tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8732147048246662312024-03-14T02:44:31.681-04:00Sweet Tea GazetteArtful dispatches on life in the South from the studios of Beth YarbroughBETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.comBlogger103125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-21023043833207774952012-07-12T13:22:00.000-04:002012-07-12T17:07:48.916-04:00From My Garden to Your Home<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCLIP6Yqgudx1XnZWK-yIew_32QF6hSuJe87Yl1M_ix_-hLNKVMsH8DaFWAZilfRmYXChuVLmJpKBB8j9ToXseBIPIic8skkRHdfKzIjXDLdXzO5xrvsyoYO4Tr__YaoltFkxyCR8CUrpa/s1600/June+2012+139.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCLIP6Yqgudx1XnZWK-yIew_32QF6hSuJe87Yl1M_ix_-hLNKVMsH8DaFWAZilfRmYXChuVLmJpKBB8j9ToXseBIPIic8skkRHdfKzIjXDLdXzO5xrvsyoYO4Tr__YaoltFkxyCR8CUrpa/s320/June+2012+139.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The FedEx man came bearing gifts this morning! New samples arrived from Legacy Publishing. They include my 2013 Gentle Blessings Calendar and related products such as journals and boxed note cards.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Look closely at the cover image for these samples. Look familiar? It should! If you are a regular visitor to my little blog, you will recognize The Potting Shed - an important part of my garden and one of the structures frequently featured in my blog posts.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8bViVuXgfDPBmtZXtunE9KzM2RZEDHsFRIzj7SnD-LcQXlv5nC3PqgDZQNtuqB57AYbeNRB_Xa_sD3tus4cyMjcnzEexFWcC-xRdpbq-ltpEgtef6NwRmR8JRhz5rWGWIAxM4P4Z5K7FE/s1600/July+2011+Summerhouse+014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8bViVuXgfDPBmtZXtunE9KzM2RZEDHsFRIzj7SnD-LcQXlv5nC3PqgDZQNtuqB57AYbeNRB_Xa_sD3tus4cyMjcnzEexFWcC-xRdpbq-ltpEgtef6NwRmR8JRhz5rWGWIAxM4P4Z5K7FE/s320/July+2011+Summerhouse+014.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Every summer, I plant the little window boxes with pink and white impatiens and enjoy watching them spill and grow. </span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_XcNmxVEG6XCxHFi8YB60lcnPCGpn2zB9GE3o10eM6dO4_IZ0ath6b_L2OXPIyHMIT6TogLOPjHZa7teneWVQGRJxIxge4OuyyH8OddbBZED841inG09V8UbB-FIOcRrjGXmMaRh_-LkF/s1600/July+2011+Summerhouse+011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_XcNmxVEG6XCxHFi8YB60lcnPCGpn2zB9GE3o10eM6dO4_IZ0ath6b_L2OXPIyHMIT6TogLOPjHZa7teneWVQGRJxIxge4OuyyH8OddbBZED841inG09V8UbB-FIOcRrjGXmMaRh_-LkF/s320/July+2011+Summerhouse+011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So - next time you enjoy a beautiful note card or calendar, stop and have a second look. Chances are, you are enjoying an everyday piece of someone's little corner of the world.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I'm off to Atlanta for the Atlanta International Gift and Home Furnishings Market this week - one of my favorite times of year! Stay tuned for a sneak peek of new trends for the coming year.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">For information on where to purchase the beautiful products from my friends at Legacy Publishing, access the link, below. And tell them Beth sent you!</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Legacy Publishing </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">http://www.shoplegacy.com/</span></span><br />
<br />
<br /></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-47179230045185190592012-07-03T14:37:00.000-04:002012-07-03T17:17:29.396-04:00Mayberry Mourns<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8JSOxIPgMkuP37nw-NXSqVK8GBU85scnuNcMqBtA3zICNkbWqH_5BHYYOt8j8k46HBQ3O1AHfCm5GA5Eazg9uwhRGAw3ZW_IhyphenhyphenNM6sAIiH0Oky1CPPwNEXEkU5-AZSgqWFwUXIw1mp2Wu/s1600/andy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8JSOxIPgMkuP37nw-NXSqVK8GBU85scnuNcMqBtA3zICNkbWqH_5BHYYOt8j8k46HBQ3O1AHfCm5GA5Eazg9uwhRGAw3ZW_IhyphenhyphenNM6sAIiH0Oky1CPPwNEXEkU5-AZSgqWFwUXIw1mp2Wu/s320/andy.jpg" width="258" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">You must understand. There are classic television shows that will live forever, and deservedly so. They have names such as I Love Lucy and Star Trek. They all inspire fan clubs and conventions. They are all wonderful. Then, on a level just above them, there is The Andy Griffith Show. This blog post is long overdue, but, sadly, I'm posting it now because Andy Griffith died this morning at the age of 86. He was a native North Carolinian and still lived here.</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Seldom does a group of writers, directors, actors and producers manage to capture the essence of a time and place as did the group who brought us this television show. If you have ever wondered what the small-town South is really like, watch a couple of episodes of The Andy Griffith Show. Linger long enough and you will begin to understand. </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhcQ5kLHkvj16xseps-uPAJzm8L5My8v3WkEIqcBA5ImL7H4ht1idv_87d8z2MIDXOwj2LeEmI0GuGQvEV4fD9Z6bGEODEMk1d4KrVBLbnH7I-qn-Cw0m_YncndzC2Qwl-9JaiD5fmdLow/s1600/Andy+-+Floyd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhcQ5kLHkvj16xseps-uPAJzm8L5My8v3WkEIqcBA5ImL7H4ht1idv_87d8z2MIDXOwj2LeEmI0GuGQvEV4fD9Z6bGEODEMk1d4KrVBLbnH7I-qn-Cw0m_YncndzC2Qwl-9JaiD5fmdLow/s320/Andy+-+Floyd.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Mayberry, North Carolina doesn't live on a map by that name, but it is as real as they come. I grew up in that town. We had fillin' stations and Main Streets presided over by Floyd the Barber. Gomer really was that goofy, and he really did have a singing voice to make an angel cry. Our Sunday afternoons were actually spent on the porch with a glass of iced tea, unless we were out for one of the famous Sunday drives that lives forever in the episode about Barney's new car. "Tell your Aunt Bea Gomer says hey" was basic courtesy. Even the ill-mannered among us knew to send warm regards to Aunt Bea. Drifters and shysters frequently passed through but never stayed for very long. We could spot one a mile away. If they were nice enough, we sent them on their way with a clean shirt and a sack of fried chicken - but they always knew not to come back and try again.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd9XGRJcby1bi-kjbuq-HKjwhr6gtO9PowGSc58cWE2GXSpcmk_BplTcHYXLfV0zs3vsdMUlDk6tOuaU7M4yO8tYeLr3Ealm2kRofbo1nUfla4bAECCl35mBH3p-08zTpCaHGknK1k3tYy/s1600/Andy+-+Mr+Foster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd9XGRJcby1bi-kjbuq-HKjwhr6gtO9PowGSc58cWE2GXSpcmk_BplTcHYXLfV0zs3vsdMUlDk6tOuaU7M4yO8tYeLr3Ealm2kRofbo1nUfla4bAECCl35mBH3p-08zTpCaHGknK1k3tYy/s1600/Andy+-+Mr+Foster.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We walked to church, to school, to the grocery store and the movie theater. Our pastors were all called "preacher" and we all knew that Clara Edwards was a nosy gossip, but we loved her anyway. The Darling Family really did live just outside town and they really were just a tad strange. We were not afraid to laugh at ourselves, but in spite of our human frailty, we possessed a full measure of kindness, decency and laid-back common sense that generally always won the day - having learned every bit of it at the feet of our elders. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-F_qpu1Ylm2tRKTGSSUGM7iPjGghkJO0u8_ZdXiyBF8_fWIzjsulFFvx7PqptyPdF3xu7U8qBI9_KDydNr4OF-WrBgO3KciSVGsl14tA58dQQokk82EHablxkvhLYI7gRmOK2d6chR3W/s1600/Andy+-+Aunt+Bea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5-F_qpu1Ylm2tRKTGSSUGM7iPjGghkJO0u8_ZdXiyBF8_fWIzjsulFFvx7PqptyPdF3xu7U8qBI9_KDydNr4OF-WrBgO3KciSVGsl14tA58dQQokk82EHablxkvhLYI7gRmOK2d6chR3W/s1600/Andy+-+Aunt+Bea.jpg" /></a><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Save for this show, the world's only frame of reference for the small Southern town might simply be one of cruelty, inequity, ignorance, bigotry and buffoonery. Thankfully, that group of lucky geniuses in the 1960's caught lightning in a bottle, told another version of the truth and preserved it for the ages - lest anyone wonder.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCF7tg2ogOp_e47TPAVwdbrmt_zOI4-XdQ8Ir-eI42VLBEuO2-S3H4MKVrS2zNX4HpN_FSJDlMWxYY1az6c9yMiNHJ7Cmh9n7YroGHeN15VsVaFzhELRtxfd7ZrrtKkDssPyRdTP4V5d4q/s1600/Andy+1+-+Ernest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCF7tg2ogOp_e47TPAVwdbrmt_zOI4-XdQ8Ir-eI42VLBEuO2-S3H4MKVrS2zNX4HpN_FSJDlMWxYY1az6c9yMiNHJ7Cmh9n7YroGHeN15VsVaFzhELRtxfd7ZrrtKkDssPyRdTP4V5d4q/s320/Andy+1+-+Ernest.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I once had the great good fortune to meet the actor/director, Howard Morris - long years after his iconic role as Ernest T Bass on the show. Many people don't realize that Morris directed many of those famous episodes. During our conversation, I asked him a question that had nagged at me for years. "How did a bunch of guys from New York and Hollywood manage to get it right when no one else had been able to do that before?" His face lit up with a big smile and he said "Oh - easy! I can answer that in two words - Andy Griffith. We never wrote or directed anything that we didn't run by him first. If he said "guys, it's funny, but we wouldn't say it like that back home - or - we wouldn't do that where I came from", then we always had the good sense to listen to him. And that's how we got it right."</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrvVOIVsOOL63Oyp8kmUFQR1IA5XYd9rfEb71tK5MHNzVqvKX_fEZ7Jef60yrtp0mn0aQcEUORJ7UpZ1uA32hoMdxTetgK8hbYsCCSrZ46N27mpjAP5t7knvJayYiw0VQwXZS7dDrYTbH0/s1600/Andy+-+Barney+%2526+Opie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrvVOIVsOOL63Oyp8kmUFQR1IA5XYd9rfEb71tK5MHNzVqvKX_fEZ7Jef60yrtp0mn0aQcEUORJ7UpZ1uA32hoMdxTetgK8hbYsCCSrZ46N27mpjAP5t7knvJayYiw0VQwXZS7dDrYTbH0/s1600/Andy+-+Barney+%2526+Opie.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> The actor Billy Bob Thornton, who grew up in Hot Springs, Arkansas, says he still remembers the day as a kid when he first heard that Barney Fife would not be returning to the show the following season. Director Ron Howard has said many times that Andy's respect for him as a child was the genesis of his life's calling as a director.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> My son is the one who called me with the news this morning, almost as if we had lost a family member. Not that far from the truth, actually. He grew up on a daily dose of Andy reruns, and is a better man for having done so.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If you have never seen this show (maybe you have been living on Saturn, for instance), then do yourself a favor and get to know it now. Try these 12 favorites - you can even watch them online:</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 52 - Barney and The Choir</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 66 - Mr. McBeevee</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 70 - The Cow Thief</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 74 - Convicts at Large</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 77 - Man in a Hurry</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 87 - Aunt Bea's Medicine Man</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 090 - Barney's First Car</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 94 - The Mountain Wedding </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 101 - Opie the Birdman</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 102 - A Black Day for Mayberry (my personal favorite)</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 120 - Bargain Day</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Episode 123 - The Fun Girls</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-piPgLWDhDQMnuVwqfzkioGJrB7DxkiWO4KxtykOYdh5ZJh1YYfj85npGkSmyOGyKNiT_7NX_IvLZskSetjxhj1XCELNBUl-FOiw3Ouk2W6kEzDW7mC7NvhYJV96iU9NBPk9QkNKfej2/s1600/Andy+-+courthouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-piPgLWDhDQMnuVwqfzkioGJrB7DxkiWO4KxtykOYdh5ZJh1YYfj85npGkSmyOGyKNiT_7NX_IvLZskSetjxhj1XCELNBUl-FOiw3Ouk2W6kEzDW7mC7NvhYJV96iU9NBPk9QkNKfej2/s320/Andy+-+courthouse.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rest in peace, Andy Griffith. And thank you.</span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-39749960112802810952012-06-25T08:28:00.002-04:002012-06-25T08:28:44.686-04:00A Walk in the Garden<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn27UMUH_F2wY8ntFJeJiYzPiySniFliItr5TDlK3U2wISonJMxjNKhpeWBBx0Dd6kgLytFBpgsE7mwEpxnRogcTe6y7-MauOM49ZD5MA0dzHKAdg8Pedcb1HwCd7FkbJaiaghj0X_Yprb/s1600/May+2012+282.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn27UMUH_F2wY8ntFJeJiYzPiySniFliItr5TDlK3U2wISonJMxjNKhpeWBBx0Dd6kgLytFBpgsE7mwEpxnRogcTe6y7-MauOM49ZD5MA0dzHKAdg8Pedcb1HwCd7FkbJaiaghj0X_Yprb/s320/May+2012+282.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">May and June have been filled with road trips, marathon sessions in the studio, weddings and family gatherings, leaving no time to stop and smell the roses. The best I could manage was to snap quick pictures here and there, hoping that one day soon I would be able to post them to the blog. Now, two months later - here is a walk through my garden, beginning with the row of hydrangeas, above, which are just outside the studio.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuN1XNI-U1ZdebQHedk0tnzW5IehjRlbTv1drIHoB8WPrJASV56HDUG2mLA8RIW-I9oFvEldXt1tGaamxUJtTfy6XWTDBxR4Ol-gTJa3ANpceBbV4Fs_cG4gi5idwicF5sBDY_k1BMJbPU/s1600/May+2012+299.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuN1XNI-U1ZdebQHedk0tnzW5IehjRlbTv1drIHoB8WPrJASV56HDUG2mLA8RIW-I9oFvEldXt1tGaamxUJtTfy6XWTDBxR4Ol-gTJa3ANpceBbV4Fs_cG4gi5idwicF5sBDY_k1BMJbPU/s320/May+2012+299.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Pink hydrangeas in the courtyard...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhub8RH_5xrYor0cH5kpHnm23V9MluVOn_BdjTox5CEYlG4RiniaOf63AJ6jAhawGw0TrdfEvKLVYKL7bdm5ebGxRhB_tYz95BOMhFxCEzOQmXjdmS6eEkRroRHJ-gRQR8hIZIdIwvMV_Gg/s1600/May+2012+343.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhub8RH_5xrYor0cH5kpHnm23V9MluVOn_BdjTox5CEYlG4RiniaOf63AJ6jAhawGw0TrdfEvKLVYKL7bdm5ebGxRhB_tYz95BOMhFxCEzOQmXjdmS6eEkRroRHJ-gRQR8hIZIdIwvMV_Gg/s320/May+2012+343.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A basket of white oakleaf hydrangea, ready for the retail shop...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpWsIWczEwnzF5qWColmLmAI5T8BCv8nHPjR3C0OED3zahQtdsuzIcu7ZJYhWciq7iQ6TNlzs_3M8OX_493j_CzMtacwIZ6Ipr55KZhoGxjcNBz8NGyNKGIsezJ89KOxRMqxiO7Wbvie7m/s1600/June+2012+073.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpWsIWczEwnzF5qWColmLmAI5T8BCv8nHPjR3C0OED3zahQtdsuzIcu7ZJYhWciq7iQ6TNlzs_3M8OX_493j_CzMtacwIZ6Ipr55KZhoGxjcNBz8NGyNKGIsezJ89KOxRMqxiO7Wbvie7m/s320/June+2012+073.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Impatiens in the potting shed window box...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOADipqh_NwhcxHo15tVguMQbQv_B9XPPLwn4Ti_jJmqWNl3AU_ZlgAWcW7cl68iFq-hsBWqV5L0yF5YX8dWjouh7b87Vg5CopCE40GGFL8KFL4M6aLOpWca-Xkj5QPvt9knLqj4ccQdL7/s1600/June+2012+074.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOADipqh_NwhcxHo15tVguMQbQv_B9XPPLwn4Ti_jJmqWNl3AU_ZlgAWcW7cl68iFq-hsBWqV5L0yF5YX8dWjouh7b87Vg5CopCE40GGFL8KFL4M6aLOpWca-Xkj5QPvt9knLqj4ccQdL7/s320/June+2012+074.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Zinnias in the vegetable garden...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguj4tt3AkYPqP74QmmGwjHZyB7RcU0kjR_TzJKEMK-Rba3VzOtsijr1fUSpNv4aHDwlRgS71iJCcgf7wpy_Z1HVwj0gQHFeLqfDVUYEl7fJG8TVryIevJc7q20cmoVoeTJanqkxBTIed8J/s1600/June+2012+087.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguj4tt3AkYPqP74QmmGwjHZyB7RcU0kjR_TzJKEMK-Rba3VzOtsijr1fUSpNv4aHDwlRgS71iJCcgf7wpy_Z1HVwj0gQHFeLqfDVUYEl7fJG8TVryIevJc7q20cmoVoeTJanqkxBTIed8J/s320/June+2012+087.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> A wild clump of tiger lily...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJz73qQieDE7PzG9ralUro_spZoQv3Au-OVVWsXxN72tcB13KmnQFXiOoanzSoNRaZfK3VdRnzjKWVQWG4WkvieTcihPjKty90Jrnuc-C4m3hcBZhKnLbQRRG_PiH73DoyTN4P0i5b3k2/s1600/June+2012+093.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJz73qQieDE7PzG9ralUro_spZoQv3Au-OVVWsXxN72tcB13KmnQFXiOoanzSoNRaZfK3VdRnzjKWVQWG4WkvieTcihPjKty90Jrnuc-C4m3hcBZhKnLbQRRG_PiH73DoyTN4P0i5b3k2/s320/June+2012+093.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A new variety of sunflowers in the pumpkin patch...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijHPnFj_fu3rFVH8ltYTnKvv6OItEAEzqZhl4Hd8ktwV8eR_XQTTQczbE3VVJoiWo7Pd3osMPCpqZDyCrAlxT5SSauWG6ALWwvoO-RHCf-DB6wTnqYAN3vcohWx65SiwSLyiDHAlxVNPy3/s1600/June+2012+094.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijHPnFj_fu3rFVH8ltYTnKvv6OItEAEzqZhl4Hd8ktwV8eR_XQTTQczbE3VVJoiWo7Pd3osMPCpqZDyCrAlxT5SSauWG6ALWwvoO-RHCf-DB6wTnqYAN3vcohWx65SiwSLyiDHAlxVNPy3/s320/June+2012+094.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Another new variety of sunflower...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjMsTF0ZnIdadMXumNgMGjRBhgoBHKdPf_-L0uxckkSB_l_ohJLwY5cr9JM26qPcp1NvIEDe75pKo51VFWEnCQVr0Bmb9QJpqpsF4IAqvBxrKG7JVr_tmPSstoTsyeOM711BcV6fZXVjh/s1600/June+2012+096.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjMsTF0ZnIdadMXumNgMGjRBhgoBHKdPf_-L0uxckkSB_l_ohJLwY5cr9JM26qPcp1NvIEDe75pKo51VFWEnCQVr0Bmb9QJpqpsF4IAqvBxrKG7JVr_tmPSstoTsyeOM711BcV6fZXVjh/s320/June+2012+096.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A pumpkin blossom...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjslHOjR0rALzX2BcjUCCBrzp0z728vBQ7wAQgpgM2mmSkZOHX1PjyCbbLJc6664itLeAy2R3sdo8tlx4xemCLD5C-n3jH2wbvntI4aWjZFo6KpYcEjsqtx_b7RA_SbANjbIn0-fPB5jGiW/s1600/June+2012+104.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjslHOjR0rALzX2BcjUCCBrzp0z728vBQ7wAQgpgM2mmSkZOHX1PjyCbbLJc6664itLeAy2R3sdo8tlx4xemCLD5C-n3jH2wbvntI4aWjZFo6KpYcEjsqtx_b7RA_SbANjbIn0-fPB5jGiW/s320/June+2012+104.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">One of the pink zinnias (who insisted on her own cameo shot)...</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqkqX6b9K7R5pfFhJkiSk1yuMKygO9_Ld-bMNQevm4mNrn5v058MOf7K7zYHCwqz5xz012FLEGbZzAr7SuWbnfvsx8hVSU5nF1TtFfkL1l4Aj-tpsjBy3sJy8DU1VSF7C4UMs9BZjdjND2/s1600/June+2012+127.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqkqX6b9K7R5pfFhJkiSk1yuMKygO9_Ld-bMNQevm4mNrn5v058MOf7K7zYHCwqz5xz012FLEGbZzAr7SuWbnfvsx8hVSU5nF1TtFfkL1l4Aj-tpsjBy3sJy8DU1VSF7C4UMs9BZjdjND2/s320/June+2012+127.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And finally, a pot of traveling geraniums - purchased in May in Pennsylvania, taken to New York City for the Surtex show, and now, happily blooming in North Carolina. </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">July and August promise to be as busy as May and June were - but I'll keep the camera handy. Just as in art and life, a garden never stands still.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span> </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></div>
<br />BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-20248622156007990752012-06-15T15:54:00.000-04:002012-06-15T15:54:25.614-04:00Small Town Magic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgub1rZM3MODnYkVvKh5wzyeEfGvFMBLHyvVONvz8StWphSmp5SewvtyoltdPDoBhRqKBDA6drXl8cimnWoX114AXeeMdZVOJiPjXkuXc-7FMhabAtZ_1Gt7iJfpkgcYKZ5V-2dSUV0JvGj/s1600/June+2012+030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgub1rZM3MODnYkVvKh5wzyeEfGvFMBLHyvVONvz8StWphSmp5SewvtyoltdPDoBhRqKBDA6drXl8cimnWoX114AXeeMdZVOJiPjXkuXc-7FMhabAtZ_1Gt7iJfpkgcYKZ5V-2dSUV0JvGj/s320/June+2012+030.jpg" width="285" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe called.</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> She wants her house back.</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">You aren't looking at some Photoshopped wonder. This is a real place. Not only is it real, it happens to be in my hometown. Lucky me.</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ0Yy8vcHORMG-cwOB-NiARB129YKK5_vcnQ17aYbY9v7SsvFRq1Tf09pRDfootnhY_8rSksbjGOSoGk8nrU1DxikU7_HWwvqOBawYsZ5dbBuVQ1jZ0i0eDrirwz-rj3c08NITV8b9bK9T/s1600/June+2012+044.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ0Yy8vcHORMG-cwOB-NiARB129YKK5_vcnQ17aYbY9v7SsvFRq1Tf09pRDfootnhY_8rSksbjGOSoGk8nrU1DxikU7_HWwvqOBawYsZ5dbBuVQ1jZ0i0eDrirwz-rj3c08NITV8b9bK9T/s320/June+2012+044.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> I remember Sunday afternoons as a little girl, going to visit the family who lived here and being allowed to scamper all over this little jewel. It is a real playhouse with doors and windows and I love it to this day. </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggiYF5ZT_sjQNt_oGryu_qE3AXHJ_0fIN9-7OSPgT2GPFmkXIuhMbrUpeLm7J9XjuEyRMeJ9o9XJ7fv6Da8FXEiZuvnHk8fx_KUyNsuQLGSmdT6X6_Ft5qPIH7PQqkmVpKfsvXWiASq8wc/s1600/June+2012+038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggiYF5ZT_sjQNt_oGryu_qE3AXHJ_0fIN9-7OSPgT2GPFmkXIuhMbrUpeLm7J9XjuEyRMeJ9o9XJ7fv6Da8FXEiZuvnHk8fx_KUyNsuQLGSmdT6X6_Ft5qPIH7PQqkmVpKfsvXWiASq8wc/s320/June+2012+038.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The Shoe House, as we have always called it, sits on the grounds of historic Woodside Plantation - a beautiful old 1798 brick residence. Woodside was the birthplace of James Pinckney Henderson, who left here and moved to Texas and got himself elected the first Governor of that great state.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWE8WljkFjm0DRPEHVMimRxREokvlNVcxGKYJo23oIfBrggY3lukUZjzVHkpFCBriQSazgyoVPGWk9cZ7t1bi7JL_jNVAc2oEMU3WFKBkzYXxH3f5NrlebIysqJExSFSYAQEqIsm5UrIpJ/s1600/June+2012+032.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWE8WljkFjm0DRPEHVMimRxREokvlNVcxGKYJo23oIfBrggY3lukUZjzVHkpFCBriQSazgyoVPGWk9cZ7t1bi7JL_jNVAc2oEMU3WFKBkzYXxH3f5NrlebIysqJExSFSYAQEqIsm5UrIpJ/s320/June+2012+032.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Around 100 years ago, it came into the hands of some of my distant relatives, who have loved and enjoyed it ever since. A very talented uncle is said to have built the Shoe House. I never knew him, but my guess is he was a man with a perpetual twinkle in his eye. I do know he created a wondrous little masterpiece.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Vmc5KajTCuQgKY3NF5xk_2p94GrXwlYqVFGE0YAuX0hX-J860zKGRnGJDK8Lf-cWXGDpDUIMJ8rzUMt_4M4ecRUYXHzg5QwlZ7-_mk6e8zmCbyQ-k9woQdBFXdVSxtERp1HlcZY5oW-5/s1600/June+2012+037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Vmc5KajTCuQgKY3NF5xk_2p94GrXwlYqVFGE0YAuX0hX-J860zKGRnGJDK8Lf-cWXGDpDUIMJ8rzUMt_4M4ecRUYXHzg5QwlZ7-_mk6e8zmCbyQ-k9woQdBFXdVSxtERp1HlcZY5oW-5/s320/June+2012+037.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Wankkp9u88be2GYotzbDG2ATNXbHiQ240DGzR7hBEM29LF-mnegF8F5RmIRN3i2mnE_GFZGmWTFi9TmW6pLY-v3TSS8DNUqt1FI0SKDI9OOqBEZh9lV6dt4w5HDf-JQTC20fgU1oLz9R/s1600/June+2012+042.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Wankkp9u88be2GYotzbDG2ATNXbHiQ240DGzR7hBEM29LF-mnegF8F5RmIRN3i2mnE_GFZGmWTFi9TmW6pLY-v3TSS8DNUqt1FI0SKDI9OOqBEZh9lV6dt4w5HDf-JQTC20fgU1oLz9R/s320/June+2012+042.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> His attention to form and scale were impeccable. The placement of every detail from the little hobbit doors and windows to the eyelets and shoelaces was masterful. And I know one little girl who absorbed the magic he created without even realizing it. She grew up and became an artist, attempting to create a little everyday magic of her own. Wonder why?</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If you're ever in these parts, head out of town on West Main Street and follow your nose up Highway 182 for a mile or so. Or, stop anyone on the street and say "Do you know the way to The Shoe House?".</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We're a small town, after all. </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-1608993548668950602012-04-17T11:41:00.000-04:002012-04-17T11:41:37.827-04:00Every Town Has One<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_i7MQ6rgybTctceV5YXYL0-BkTKSh5QfkfDDB_tZlk2V09dAg32YucwHBxniZ4DbCgfFDHjFVgGTL4a3n8tDquUEGWNUSVlwB6Ckq4L8VMcZVAdzHLIUfuNYiUw62BNxwumUUS1PHz-iX/s1600/Christmas+Eve+2011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_i7MQ6rgybTctceV5YXYL0-BkTKSh5QfkfDDB_tZlk2V09dAg32YucwHBxniZ4DbCgfFDHjFVgGTL4a3n8tDquUEGWNUSVlwB6Ckq4L8VMcZVAdzHLIUfuNYiUw62BNxwumUUS1PHz-iX/s320/Christmas+Eve+2011.JPG" width="239" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></span>I grew up pre-Martha Stewart in a small town. Our home cooks had a wonderful lady named Betty Feezor who hosted a daily cooking show on the local TV station in Charlotte. Other than that, they relied on word of mouth - recipes and methods that had been time and taste-tested by their mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters-in-law and next-door-neighbors.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzhWFC4XPx7XmB0exwqGnB95y8QBsFIwYqADnJpZjzqoCAcMBWNDUtsO2Cn1T0AYFneHeDVNUqc1A82Wuil9CvVcf9Q5UbNzNVD36oYceXoaCQj-Y8WNEGkMCyFX_WIT4Rkg2AYsY5UTCj/s1600/Betty+Feezor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzhWFC4XPx7XmB0exwqGnB95y8QBsFIwYqADnJpZjzqoCAcMBWNDUtsO2Cn1T0AYFneHeDVNUqc1A82Wuil9CvVcf9Q5UbNzNVD36oYceXoaCQj-Y8WNEGkMCyFX_WIT4Rkg2AYsY5UTCj/s1600/Betty+Feezor.jpg" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And we knew good food - still do. And every small town had several ladies who took care of our special occasions with remarkable talent and ease.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">You all know who I mean. We all knew the cake lady in our towns. No matter where you lived - she made the best wedding cakes in the world. They were usually heavy, moist pound cakes delicately flavored with lemon or almond, and they were frosted with either homemade butter cream or an amazing seven-minute frosting that still takes me back to my childhood when I encounter it today.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-_oDH6N7RDYC-wgHV-OPe7z1MsDTl8svNu_cR1FlBWVArV3qxB1kgQw2TY_GUQrUSdJrOoPDtb_2yIWCP3OB9EMs7Di8CCrE0BPv6mF2MfKFwnRITz8KFoH8H-SMSsTTHP1NixJ9X8I0K/s1600/Wedding+Cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-_oDH6N7RDYC-wgHV-OPe7z1MsDTl8svNu_cR1FlBWVArV3qxB1kgQw2TY_GUQrUSdJrOoPDtb_2yIWCP3OB9EMs7Di8CCrE0BPv6mF2MfKFwnRITz8KFoH8H-SMSsTTHP1NixJ9X8I0K/s320/Wedding+Cake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(photo courtesy of flours-sf.com)</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Before the days of grocery-store deli counters, the cake lady was our only resource. These days we seem to have two options on extreme ends of the spectrum - either go to the grocery store and risk buying something with icing that tastes a little like shaving cream or engage the services of one of those fondant artists for a beautiful cake that costs as much as a decent used car. That being the case, I'm still a fan of the cake lady - when you can find one. Thankfully, in many small towns,you can still attend wedding receptions and watch the women exchange approving glances and nods as the cake is cut and passed around. Those nods say "Ummm. Mary Nell made this one...", or "Knew it! Joan's lemon pound..."</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Fp9-2roE2TnUuYwb_JU8cXrJnt7WWwu0MkBUow0-bUPZzOwW_GzV6fbjJ2uM0kSZt1W_4XmjLdfV4kvfqGyf3TwVsEqhyphenhyphen6Q3FYaOAGYHsGqyuhFroPYFt0uP6ahUfzWtqPQa-91ZktWM/s1600/Cheese+Straws.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Fp9-2roE2TnUuYwb_JU8cXrJnt7WWwu0MkBUow0-bUPZzOwW_GzV6fbjJ2uM0kSZt1W_4XmjLdfV4kvfqGyf3TwVsEqhyphenhyphen6Q3FYaOAGYHsGqyuhFroPYFt0uP6ahUfzWtqPQa-91ZktWM/s320/Cheese+Straws.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">(photo courtesy of charmandsalt.com)</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But we don't stop there. Every (Southern) small town also has a cheese straw lady. This girl has perfected the art of the classic cheese straw or cheese ring (depending on the way it emerges from the pastry bag). She is known for her ability to make a PROPER cheese straw - one which bears no trace of the flour that you know is in there, but instead presents itself as a delicious bite of buttery sharp cheese with the perfect kick of cayenne pepper that is miraculously and mysteriously crisp. They might just float away if you aren't watching. In recent years, dozens of commercially prepared cheese straws have hit store shelves, some of them very good. But I have yet to find one that truly compares to the local version. The cheese straw lady's talent is as much in demand as the cake lady's. </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXIYSfhl0GWP-yxolu_pa0TWzWAx_CTE27YUNAlH6FGZGuskgGB9Y3BOmaV_eGkw2xwLnBGpWqM8aaKjG32Cs9ZCHLUaX84CREEvNemaAXUPTGZgTN6QxcexIK6jfNYpK7WYkreYD8eSmX/s1600/Gertrude+Jekyll+2011+025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXIYSfhl0GWP-yxolu_pa0TWzWAx_CTE27YUNAlH6FGZGuskgGB9Y3BOmaV_eGkw2xwLnBGpWqM8aaKjG32Cs9ZCHLUaX84CREEvNemaAXUPTGZgTN6QxcexIK6jfNYpK7WYkreYD8eSmX/s320/Gertrude+Jekyll+2011+025.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">By way of illustration, one of my favorite cheese straw stories happened at my parents' 50th wedding anniversary celebration. One of the guests, a woman who had been gone from our town for close to 30 years, came up to me at the event and said, "<i>Honey, would you mind giving me the name of your cheese straw lady? These are just delicious. We don't have anyone in my town who can make them like this. I have been making do ever since I moved away from here!</i>" </span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And then there is the butter mint lady. </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGICzSykyUIUTBlgpZ3TKbUWH7uY085ll-FwZdUuupYHOjuqW7845iTEZS-xJ-SEKDpgrp0aXeuopmt087cvYD0WHoTKQCHjfCt561snhiNW5W8e3EInkn8KjqIOPLMFY6S3153r0sfzf/s1600/Butter+Mints.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGICzSykyUIUTBlgpZ3TKbUWH7uY085ll-FwZdUuupYHOjuqW7845iTEZS-xJ-SEKDpgrp0aXeuopmt087cvYD0WHoTKQCHjfCt561snhiNW5W8e3EInkn8KjqIOPLMFY6S3153r0sfzf/s1600/Butter+Mints.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">(photo courtesy of Winston-Salem Journal)</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Today's crowd and, sadly, even some of today's caterers, consider a butter mint to be one of two things - either a rock-hard piece of commercial candy overdosed with peppermint oil - or - something made with powdered sugar and food coloring and more peppermint oil that resembles a bit of stale cake icing pressed into a little candy mold. Neither of these is an acceptable substitute for the real thing. A homemade butter mint is made the old-fashioned way by pouring the boiling hot candy onto a marble slab and, at just the right instant, pulling it (with bare hands!) into the tender pieces of candy that melt in your mouth like no other. The butter mint ladies are dying out (maybe from exhaustion and/or third-degree burns?) but growing up in my town, we had at least half a dozen of them. Butter mints fell from the sky like rain on every special occasion in those days. I'm told there is a man not far from here whose mother had the foresight to teach all of her children the craft of butter-mint-making before she died. God bless her.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4dQmmxv-tqqQiPTNCabxQrobX7UEa9DGo88qKmHdSZrCQtsxjMg-hAxufJXxX-EY7gV_Dj9QdRxV6KVTMOLb9mG__VZ6hrb3YXSX8Eyy7qRLwMZQGoRcImeXtwjMRj9n6gK0vHNjxfcNa/s1600/December+2011+095.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4dQmmxv-tqqQiPTNCabxQrobX7UEa9DGo88qKmHdSZrCQtsxjMg-hAxufJXxX-EY7gV_Dj9QdRxV6KVTMOLb9mG__VZ6hrb3YXSX8Eyy7qRLwMZQGoRcImeXtwjMRj9n6gK0vHNjxfcNa/s320/December+2011+095.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Now - did I mention chicken salad? It should contain nothing but white meat and is never to be made with Miracle Whip. In a small town, there are only one or two highly trusted chicken salad ladies. We're funny about the chicken salad.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> And we can't forget the lemon blossom practitioners. </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib2LafC5neQwMuWK9CshKjsCgF9ywm6hym2xlh6mWyyfCSFbrgwUF9EFzLWpCumgmjhLtzgzIjVeB0pfR0KBBGuM21m8kmx7SkWfuM4LEgzqLgnTHku3NIZUX_PEStHREjKfVnybCYvcmA/s1600/Lemon+blossoms+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib2LafC5neQwMuWK9CshKjsCgF9ywm6hym2xlh6mWyyfCSFbrgwUF9EFzLWpCumgmjhLtzgzIjVeB0pfR0KBBGuM21m8kmx7SkWfuM4LEgzqLgnTHku3NIZUX_PEStHREjKfVnybCYvcmA/s320/Lemon+blossoms+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(photo courtesy of food network)</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> These little lemon cakes, baked in mini muffin tins and saturated with sugary lemon goodness aren't as easy to accomplish as one might think - at least not to our lofty small town standards. And just so you know, they predate Paula Deen by several decades. She just had the good sense to inform the rest of the world about what we already knew.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Speaking of small towns, this may be the first of many posts about them by way of looking at mine. </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihOdCGTkAhU1hhOOFyYj6c2OUE7Gmc0xKk7x9sESwSnUBqyBS9kDK_BTpMzI0kd_NjbSeqRfim9bMLCZD8tf0HmiSWJ62LOeLIkNhvUmUgEy-vXYCXcgpL8xm9hVhMf1vGuXqpeudCrYeU/s1600/Lincolnton+downtown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihOdCGTkAhU1hhOOFyYj6c2OUE7Gmc0xKk7x9sESwSnUBqyBS9kDK_BTpMzI0kd_NjbSeqRfim9bMLCZD8tf0HmiSWJ62LOeLIkNhvUmUgEy-vXYCXcgpL8xm9hVhMf1vGuXqpeudCrYeU/s320/Lincolnton+downtown.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(photo courtesy of hoghappenin.org)</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> They are in themselves American treasures, too often looked down upon and seldom celebrated. That is a shame, too, because small towns have nurtured and produced some of America's greatest talents, not the least of which are the cake ladies and their cheese straw-butter mint-chicken salad-lemon blossom sisters.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So stay tuned for future posts from Main Street. In the meantime, if you run across a good butter mint, get the girl's name and give me a call.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-21121387062952157382012-04-09T13:39:00.000-04:002012-04-09T13:39:13.856-04:00Summer Camp<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg90A4ZvsZ3gnS1gpuk2qH1ntfNi6VVN7jHVolPwN2EsvxUDmv2HLv6GqALXRNfpMFjmYdN8CKSkJ3ik5fV6ymZptamwYatNnN1nZYHpawxtIqo_L7_LZ9k1ETCvPRfXTINPFnMpS3NDskZ/s1600/001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg90A4ZvsZ3gnS1gpuk2qH1ntfNi6VVN7jHVolPwN2EsvxUDmv2HLv6GqALXRNfpMFjmYdN8CKSkJ3ik5fV6ymZptamwYatNnN1nZYHpawxtIqo_L7_LZ9k1ETCvPRfXTINPFnMpS3NDskZ/s320/001.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana;">Little girls love their playhouses. Turns out, big girls do, too. Welcome to my morning commute. And before you go hating me, at least listen to the story.</span></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana;">We built this little summerhouse (and at this point, Joe, who REALLY built it, looks at me and says "what's this WE business?") around a group of old windows we found lying on the side of the road - which was the subject of an earlier post.</span></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana;">Well, truthfully, it sat filled with junk for six years. Every summer I would look at it with longing as I would pass by on my way to the garden to pick tomatoes. Then, several weeks ago, I found myself faced with an important artwork deadline and no choice but to finish that deadline three states away from my studio here in our house. I was not optimistic that anything good could come of that. I have a hard enough time being productive when I'm actually IN the studio - much less three states away. But as it turned out - I tripled my productivity during that week. My wheels began turning. I realized that being away from my cable TV, my internet, and my land-line telephone were actually BLESSINGS. Who knew?</span></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ1sesRguHm0doa_JJowt_laRxpclEHRrHx0iU4HR_xP8ZqiFk6G-FoF1i8EhWPv_UfVi6BJc3SlsJtg8wQWCKGGVGtKFO0wS1uZSqkxrzMVUnILTnrooSA3J1nPCbYxLT3I9iGee5M3ks/s320/002.JPG" width="320" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So I came straight home and did something radical. I moved my studio into the summerhouse - away from my cable TV, my internet and my land-line phone.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmB6FjyuQryP_Qqjkcc7N2G9rEMFG-LRPwoLfJX0gXo4tlQq7Pj0rDNVYaWiBkIYxHCVm08NbASvN4NRxflrVFZ2J73b3PlMhLFCSJPusnWIor5I68rrDSJcxf0g7-cXTfs_hS7vxzDT_j/s1600/008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmB6FjyuQryP_Qqjkcc7N2G9rEMFG-LRPwoLfJX0gXo4tlQq7Pj0rDNVYaWiBkIYxHCVm08NbASvN4NRxflrVFZ2J73b3PlMhLFCSJPusnWIor5I68rrDSJcxf0g7-cXTfs_hS7vxzDT_j/s320/008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">With a view like this out my new "studio" window, why didn't I think of this years ago?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi70PY2nilIhjRdwhYgYmEbCJ0XxZ8I2mR6Q0-AO6SaWwHrTgA18zDlR3y3ETCm5_sxEeugodtQJ4xHS6fvKtgzcDyZMS56if_5iV-7AJZttk7QJOeWW6Zo7ML5s-WJLfKmUXUzAm6Yftm0/s1600/005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi70PY2nilIhjRdwhYgYmEbCJ0XxZ8I2mR6Q0-AO6SaWwHrTgA18zDlR3y3ETCm5_sxEeugodtQJ4xHS6fvKtgzcDyZMS56if_5iV-7AJZttk7QJOeWW6Zo7ML5s-WJLfKmUXUzAm6Yftm0/s320/005.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My new digs aren't anything fancy. The old screen door came from the salvage yard for the whopping price of $5, and the window boxes aren't filled with pink and white impatiens - yet.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfToMhg8R2RAzejZ2iET1TAg71wXEcSPFRxfljNBrMfSkFiwyW9QPi-a5qxx4GIcRVG60OYvN_hrNtTNSs2AjQicOw15eviw5t7-emmbozf5OHttEajZxzSL-GC0Uz4GB3Cvz7T4MjGRYx/s1600/007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfToMhg8R2RAzejZ2iET1TAg71wXEcSPFRxfljNBrMfSkFiwyW9QPi-a5qxx4GIcRVG60OYvN_hrNtTNSs2AjQicOw15eviw5t7-emmbozf5OHttEajZxzSL-GC0Uz4GB3Cvz7T4MjGRYx/s320/007.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Just inside the screen door, you can see the storage wall that we built into the house all those years ago - long before I ever had the idea to use the place as a studio. I had the MOST fun with cans of spray paint when we first built, and decided that the colors still suit my needs - so I left it alone. The mirror is an old church window - also from the salvage yard. We added the mirrored pieces ourselves. The "countertop" is actually made of two long boards from the lumber yard. We rounded the edges and put multiple coats of polyurethane on them to stain and seal.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibMYkhx4-GTJJyxs5z1xXhvvr76N4ZzhBaTHoj-k-eiGj81Eo-4lKh72PC37ZBOvSJXFpvMTgrhsk0SV_-K6V6ybsll2TMYWaXMBke898Mpids-vFCOJxCQqAJh1OL4wCwkD3AYUzc-C90/s320/008.JPG" width="320" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My artboard is protected from the hot morning and afternoon sun by rattan window shades. All of the windows are operational, so I can get cross breezes. This being the South, however, cross breezes cease to be of any value between the end of April and Halloween - so I can see a portable air conditioning unit in my future. And the mess "is what it is".</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7hzcXKKtXuRHghYpIyuUv0Tnkcy5XLO8S0drCsnTc0TPYg82t_Jst76-1e1LRUO9gw2lGXsEpLjWFp7IwQD1nTmAk5Z7p5DViad8OePx-AWaBypiMp9SLAHA9CjHJYDAzlM6KbRSOBSVG/s1600/009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7hzcXKKtXuRHghYpIyuUv0Tnkcy5XLO8S0drCsnTc0TPYg82t_Jst76-1e1LRUO9gw2lGXsEpLjWFp7IwQD1nTmAk5Z7p5DViad8OePx-AWaBypiMp9SLAHA9CjHJYDAzlM6KbRSOBSVG/s320/009.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I didn't exactly clean the place up for your visit.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOYRampvrpFFxsQLzueVPCiPs-Y1lseqS9v04f5sN2mr2A_3FR9_99yzeGwby5rJYkeSz9U0iuSDY5er36UpWwSFlvhR6j1cnXxpZogFAyXBA6T6n1f6f5WNMUvMDAlwqN5oOycyoV9tJF/s1600/B+Camera+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOYRampvrpFFxsQLzueVPCiPs-Y1lseqS9v04f5sN2mr2A_3FR9_99yzeGwby5rJYkeSz9U0iuSDY5er36UpWwSFlvhR6j1cnXxpZogFAyXBA6T6n1f6f5WNMUvMDAlwqN5oOycyoV9tJF/s320/B+Camera+005.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Little Jackie, the studio cat, doesn't know whether to laugh or cry. The summerhouse was his corporate headquarters when we had it filled with junk. He had his own secret side door for a quick entry during winter snows and summer thunderstorms. Now that I have moved in, he has taken up residence on one of the top shelves beside the mirror, spending big chunks of his day sleeping and gazing out across the garden. Every now and then he will voice an opinion on whatever I'm working on.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp8nFh8WEnNOOiPVXA5OBLJvcqwY04Rfv7An1aYS9z1CZL4dUTowkMVUfBUBT8A3fVjOGJTL6L5sroofG7iRL9zSm6dUWdXi0_11Om5Pdkr4_lKLPGBY5IOV_3gzf4oR0NlNlrqD6yIewg/s1600/HPIM1931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp8nFh8WEnNOOiPVXA5OBLJvcqwY04Rfv7An1aYS9z1CZL4dUTowkMVUfBUBT8A3fVjOGJTL6L5sroofG7iRL9zSm6dUWdXi0_11Om5Pdkr4_lKLPGBY5IOV_3gzf4oR0NlNlrqD6yIewg/s320/HPIM1931.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And speaking of studio cats, Little Jackie's mentor, my beautiful Tylenol (who left us last year) is buried - not by accident, it turns out - right at the edge of the path that leads up to my new studio. He greets me in spirit every time I pass by, and I see his sweet face everywhere I turn.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb1zYFx0dioRb6l7GYC3-GRoVtxx1Wm9L0GbWz0p9yOtPzRq-odfxGLITt2aGw-GeiJbnR9q1kvtIr-NBU4giUi6upqAfvi0xK-n6k4I_E9N9UIZrIeGcFn5JiQhmfkAtpjJVHh2JpgG5B/s1600/010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb1zYFx0dioRb6l7GYC3-GRoVtxx1Wm9L0GbWz0p9yOtPzRq-odfxGLITt2aGw-GeiJbnR9q1kvtIr-NBU4giUi6upqAfvi0xK-n6k4I_E9N9UIZrIeGcFn5JiQhmfkAtpjJVHh2JpgG5B/s320/010.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And I do work. This is the view directly in front of me. The sunsets are especially sweet.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI9Ty1gmoc6DtuGl5Ias0GTy1EbaDVwh-IeaOsa5S0POwV3KUenqmcKXCfqaKZgJoaEnwUmC4OFX-9DbTureTqV4m17ekTZUJ3OsCJwFDTYTUXW0lWPmy2aHmxewsj9aAPMgVWyIYAqwn9/s1600/B+Camera+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI9Ty1gmoc6DtuGl5Ias0GTy1EbaDVwh-IeaOsa5S0POwV3KUenqmcKXCfqaKZgJoaEnwUmC4OFX-9DbTureTqV4m17ekTZUJ3OsCJwFDTYTUXW0lWPmy2aHmxewsj9aAPMgVWyIYAqwn9/s320/B+Camera+007.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Peeping around the corner of the potting shed, you can see how close I am to the garden - my favorite source of inspiration and a place I can never get enough of. Because of our great seasonal weather, I fully expect to be in residence up here from at least late February through Thanksgiving. And depending on what kind of heating solution I can come up with, you may just find me here in winter, too. (Can you hear Joe laughing in the background?)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana;">Whatever the case, I'm now happily painting away in my own grown-up version of summer camp. S'mores, anyone? </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div align="center"></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-26261380450810026862012-04-07T12:16:00.000-04:002012-04-07T12:16:29.163-04:00Remember The Reason<div align="center"><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdd2tfVBD4KEsdDvhvHrOoMSNNJkHrHzE69Plvwoj0oFTNaysb564ooBjvX3VzhyLqGbYG4ReaHRpVpO_zENgRHeh1Fim9qr9lMcQdLIfv1S0da9o93SloaxTzs71O9E3pTUTb0xV93G09/s1600/BLOOMS+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdd2tfVBD4KEsdDvhvHrOoMSNNJkHrHzE69Plvwoj0oFTNaysb564ooBjvX3VzhyLqGbYG4ReaHRpVpO_zENgRHeh1Fim9qr9lMcQdLIfv1S0da9o93SloaxTzs71O9E3pTUTb0xV93G09/s320/BLOOMS+009.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Verdana; font-size: large;">Have a Blessed Easter.</span><br />
<br />
</div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-72002251165960731042012-03-28T07:13:00.000-04:002012-03-28T07:13:03.877-04:00Nectar of the Gods<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4xFONmzmu_ehHEeGf43wlyc5bnbzv2Awp_pYMvDeE8GFoeJUdz_ds09Vf4VL91hzVkwgh75qB18QZbx7-tBEUr5LYjiDNIBq8tPst2qO9xryvjU9M6dU2RZKjawRbQK3NAqdwylbmKqsG/s1600/Cheer+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4xFONmzmu_ehHEeGf43wlyc5bnbzv2Awp_pYMvDeE8GFoeJUdz_ds09Vf4VL91hzVkwgh75qB18QZbx7-tBEUr5LYjiDNIBq8tPst2qO9xryvjU9M6dU2RZKjawRbQK3NAqdwylbmKqsG/s320/Cheer+2.jpg" width="166" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In some quarters, it is known as The Nectar of North Carolina. My sister, however, promoted it to Nectar of the Gods when she moved to Georgia back in the 1970's and found out you couldn't buy Cheerwine down there. Now, some things are Southern. Others are SO Southern that you can't buy them in Georgia. That's pretty bad.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And what is Cheerwine, exactly? Well it isn't wine. It is a soft drink, born in Salisbury, NC in 1917 and still being produced there today. What does it taste like? Think Cherry Coke with way more cherry and no Coke but a nice mystery kick with a Southern accent. That at least gets you in the neighborhood.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Maybe times have changed since the 1970's. Maybe you can buy Cheerwine in Georgia these days. I just know that every time she came home for years, my sister would load her car up with several cases of Cheerwine for hauling back down to Atlanta. Just for the record, there were other Carolina delicacies not available in Georgia back then, either - things such as Duke's Mayonnaise (don't talk to us about Hellman's), and Neese's Country Livermush (I don't have time to explain what that is. Just keep reading...). </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8IsfjG8W4S0zikPrrG_kcTFZYzZX2iO_1STQVcDdFwTeSjuQhsHXJ00qRaJV7T5GcdulRxK2nNPm8_pMbLu-2gYu3H8Ar2ShcS_LvCyw7lghIQpojPg_ax5ZjyuNFRzSI6V8ZejaXFScA/s1600/Cheer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8IsfjG8W4S0zikPrrG_kcTFZYzZX2iO_1STQVcDdFwTeSjuQhsHXJ00qRaJV7T5GcdulRxK2nNPm8_pMbLu-2gYu3H8Ar2ShcS_LvCyw7lghIQpojPg_ax5ZjyuNFRzSI6V8ZejaXFScA/s320/Cheer.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Lots of things have changed around here since the 1970's. The smart people at Krispy Kreme (while you aren't talking to us about Hellman's, don't bother talking to us about Dunkin' Doughnuts, either) have teamed up with those Cheerwine folks and have come out with a Cheerwine Krispy Kreme. By the way, Krispy Kreme is another North Carolina native. I've told you in previous blog posts that we love our sugar in these parts. I don't joke about such things.</span></span></span><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And while we're talking about marrying Cheerwine off to Krispy Kreme, we should mention the other Southern match-made-in-heaven, RC Cola and Moon Pie.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Yk4NF9g7t7DMIj2SMZRBAzHYKKtOOdBmsF3wWAawkdPapXZTvTcrX35d49E97k-38r_wX0xcOf_NGf8gZUq2BRKy7MoSCQ-upB7R-Q2mG0UZX72T7MxCeTczjojtK5gnHJkkMWt2YV9N/s1600/RC.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Yk4NF9g7t7DMIj2SMZRBAzHYKKtOOdBmsF3wWAawkdPapXZTvTcrX35d49E97k-38r_wX0xcOf_NGf8gZUq2BRKy7MoSCQ-upB7R-Q2mG0UZX72T7MxCeTczjojtK5gnHJkkMWt2YV9N/s320/RC.png" width="156" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg46BsBjXrB6V4pQEXFGKQCuu5sMrk5HtVpcFJl7YY5kA0A_0SHotI1T9DmusRBzRifzN_XQoRKacNQNQyeiD-ykz64AP5zmiL4pJGg7qTkzDvblKQwPxRZ-LreE-XzGT25V_B2nwAUEOOS/s1600/RC5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg46BsBjXrB6V4pQEXFGKQCuu5sMrk5HtVpcFJl7YY5kA0A_0SHotI1T9DmusRBzRifzN_XQoRKacNQNQyeiD-ykz64AP5zmiL4pJGg7qTkzDvblKQwPxRZ-LreE-XzGT25V_B2nwAUEOOS/s1600/RC5.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But that's really another post, too. And besides, all this sugar is making me light-headed. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I wouldn't know where to tell you to look for Cheerwine, except to say that I have heard you can buy it in Norway - hardly a bastion of all things Southern, so go figure - and of course on every street corner in the South and probably even Georgia by now. </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS9Hhqf9GRLjtuSMdtrIv0kxoeQEcBW-eS0SwoViBW9ckTM_2lQ1BdYIZkc-1NOIqAqKMH5Iw30zaMFKHS1c002sXevYttldQEPduWpNd_LMVVOBWIsUMLpwhTPGdJWKJmk-W9CVWoNlmF/s1600/Cheer5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="122" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS9Hhqf9GRLjtuSMdtrIv0kxoeQEcBW-eS0SwoViBW9ckTM_2lQ1BdYIZkc-1NOIqAqKMH5Iw30zaMFKHS1c002sXevYttldQEPduWpNd_LMVVOBWIsUMLpwhTPGdJWKJmk-W9CVWoNlmF/s320/Cheer5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Looks like they are headed for The Big Time. According to the New York Times, Cheerwine has recently exploded with a cult following that includes more than 63,000 Facebook fans. I'll bet one of them is my sister. </span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-20146887923026544812012-03-25T10:31:00.001-04:002012-03-25T10:35:52.539-04:00Sunshine State of Mind<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg18Hw2SyC0n0OueqrmxcImFFmV7IXLD5hCxIvDrRhitq3mwR1hBgYIGrKTNlhqdSqk0jCBpOxfLnKX3veBHHhwnryuDKim9yIoM48e4bekcVOrxuPkanlo6Lqt4CMoParCNOy-5MbLQfrJ/s1600/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+086.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg18Hw2SyC0n0OueqrmxcImFFmV7IXLD5hCxIvDrRhitq3mwR1hBgYIGrKTNlhqdSqk0jCBpOxfLnKX3veBHHhwnryuDKim9yIoM48e4bekcVOrxuPkanlo6Lqt4CMoParCNOy-5MbLQfrJ/s320/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+086.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I don't know which makes my heart sing more - the turquoise blue of the Gulf, or the sight of my grandson, Miller, playing on the beach - just a week shy of his first birthday. Well, really - I <i>do </i>know which makes my heart sing more. He is the love of our lives these days.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We were blessed to be in Florida for the week in early March, and doubly blessed that Miller and his mom and dad were able to come along. As you can see, below, Joe rediscovered his inner toddler as well. </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVveKscz5Emo79Wx26xocpgNF5NtaKVj4y0eAAdSpD0PbNmqhC9_RK3ltwlsX498HzQFnX6ZCMVeD1vd7kVekan7nZ9fJ2R7VnXfxPNDR28qqw1l0t9Wg3foOVA1oahp9cRy5RHSBCtR3Z/s1600/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+093.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVveKscz5Emo79Wx26xocpgNF5NtaKVj4y0eAAdSpD0PbNmqhC9_RK3ltwlsX498HzQFnX6ZCMVeD1vd7kVekan7nZ9fJ2R7VnXfxPNDR28qqw1l0t9Wg3foOVA1oahp9cRy5RHSBCtR3Z/s320/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+093.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">After "Mama" and "Daddy", Miller's first word was "Joe!" (including the exclamation point). No surprise there.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In addition to Miller, Joe has some other Florida fans as well. He ran up on a flock of pelicans at the St. Petersburg Pier, waiting, according to Joe, to buy pelican food. </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiI9OFVhiWkb0gN9zF8jKiMfRPF8xDXw0YidUbkr4NBbhbVCiBoUSxQWgD7pE9q3Y4Eo-lOm9qVqpd_QBvlBGqF8bcqw3W5BWYXlSnhvuOqFE1o-aaBdnr7ocqaaXG7_zC74QlRudgEOQH/s1600/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiI9OFVhiWkb0gN9zF8jKiMfRPF8xDXw0YidUbkr4NBbhbVCiBoUSxQWgD7pE9q3Y4Eo-lOm9qVqpd_QBvlBGqF8bcqw3W5BWYXlSnhvuOqFE1o-aaBdnr7ocqaaXG7_zC74QlRudgEOQH/s320/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+010.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We found another enterprising group of them offering fishing expeditions out into the Gulf. We decided to pass.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WGqxOkdZOEqVmqtiLkTqDXqeKPh2w9udge149Qb79IomR_8OMGX0nzbkbRVxW16Q4K0fN_iBmVs1LQaHmC7U8-KyJjoVioT_9J3ifvhePDfoGbQ8s3DEt62aDF9tweRITCATe8O-PbyA/s1600/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+045.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WGqxOkdZOEqVmqtiLkTqDXqeKPh2w9udge149Qb79IomR_8OMGX0nzbkbRVxW16Q4K0fN_iBmVs1LQaHmC7U8-KyJjoVioT_9J3ifvhePDfoGbQ8s3DEt62aDF9tweRITCATe8O-PbyA/s320/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+045.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Their CEO was not amused.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu21QSQArG3Z8lYG_Xp9wP27flqFMA4YKAOZnR1LR4lUHCgD6tt_MW3eJlPfDZ2f3FBWTE-EszJA-7jhv8SnQeiuC8Rq_vSYgACHCMP-ymbpDQ_pCtUd9CQ1wg9h6pBag5vPj9ppBA7X8Z/s1600/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu21QSQArG3Z8lYG_Xp9wP27flqFMA4YKAOZnR1LR4lUHCgD6tt_MW3eJlPfDZ2f3FBWTE-EszJA-7jhv8SnQeiuC8Rq_vSYgACHCMP-ymbpDQ_pCtUd9CQ1wg9h6pBag5vPj9ppBA7X8Z/s320/Clr++Wtr+St++Pete+015.jpg" width="236" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Only in Florida...</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I'm counting the days until our next trip. Meanwhile, back to work with dreams of coconut and palms and white sand and blue water drifting in and out of the studio on the memories of a Gulf breeze.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfOFOvEhq9TdctrgtuUvqiHJxVkxjcAStuK-QMG_mIeuVk7c45aWH7fFhleSDfSVjZ75ap_g1vVE7-QIwT29CtvcsrviFIipnPkOLfUfpHYvF3pxerkmDI4-JOdfhoOg4IiyGDBPrpBHTU/s1600/Florida+March+2012+027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfOFOvEhq9TdctrgtuUvqiHJxVkxjcAStuK-QMG_mIeuVk7c45aWH7fFhleSDfSVjZ75ap_g1vVE7-QIwT29CtvcsrviFIipnPkOLfUfpHYvF3pxerkmDI4-JOdfhoOg4IiyGDBPrpBHTU/s320/Florida+March+2012+027.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-52820993919156581712012-02-23T22:18:00.000-05:002012-02-23T22:18:37.742-05:00Hey, Sugar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Ytqem3YFvAlgdi-NF6HYT9iOSBg9FrflvP2GWPlQ9y-4Vc19wTDouSMPHbZPQrmqiEDnDe9V4UVohz_RMc0c7Y3Arige2w6g-jCZ4JzACeQ4qYTtprNUbMRJpp_0GezrkxJ91aafLoRZ/s1600/February+2012+101.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Ytqem3YFvAlgdi-NF6HYT9iOSBg9FrflvP2GWPlQ9y-4Vc19wTDouSMPHbZPQrmqiEDnDe9V4UVohz_RMc0c7Y3Arige2w6g-jCZ4JzACeQ4qYTtprNUbMRJpp_0GezrkxJ91aafLoRZ/s320/February+2012+101.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Pecan Pralines. Say those two words along with me. Pecan. Pralines.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Congratulations! You just gained five pounds. And welcome to the Land of Buttery Sugar - better known as anywhere below the Mason Dixon line.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Since this blog is about life where I live, and since I live below the aforementioned line, it seemed like a pretty good idea to talk about our food and maybe show you that food and maybe tell a few of our food secrets and maybe entice you to try some of this stuff. It's pretty good.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So we'll start with Pecan Pralines. If you frequent the candy counter at Cracker Barrel, you're already acquainted with the fact that in the South we love our pecans. And since no one has ever accused us of restraint, one of us many years ago decided to combine them with two more of our main food groups - sugar and butter. The result was Pecan Pralines. I've never heard who invented them, but my guess is they were a first cousin of The Angel Gabriel.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A few years ago, The Junior League of Savannah thoughtfully included the standard recipe in one of their cookbooks. Those Junior League girls know how to cook. Here is what you do, illustrated by my own batch of pralines courtesy of those girls in Savannah:</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif3H0KgV2SrH90j7RlKoMdDkHn5HwJyMhaLGbkSfGUFr54joeHzM2SzxlVwHzi4ijDlak9FZxQLwsFVyHKndx5RDLm-niW8FjO8QXAijkB30_MRjNR8J3nO3lX3SVRlXRpJC_szMdikNUR/s1600/February+2012+097.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif3H0KgV2SrH90j7RlKoMdDkHn5HwJyMhaLGbkSfGUFr54joeHzM2SzxlVwHzi4ijDlak9FZxQLwsFVyHKndx5RDLm-niW8FjO8QXAijkB30_MRjNR8J3nO3lX3SVRlXRpJC_szMdikNUR/s320/February+2012+097.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In a heavy bottomed saucepan, combine 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1 cup of granulated sugar, 1 1/2 tablespoons of corn syrup, 3 tablespoons of butter, a pinch of salt and 1/2 cup evaporated milk.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNV8iEtW2Sj0olxZP7rjeLEWCjF2z1DXWf8-LD0D4cneEOB9rn68XaDv8OgSI68lGfBavv8ESA6nn69uD8CfTRxqTpP8Il2gOEF1VBKv1Lu7KFwblDHR3lUHCWRWSm32H3ajH_T5eSKYyI/s1600/February+2012+098.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNV8iEtW2Sj0olxZP7rjeLEWCjF2z1DXWf8-LD0D4cneEOB9rn68XaDv8OgSI68lGfBavv8ESA6nn69uD8CfTRxqTpP8Il2gOEF1VBKv1Lu7KFwblDHR3lUHCWRWSm32H3ajH_T5eSKYyI/s320/February+2012+098.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook until mixture reaches 240 degrees (or forms a soft ball when dropped into cold water). </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUdHwcVzay77H5lMJIvPfSd5Psk16JjER1MakuAj_JFSqvoszz13nqcNfUR5XsHhbuuex3y0kpPRpuqp6g_9dGavVsXdeZifJB74xahNP_iQ4w2vwFrMnp4Q0ImLuwMkxKOb-ScV-GMF_r/s1600/February+2012+099.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUdHwcVzay77H5lMJIvPfSd5Psk16JjER1MakuAj_JFSqvoszz13nqcNfUR5XsHhbuuex3y0kpPRpuqp6g_9dGavVsXdeZifJB74xahNP_iQ4w2vwFrMnp4Q0ImLuwMkxKOb-ScV-GMF_r/s320/February+2012+099.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Add 1/2 cup of chopped pecans and cook for another minute or so, then remove from heat. Let candy cool for 2 minutes, then add 1 teaspoon of vanilla and beat with a spoon until creamy.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim89TDym49xqv9zFD84b5Y9F-wv57fde2mm8ut4NudspJVKBES-yBFHw9tTMwlC5Lz-GXsGEEJzZh1AwN7TD5s2VyWa8DUzhq93h5Zg4Wf8jvTyNrgXgYvz1HE7D3bFjwmU7MGgKmS4jTA/s1600/February+2012+100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim89TDym49xqv9zFD84b5Y9F-wv57fde2mm8ut4NudspJVKBES-yBFHw9tTMwlC5Lz-GXsGEEJzZh1AwN7TD5s2VyWa8DUzhq93h5Zg4Wf8jvTyNrgXgYvz1HE7D3bFjwmU7MGgKmS4jTA/s320/February+2012+100.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Quickly drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper or a Silpat and allow to cool. I'm told it's possible to store these in an airtight container between layers of wax paper, but I wouldn't know. They never last that long around here. In fact, they never even get a chance to cool completely.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQq93THGstTLk0eVCP-B3IhKoJZe6h3owWWJ6nngG_3UATDnpK5F2SRihgb8osP7xZRxc6gArShgKr086ijZZSqEx08hAn_SlluHjHWb1GB1VPgsWtAlYRsTvyuoErpfPc722JlmLWItdo/s1600/February+2012+103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQq93THGstTLk0eVCP-B3IhKoJZe6h3owWWJ6nngG_3UATDnpK5F2SRihgb8osP7xZRxc6gArShgKr086ijZZSqEx08hAn_SlluHjHWb1GB1VPgsWtAlYRsTvyuoErpfPc722JlmLWItdo/s320/February+2012+103.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">This batch barely made it past the photograph, and that was only because I stuffed my husband in the closet and locked the door. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And there you have it.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Secret That Every Southern Cook Learned As A Child, Number 1:</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">"Butter and brown sugar will fix just about anything"</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>More than a few enterprising Southerners have figured out that these things will bring big bucks. If you have some praline money burning a hole in your pocket, one of my favorite purveyors is River Street Sweets in Savannah. I don't know if they're related to those Junior League girls or not, but they do make a decent praline.</b></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>www.riverstreetsweets.com</b></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b>Tell them Beth sent you! </b> </span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-13350347706670904152012-02-19T16:44:00.000-05:002012-02-19T16:44:45.307-05:00Funky Fun<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTt8yNx27VWM1m8ik89UOU97fJboGmRVtvGuEwc53D4uqZ8jhZQYAndlftzKivGTLATk8G9e_iPVIp-yGZiqpIJ-aL42ajdNNz7a8Q-GpPQr7z9fQL7ePG3UgCqwuZVvv_sfrfQHms6ou3/s1600/Fearrington+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTt8yNx27VWM1m8ik89UOU97fJboGmRVtvGuEwc53D4uqZ8jhZQYAndlftzKivGTLATk8G9e_iPVIp-yGZiqpIJ-aL42ajdNNz7a8Q-GpPQr7z9fQL7ePG3UgCqwuZVvv_sfrfQHms6ou3/s1600/Fearrington+6.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Now I ask you - does this look like a hotbed of funky outsider art?</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKa9Bx3luZJPzP392zKDjb7_MbsWZpAnH8D3cHY6RTnjw8qo8jpUXeT5-mWRr9AahfjbfNckQF0QnB_X2N_qhNqGz9BSv5rMCL8gp9wY0JPdMViXRvtjX-22zdnfmX6m9aXDQ8c1IH3hKc/s1600/Fearrington.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="94" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKa9Bx3luZJPzP392zKDjb7_MbsWZpAnH8D3cHY6RTnjw8qo8jpUXeT5-mWRr9AahfjbfNckQF0QnB_X2N_qhNqGz9BSv5rMCL8gp9wY0JPdMViXRvtjX-22zdnfmX6m9aXDQ8c1IH3hKc/s320/Fearrington.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> If asked where one might find an old ambulance converted into a cosmic Airbus complete with search lights made from repurposed Electrolux vaccuum cleaners, would you send them here?</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9JhkWKbeFMrLaWBCu0ebR5yYDM026S0KdYRVr1Gdy0LnjMA9BbrHwKjnOw7tv8JieHDgXbj1BoH1mCPaW7y_ofTSMY5IydJbBJilxU7L68u5jJOiDPbz2rpgwJg0HFMaKriz-HIr8ng7t/s1600/Fearrington+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="94" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9JhkWKbeFMrLaWBCu0ebR5yYDM026S0KdYRVr1Gdy0LnjMA9BbrHwKjnOw7tv8JieHDgXbj1BoH1mCPaW7y_ofTSMY5IydJbBJilxU7L68u5jJOiDPbz2rpgwJg0HFMaKriz-HIr8ng7t/s320/Fearrington+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Life is full of surprises. North Carolina on a sunny February Saturday held one of them. The Fearrington House, a Relais and Chateaux member since 1988, is one of the nation's premier destinations for innovative farm-to-fork cuisine and award-winning accomodations.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgERFMnuJzXA39VT7QLZBGMbi-F9EpHTcaKzP9seGwBFf0CQFr1_Hom-ECSa6x6sMKzlXuBVDd5Yi6y8E4GFTc5tpKJTzn81BD3mdkOwrPgHmPbsF3SEdF8CBZ47ZykxrFLYnw3WedqxpPh/s1600/Fearrington+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="94" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgERFMnuJzXA39VT7QLZBGMbi-F9EpHTcaKzP9seGwBFf0CQFr1_Hom-ECSa6x6sMKzlXuBVDd5Yi6y8E4GFTc5tpKJTzn81BD3mdkOwrPgHmPbsF3SEdF8CBZ47ZykxrFLYnw3WedqxpPh/s320/Fearrington+5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It is all that, of course. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> But yesterday they decided to throw some artistic red pepper into the stew, and they hit a home run. </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8LCx2pWwO6Qh7uCDb-mLajBxxAIhdi0IVur1PqsdX8mXZf63aHK3Zhdvnz2LhH2ASX2rVHpOr7i1InY_4bdQtbHWTnaA_Fu0OdtmjdU7qwT7mb7YZdBLhQOrooW2LynOv5x4IL7CwPlEq/s1600/February+2012+057.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8LCx2pWwO6Qh7uCDb-mLajBxxAIhdi0IVur1PqsdX8mXZf63aHK3Zhdvnz2LhH2ASX2rVHpOr7i1InY_4bdQtbHWTnaA_Fu0OdtmjdU7qwT7mb7YZdBLhQOrooW2LynOv5x4IL7CwPlEq/s320/February+2012+057.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Sam "The Dot Man" McMillan was just one of the featured artists at the Tenth Annual Fearrington Folk Art Show, held in the big barn adjacent to the inn in the heart of Fearrington Village, a beautiful community just south of Chapel Hill.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh09GDK8BrpDCzSG3jkkltO0thgaww81zsOjovmdA-TObAOHbPAavdGCgwMURFCUf3qT8dadZDXfHSVf_ExNFuSSc0GjAZ182I2hl_P0N5_-WilxQU7YSaOc3oQcGthK6Nwf5s9EYsZyLGB/s1600/February+2012+075.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh09GDK8BrpDCzSG3jkkltO0thgaww81zsOjovmdA-TObAOHbPAavdGCgwMURFCUf3qT8dadZDXfHSVf_ExNFuSSc0GjAZ182I2hl_P0N5_-WilxQU7YSaOc3oQcGthK6Nwf5s9EYsZyLGB/s320/February+2012+075.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The show highlights Outsider Art. Think of it as traditional folk art with a few extra missing teeth. Orthodontic imperfection notwithstanding, this genre of artistic expression has always called my name, and, happily, I am not alone.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfbalUjzj0rhujufdsLJyOACz7yt8jx8_laXgVi_Y0zIQozWN0f0dlfEcyrl_iHnASkJGCAnV-TZ82feYJU_AaHTRln-cl1TQkbeL50xcgfoxSG8IaRTIrAi0SRaTO0DuEMDq_E4jY1T_j/s1600/February+2012+058.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfbalUjzj0rhujufdsLJyOACz7yt8jx8_laXgVi_Y0zIQozWN0f0dlfEcyrl_iHnASkJGCAnV-TZ82feYJU_AaHTRln-cl1TQkbeL50xcgfoxSG8IaRTIrAi0SRaTO0DuEMDq_E4jY1T_j/s320/February+2012+058.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Inside the barn, dozens of artists from all over the region displayed their work for sale. This is the beautiful work of artist Danny Doughty, below.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEB0qWEqP5ZU-vxxfycJZcvVAQWFUy2sSqKq_AE75ch9xvmABGZPF4tcFDheQ7Q7x4BO6Jk-J7E5o-9w9Nph9_DTD-iU0IwRm3Ad_DTtPsnHUGgM4_NncZS0jzMzMwqE1lRy610S3PKMaP/s1600/Danny+Doughty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEB0qWEqP5ZU-vxxfycJZcvVAQWFUy2sSqKq_AE75ch9xvmABGZPF4tcFDheQ7Q7x4BO6Jk-J7E5o-9w9Nph9_DTD-iU0IwRm3Ad_DTtPsnHUGgM4_NncZS0jzMzMwqE1lRy610S3PKMaP/s320/Danny+Doughty.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU_GKzS452IcE80GNJ1mkdUqBODpKL5gBbCxmXF47_wW67PHuG156SeUrOyYYvik7i6r223xqgj-ng6fBcUSCd3Frj6BZT4Jgc-MLo9nw6KGfoNIaHV31UnGbBgKhFfmJBZOwvItITeeB4/s1600/February+2012+062.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU_GKzS452IcE80GNJ1mkdUqBODpKL5gBbCxmXF47_wW67PHuG156SeUrOyYYvik7i6r223xqgj-ng6fBcUSCd3Frj6BZT4Jgc-MLo9nw6KGfoNIaHV31UnGbBgKhFfmJBZOwvItITeeB4/s320/February+2012+062.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">"Missionary Mary Proctor", one of the happiest souls in the place, shares a nice dose of The Good News as she talks about her work.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVOJmd312jX5N-X95uqTbxAhdnpGvLe_WLZJbXTls9mcQ3nydUbi7w7n9Wkobbx2bhsu91vxlLQuAYqmbPRp3GlLbGpdesYml-qcvtBbtRBdidLYjoFC0eb6hrFkt66s_1cU6glN9Uj_5o/s1600/Mary+Proctor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVOJmd312jX5N-X95uqTbxAhdnpGvLe_WLZJbXTls9mcQ3nydUbi7w7n9Wkobbx2bhsu91vxlLQuAYqmbPRp3GlLbGpdesYml-qcvtBbtRBdidLYjoFC0eb6hrFkt66s_1cU6glN9Uj_5o/s320/Mary+Proctor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Her creations and her message are so infectious, I wanted to buy her whole booth!</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnIM50dv4TdwD4hIWig-OamXPynEwywwlIJh1pFcfzaSUq5lYZRddnUAi-9GPpEAUPj9hRwdDrsj8eaYDvAbh-rJTa1uHewOeC7YDE6a2_DEantOaW9rFmzg62_r78hfhT50BXogDnHV9O/s1600/February+2012+059.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnIM50dv4TdwD4hIWig-OamXPynEwywwlIJh1pFcfzaSUq5lYZRddnUAi-9GPpEAUPj9hRwdDrsj8eaYDvAbh-rJTa1uHewOeC7YDE6a2_DEantOaW9rFmzg62_r78hfhT50BXogDnHV9O/s320/February+2012+059.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Tim and Lisa Kluttz have long been favorites of my daughter, who has collected their work for years. Their strong sense of color and their whimsical interpretation of animals is one of the hallmarks of their work, and I love everything that they do.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfeXRNq7IcmbiP_XTJ3MOdsKI_1rq16rqdCI_1JWp8zBwYVOWGugRxsz1Wb3b6fWz21DlRsvgRfxMd5IuTnoTh9Dfa1qmSJ870QIMffUuuCtovHq0P1kH90xPeZMDkdsEBGXptObfGc4qk/s1600/February+2012+064.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfeXRNq7IcmbiP_XTJ3MOdsKI_1rq16rqdCI_1JWp8zBwYVOWGugRxsz1Wb3b6fWz21DlRsvgRfxMd5IuTnoTh9Dfa1qmSJ870QIMffUuuCtovHq0P1kH90xPeZMDkdsEBGXptObfGc4qk/s320/February+2012+064.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsYRppJxT3mCcwbVn5OFkQy3h0jXGVRFhC3D9E5fnxOvLnqVFc4cZ-qtk7P5W8OXQSyLA6t1fRYkycE557rHpcIRsgXajMxpI1PKydlOy9_ECQtB-g4QsW7uHR3vgdKax8AZdQX3_q7HIM/s1600/Lisa+Kluttz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsYRppJxT3mCcwbVn5OFkQy3h0jXGVRFhC3D9E5fnxOvLnqVFc4cZ-qtk7P5W8OXQSyLA6t1fRYkycE557rHpcIRsgXajMxpI1PKydlOy9_ECQtB-g4QsW7uHR3vgdKax8AZdQX3_q7HIM/s320/Lisa+Kluttz.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfOlbi62Kfe1kH790ik2DNNMIYg3uHQZ2J3zBbKhL9MgDJhYEBrGJNh7WKZw2b7FYSxdtBlapbon-jNz3ojpR5E5LQn1Q56hBn5UtT27LcU5itYa5qUXdasmaO5WD881H1YdFOeP3zp2Y3/s1600/February+2012+066.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfOlbi62Kfe1kH790ik2DNNMIYg3uHQZ2J3zBbKhL9MgDJhYEBrGJNh7WKZw2b7FYSxdtBlapbon-jNz3ojpR5E5LQn1Q56hBn5UtT27LcU5itYa5qUXdasmaO5WD881H1YdFOeP3zp2Y3/s320/February+2012+066.jpg" width="264" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Artist Theresa Gloster included the words to an old gospel song into the image of the yellow house just to her left in the picture below. I asked if she knew the tune, and she sang the song for me! I jumped in on the chorus. If my tambourine had been along, we could have "had church" right there on the spot.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqebpF91jzHmeaee01cs9EPJxMsqq8WO53llaAYXQRqyaYo23QSlcjCtG2gyA65f3odoN4ZEtatpl7oRCEpt_GAid9ihup57Yug8Ij9sgPktJ12VkhkP9zcbu4JPgT00VGo3MtqittaigZ/s1600/February+2012+068.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqebpF91jzHmeaee01cs9EPJxMsqq8WO53llaAYXQRqyaYo23QSlcjCtG2gyA65f3odoN4ZEtatpl7oRCEpt_GAid9ihup57Yug8Ij9sgPktJ12VkhkP9zcbu4JPgT00VGo3MtqittaigZ/s320/February+2012+068.jpg" width="311" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Fearrington House was beautiful - even in the midst of a Carolina winter afternoon.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKhu230MvuYhgHZngqVPoSoDdeLUvnca_KdRVuoC9RDWkltk54VcNv4q4PX8WqYVPHytAG57bsqfJrKjleSPzPkVmfxtHfAN-H9GQjidxRrn8MBIprzsCYXaw0b4Koksj09ZDsFHI6HwHz/s1600/February+2012+070.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKhu230MvuYhgHZngqVPoSoDdeLUvnca_KdRVuoC9RDWkltk54VcNv4q4PX8WqYVPHytAG57bsqfJrKjleSPzPkVmfxtHfAN-H9GQjidxRrn8MBIprzsCYXaw0b4Koksj09ZDsFHI6HwHz/s320/February+2012+070.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgABOg8Wfh5HxgqWijdAorKE_FXJFDA5nuuF59SV208Cu6Xfx_jkNyWg2BI9wlshlR0HEbQSqSJQCuyMDEMGJbOyHa0MepkNxHfNh_ge715UwjSb-ndoZhItgN4n_eyZCn8BTnkmoL8-ZOh/s1600/February+2012+074.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgABOg8Wfh5HxgqWijdAorKE_FXJFDA5nuuF59SV208Cu6Xfx_jkNyWg2BI9wlshlR0HEbQSqSJQCuyMDEMGJbOyHa0MepkNxHfNh_ge715UwjSb-ndoZhItgN4n_eyZCn8BTnkmoL8-ZOh/s320/February+2012+074.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Meanwhile, "The Dot Man" held court in the barn,</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSeQO5IbdVU62SqR8-ydNl0TM2qZ_mD3_lUBr7MGsMDHIPI4crfjJYbozBF2D15dXahRoonhAkAZsPrqJxp1AwZcHTxj-ygxuIEjA3wAQ-xdrZvte-nSvfOi0dD4uEA94zYuf-pf2sTgNp/s1600/February+2012+056.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSeQO5IbdVU62SqR8-ydNl0TM2qZ_mD3_lUBr7MGsMDHIPI4crfjJYbozBF2D15dXahRoonhAkAZsPrqJxp1AwZcHTxj-ygxuIEjA3wAQ-xdrZvte-nSvfOi0dD4uEA94zYuf-pf2sTgNp/s320/February+2012+056.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">and outside, artist Robert Seven, aka The Great Archemephelon,</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> had parked his car.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0TxKQDASBIythbboZVGO0WhOjziVAItADmvyI8TzoncwHUlJ-T-czUzkMYvL-ojK1edog-8pW_YCHxiTeBEjsm16RuR30o9F7Y5F-2YcCEbf3yy0rbr1f3gqlLFmr8jUn2UpYMFLHdCXj/s1600/February+2012+077.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0TxKQDASBIythbboZVGO0WhOjziVAItADmvyI8TzoncwHUlJ-T-czUzkMYvL-ojK1edog-8pW_YCHxiTeBEjsm16RuR30o9F7Y5F-2YcCEbf3yy0rbr1f3gqlLFmr8jUn2UpYMFLHdCXj/s320/February+2012+077.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">He travels the universe in this flying machine, which knew a former life as an ambulance. He even pays homage to this fact in one of the labels on the side, which touts his work as "Emerge-N-See Art".</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimV2Yd50-p5lpHlpCxIuYs73kcah5Y-xH7eDXgJkRs3DZpC380oU544up9TzqCiQ-FmNYZgUYORh-lHBR-70BwFBvwWRKvo8dbyoU3fVVmIuXKgXl6GNcXATfVJwSt4ePidjXKTc_TNPM1/s1600/R7+Ambulance.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimV2Yd50-p5lpHlpCxIuYs73kcah5Y-xH7eDXgJkRs3DZpC380oU544up9TzqCiQ-FmNYZgUYORh-lHBR-70BwFBvwWRKvo8dbyoU3fVVmIuXKgXl6GNcXATfVJwSt4ePidjXKTc_TNPM1/s320/R7+Ambulance.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> I was especially drawn to the flame-shooting Electrolux "lights" on top.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-S13z9_LX2uEkHGUwiNz2GKBAq_StvP4ytaEjzKt9X2OUiWnlf3R6c7acuSyMwDO1ZYzuR4A-LrFz7nLhb9UVfQGa9FVSOdgvXUUfObklAUDz4O8AcuC2NM1K6-6GtG7JaMV6pYYfnPac/s1600/R7+picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-S13z9_LX2uEkHGUwiNz2GKBAq_StvP4ytaEjzKt9X2OUiWnlf3R6c7acuSyMwDO1ZYzuR4A-LrFz7nLhb9UVfQGa9FVSOdgvXUUfObklAUDz4O8AcuC2NM1K6-6GtG7JaMV6pYYfnPac/s320/R7+picture.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> R7, as he sometimes signs his name, was probably one of the inspirations for the movie Men in Black. I'm pretty sure he isn't "from around here", as we say.</span></span></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOoS62CTe8qEvua7wLrgdQQSStKDmpPwsLkvLwlc305d4rV6qO5-u86PQ8KwE42vVDFa7B-ZejEX5XY4i9SAbhQ5Qev48uPIdowrhyphenhyphenPza07f5W0tPrlnwdN0OMw1LoiiNuC9OqN50Y61sT/s1600/Miller+at+Fearrington.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOoS62CTe8qEvua7wLrgdQQSStKDmpPwsLkvLwlc305d4rV6qO5-u86PQ8KwE42vVDFa7B-ZejEX5XY4i9SAbhQ5Qev48uPIdowrhyphenhyphenPza07f5W0tPrlnwdN0OMw1LoiiNuC9OqN50Y61sT/s320/Miller+at+Fearrington.JPG" width="251" /></a><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">He thoughtfully provides a dummy-board, hinged to the side of his airship for the creative fun of occasional passers-by. That was my grandson, Miller, smiling for the camera!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Dinner would have been nice...</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsVT0yvZK3jRwfun3n-767QUXSsxv_qJRka5s3oRCI2LWNBDQRZHySyZGXMJ2NUW662kf43MXATDP4eJ7a3doDwao52BuoI2jpJBV6MD_9e9ArUMA63Hl32MdZlY613DXDhS_cL_SWcKqB/s1600/February+2012+069.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsVT0yvZK3jRwfun3n-767QUXSsxv_qJRka5s3oRCI2LWNBDQRZHySyZGXMJ2NUW662kf43MXATDP4eJ7a3doDwao52BuoI2jpJBV6MD_9e9ArUMA63Hl32MdZlY613DXDhS_cL_SWcKqB/s320/February+2012+069.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">but we settled instead for a nice plate of North Carolina barbecue on the way home - which could hardly be called "settling" - since North Carolina barbecue is the stuff of legend all by itself. At day's end, we drifted off to sleep smelling of hickory smoke and dreamed of sailing off to Venus in the fantastic flying machine of The Great Archemephelon. </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">All told, not a bad day to be us.</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">For more information on Fearrington, please visit them at</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">www.fearrington.com<br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-24983282120988286712012-02-11T13:46:00.000-05:002012-02-11T13:46:24.957-05:00Chalkboard Chic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmws-AteyDC4gtliaPvaAC4D9-Y935nX0oBbx5hbl0sl8Pt4NRq9AOtDfsOSkgOUCFNtzzmesKWWjrAK68l-JmdkLo1Aeo8AwXcjafBpjXVFxruKJQ_Pvnh1EHTue6ZJGjBdWGz_pdimdr/s1600/Chalk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmws-AteyDC4gtliaPvaAC4D9-Y935nX0oBbx5hbl0sl8Pt4NRq9AOtDfsOSkgOUCFNtzzmesKWWjrAK68l-JmdkLo1Aeo8AwXcjafBpjXVFxruKJQ_Pvnh1EHTue6ZJGjBdWGz_pdimdr/s1600/Chalk.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The recent winter trade shows produced a wonderful trend fully arrived - chalkboard chic. Trends in the home decor industry don't just land full-blown. They usually peek their heads for a couple of seasons until all of a sudden you see them everywhere.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDAXH6tprMJMLbIrEPlNYJIWqihpEilYw3eq1kD01ocRSfTQRStBH14A1uhi5VWU45ETgJzjTXHX-IwLRgpG-_Ize4NUNRla6zS-ubOCW0VDTlOLpP8b_UUxB37tlSfEeunk191S67In7U/s1600/Chalk+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDAXH6tprMJMLbIrEPlNYJIWqihpEilYw3eq1kD01ocRSfTQRStBH14A1uhi5VWU45ETgJzjTXHX-IwLRgpG-_Ize4NUNRla6zS-ubOCW0VDTlOLpP8b_UUxB37tlSfEeunk191S67In7U/s1600/Chalk+1.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Such was the case with chalkboard chic. Everywhere I turned last month at the trade shows, there were wonderful, inventive examples to choose from.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC7MXssdI5nue7YbBtMfgy4cluX3IXZTcoegagcad0JeNIiI84unz0Lldb3xZYfve646grIDvIfLduTkmk6BqJfYfhHpMR2rFvToFtlidz-zcyieTeAzinCkZrRaG5OvP764mXYIwRaRuJ/s1600/Chalk+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC7MXssdI5nue7YbBtMfgy4cluX3IXZTcoegagcad0JeNIiI84unz0Lldb3xZYfve646grIDvIfLduTkmk6BqJfYfhHpMR2rFvToFtlidz-zcyieTeAzinCkZrRaG5OvP764mXYIwRaRuJ/s1600/Chalk+2.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> With a simple and inexpensive can of chalkboard paint, you can have as much fun as you did in fingerpaint class in the first grade, all the while giving your home a little bit of artsy "oomph". And, yes, I just coined that phrase.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC0miHFQViRqh15ixLHuFJXU0B2KrZ8AOsG96_4QhVCnhI7rFZtX3uFSIfsqsDFJvmJlNRgIwu4Y8RLbrOqccIlAx3LckRNf-xW4ztntVtDZuSXU6yqBwI0f8agqSyi9w8rBrRYZIVnJH0/s1600/Chalk+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC0miHFQViRqh15ixLHuFJXU0B2KrZ8AOsG96_4QhVCnhI7rFZtX3uFSIfsqsDFJvmJlNRgIwu4Y8RLbrOqccIlAx3LckRNf-xW4ztntVtDZuSXU6yqBwI0f8agqSyi9w8rBrRYZIVnJH0/s1600/Chalk+4.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Even the tiniest touch can carry a big punch.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_rsozJ4EtULyk_UTqaUU248GbcSwOrN2NL-uJMXYhnV6knSMbH9vVbtIdbadFqENcDbdciy2yxAQrrWt-D98NORfNpIQ-J5DFAecAef92wYTofJP0Rh8N5RR_vj9xR_h4v4ClDjFYJBpv/s1600/Chalk+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_rsozJ4EtULyk_UTqaUU248GbcSwOrN2NL-uJMXYhnV6knSMbH9vVbtIdbadFqENcDbdciy2yxAQrrWt-D98NORfNpIQ-J5DFAecAef92wYTofJP0Rh8N5RR_vj9xR_h4v4ClDjFYJBpv/s1600/Chalk+6.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlLzVOW2yED0FSTltrn8B5U92d5Ou3H-2yEUO164V3CQavBOpSrGeTtHlUtbuL6bxsPxFgx0i1B3aD4w4D9cr8-s5OxJbysp9THbIAiQdTwig-Nwod9H4EY6By_3W3TGUphXU-yS18M8iR/s1600/Chalk+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlLzVOW2yED0FSTltrn8B5U92d5Ou3H-2yEUO164V3CQavBOpSrGeTtHlUtbuL6bxsPxFgx0i1B3aD4w4D9cr8-s5OxJbysp9THbIAiQdTwig-Nwod9H4EY6By_3W3TGUphXU-yS18M8iR/s1600/Chalk+7.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">This buffet station, above, becomes a work of art when backed with a simple chalkboard message. Change the message to suit your mood, or the season - and change the look entirely.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb_7wN_s7IYu-mK-zU9ZFuX0s3Zvj_WhwIFhzfXC6RhJcqQaDnzMGDXHkTV1u6OibISsHyzogLdmHH-Z-T-P_Kkb8lTcfVA2nkg-onZp3oMh-neO0LyvIziK9B-xxL1yPJVQLmvrCkj3uE/s1600/Chalk+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb_7wN_s7IYu-mK-zU9ZFuX0s3Zvj_WhwIFhzfXC6RhJcqQaDnzMGDXHkTV1u6OibISsHyzogLdmHH-Z-T-P_Kkb8lTcfVA2nkg-onZp3oMh-neO0LyvIziK9B-xxL1yPJVQLmvrCkj3uE/s1600/Chalk+8.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Another great look, although I can't envision dashing off such a dandy rendition of the Eiffel Tower as this with simple chalk - but to each their own. Here's hoping the kids don't accidently smudge the foundation and cause the whole thing to topple...</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia7m7cJ-DZ323CUqCvA8Me7h_CzowesrBMrDR6wNo4uNLYGpdccHp0837p_7jOOZ6Uk8UE9o_iq_N207LCaVqMu9cBr0Jpmyk_gzGa5WoOVySImgThG0f8UOKYYxol4tgwIcfPX3grx_rv/s1600/Chalk+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia7m7cJ-DZ323CUqCvA8Me7h_CzowesrBMrDR6wNo4uNLYGpdccHp0837p_7jOOZ6Uk8UE9o_iq_N207LCaVqMu9cBr0Jpmyk_gzGa5WoOVySImgThG0f8UOKYYxol4tgwIcfPX3grx_rv/s1600/Chalk+9.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> The key is to have fun, let loose and laugh.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH4cMTg4zE1n4DKAT5kD0MgYZASMQ1CWzofQ3ylwY57YcHqmv1oYKgG7IKkfPkDNbuplZj3rq1DfNSA4d4Z6tU44pkKrGdUqUZhPlP-mQ2S457mahdGannRfbAG0HZ12TApgwLJdf9eaMx/s1600/Chalk+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH4cMTg4zE1n4DKAT5kD0MgYZASMQ1CWzofQ3ylwY57YcHqmv1oYKgG7IKkfPkDNbuplZj3rq1DfNSA4d4Z6tU44pkKrGdUqUZhPlP-mQ2S457mahdGannRfbAG0HZ12TApgwLJdf9eaMx/s1600/Chalk+10.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">For more great examples of chalkboard chic (and credits on these great shots) visit my Pinterest page by clicking the button at the top right-hand corner of my blog.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Happy decorating, y'all!</span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-14298422622168344122012-02-01T12:11:00.002-05:002012-02-02T18:55:28.963-05:00Pinned to the Wall<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEiUOfmgObRpgqiB1fsebgeMB6d9D_tzIs0gYSdloxmeiSEgz9u6S_UFgc2608zWSTBM0Vvv9rDy73c5kREXckOqnAT-10Pjub_tuU9hOrOZ7KQcCZKlpNZRPXuAkB9PyR95KW9c2S_jAs/s1600/Green+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEiUOfmgObRpgqiB1fsebgeMB6d9D_tzIs0gYSdloxmeiSEgz9u6S_UFgc2608zWSTBM0Vvv9rDy73c5kREXckOqnAT-10Pjub_tuU9hOrOZ7KQcCZKlpNZRPXuAkB9PyR95KW9c2S_jAs/s1600/Green+5.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So it's official. I'm ruined forever. There is this thing called Pinterest. It is an online bulletin board - a place where you can "pin" anything and everything that appeals to you. And there it sits any time you want to click on and enjoy it. And there it remains until you want to delete it. Talk about heaven for an artist! You can have as many bulletin boards as you like. "You mean", I asked the cybergods, "I can have one board for everything green, and another board for nothing but cupcake recipes, and another board for things that make me laugh?" "Absolutely" they said with a smile. One of them even winked at me.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOZSdk7IIHsOrhm4stBTn5eJ-VyDQN03n1emLbpV6dRSJkRT6WdG8GwJrn7E-CBptTO3jGpE1scE6q7v4sNKot5zzyXX8bhnQQYSM09r33f_LKm_q2vkw_wI5RsEPLR-eLqA0Y9lGleMnL/s1600/Green+15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOZSdk7IIHsOrhm4stBTn5eJ-VyDQN03n1emLbpV6dRSJkRT6WdG8GwJrn7E-CBptTO3jGpE1scE6q7v4sNKot5zzyXX8bhnQQYSM09r33f_LKm_q2vkw_wI5RsEPLR-eLqA0Y9lGleMnL/s1600/Green+15.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Well, sign me up! Here are just a few of the selections from my "Colorboard Green". If you go to my Pinterest page you will see the credits for all these wonderful images. And just to demonstrate the depth of my addiction, on my page there is also a Colorboard Red, Colorboard Pink, Colorboard Orange - in other words, I've gone crazy...</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV0Ok9C3wljLPdNE-3d-NCOm-xz_CqQtBnavoYPuuXhSELVRh8NBDXGk58tZmmCb16Zlpd2-uiXRGF-ioPGiN-dOJ3aaCkAjLzNtW1fsKsgWii7ON9COLpanK3_W3werDEA4gZ4uGX-slv/s1600/Green+16.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">flipped completely out...</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5BgWBKex8cYKCGTXP4_99ij6wP9uM1KLRZ6oidB0jC8dTZDshYDna-QlUMgXozth1xtMMagDIf7IpCXaPNwiBZ_0UkrUM0z9VILloP5DLNqtl4ebzHZ9hQmpbBbBR0XYI9qF_-3b306F/s1600/Green+19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5BgWBKex8cYKCGTXP4_99ij6wP9uM1KLRZ6oidB0jC8dTZDshYDna-QlUMgXozth1xtMMagDIf7IpCXaPNwiBZ_0UkrUM0z9VILloP5DLNqtl4ebzHZ9hQmpbBbBR0XYI9qF_-3b306F/s1600/Green+19.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">over the edge...</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLB-CiVoTdha29fYwakmb5UXrEGtAjnbefR4HFc7ZXeXovb6pnwhSuU66OgMd_h3BN8xIoDoQCxCa27yfjKn9L6blOu1cW_HqYEctrwoG3V_9P-59Ta9cis1EVw8jH2oPbb1RxmnFb5dq-/s1600/Green+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLB-CiVoTdha29fYwakmb5UXrEGtAjnbefR4HFc7ZXeXovb6pnwhSuU66OgMd_h3BN8xIoDoQCxCa27yfjKn9L6blOu1cW_HqYEctrwoG3V_9P-59Ta9cis1EVw8jH2oPbb1RxmnFb5dq-/s1600/Green+7.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">lost my mind...</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVe2YX5BTHjVOrmbW_GGzT2NpdAfEt_n9C9RtmZgdW2o7TMvZLVRgesOrT337-P3U3ax1jvkPRkDBAO1Nw6MQufKCmf3w0cpHjRsUnmT9S7jHazY06un_OoqRpzZoATE-rG5p_fU6yur9e/s1600/Green+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVe2YX5BTHjVOrmbW_GGzT2NpdAfEt_n9C9RtmZgdW2o7TMvZLVRgesOrT337-P3U3ax1jvkPRkDBAO1Nw6MQufKCmf3w0cpHjRsUnmT9S7jHazY06un_OoqRpzZoATE-rG5p_fU6yur9e/s1600/Green+10.jpg" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">rounded the bend...</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge563S2qaeY5YP9rhSssHdYREjDsjVk_OGpdRqhEYsJZFT-lSI-WnAQVvIsf-PANINNXck3yAgycindWv0WDLihgSSHdOg7IzLSHJehBn4aUVt4YO4NjkyMvvSd6ZqQJ1jxp7-VgRIwc_i/s1600/Green+24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge563S2qaeY5YP9rhSssHdYREjDsjVk_OGpdRqhEYsJZFT-lSI-WnAQVvIsf-PANINNXck3yAgycindWv0WDLihgSSHdOg7IzLSHJehBn4aUVt4YO4NjkyMvvSd6ZqQJ1jxp7-VgRIwc_i/s1600/Green+24.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">and landed at The Mad Hatter's Tea Party.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzuLTmS5OjhIOLgdq1mBStae4rwjg91w6K0el6htoUi7ngg7D8KgnTVbQGatiCla-BCvYvAS6q5Gla3rtgei23Es81IMqGDgjTmd1-h6isDG5_a42aEDsNtUeLuiOA_qolms0EcmmK_MRc/s1600/Green+21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzuLTmS5OjhIOLgdq1mBStae4rwjg91w6K0el6htoUi7ngg7D8KgnTVbQGatiCla-BCvYvAS6q5Gla3rtgei23Es81IMqGDgjTmd1-h6isDG5_a42aEDsNtUeLuiOA_qolms0EcmmK_MRc/s1600/Green+21.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">From an artistic standpoint (I'm telling myself) this is a great reference tool. When I hit a creative brick wall, I log on to Pinterest.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCiPyKuv7Z_Lv4BMBOU47JiI9gKc2aHfJ95mOrVXvLH_z5mzRxUhhz7US1Ejz9Ra3iGBK44VPj-sMwBwQlOwAfIMxQ5LCoLCzBFIqTYwvIoYh9Xxk6lK8XOdQE0Jryf_yZl_dR0OQ1Swp/s1600/Green+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCiPyKuv7Z_Lv4BMBOU47JiI9gKc2aHfJ95mOrVXvLH_z5mzRxUhhz7US1Ejz9Ra3iGBK44VPj-sMwBwQlOwAfIMxQ5LCoLCzBFIqTYwvIoYh9Xxk6lK8XOdQE0Jryf_yZl_dR0OQ1Swp/s1600/Green+4.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> The whole magical world is there waiting for me</span></span></span> .</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYfYtScdha0TNqcqJ-ASuPzqnCMXo-9p1t4YuyFBVcSkDf3A2Dsl0YR5kovfG5-37We33rr4bGF5vn05dbfhy2rw-kX35jNtl1pd-8IkXpuwrCwRSYBLFApreBDjLJDyoKUjwouOAydD8E/s1600/Green+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYfYtScdha0TNqcqJ-ASuPzqnCMXo-9p1t4YuyFBVcSkDf3A2Dsl0YR5kovfG5-37We33rr4bGF5vn05dbfhy2rw-kX35jNtl1pd-8IkXpuwrCwRSYBLFApreBDjLJDyoKUjwouOAydD8E/s1600/Green+6.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Several of my artist friends are already talking about forming a Pinterest Recovery Program.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq2kMr0J0mnJg9FJCnnjR0VD_XehQNDlRAWHy24qNwMaeQltHbPcOnMgZXPE_Nh7unfhDY29ZsTbYVTm-88iYhDxTdN9lDLxPIgGivrt9zc_9jWHGrkNpmiM5bE5OVJjgBR8r4X7HzIzlh/s1600/Green+20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq2kMr0J0mnJg9FJCnnjR0VD_XehQNDlRAWHy24qNwMaeQltHbPcOnMgZXPE_Nh7unfhDY29ZsTbYVTm-88iYhDxTdN9lDLxPIgGivrt9zc_9jWHGrkNpmiM5bE5OVJjgBR8r4X7HzIzlh/s1600/Green+20.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I'm not sure I want to join just yet.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgskpyYFM-b5Xulb8f5lPefQOyw1uu_8DsiNcOPiMG9h1XVHOJcphYy2mwLFY3QQHbW0CMPlTs3nh761_hCRJs7XZOidfZfHeFo1EVHHcsl1IbZAlzL0WfNjEzZs7iYlcNjvbJX_uvOSN-J/s1600/Green+17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgskpyYFM-b5Xulb8f5lPefQOyw1uu_8DsiNcOPiMG9h1XVHOJcphYy2mwLFY3QQHbW0CMPlTs3nh761_hCRJs7XZOidfZfHeFo1EVHHcsl1IbZAlzL0WfNjEzZs7iYlcNjvbJX_uvOSN-J/s1600/Green+17.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If you haven't already, go to www.pinterest.com and see what I mean! You can follow me - or any other nut you choose. </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha3y9ODETFigJIwN7YNABJt_xPD0tvUGuFL8qX_VQTXazx4OjpgwqGqEHjE7sepPST2qwp7M2His-K7OfZZyGz3QWgyXA5Y_CAXVzjUEsIhizw8V2U6cPn1Jf-BENrWhFfoukujDc4lJQt/s1600/Green+13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha3y9ODETFigJIwN7YNABJt_xPD0tvUGuFL8qX_VQTXazx4OjpgwqGqEHjE7sepPST2qwp7M2His-K7OfZZyGz3QWgyXA5Y_CAXVzjUEsIhizw8V2U6cPn1Jf-BENrWhFfoukujDc4lJQt/s1600/Green+13.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> But whatever you do, have fun! </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-sgHyD7-aIPrf2-LK_Zn8_hGWME6YDrKqYCewmCHkTzntwTHE4v09mlXLqUuTFSyJ7-IAeIxzNeL5D89R4heY5ScmJcDTCndrptIAqJluOBrAjcgn-MnFW1bB8cRtL7NKyY5WwkxepPJA/s1600/Pink.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-sgHyD7-aIPrf2-LK_Zn8_hGWME6YDrKqYCewmCHkTzntwTHE4v09mlXLqUuTFSyJ7-IAeIxzNeL5D89R4heY5ScmJcDTCndrptIAqJluOBrAjcgn-MnFW1bB8cRtL7NKyY5WwkxepPJA/s1600/Pink.jpg" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggOUwPqLNnMlX-YHkF33cUziG-E9dn6IFAM0qN-1cPda5vgCjjFU_xfOgvm3J4Cz8MsxLKiLvjDp-YYGM7CpjnKoRDq-5dwtzqrPthI7V7xuYrq-qHJ0uMvOfijkIZhTvHS_GwhO8V5_6Q/s1600/India+Cakes+color+scheme.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggOUwPqLNnMlX-YHkF33cUziG-E9dn6IFAM0qN-1cPda5vgCjjFU_xfOgvm3J4Cz8MsxLKiLvjDp-YYGM7CpjnKoRDq-5dwtzqrPthI7V7xuYrq-qHJ0uMvOfijkIZhTvHS_GwhO8V5_6Q/s320/India+Cakes+color+scheme.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEharSC_BkiGrqgj25kqtplp0ctBEXoXmjGIiehChCMiCDEU1RQYbk6UWYPny1KflIi2X5SBczOwq48o6Nd03jb92-Xo-9AXZb5QCNY8EhJiM4PN2R7d3_CuklfgSpwb_5Ipb42F2GFfi2uA/s1600/Blue+butterflies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEharSC_BkiGrqgj25kqtplp0ctBEXoXmjGIiehChCMiCDEU1RQYbk6UWYPny1KflIi2X5SBczOwq48o6Nd03jb92-Xo-9AXZb5QCNY8EhJiM4PN2R7d3_CuklfgSpwb_5Ipb42F2GFfi2uA/s1600/Blue+butterflies.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Somebody HELP me!<br />
</span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-38539571009977077232012-01-22T18:55:00.000-05:002012-01-22T18:55:09.409-05:00Rembrandts, Cheeseburgers and Mudslides<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEpFoO7XsImdIVtFwfvhrTuBUk4R4SKp9hKcjfjBj2mXKAYFJXv_Yym0AAb9Ayt4sdO6PqQHhZYZQt29WIk-vgL8otOuOWbT6KnHDOaLJS4FFZFsnEBei52-yqvwsHKmkQ2LHfdli3fwRN/s1600/rembrandt-van-rijn-self-portrait.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEpFoO7XsImdIVtFwfvhrTuBUk4R4SKp9hKcjfjBj2mXKAYFJXv_Yym0AAb9Ayt4sdO6PqQHhZYZQt29WIk-vgL8otOuOWbT6KnHDOaLJS4FFZFsnEBei52-yqvwsHKmkQ2LHfdli3fwRN/s320/rembrandt-van-rijn-self-portrait.jpg" width="244" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">How could I have let this happen? Rembrandt had been hanging out (no pun intended) in Raleigh since October and I was about to let him slip out of town without saying hello. Rembrandt in America - the largest collection of authentic Rembrandts ever assembled and shown on American soil - was entering its final weekend at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh</span></span></span>.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So on Friday night I grabbed the phone and called my daughter to see if she and the baby were up for a good Saturday adventure. As luck would have it, she was giving a presentation on Saturday morning at the university where she works and it just happened to be an hour toward Raleigh - which is three hours away from us. We decided to bundle up the baby, pack the diaper bag and make a day of it.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCCBpXQJaNGKTTO0ouTyh2VHbhEfYL7Oru5X47u1uxE_nqtvlT1h4q3alr5UUwUjkb7qxcYlyfbzWQFTRbNw1Z1V_whVG1ugTaxoUu7XLhEWXnijB3jcO8T-hRDx22oyuab3CVuQh9FT2y/s1600/Rembrandt+cover+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCCBpXQJaNGKTTO0ouTyh2VHbhEfYL7Oru5X47u1uxE_nqtvlT1h4q3alr5UUwUjkb7qxcYlyfbzWQFTRbNw1Z1V_whVG1ugTaxoUu7XLhEWXnijB3jcO8T-hRDx22oyuab3CVuQh9FT2y/s320/Rembrandt+cover+2.jpg" width="241" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We warned Miller when he was born that his Mama and his Bebe were prone to wild-hair adventures on the spur of the moment and that he would probably be pulled into the fray by virtue of having no other choice. His Daddy just shook his head and laughed, saying "Son, I can't help you with this one."</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Translation: "Anyone up for a nice round of golf?"</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Saturday dawned rainy and foggy. Miller dozed in the car seat and we made it to campus with time to spare. The presentation went well, and after a quick dash through the rain back to the car, we headed toward Raleigh. We had barely given the rain a thought. Raleigh was two hours away, and without any meteorological data whatsoever to bolster our position, we were fairly confident that we would drive out of the rain before we ever got there.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And then, as babies will do, Miller decided to muddy his diaper just this side of Asheboro - probably in honor of all the rain, and probably just to make his Mama and me aware that we were exactly three weeks from anywhere remotely conducive to changing a muddy diaper. And just for the record (Miller, don't kill me when you grow up and read this) it was the muddiest diaper in the history of mankind. And we changed it in the rain, and the cold, in the parking lot of a gas station that looked like it had seen happier days. At that moment, so had we. His mother gamely said "Well at least he didn't do it in the presence of Rembrandt."</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYtrEVcIIOIlqWOyPDwL4dmBpu6yC5bJkyhElWdNOrV5RXJ5fbefi-arcPDBbXVnRGbLKG0hgyN02z4SzAH0tDZSqy3xI-hERNqrNeMo6BIymKL9K94pXk7snZEPJmbG592fOV-ArhU54L/s1600/Rembrandt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYtrEVcIIOIlqWOyPDwL4dmBpu6yC5bJkyhElWdNOrV5RXJ5fbefi-arcPDBbXVnRGbLKG0hgyN02z4SzAH0tDZSqy3xI-hERNqrNeMo6BIymKL9K94pXk7snZEPJmbG592fOV-ArhU54L/s1600/Rembrandt.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">That little glitch behind us and with sunshine at least in our hearts if not in the skies, we forged ahead. We knew exactly where we were going for lunch, too. There is a burger joint in Siler City, NC - the stuff of legends - called Johnson's Drive-In. It was right on our way and neither of us had ever been there. They are famous for their Velveeta Cheeseburgers. Google them. You'll see. </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR-NdOykqX9_hyphenhyphen63uqPXVGknD1jXIhVhe9_-7t9fY59qhnoURuxdHTnG-5p8i8Yq3tz3rmkmWefds3BjEcTFw4a3TswaPcSlh51TAppX6D3uXwAwYZu-ny83ch9WNzz_QUcNU2DH136zk5/s1600/Johnsons+Drive+In.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR-NdOykqX9_hyphenhyphen63uqPXVGknD1jXIhVhe9_-7t9fY59qhnoURuxdHTnG-5p8i8Yq3tz3rmkmWefds3BjEcTFw4a3TswaPcSlh51TAppX6D3uXwAwYZu-ny83ch9WNzz_QUcNU2DH136zk5/s320/Johnsons+Drive+In.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> They are only open for four hours on Tuesday through Saturday. They buy whole sides of fresh beef every morning before sunrise and grind it that day. They only buy enough for the day, too, and when the beef is gone, they are closed. We rolled toward Siler City thinking good thoughts - and sure enough, the parking lot was still full of cars when we arrived. After a half-hour wait which was worth every tick of the clock, we did enjoy the best cheeseburgers we had ever eaten.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4xlHLC4oSmL7rZL5DUuUfFkNZCRCnQY_UtYC9sMJCDES-hRU0LJV25EYemR_oz_gHLnbJw2K6VRnprj3viMPEPJjaMzyE4RD7EDDyqRRapnK0cakbwZ8Vabz6OvZwr5Z_0Czy4pe8ku1P/s1600/Johnsons+Driv-in+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4xlHLC4oSmL7rZL5DUuUfFkNZCRCnQY_UtYC9sMJCDES-hRU0LJV25EYemR_oz_gHLnbJw2K6VRnprj3viMPEPJjaMzyE4RD7EDDyqRRapnK0cakbwZ8Vabz6OvZwr5Z_0Czy4pe8ku1P/s320/Johnsons+Driv-in+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Back on the road, however, we realized we had a long way to go and a short time to get there. And Jerry Reed wasn't driving the car and Burt Reynolds wasn't up ahead running interference. So it was that we arrived at Mr. Rembrandt's doorstep fairly late for the advance ticket time we had purchased. And contrary to our earlier prediction, we had not, after all, driven out of the rain.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4R8J-l6hf-In7D-x6pdwo3FePfqQQCL-H0kBnMH-TpnC2W9RSNiExe2odin_JGwx6bFA9tTZ_iBCI_TFAfT9I8UaDO6xWhxGh8nsTvET6-iEQUDMl9pG6VbQWyOBa4sCqlJfP6OOoNvkK/s1600/slippery+when+wet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4R8J-l6hf-In7D-x6pdwo3FePfqQQCL-H0kBnMH-TpnC2W9RSNiExe2odin_JGwx6bFA9tTZ_iBCI_TFAfT9I8UaDO6xWhxGh8nsTvET6-iEQUDMl9pG6VbQWyOBa4sCqlJfP6OOoNvkK/s320/slippery+when+wet.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Apparently, the residents of seven states and four foreign countries had all driven their cars to the North Carolina Museum of Art that afternoon for the exact same ticket time that we had purchased. We were directed to the parking lot on The Outer Reaches Of Muddy Hell, half a mile away from the front door, because that was the only parking lot with any vacancies. Now, all due respect to the fine folks who run the Museum, we know they were doing the best they could, given the fact that the whole world waited until the last weekend to come and see Rembrandt. That said, however, you haven't lived until you have plowed a baby stroller through an unpaved muddy parking lot in a January rainstorm. I highly recommend it for your next vacation. Once inside, though, we settled ourselves and joined the throngs in the East Building for an extraordinary look at some of the best art the world has ever seen. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWcQ7lyleGPmMAGU-LhSEHmcYBvm3F32JIHAOglMTwXjc4WrYY-WyMkip5fJ6qNi6L2fc1A46LGcm3jL_EqUcdYJe_gse_LKCkYPuAu60ExdXCP3FZe93_SzuCxnbmQcNVC92gfzDvsggn/s1600/Rembrandt+young+portrait.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWcQ7lyleGPmMAGU-LhSEHmcYBvm3F32JIHAOglMTwXjc4WrYY-WyMkip5fJ6qNi6L2fc1A46LGcm3jL_EqUcdYJe_gse_LKCkYPuAu60ExdXCP3FZe93_SzuCxnbmQcNVC92gfzDvsggn/s1600/Rembrandt+young+portrait.jpg" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We learned that not all Rembrandts are created equal. Not all Rembrandts are even Rembrandts, it turns out. Art historians are now of the opinion that some of the works bearing his signature were actually executed by other artists in his workshop, and only the most careful examination can determine whether a Rembrandt actually came from his hand. The exhibit fully embraced this and educated us beautifully along the way. Even the fakes were to die for.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And, in the midst of the masses in the galleries, we literally bumped into our friends, Rob and Lydia, who live just around the corner from us! Hopefully their journey had not been as fraught with drama as ours had been.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMTuFMeeg5I1Yt0dYqXVkemjOOcbr6OgyNZjKOhh_uktSFL9jLHF5eEElzVpNsIN7XoYsGMHVHZj8rtsNlHQqTg-1f5GuFZXH6ENtdDkwiJ0JJi2BkoR8S1cG6-CYQbhcb3N4jBsKtj7D1/s1600/Rembrandt+young+portrait+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMTuFMeeg5I1Yt0dYqXVkemjOOcbr6OgyNZjKOhh_uktSFL9jLHF5eEElzVpNsIN7XoYsGMHVHZj8rtsNlHQqTg-1f5GuFZXH6ENtdDkwiJ0JJi2BkoR8S1cG6-CYQbhcb3N4jBsKtj7D1/s320/Rembrandt+young+portrait+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
Little Miller, attending his first viewing of art masterpieces, took it all in stride. He flirted with the guards and gazed up at the paintings with the same awe he accords to Elmo every morning on TV. In fact, he can tell his grandchildren that he actually viewed Rembrandt in person while taking a bottle of formula. I do know this: after hanging with us all day like the little trouper he is, he had absolutely nothing left to give as we trudged back through the rain and the mud to the car for the drive home.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycFwoEG7qDg9B8OrJUZ4vXSZEH72RtviX1VaJfsSpzYdqIfgNxT7qmyl5f77-W-CNIhrXY7Gf9jPZRN4xi3FL70XDO_wFBPQtaWOnPeUDhiPvoegS92UCVYPcu4eO1dzjztev1FE5smCD/s1600/Sleeping+Miller+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycFwoEG7qDg9B8OrJUZ4vXSZEH72RtviX1VaJfsSpzYdqIfgNxT7qmyl5f77-W-CNIhrXY7Gf9jPZRN4xi3FL70XDO_wFBPQtaWOnPeUDhiPvoegS92UCVYPcu4eO1dzjztev1FE5smCD/s320/Sleeping+Miller+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">His t-shirt should read:</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> "<b>Rembrandts, Cheeseburgers and Mudslides. I survived</b>".</span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-8084867583385236062012-01-16T08:43:00.001-05:002012-01-16T08:48:08.569-05:00Market Wrap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFKbiougxnUVhPCER2s4DV_2XzNoioC_wxu2pgi1QhRycNEfqT2yJG5V20hJ2QCvPMLGuxR-L3mS_-pq776oFCKVoGciWHYut1_bkzGX_PH4YS9kFoDN8jF4GQ_ORt_NP8lajVJlCJmfSP/s1600/Atlanta+2012+038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFKbiougxnUVhPCER2s4DV_2XzNoioC_wxu2pgi1QhRycNEfqT2yJG5V20hJ2QCvPMLGuxR-L3mS_-pq776oFCKVoGciWHYut1_bkzGX_PH4YS9kFoDN8jF4GQ_ORt_NP8lajVJlCJmfSP/s320/Atlanta+2012+038.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We just returned home from Atlanta Market, and, as promised, here are a few snapshots from the trip. I was honored on Friday to be one of the featured artists at a signing session for Legacy Publishing.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBtn_Cvi-wjnvMYj6yheWMbn0cbdz_i7SA61rEi8ZNX-b9N5_scsKpqGREu8Z3MiBx1_um8JqPHPiGVWqvM8RaPG_7qqv7BYoOzXIC8xWidstJ32RGAUgIfq706kOfb7K2R8Yde9JwTNHW/s1600/Atlanta+2012+033.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBtn_Cvi-wjnvMYj6yheWMbn0cbdz_i7SA61rEi8ZNX-b9N5_scsKpqGREu8Z3MiBx1_um8JqPHPiGVWqvM8RaPG_7qqv7BYoOzXIC8xWidstJ32RGAUgIfq706kOfb7K2R8Yde9JwTNHW/s320/Atlanta+2012+033.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Meeting the retailers who carry Legacy products is always such a treat. Here I am, below, with Legacy's Carlos Llanso.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggl0CXSUspEFCi8Uxjulcx6QYUfk_WtSMIDcVUpVK36_4fqVApmQ6AbIhPcZRIS68AnifgrmGvw6b41n8JocYkkjCcw6Xd_ArFoH-VfPS4JWxSJO39fMlNd2LAd-Z4zwhpfk2VctYFgya0/s1600/Atlanta+2012+041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggl0CXSUspEFCi8Uxjulcx6QYUfk_WtSMIDcVUpVK36_4fqVApmQ6AbIhPcZRIS68AnifgrmGvw6b41n8JocYkkjCcw6Xd_ArFoH-VfPS4JWxSJO39fMlNd2LAd-Z4zwhpfk2VctYFgya0/s320/Atlanta+2012+041.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Here is a picture of their great display of my new Gentle Blessings 2013 Calendar and related products.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAyma4OUikz4_VhM-YhYdbj5djK7tp3eoUspSsZ9rYo9kD9JT8rO9sAcdwOW1iRGM8hQrpNqPwa5lYDTeGZfA7-0QFQo_TBsaZWO7rgoWq-FxsJB3bLLKYwu4QSBEAtnhLbySNtvABGyN/s1600/Atlanta+2012+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAyma4OUikz4_VhM-YhYdbj5djK7tp3eoUspSsZ9rYo9kD9JT8rO9sAcdwOW1iRGM8hQrpNqPwa5lYDTeGZfA7-0QFQo_TBsaZWO7rgoWq-FxsJB3bLLKYwu4QSBEAtnhLbySNtvABGyN/s320/Atlanta+2012+001.jpg" width="310" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Atlanta is always full of quirky surprises. You never know what is going to be right around the next corner. Here are two "finds" from the trip - my new friend, Mr. Bear - made entirely of chenille pom-poms - and - a gorgeous chandelier made entirely of old silver spoons!</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBLGYwzgCpX0nNlkAyI83VAQeBZw0V5RhoRjDbD35DaKkJAhz3i2pz7CWSir1zjLRI3fwdtuzboQ_Kj9daIxC18Pkh-L11O7p7ZuKtnNhxhIXp3O7Nga0P_9zCYGZFMfYrhiEIjLda4v2s/s1600/Atlanta+2012+051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBLGYwzgCpX0nNlkAyI83VAQeBZw0V5RhoRjDbD35DaKkJAhz3i2pz7CWSir1zjLRI3fwdtuzboQ_Kj9daIxC18Pkh-L11O7p7ZuKtnNhxhIXp3O7Nga0P_9zCYGZFMfYrhiEIjLda4v2s/s320/Atlanta+2012+051.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOqRgCmI9UPX1ZWveZPxlSvNSlrQqUy4keBWh47oRHCkaNmYGtJg6MUwmhyBpQMVRCsZecOLm5LUivMyuz6nv3XIQmae1wCDg7UTlsco_JVYC24n1axwGVwKkZ7hZt3ZmfWBYX7dFvT4ze/s1600/Atlanta+2012+054.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOqRgCmI9UPX1ZWveZPxlSvNSlrQqUy4keBWh47oRHCkaNmYGtJg6MUwmhyBpQMVRCsZecOLm5LUivMyuz6nv3XIQmae1wCDg7UTlsco_JVYC24n1axwGVwKkZ7hZt3ZmfWBYX7dFvT4ze/s320/Atlanta+2012+054.jpg" width="237" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> On Friday night, as we have for the past several markets, we met with a large group of artist friends at The Westin Hotel for a big hug and a precious few minutes of conversation and catching-up. One of them suggested that we turn this into a convention of sorts! Not a bad idea, because we never seem to have enough time with each other.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmsJF5RG1uxSzqleou4xUy43MOG3S2hnFxCp8F6aByGAtoBHqEMkN06t2nrdp5jhyphenhyphenCgl3MFvAu2kEbhA5Oqt23rx6X15dtg0I_EvHmZ7CBwnRq_sq-5eTRK_wkavju-KlwemoME-1DJsc/s1600/Atlanta+2012+042.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmsJF5RG1uxSzqleou4xUy43MOG3S2hnFxCp8F6aByGAtoBHqEMkN06t2nrdp5jhyphenhyphenCgl3MFvAu2kEbhA5Oqt23rx6X15dtg0I_EvHmZ7CBwnRq_sq-5eTRK_wkavju-KlwemoME-1DJsc/s320/Atlanta+2012+042.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Included in the picture are Terri Conrad, Paula Joerling, Joyce Shelton, BJ Lantz, Gina Linn Wilder, Jane Maday, Janet Wecker-Frisch, Sharon Himes, Robin Davis, Shelly Comiskey, me, Phyllis Dobbs, Sue Zipkin, Beth Logan, Audrey Jean Roberts, Karen Embry and Robin Pickens.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Client response to my work was very positive and I have a boatload of work to do as a result, so it's back to work this morning. Until next time, Atlanta - and thanks for another great show. </span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-5040157207795145062012-01-10T11:07:00.000-05:002012-01-10T11:07:10.073-05:00To Market, To Market<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWpt_Wa2sumBizvJ8v5t2gffekQNgbSC9W_hBHKPGEePR3wxBiGi9A3cLwuytgpXLJPwFKzYRA5LxNyCXtDC9eRzMDDCVpDvDjIT2oQt78WIWgYvGepWWyFi_LC5g2z2Hp6IMaXJI5mc1D/s1600/Snowmen+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWpt_Wa2sumBizvJ8v5t2gffekQNgbSC9W_hBHKPGEePR3wxBiGi9A3cLwuytgpXLJPwFKzYRA5LxNyCXtDC9eRzMDDCVpDvDjIT2oQt78WIWgYvGepWWyFi_LC5g2z2Hp6IMaXJI5mc1D/s320/Snowmen+001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In January 1983 we packed the car and drove to Atlanta for our first ever Atlanta Market. With the exception of one January when I broke out in hives, I have been to every market since. Little did we know or understand the path that would chart the course of our lives for the next three decades when we first rolled in to town that day!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I am so looking forward to seeing my artist friends, can't wait to see all of the new products, and I am blessed to have a very busy schedule of client meetings over the next few days. There are a couple of those days where I'm wondering how to squeeze time for lunch - a very nice problem to have!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The camera is going with me, and I hope to post some great pics when I return. Stay tuned!</span></span></span></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-72775362214167806732012-01-04T11:16:00.000-05:002012-01-04T11:16:12.311-05:00All Things New<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qB7i6QHAOkA/TwRtGIDZNNI/AAAAAAAAAi8/6bnXOYmOLJ8/s1600/IMF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qB7i6QHAOkA/TwRtGIDZNNI/AAAAAAAAAi8/6bnXOYmOLJ8/s320/IMF.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Funny how the simple turn of the calendar page can trigger a mindset. We go to bed after ringing in the New Year still hearing the echoes of Christmas carols, still in party food mode - and we wake up on January 1 ready to go plow the garden and buy new tomato stakes . Well, okay, SOME of us do. Well, okay, maybe I'm the only one.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a0fHpsObFgg/TwR03l1nmpI/AAAAAAAAAjI/uBsPY-Bh6m8/s1600/IMF_0004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="165" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a0fHpsObFgg/TwR03l1nmpI/AAAAAAAAAjI/uBsPY-Bh6m8/s320/IMF_0004.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Optimist that I am, the New Year always calls me with promises. This will be the year that I finally get it all done, lose the weight, organize my life, scale new heights, discover new worlds. Those promises are so delicious. There may be snow in my garden, but my ears already hear mockingbirds and my face already feels the warm April sun. This is so tangible for me that I have actually gone into Lowes in early January and purchased my zinnia seeds. I exchange a glance with the check-out girl that says "Yes, I'm crazy. Just humor me and ring them up."</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_6L3pBfR6HU/TwR1YCoxAqI/AAAAAAAAAjg/RsL6ORUiLjU/s1600/IMF_0005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_6L3pBfR6HU/TwR1YCoxAqI/AAAAAAAAAjg/RsL6ORUiLjU/s1600/IMF_0005.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Hope springs eternal in January. Hope eventually gives way to those mockingbirds, and the zinnia seeds make the journey home with me from Lowes. They live in my mind as flowers all the way through a couple of snowstorms, spring winds, a late frost or two, and the occasional dry spell in June before finally opening their eyes in July and telling me hello in person.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Something in me wants to take the first bouquet to the girl at Lowes with a triumphant smile on my face, saying "Here you go, you of little faith!" But, of course, I don't.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-u3rIe72vO10/TwR7HtZVJgI/AAAAAAAAAj4/qso0MpqJk2s/s1600/IMF_0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-u3rIe72vO10/TwR7HtZVJgI/AAAAAAAAAj4/qso0MpqJk2s/s320/IMF_0001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Instead, I've come to be grateful for that thing in me that feels April sunshine in January and sees a green garden full blown in the dark of a winter afternoon. I recognize it as the gift that allows me to create and to do what I do for a living, calling up images from thin air and giving them my version of life on paper. Just like those seeds, sometimes the reward doesn't come right away - but the promise of it is as good as the real thing.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-63268121156671920452011-12-20T16:16:00.000-05:002011-12-20T16:16:33.549-05:00Christmas Cravings<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjapTKUtOXGJDHxrC5xmwfR-YnHWYmzSM96CuSt77q5PEA1Z8Z6RVV3PbCpCVzz0HywGLd3Edt6WHvi7DFbTLRYKp9OCeAzVD13X8H1p6jwy-OTEZku-LjqaacIkhEmRFTcWZ6elxFZUi50/s1600/IMF_0002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjapTKUtOXGJDHxrC5xmwfR-YnHWYmzSM96CuSt77q5PEA1Z8Z6RVV3PbCpCVzz0HywGLd3Edt6WHvi7DFbTLRYKp9OCeAzVD13X8H1p6jwy-OTEZku-LjqaacIkhEmRFTcWZ6elxFZUi50/s320/IMF_0002.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Andy Williams was right. It really is the most wonderful time of the year. There are so many little things that combine to make that true - and for each one of us the list is different. Here is my list of Christmas Cravings - the little sights, sounds, smells, tastes and happenings that warm my heart and say "Christmas" like nothing else:</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">The tiny ring-ring of the Salvation Army bells</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(please give)</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> <span style="font-size: small;">Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino at Starbucks</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Vince Guaraldi on the piano on a late December afternoon, playing something Charlie Brown-ish</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">The convoy of SUV's and minivans rolling out of the mountains with fresh Christmas trees strapped on top. One afternoon I counted 36 coming toward me in a 15-mile stretch.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzyXNtyjf488GEUbdYw-LI8BAnZhBLjYi3lcy2lCdYpNq5jq5FWOCbd5mRu_WhHNLax9GIZF5Rb4xyo0afYxSQoGAxt2oMNaH4zsBMdJ_YqzbLHhGTghnowkQe5Fjdusf_Eg56U-0P6gK/s1600/IMF_0003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="78" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzyXNtyjf488GEUbdYw-LI8BAnZhBLjYi3lcy2lCdYpNq5jq5FWOCbd5mRu_WhHNLax9GIZF5Rb4xyo0afYxSQoGAxt2oMNaH4zsBMdJ_YqzbLHhGTghnowkQe5Fjdusf_Eg56U-0P6gK/s320/IMF_0003.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span>Any Christmas song sung by Dean Martin</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">My friend Mickie's Peanut Brittle - the best in the world</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">A simple evergreen wreath with a red bow on a handsome front door.</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">Fresh orange peel</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhLCZ1R3ud00cyuuglarnNXd0CIFBzJfbrH2FifsYP8jobufbSGpIs3MW11gPz98tqhJoNRxt9AEdOgl5zXUPEj1T5T66z7ANBLifVIyo2mt-A4l2vfakiDbgvuxxIRkFH-iwaPk4AX6nM/s1600/IMF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="88" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhLCZ1R3ud00cyuuglarnNXd0CIFBzJfbrH2FifsYP8jobufbSGpIs3MW11gPz98tqhJoNRxt9AEdOgl5zXUPEj1T5T66z7ANBLifVIyo2mt-A4l2vfakiDbgvuxxIRkFH-iwaPk4AX6nM/s320/IMF.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">Spices - in hot wassail, scented candles, warm breads and cookies</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">Woodsmoke drifting from a chimney</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">The clip-clop of horses hooves. Our little town offers starlight carriage rides through the village during the month of December.</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;">And speaking of stars twinkling in an inky blue night sky...</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvKK2iNpxZ6RwIulM4b-eYZVGL9j-ROCuozdqvkJvPX4LvKzimsLDuk_uID_JlXYocewM7SPyXFFSuy_pH8Mbj8NxU95UBBzsLCHX58j59pbblKK8xegaP_BdDOPpI5-IR4HNhREk_gYSX/s1600/IMF_0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="93" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvKK2iNpxZ6RwIulM4b-eYZVGL9j-ROCuozdqvkJvPX4LvKzimsLDuk_uID_JlXYocewM7SPyXFFSuy_pH8Mbj8NxU95UBBzsLCHX58j59pbblKK8xegaP_BdDOPpI5-IR4HNhREk_gYSX/s320/IMF_0001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"> </span> </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Moravian Cookies and Sugar Cake, baked just up the road in Winston-Salem</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">A live Nativity</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">A choir singing the Hallelujah Chorus</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Sleigh bells</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">My annual movie favorites:</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Christmas Vacation</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">"The little lights aren't twinkling, Clark"</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">and</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Home Alone, Lost in New York</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">"Kevin's not here...Kevin's not here...Kevin's not here..."</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">and</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">White Christmas</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Rosemary Clooney in that black dress...</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlBgXyKwNISvonwz8ee7ZK6YaVFOaodU3zOSkNYXz37Rp78jx_8YNOj1DPYZqmXoM5efbvbYce5FiTFjt-Sof8NMtEbS9cvVvLKNw5dNk9rAcdXgar5II93Cm3wJSuJvJNm2QMKGgrhtEz/s1600/IMF_0021.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlBgXyKwNISvonwz8ee7ZK6YaVFOaodU3zOSkNYXz37Rp78jx_8YNOj1DPYZqmXoM5efbvbYce5FiTFjt-Sof8NMtEbS9cvVvLKNw5dNk9rAcdXgar5II93Cm3wJSuJvJNm2QMKGgrhtEz/s320/IMF_0021.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> <span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;">My favorites might not be the same as yours, but whatever it is that makes Christmas magical and special for you, I wish you the biggest dose possible this year. If you are struggling with less than perfect circumstances, or know someone who is, may you take comfort and courage in the sights and sounds of the season - and above all - in the very Reason that we celebrate to begin with.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;">Though this isn't a Christmas song, it came to my mind as I was composing this post. It holds just as true at Christmas - maybe even more so at this time of year. I had plenty of youtube versions to choose from, but this one brought me to my feet with tears in my eyes.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/uatCU8QzdyA?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;">Have a Very Merry and Very Blessed Christmas! </span></span></span> </span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-42274746143046723062011-12-14T11:52:00.001-05:002011-12-14T11:54:50.478-05:00December Sunshine<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEincVC0xVm1Wi0JqpV6bbWlr0egk1lsdwymVGHD454oo7xbF1hB0xV-kfj1C-idlmVTCgFVgD3UNefFjr6IWpPtsWnn0F_lA5LjvyV52T58R_UzjwujBQB5hgSU4HaPzKHcD26kQh3P3Ica/s1600/December+2011+032.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEincVC0xVm1Wi0JqpV6bbWlr0egk1lsdwymVGHD454oo7xbF1hB0xV-kfj1C-idlmVTCgFVgD3UNefFjr6IWpPtsWnn0F_lA5LjvyV52T58R_UzjwujBQB5hgSU4HaPzKHcD26kQh3P3Ica/s320/December+2011+032.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Sometimes the very simple, brief moments in life are worth savoring. Yesterday afternoon I happened to walk through the living room just as the afternoon sun was slanting through the window and hitting the ornaments on my tree at a really pretty angle. In the few minutes it took to get the camera and take the photo, the picture was already changing. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">With camera still in hand, I turned to see Joe and our grandson, Miller, sitting on the sofa - laughing and playing. Yeah - it's a thinly disguised way to work a picture of my grandson into the mix. But really - isn't he adorable? And how lucky was I to catch this brief moment as well?</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZ7DjcPoBxIlfAVaCtN5LbqHFwK9GZXb7Dr_ZJtSEu7u6nA3VzD0B7k1zPapXv56gfC9WjFEx7HZ8s1SQ4DfzcBRqYvrKf-9SUs9qQgZTIJro6uPuCzB1IJhxrGad_0lVE8a_PfWpJEbe/s1600/December+2011+038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcZ7DjcPoBxIlfAVaCtN5LbqHFwK9GZXb7Dr_ZJtSEu7u6nA3VzD0B7k1zPapXv56gfC9WjFEx7HZ8s1SQ4DfzcBRqYvrKf-9SUs9qQgZTIJro6uPuCzB1IJhxrGad_0lVE8a_PfWpJEbe/s320/December+2011+038.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In the blink of an eye, this little guy will be walking, talking, starting to school. I have always loved the quote "Life isn't measured by the number of breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away." </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Most of the time, those moments are tiny and quiet. If we're busy - rushing through the day amid noise and distraction - they come and go and we never even know there was a gift we just missed.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBH7SvbKh0JqdehHLQLLtkd6ZOtFIEKErnvLb7VcHoLbJX22zK-SV_8n_CMBbsbL-kmI_0KiXfZjV7KIzYegSRZfwN7ppQ3nQHrM6wU6LZuL1I6qIZvDrbMbZTcNNNTaxOkWH6ZNcDTPfa/s1600/Peppermint+Miller+007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBH7SvbKh0JqdehHLQLLtkd6ZOtFIEKErnvLb7VcHoLbJX22zK-SV_8n_CMBbsbL-kmI_0KiXfZjV7KIzYegSRZfwN7ppQ3nQHrM6wU6LZuL1I6qIZvDrbMbZTcNNNTaxOkWH6ZNcDTPfa/s320/Peppermint+Miller+007.jpg" width="313" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">December is halfway over. Celebrate, yes - but make the time to savor and enjoy it as well.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-19987285077257048032011-12-08T09:32:00.000-05:002011-12-08T09:32:41.218-05:00Making Spirits Bright<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq0ZU8sKNdSIOkvAIsFveJgicVZ8dlttpGxVO4tu8kfH5YT5WP9MxlU21PNsWZhMJ-o7PJcDDCFgIUxzDjhr8ymKiQ_hV5VhHSfOoQE02sSkTatb7xu_KjpIsvzI9lz-UdXIxgdNmcNKqk/s1600/Peppermint+Cappuccino+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq0ZU8sKNdSIOkvAIsFveJgicVZ8dlttpGxVO4tu8kfH5YT5WP9MxlU21PNsWZhMJ-o7PJcDDCFgIUxzDjhr8ymKiQ_hV5VhHSfOoQE02sSkTatb7xu_KjpIsvzI9lz-UdXIxgdNmcNKqk/s320/Peppermint+Cappuccino+001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The studio is Christmas Central these days - in more ways than one. By an odd quirk of scheduling fate, I'm actually working on a new Christmas collection! Most of the time, Christmas artwork is on the board in the dog days of summer. (Try creating jingle-bell-magic when all you really want to do is go pick a fresh tomato off the vine for a BLT.)</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But as I write this, Nat King Cole is serenading me. "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire...". Sing it, brother. I'm sipping a Peppermint Cappuccino, there is a fire crackling in the fireplace, and all sorts of new visions of sugarplums are dancing in my head.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I love this job. </span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-39892325388409971462011-12-05T07:16:00.000-05:002011-12-05T07:16:02.686-05:00Big News<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5g-LLZwAdNt8uyc31QHXKG8-mAS6ccbCxmUCGXJn6I-VM2jje0kcgJS_i-e6Ew5QReAidTnkpCO4eNwo3h8TaqM9lfKkE-0B4T9HoIxRXP95BQLWlxTpr043aAT-xYww9ItaQ4B-VxxS1/s1600/IMF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5g-LLZwAdNt8uyc31QHXKG8-mAS6ccbCxmUCGXJn6I-VM2jje0kcgJS_i-e6Ew5QReAidTnkpCO4eNwo3h8TaqM9lfKkE-0B4T9HoIxRXP95BQLWlxTpr043aAT-xYww9ItaQ4B-VxxS1/s320/IMF.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Announcing</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Beth Yarbrough Designs</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">A BRAND NEW BEGINNING</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">With a profoundly grateful heart, I am overjoyed to announce the creation of <b>Beth Yarbrough Designs</b>. The new entity will serve as the home of my artwork with the added component of in-house licensing and marketing services, all under one roof.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Concurrent with our debut, we are launching our new website and Gallery for the convenience of our industry clients at <b>www.byarbrough.com. </b>Updated weekly with fresh offerings from the studio, our new Gallery will provide our manufacturing and retailing partners with up to the minute news on the latest collections. The Gallery will also serve as a constant resource for viewing a selection of the portfolio of images we have available for licensing.</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This has been a labor of love many months in the planning, and a tremendous amount of very rewarding hard work. On any given day you likely would have found us with paint flying through the air while we held the phone on our shoulder and typed with our toes, trying to put the perfect finishing touches on the artwork, the website, the gallery, the new blog, and the pb&j sandwich we were having for lunch. Well, maybe I exaggerate. But you get my drift.</span></span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMVQmm2_UYQTWDoRkQggJUe-9GC14Uo5f_FIeooU-9nuQvM6NYBmrzJ1NWbpUC6cLeRTLJ-i4aauhbhm0hGRdbsgdJ4Z7RL_Y33T-aBolnqkcKh7KiuFFgLctmnKboS8CH6PIRe5wO-CNI/s1600/IMF_0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMVQmm2_UYQTWDoRkQggJUe-9GC14Uo5f_FIeooU-9nuQvM6NYBmrzJ1NWbpUC6cLeRTLJ-i4aauhbhm0hGRdbsgdJ4Z7RL_Y33T-aBolnqkcKh7KiuFFgLctmnKboS8CH6PIRe5wO-CNI/s320/IMF_0001.jpg" width="238" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Many many thanks to my wonderful web designer, Holly Knott. Please visit her at <b>www.hollyknott.com</b> and tell her I sent you! She's the greatest. As for me, I'm still going to be right here, doing what I love and counting myself the luckiest girl in the world.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvz1qQpldpmfvKsAPvDYAq0qaF0ZC2Xd38fqb57WfPitI3647NfJTAr2dPLqGRQArIjtAOvUi2nncISfRlzUbNOqIA8Way646rrSjlCZzV4El7mN6ybhV8SMO5AF7Fb01ISFMFWLiwCMPj/s1600/IMF_0002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvz1qQpldpmfvKsAPvDYAq0qaF0ZC2Xd38fqb57WfPitI3647NfJTAr2dPLqGRQArIjtAOvUi2nncISfRlzUbNOqIA8Way646rrSjlCZzV4El7mN6ybhV8SMO5AF7Fb01ISFMFWLiwCMPj/s320/IMF_0002.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Beth Yarbrough Designs</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: small;">the home of happy art</span></span> </span></span><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-71874111908468382562011-11-23T15:30:00.000-05:002011-11-23T15:30:24.097-05:00Thanksgiving<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbX3JItmkvh1Uhh8hH-EZmHz5uspoAP0HmtLUKJhe4t94DocANnTywnmcCGX5DHT0fNVDw4NaGaWBHXZB3xBsHqTIEbAT0IyH7KddSjiJLxiZkxvHNULHeKkAv0h6bKn4RTzA6JTCjuUH/s1600/Gentle+Blessings+2014+007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbX3JItmkvh1Uhh8hH-EZmHz5uspoAP0HmtLUKJhe4t94DocANnTywnmcCGX5DHT0fNVDw4NaGaWBHXZB3xBsHqTIEbAT0IyH7KddSjiJLxiZkxvHNULHeKkAv0h6bKn4RTzA6JTCjuUH/s320/Gentle+Blessings+2014+007.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Making my way through the grocery store this morning, I looked around at the aisles upon aisles of food, the produce section stocked with mountains of fresh fruits and vegetables, the loaves of bread hot from the ovens, and the crush of people getting ready for their Thanksgiving dinners. In the midst of it all, I stopped and said "Lord, we are a blessed people. Thank you!"</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Wishing everyone a wonderful, happy Thanksgiving holiday. Stay tuned in the coming days for news from our studio. We are very excited about major changes that have come our way during 2011 and cannot wait to share.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In the meantime, enjoy some turkey, hug your children and grandchildren, tell your parents how much you love them, share your blessings with those around you, and above all, give thanks to God for this and every day.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Thanksgiving!</span></span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-8592564360325253542011-10-11T19:06:00.000-04:002011-10-11T19:06:15.889-04:00Autumn Evening<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmth2ePgobE0yWyZVHmVjTssHcwq3WZ2s1n-_oAAHgscjYR1rDjsniEzzpfYYGXIAozpioXW11l4iE5EQVpw_nV03_XMBEvPf43ccIp39JZHwKV6kmPSqeUn23sU6-9XdrgMymaJjPVXDm/s1600/Potato+Cheese+001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmth2ePgobE0yWyZVHmVjTssHcwq3WZ2s1n-_oAAHgscjYR1rDjsniEzzpfYYGXIAozpioXW11l4iE5EQVpw_nV03_XMBEvPf43ccIp39JZHwKV6kmPSqeUn23sU6-9XdrgMymaJjPVXDm/s320/Potato+Cheese+001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A warm supper on this rainy October evening took me back to my childhood and reminded me of my dad. Today would have been his birthday.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">He loved cheese and apparently it loved him, too. He lived 91 years without even a hint of heart trouble. Every year for his birthday, I would bake him a spice cake with as much caramel icing as I could lawfully load onto the layers without collapsing the whole thing. Behind cheese and my mother, sugar was probably his third love. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">One of our favorite family stories involved one of his teenage birthdays and his mother's delicious apple-stack cake - baked just for him. The story goes that his older brother waited for him to come home from school and then calmly went into the kitchen, brought the entire cake (on its stand) into the dining room, along with one fork. He then sat down at the table and consumed the whole cake in one sitting, right in front of my dad.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I thought about him tonight, eating my little stoneware crock of potato-cheese soup. He lived a good life and helped raise three good children. He was a master cabinetmaker, a very graceful dancer, and an even better pantomime artist. He loved life and he loved God. And he loved cheese.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Happy Birthday, Daddy. </span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-37283652672412717152011-09-30T08:06:00.000-04:002011-09-30T08:06:00.962-04:00A Year of Sweet Tea<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgttPEUtFuzQEXrVl-Tcw8i45u5EZh6LFyKKHCRXQNpjWZl2zN4t91L48Aivp1vY6-PGbU366mZJoYYJAPnXG3Cpj7MdNVMs1UFFiMgyPDcSTL65hAS1O48uOmVTMCIyCKbNgxpcI7mubWQ/s1600/Sweet+Tea+021.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgttPEUtFuzQEXrVl-Tcw8i45u5EZh6LFyKKHCRXQNpjWZl2zN4t91L48Aivp1vY6-PGbU366mZJoYYJAPnXG3Cpj7MdNVMs1UFFiMgyPDcSTL65hAS1O48uOmVTMCIyCKbNgxpcI7mubWQ/s320/Sweet+Tea+021.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Exactly a year ago tomorrow, I determined to devote each Friday on this blog to something meaningful, or funny, or beautiful, all in an effort to consider the subject of time and how it affects our lives.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Now - with that year behind me - I am stunned and humbled and full of enormous hope - all at once. We have seen it all this past year - new life, death, laughter, tears, incredible beauty, and surprises around every corner.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEichm6f4PrdlCnmgE2Vk65_4E2PXfXGtHdPg9HeCHOIDreChz6EJl9YCw9xjvneBH2NH8gX2PWxh8jhpmkZGXcPgCKAbIwRYTm3lNCKawNL5kkaXeLo-3vvBANWdCJBXlvZu081QotpgWVv/s1600/October+Balloons+2010+022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEichm6f4PrdlCnmgE2Vk65_4E2PXfXGtHdPg9HeCHOIDreChz6EJl9YCw9xjvneBH2NH8gX2PWxh8jhpmkZGXcPgCKAbIwRYTm3lNCKawNL5kkaXeLo-3vvBANWdCJBXlvZu081QotpgWVv/s320/October+Balloons+2010+022.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The year began with an October sky full of dozens of hot air balloons</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">and </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">fond memories of brave young men who should have come home from Vietnam and didn't</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU7spejfflMuFRB7hL6b5rqlqjVMVDTFUsmry7vJyBEst54Zr16s8JhEGudbtUX2pT5zBQKUcN8Fi7TLO_nEwWDx6zbvcmNjTZZ_MzxawJQ8jSoIHo9t2AQsPXaikdiJcMVeAMwYBnXrn4/s1600/Henton+Americana+002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU7spejfflMuFRB7hL6b5rqlqjVMVDTFUsmry7vJyBEst54Zr16s8JhEGudbtUX2pT5zBQKUcN8Fi7TLO_nEwWDx6zbvcmNjTZZ_MzxawJQ8jSoIHo9t2AQsPXaikdiJcMVeAMwYBnXrn4/s320/Henton+Americana+002.jpg" width="239" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVLPAfwHfPuhh5JRitGFT2GsQEDcQpL6o41J9n55D62bo6_sJdIbnwBz9io8ifG4dXLUk7Y85L2bOtSiQYEH8r5NrGooRTJ4zBAl6JSrqr90sHeT9FCbrEzl2vZDMp18XYXCE-bL6YtWFX/s1600/October+Beach+2010+045.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVLPAfwHfPuhh5JRitGFT2GsQEDcQpL6o41J9n55D62bo6_sJdIbnwBz9io8ifG4dXLUk7Y85L2bOtSiQYEH8r5NrGooRTJ4zBAl6JSrqr90sHeT9FCbrEzl2vZDMp18XYXCE-bL6YtWFX/s320/October+Beach+2010+045.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A stolen sunrise on the beach</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoYrjWpFuAl-DB8V2VD7j5sPhAVlsCjRVbDl70Cg_W_8tVz0PsBEa5zSSc8cMDQgCWKcCDk_z6MpMy1I-gJfUnahpPIqSa5WseDgYQ3GLNBHmi449KI-v2fxiL7dj8tzT0QwVNiKT6pAy0/s1600/Raffaldini+038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoYrjWpFuAl-DB8V2VD7j5sPhAVlsCjRVbDl70Cg_W_8tVz0PsBEa5zSSc8cMDQgCWKcCDk_z6MpMy1I-gJfUnahpPIqSa5WseDgYQ3GLNBHmi449KI-v2fxiL7dj8tzT0QwVNiKT6pAy0/s320/Raffaldini+038.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And the discovery of an Italian winery in the Appalachian Mountains.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVH6mzIv77DsmYrOqbrnkEEP17hBNBUsOJ3Hj5PvzCq1umVENmg874ktUXYTmPgGgemB7EP5POdZov-kFvhY7tuj6HNZYqQRvLAs5gMLYQoXV-dA_9cJ1oLmtuORDC_6n6fYTJQdy10FwK/s1600/Junior+Johnson+009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVH6mzIv77DsmYrOqbrnkEEP17hBNBUsOJ3Hj5PvzCq1umVENmg874ktUXYTmPgGgemB7EP5POdZov-kFvhY7tuj6HNZYqQRvLAs5gMLYQoXV-dA_9cJ1oLmtuORDC_6n6fYTJQdy10FwK/s320/Junior+Johnson+009.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Early December found us eating breakfast with Junior Johnson, who is just as adept at the helm of an iron skillet as he is behind the wheel of a car. </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMhHcyToXlMCt3aZwWcH1zjZiNh_E4_ytMw1o8SII7BjWofrXEEtixrWOEchlhlnu33Vg892_1qoVYv9ZTswTx8gXT0UucaMeDzmQfyVubHzCiaDq4mv2glQxxG_BjwNSMIHn5rw6bACq/s1600/White+Christmas+2010+008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVMhHcyToXlMCt3aZwWcH1zjZiNh_E4_ytMw1o8SII7BjWofrXEEtixrWOEchlhlnu33Vg892_1qoVYv9ZTswTx8gXT0UucaMeDzmQfyVubHzCiaDq4mv2glQxxG_BjwNSMIHn5rw6bACq/s320/White+Christmas+2010+008.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Our Christmas was white,</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtzQpQytM6K6GWvYxkkQ3YThv-n1RSzksr_2nJ8wmwgfRN9dcBtbIQYstQTFENv6uZz0A-u96-AWcZGkELD6_9LvTPsLw0HAs-JMYy3xtDmjqgpKNhqhc5DfZhnaBIqiAfC5nHAChHxTSk/s1600/February+13+2010+Snowfall+006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtzQpQytM6K6GWvYxkkQ3YThv-n1RSzksr_2nJ8wmwgfRN9dcBtbIQYstQTFENv6uZz0A-u96-AWcZGkELD6_9LvTPsLw0HAs-JMYy3xtDmjqgpKNhqhc5DfZhnaBIqiAfC5nHAChHxTSk/s320/February+13+2010+Snowfall+006.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">as was a good portion of the entire winter.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiorlBEq9_KFm0EeSylEvqyf_SB5T2S8f2EqD3to8bgaJGQx2zh77SB9jngCgbgvRvZzTFxvEIBXkRd2DdbSA7LDCXrnlrgqtwgOCDwTgtWrIvnjU8bm98ayOSTrER33Kw07S_Q_xyRrDYE/s1600/Earnhardt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiorlBEq9_KFm0EeSylEvqyf_SB5T2S8f2EqD3to8bgaJGQx2zh77SB9jngCgbgvRvZzTFxvEIBXkRd2DdbSA7LDCXrnlrgqtwgOCDwTgtWrIvnjU8bm98ayOSTrER33Kw07S_Q_xyRrDYE/s1600/Earnhardt.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And I decided to welcome spring by telling my favorite (true) Earnhardt story.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUYbOJf_7di939LNhn_0gxkSgVIls-pzV-zYRrQk92L8hp51W7ph55Itfp8Q04KHLPCCIS0w9QU_FdzOTqa3PKqP2mNcPMWTipjc1F8LFe8qMpeo6rq9XBrN-Q2mzx6EgZhGIikPYl6_dq/s1600/Miller%2527s+Birth+028.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUYbOJf_7di939LNhn_0gxkSgVIls-pzV-zYRrQk92L8hp51W7ph55Itfp8Q04KHLPCCIS0w9QU_FdzOTqa3PKqP2mNcPMWTipjc1F8LFe8qMpeo6rq9XBrN-Q2mzx6EgZhGIikPYl6_dq/s320/Miller%2527s+Birth+028.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Life handed us a grandson in March, and we will never be the same.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhijLGwIZGAPadZftOki_mSFeFeASYinpJmrvhZRlqwlpDv2SASDig-3IITQc_MS6HvP-kextOUyqNLiH-p1Am-q8BWONx1yTBC5LvHxHV30mYfx69kLaHCoxpVKst3od6CnNZoZYAarIiV/s1600/Lily+of+the+Valley+2011+008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhijLGwIZGAPadZftOki_mSFeFeASYinpJmrvhZRlqwlpDv2SASDig-3IITQc_MS6HvP-kextOUyqNLiH-p1Am-q8BWONx1yTBC5LvHxHV30mYfx69kLaHCoxpVKst3od6CnNZoZYAarIiV/s320/Lily+of+the+Valley+2011+008.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In quick succession, our garden handed us lily of the valley,</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyIKjkWZDK_z08vSzzjqdbNC1yXhbtel5p23iOWiTFoYjCC3YO1XkxkrHseq0KrH6Xju3AKkWHwG9USHSwdPA-uLRMZiv4tBfM3_PYJmM9EEhixQStrdoijGcfnwJC4FyH8gM62q-UnAuk/s1600/Gertrude+Jekyll+2011+023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyIKjkWZDK_z08vSzzjqdbNC1yXhbtel5p23iOWiTFoYjCC3YO1XkxkrHseq0KrH6Xju3AKkWHwG9USHSwdPA-uLRMZiv4tBfM3_PYJmM9EEhixQStrdoijGcfnwJC4FyH8gM62q-UnAuk/s320/Gertrude+Jekyll+2011+023.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Roses,</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVriGUgVA40rv7BuptMnM-B-xqidCjI_ehX-CVf6uUMf40i321ek8Doc7klRDcCuafq2RMgdTbYC4Qh34ggR4NN2YIM__63LGj7ixR62zRtKOSpbSImAfW9AKv7Z0K7TtygGfI_VFAhYTO/s1600/Peonies+2011+029.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVriGUgVA40rv7BuptMnM-B-xqidCjI_ehX-CVf6uUMf40i321ek8Doc7klRDcCuafq2RMgdTbYC4Qh34ggR4NN2YIM__63LGj7ixR62zRtKOSpbSImAfW9AKv7Z0K7TtygGfI_VFAhYTO/s320/Peonies+2011+029.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Peonies</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUXtaHuFGLVEusTLn98MYU_PMD0WMcNpvqIwGBHf-Cg9kjsfXsE5V0EOxWHAcewp6q_6sNI-QYgYE88KsizXLnh3IaW0QeNfEO_RdSvS1E2OauWagCE4lAqOFVsc9DQuqMjop_RiDwRxc-/s1600/Magnolias+015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUXtaHuFGLVEusTLn98MYU_PMD0WMcNpvqIwGBHf-Cg9kjsfXsE5V0EOxWHAcewp6q_6sNI-QYgYE88KsizXLnh3IaW0QeNfEO_RdSvS1E2OauWagCE4lAqOFVsc9DQuqMjop_RiDwRxc-/s320/Magnolias+015.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Magnolias</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4YCqHMVzrmg0_PJ2c4PfcKgJu1cqwp64HEKEsvQr0F6p2d7mJOxcIcCNApFZTqez7mSsTVmRSUHntSyPLZhrFluXVGWWG6Q0E1VTflCQtm7HIdN6NmLHLPPazcIF5BIG9nij9KU2maHI/s1600/Strawberries+%2526+Cobbler+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4YCqHMVzrmg0_PJ2c4PfcKgJu1cqwp64HEKEsvQr0F6p2d7mJOxcIcCNApFZTqez7mSsTVmRSUHntSyPLZhrFluXVGWWG6Q0E1VTflCQtm7HIdN6NmLHLPPazcIF5BIG9nij9KU2maHI/s320/Strawberries+%2526+Cobbler+003.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> and baby bunnies in distress.</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggjcRGA2NCVnCd5g_OAm_yy4LFcf5Moonmn_PHCvSg2sWGI2hxdBcfu_Cn-yp_HfzH5DJzKO1XHWefn1cQkaylztoFcV7xH0ojK_lTMatJQ-l2yJFZHoJKdA99gHDeNvK9xBBTOV8n0Y_L/s1600/Memorial+Day+2011+014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggjcRGA2NCVnCd5g_OAm_yy4LFcf5Moonmn_PHCvSg2sWGI2hxdBcfu_Cn-yp_HfzH5DJzKO1XHWefn1cQkaylztoFcV7xH0ojK_lTMatJQ-l2yJFZHoJKdA99gHDeNvK9xBBTOV8n0Y_L/s320/Memorial+Day+2011+014.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We planted a vegetable garden, savoring each sprig and leaf.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfMdJNbVG31CNk12W6Uq-cCN_lpZgvYaKJaVg9jjRrafsD-AiFIXuJcwMa6U28Qyd2xerkxTmNJ8GGU1Ldbtrisgr4OilLYmdN0dyWxYV9thUJdD5MYIOhsysnZl6qsiZOokO_qUhP0one/s1600/Summer+2011+076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfMdJNbVG31CNk12W6Uq-cCN_lpZgvYaKJaVg9jjRrafsD-AiFIXuJcwMa6U28Qyd2xerkxTmNJ8GGU1Ldbtrisgr4OilLYmdN0dyWxYV9thUJdD5MYIOhsysnZl6qsiZOokO_qUhP0one/s320/Summer+2011+076.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We hit the beach,</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0mXVALabRwlXp3AMFQPTFHcwfwAAHnn0UO5z8vB2oEzpdp0H5QSycR1tIfT1gkBcyFMoUljmz1do2887RBd8i2cVbiiXj9mHdlkNUbC-qjCgvQ-UCH7fg0osdHWs4FIuSJc7brgZWP4FU/s1600/Summer+2011+321.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0mXVALabRwlXp3AMFQPTFHcwfwAAHnn0UO5z8vB2oEzpdp0H5QSycR1tIfT1gkBcyFMoUljmz1do2887RBd8i2cVbiiXj9mHdlkNUbC-qjCgvQ-UCH7fg0osdHWs4FIuSJc7brgZWP4FU/s320/Summer+2011+321.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> and then an island</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiujaL4GhyphenhyphenuFo4YKoAsdwu13jBAZD1HhBtjl8Di8Sok5fLMA7EKOQs3ar6k-DP4L8sh0pcBusXF8xECegRmYJrsDhXzur8gofBY00UjDIkf01Q-fO2Qr1NPgNf_WMHNrZCY2a_rylyj9GGS/s1600/Summer+2011+379.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiujaL4GhyphenhyphenuFo4YKoAsdwu13jBAZD1HhBtjl8Di8Sok5fLMA7EKOQs3ar6k-DP4L8sh0pcBusXF8xECegRmYJrsDhXzur8gofBY00UjDIkf01Q-fO2Qr1NPgNf_WMHNrZCY2a_rylyj9GGS/s320/Summer+2011+379.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">and then another island.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzzz095b7p2voT7uRvyUjhCPzGorWWcl7M6Zm0Zbrnbbj7trAF0bkTFhEpTxbrq24kXo8-llIGG1MGNpitzYsObNVRfAPnXrbSVwBPHziXArLn9M6b0PBmPspSOtJSK555oGjA71LNB8WZ/s1600/Roasted+Tomato+Sauce+002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzzz095b7p2voT7uRvyUjhCPzGorWWcl7M6Zm0Zbrnbbj7trAF0bkTFhEpTxbrq24kXo8-llIGG1MGNpitzYsObNVRfAPnXrbSVwBPHziXArLn9M6b0PBmPspSOtJSK555oGjA71LNB8WZ/s320/Roasted+Tomato+Sauce+002.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Back home, we made marinara and ended up making abstract art as well.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn5B7g7Bc8K6uIXzs4aiHwbD9d-RKrO34BMhVchPrZFj_TnsADR5cMumtOfEJWlY7-eDxGIUcLRvQG62gNAoq7E6OhAXhL8y98lVlYAn08iR4qUZmMpV-B2gEoN7EOVWzFCIP4UjLOXx_J/s1600/IMG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn5B7g7Bc8K6uIXzs4aiHwbD9d-RKrO34BMhVchPrZFj_TnsADR5cMumtOfEJWlY7-eDxGIUcLRvQG62gNAoq7E6OhAXhL8y98lVlYAn08iR4qUZmMpV-B2gEoN7EOVWzFCIP4UjLOXx_J/s320/IMG.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We laughed as we remembered the day we stumbled upon the President,</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpihxritOqhmrXRA4G362NsEDfEAtul4IkSRYkMkjMSEnxLj0qNb_ILQNBUN-49y0d5vCydZkkxjuJ3nAsrnta9leB5GDU0b1CKmciIC8Q5ez8oqGTNzBlRQov_N-vlL_B5jk8rrZmz9iQ/s1600/Charlie+T.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpihxritOqhmrXRA4G362NsEDfEAtul4IkSRYkMkjMSEnxLj0qNb_ILQNBUN-49y0d5vCydZkkxjuJ3nAsrnta9leB5GDU0b1CKmciIC8Q5ez8oqGTNzBlRQov_N-vlL_B5jk8rrZmz9iQ/s320/Charlie+T.jpg" width="235" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And cried tears that are still flowing as we said goodbye to our best friend.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaIb2r-GYnZQQ_cEmJh3iL8IbYDMggYL7COAxffBTjWLM9EfG3erR7N4xeTuZz4pam0X9BGNxWbkkPzxmLuyo19sWvKUyvTkrgzL6_kNlqRPQUITsw9tNj1I6j41UNaAeM32ufULXisLd_/s1600/Florida+2011+080.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaIb2r-GYnZQQ_cEmJh3iL8IbYDMggYL7COAxffBTjWLM9EfG3erR7N4xeTuZz4pam0X9BGNxWbkkPzxmLuyo19sWvKUyvTkrgzL6_kNlqRPQUITsw9tNj1I6j41UNaAeM32ufULXisLd_/s320/Florida+2011+080.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A trip to Florida gently reminded us that life brings fresh inspiration every day, if you are willing to look for it.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZt8FjuM34MXOMqX8N5axmZ_7Mk5MtXKYBi58TJyRZxD_IpVAmPrzOaa9D3_9-zT9uJxu-9QmOiUozNfSoQJ8LsctnIaUPaVL2igTV-9qoGnK9KBFf9ZiAu6Argb22j1wrlf7FUVA4B-31/s1600/September+Zinnias+2011+004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZt8FjuM34MXOMqX8N5axmZ_7Mk5MtXKYBi58TJyRZxD_IpVAmPrzOaa9D3_9-zT9uJxu-9QmOiUozNfSoQJ8LsctnIaUPaVL2igTV-9qoGnK9KBFf9ZiAu6Argb22j1wrlf7FUVA4B-31/s320/September+Zinnias+2011+004.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Safely back home, our garden proved the point by delivering the month of June in September.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigzPZzGK0GBs7N50YONVvK8197_zP7R6rnYM2uXzHvVpaG89ch5QTd5RGpRxQKfAka__-QKjg8E82H1QuktzAzufKPJ9WJvceyKQlmrvs6ZoVfttNFC0ABmP5oOE6kDMS1Wa0fiR7RdRhn/s1600/Mothers+Day+2010+007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigzPZzGK0GBs7N50YONVvK8197_zP7R6rnYM2uXzHvVpaG89ch5QTd5RGpRxQKfAka__-QKjg8E82H1QuktzAzufKPJ9WJvceyKQlmrvs6ZoVfttNFC0ABmP5oOE6kDMS1Wa0fiR7RdRhn/s320/Mothers+Day+2010+007.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> And just yesterday, another of our best friends left us. Fans of my work know how much I loved this beautiful cat. His name was Tylenol, and he was my faithful companion, studio cat, garden supervisor, and territorial guard extraordinaire. We will never forget him.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAgsDLi8a7Si2tOV4mQwgRXMVeD8XxjwlkimJF1TdR_K6_WZsRxFBxgjpmO8ufvK0TLmwq6lzNY8SEn20zzPWygaAnDdByD53Okahw8I6NGmWcY6EdMTcnnyInLjT79w0BWW_aKeJbxnC1/s1600/May+2010+Blue+Ridge+Parkway+%2526+Our+Garden+007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAgsDLi8a7Si2tOV4mQwgRXMVeD8XxjwlkimJF1TdR_K6_WZsRxFBxgjpmO8ufvK0TLmwq6lzNY8SEn20zzPWygaAnDdByD53Okahw8I6NGmWcY6EdMTcnnyInLjT79w0BWW_aKeJbxnC1/s320/May+2010+Blue+Ridge+Parkway+%2526+Our+Garden+007.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Now, with the year behind us, we stand with renewed respect for the fragile nature of life, a greater appreciation of the astounding beauty that lives right under our nose every day, and the hope that comes from knowing that God has been with us every step of the way - laughing with us, drying our tears, clapping his hands at our discoveries, and blessing us with every breath we take.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Today is Countdown Friday</span></span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxhmr2b-frkCnjUIQ451jf_35L61pvK-FJgPWo2QmDaKTQzwyTO4QEtEYGyK1r4DmK-4TOQDTAX280aBGLIR9ijX5uGTivJXd1MqDSFfDVzQdItFkCoHlz9XDz-niGELUKciXIE3N2QyAg/s1600/Thanksgiving+2010+010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxhmr2b-frkCnjUIQ451jf_35L61pvK-FJgPWo2QmDaKTQzwyTO4QEtEYGyK1r4DmK-4TOQDTAX280aBGLIR9ijX5uGTivJXd1MqDSFfDVzQdItFkCoHlz9XDz-niGELUKciXIE3N2QyAg/s320/Thanksgiving+2010+010.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"> and the count isn't over.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">We're just getting warmed up.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-873214704824666231.post-127330822965590122011-09-22T11:47:00.001-04:002011-09-22T11:51:22.522-04:00September Garden<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI52OPUSIM01A3Q5Fukp8EMlGXEt2AC0NtlsmLLqv9tiucRLG8gqnXxtU3nuV250sqMYZQ4kI7TmWNojT300YJpE8icuIdeO_2uLe8_t20YPJ2CCN8mNBcucSi0ORJT4rOj_cP1j51kwGk/s1600/September+Zinnia+Garden+2011+010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI52OPUSIM01A3Q5Fukp8EMlGXEt2AC0NtlsmLLqv9tiucRLG8gqnXxtU3nuV250sqMYZQ4kI7TmWNojT300YJpE8icuIdeO_2uLe8_t20YPJ2CCN8mNBcucSi0ORJT4rOj_cP1j51kwGk/s320/September+Zinnia+Garden+2011+010.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Those of you who know me know that if I could take the perfect summer day and stretch it from January to December, I would.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Fortunately for us all, God did not endow me with that ability. Ever the optimist, however, I do what I can. Planting a brand new crop of zinnias in August is one way to get it done. The result is a garden full of sunshine at the end of September - and they will bloom past Halloween if I close my eyes and click my heels together three times and channel my inner lovely-day-in-June.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy97Mn9TSIsihsiAtxdnB58B98ihVSMqt7xM6OO9ajfF51oU5x_lO-MUvQuDhIfXMlCCR6WHfmCaHFBgj6bprj_AoJFMVFqIQ7yJOZeljIgfISoYkl7zCpWqxIh67iQ2ECBUBRbAxLsrRP/s1600/September+Zinnia+Garden+2011+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy97Mn9TSIsihsiAtxdnB58B98ihVSMqt7xM6OO9ajfF51oU5x_lO-MUvQuDhIfXMlCCR6WHfmCaHFBgj6bprj_AoJFMVFqIQ7yJOZeljIgfISoYkl7zCpWqxIh67iQ2ECBUBRbAxLsrRP/s320/September+Zinnia+Garden+2011+003.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSHs_AAMmOfwYtUxrRKTt-t43fusRggyxwFlmaRlm6evIyCmSDN5dfFQpnQtWqHNUqw7laDwkCIPi96ubpCgFpD2G8_5iadVsv1HmRbkxK0eMLwYdKkDmhhBpaEHAsQSp2VttWxJE1IH7A/s1600/September+Zinnia+Garden+2011+005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSHs_AAMmOfwYtUxrRKTt-t43fusRggyxwFlmaRlm6evIyCmSDN5dfFQpnQtWqHNUqw7laDwkCIPi96ubpCgFpD2G8_5iadVsv1HmRbkxK0eMLwYdKkDmhhBpaEHAsQSp2VttWxJE1IH7A/s320/September+Zinnia+Garden+2011+005.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And that's not ALL (says the lady in the infomercial).</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIOdL8Iq6TnBtnkaiYUk6Pn3QjvtRI-XDrQL_liCMuB-_HCCA6tfLcs8N2NwJ8nvesWiEJBXhij_lFBZ1wX00zOMWsLLftEjAwxjJUVBc7LdA2BmdAT81IpSUctu6voBNiLXUHxPcjP0g/s1600/September+Zinnias+2011+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIOdL8Iq6TnBtnkaiYUk6Pn3QjvtRI-XDrQL_liCMuB-_HCCA6tfLcs8N2NwJ8nvesWiEJBXhij_lFBZ1wX00zOMWsLLftEjAwxjJUVBc7LdA2BmdAT81IpSUctu6voBNiLXUHxPcjP0g/s320/September+Zinnias+2011+003.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Harvest those babies and bring them inside, grab a camera and shoot. </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSYDPial26sGWpHGHOH1IJooXF4FRuS191ZX1xps8tFvjM2-kaV_wVyfJkkB1IgzsJqg65btonBftuqVpIwibLL6BMYxPskPGTh0Oq1H5oipOkX0aiI2PDgdLna2YS6wluJCArjSfqdJIb/s1600/September+Zinnias+2011+005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSYDPial26sGWpHGHOH1IJooXF4FRuS191ZX1xps8tFvjM2-kaV_wVyfJkkB1IgzsJqg65btonBftuqVpIwibLL6BMYxPskPGTh0Oq1H5oipOkX0aiI2PDgdLna2YS6wluJCArjSfqdJIb/s320/September+Zinnias+2011+005.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I know. They look good enough to eat, don't they?</span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9amPkpATIFnJi2CsiOUbq7EjZ39hGWQ9qFNOA6spn4vLWJrbvag8hKUeZvt7NeLXYd6cqXiyDMF67pa7eIiJn4-7ae0GwolJabVz2YOFFnqa5KxIimcrG4eU6TgC9-6Fh5dPwCxuxtIAN/s1600/September+Zinnias+2011+006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9amPkpATIFnJi2CsiOUbq7EjZ39hGWQ9qFNOA6spn4vLWJrbvag8hKUeZvt7NeLXYd6cqXiyDMF67pa7eIiJn4-7ae0GwolJabVz2YOFFnqa5KxIimcrG4eU6TgC9-6Fh5dPwCxuxtIAN/s320/September+Zinnias+2011+006.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Tomorrow is Countdown Friday</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">THE COUNT WILL BE 9</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">My blessings are as many and as varied as these flowers, multiplied thousands of times, and I thank God for every single one.</span> </span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></span></div>BETH YARBROUGHhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12170200469189131837noreply@blogger.com2