordings. If you see something in the section that you have video, etc. of, send it in to starlifestyles@shelbystar.com.
   
2. Hair products – what do you really need? When’s enough enough?
   We're also getting samples of products for people to try out. You interested in being on the panel? If so, leave me a note in the comments section.
3. A tall, cold glass of sweet tea - all about the favorite southern drink. How do you like your tea? Leave your notes in the comments section.
   
4. Sounds of summer - what songs do you think reflect summertime the best?
5. Modern wedding gifts - What have you given/received that was really clever?
6. Summer skincare
7. Summer menu changes around the county - Do you know of any places with summer menu items? Leave responses in the comments section.
   
8. Drivers Ed - How parents and students can deal with each other. Got any tips? Leave them in the comments section.
   
9. We need July 4 happenings.
10. Does your church use a unique way of delivering the message?
11. 200 years of marriage - how four siblings have made it an average of 50 years. Do you have any tips on staying married? Put them in the comments section.
12. We're also looking for someone to test out the Snoopy Sno-Cone maker. Any volunteers?
    

Harder than it seems

We tried the Sno-cones and realized why our parents didn't like the contraption... it's too darn hard to put together, as Graham demonstrates here.

Here's video of the experience.

Sno-cones!

When those of us in the newsroom get the chance to bring back a pleasant part of our childhoods, we jump on it. Such was the case when we found out the makers of the Snoopy Sno-cone machines were bringing them back.

We determined that most of the younger crowd had one - Joy Scott, The Star's interactive editor, reporter Cherish Wilson and I each had one.

Allison Flynn, the assistant lifestyles editor always wanted one, but her mother never would buy it.

So we contacted the company that makes them.

After a week's waiting, our Snoopy Sno-cone machines have arrived!

I called my mother at work and hassled her about the one I had as a kid. She wouldn't let us use it. She claims today that our ice cubes were too large to go through the grinding mechanism. Lame excuse, mom. (Just kidding) I suspect that it was really because the darn thing was so messy.

In either case, we're going to break this thing out!

Oh yeah, we got a second one to give away to a lucky Star reader. So, if you're interested in winning one for yourself (or your kids), use the following requirements:

Did you have a Snoopy Sno-cone Maker as a kid? Do you want your children to experience it?
Are you willing to share what you or your children think about the reissued machine? If so, send us a card or e-mail telling us about yours as a child or about how you wanted one. We’ll give one away so you can review it.

Remember to include your name and phone number with your reason.

E-mail: starlifestyles@shelbystar.com

Mail: P.O. Box 48, Shelby, NC 28151, attn: Lifestyles Sno-cone

Freedom communications associates and their families are not eligible to win.

Memorial Day

When I left The Star Friday afternoon, I wasn't particularly looking forward to Memorial Day weekend. I anticipated a lot of family drama...

But to my pleasant surprise, I had a fabulous time.

The weekend was filled with family dinners, meeting new people and learning a lot about what it's like for soldiers in Iraq.

My cousin who just came back from Iraq brought her new fiance with her for my aunt's wedding. Mandy (my cousin) is an Air Force nurse and her fiance is also in the Air Force. They're both a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to a lot more family get-togethers with the future cousin-in-law.

The two of them put together a slidewhow of pictures they took while they were in a hospital in Balad, Iraq. Highlights of that photo show include a thermometer that read 120 degrees in the shade, a giant scorpion made out of scrap metal, patients' before and after photos and pictures of what it's like to work in a tent hospital. It's fitting that we watched the show on Memorial Day.

I also had the chance to have a few brief, but frank talks with my little sister about her future job and future husband, and got to have a little fun with my littlest sister.

We also had two births while I was home. One was a new cousin, and the other was a horse. I'm not sure which is cuter...

Overall, a good time... I wouldn't mind doing that about every weekend...

Anyone else do anything for Memorial Day they'd like to share? Post it in the comments section.

Ron Rash continued

I had a rough week last week and didn't have time to post this, but I received a surprise phone call about my blog and a column I put in the paper a few weeks ago.

The caller was Ron Rash - yay!

He said he was glad to be closer to home and said thanks for the coverage.

It made my day, but I was so surprised to get it that I flaked out and couldn't remember what I should say... I wasn't "star struck" in a traditional sense... I just lost my head...

Have you had a "star struck" experience or met a celebrity? Let me know in the comments section.

A sneak-peek at food

It's mid-afternoon on Tuesday and I thought it might be fun to give all the foodies out there a sneak-peek at what's going on in this week's Food section.

For one thing, there's Brazilian food - a unique mix of old-world food and new-world spicy flair.

The other thing is NASCAR food - Although the person writing about a new NASCAR cookbook is a little (in my opinion) harsh about the book's contents, its contents do seem to have a seriously southern flair. Some of the recipes would work well this weekend, considering there's a big race at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte. A book like this one may even get a few guys away from their Memorial Day weekend grilling... but I'm not sure the lure of NASCAR cooking is strong enough for guys to give up beer and pretzels... even during commercial breaks.

Let me know if you try any of this week's recipes.

great book

A few years ago, I read a book that changed the way I look at literature from Southern writers.

It's title: One Foot in Eden. It's author: Ron Rash.

I love the book because I can picture exactly how it happened. What makes it stand out is the fact that he wrote the book from several peoples' points of view. The reader advances through the story by seeing it from those different perspectives. It's my favorite book, which means that it has to stand up against other great American novels like The Color Purple, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Last of the Mohicans, Gone With the Wind, To Kill a Mockingbird and The Catcher in the Rye.

Rash's repertoire doesn't stop there. He's published several other books, including two novels, short stories and volumes of poetry.

I'm also a little biased toward him because (like me) he's a Gardner-Webb graduate.

We received media copies in the mail about a week ago for his newest book of short stories, "Chemistry and Other Stories." After reading it, I decided wholeheartedly that it lives up to my (extremely high) expectations of Rash's work.

I read it in several sittings because it's like fine chocolate - you want to savor it and make it last.

I don't want to give away too much of it, but the first story about the old men is one of my favorites.

The other advantage to these short stories (and his other work) is that it has a local setting. He actually mentions Shelby in one of the stories in the book.

Here's the link to his publisher.

Here's a link to some of his poetry.

Notably, Rash will be in the area on tour in the next few months. Read my column on Thursday's Spot calendar page to find out when and where.

Have you read Rash's other work? Did you like it? Hate it?

If so, leave comments.

Happy Birthday

With a little more than a week before the Cleveland County courthouse's centennial birthday celebration, I'm trying to put together some of the final pieces of The Star's coverage for the event. It's a big undertaking for us, and a monumental project for the Destination Cleveland County people like Brownie Plaster and Marta Holden (and many more) behind it. As I've worked on the project, I've come across scores of interesting historical photos. Hopefully, I can post one or two here every now and then. These first two images are postcards that were circulated during the last century. The one on the top has people looking at the confederate monument and courthouse on the square. The other is unusual because it's the view of the historic courthouse from a corner. Normally, postcards are looking straight-on at a building.

Do you have memories of the historic courthouse or courtsquare? If so, please share your stories in the comments section.