Camellia

Camellia issue 4 • summer 2013

TAME THE FLAME Tips And Tricks That Will Make You A Grill Master

+ Summer Sippin’ A Tw i s t O n S o u t h e r n S w e e t Te a

Big Screen Blockbusters R e v i e ws O f Th e S e a s o n’s H o t te s t H o l l y wo o d H i t s

Follow Us

INSIDE THIS EDITION

33 SUREFIRE BEST-SELLER Dan Brown’s Inferno follows what has become the author’s status quo writing formula, but as the old adage goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”

20 THE CROCKER HOME The Crocker’s home in Pine Apple blends the very best of old and new.

PLUS 5 FIVE WORTH THE DRIVE Make sure you don’t miss out on some of the area’s upcoming events.

32 FASHION VS. FUNCTION In her younger days, Mollie Smith Waters often fell victim to quite a few dilemmas over practicality. None were greater than those made over fashion versus function.

16 TASTE OF SUMMER Beat the heat this summer with these delicious twists on iced tea.

34 OUT AND 30 COMING TO A THEATER NEAR YOU With highly anticipated movies set to hit the screen, this summer could easily be a box office record.

ABOUT A collection of photos from happenings around town.

 From the EDITOR For guys there is just something about cooking on an open flame. I’m sure it goes back to the days of Joe Cave Dweller who went out and killed a dinosaur and then carried it back home and cooked it over a roaring fire, while his adoring wife looked on in amazement.

That’s one theory anyway.

Maybe it’s just that guys like meat, and especially meat that has been seared on an open flame. I think it’s encoded into our DNA. I’ve never once heard a guy say, “This sure would taste better if it had been cooked in the oven.”

Grilling is just part of being a man.

So what is a guy to do if he is put in a situation where he is unable to cook with fire?

Improvise.

When my wife and I lived in Kazakhstan, we lived in a small, fifth-floor, Soviet-era apartment with an enclosed balcony. We didn’t have a grill or a place to grill.

After living there for a year, I had an incredible urge to cook with fire. It’s not that I hadn’t had grilled meat.

This love men have for cooking meat over fire is global and the Kazakhs do a fine job. Shashlik, which is just meat of any kind grilled on a stick, is a delicious meal, and I ate more than my fair share. A quick look at my expanding waistline and Pillsbury Doughboy-like belly is the proof.

But buying your grilled meat just isn’t the same as getting out there and starting the fire and hearing the sizzle when you plop the meat down on the grill. I was having withdrawals.

So I decided to grill in. Jennifer and I went to the market and purchased some high-quality hotdogs. (Given the situation, mostly the cleaning that would follow, this is the best I could do on the meat.) Then I came home and went all McGyver by rigging up a grill. I took the grate from our oven and flipped it upside down on our stove. Then I cranked the gas all the way up on the stove so that they flames would reach the grate and tossed on some hotdogs.

In just a few minutes we were enjoying grilled hotdogs.

In this edition of Camellia, we look at the summer tradition of barbecuing, and offer you some tasty recipes and tips from the pros.

So, get out there and get grilling.

PUBLISHER Tracy Salter CIRCULATION Tammy Faulk EDITORIAL Andy Brown Managing Editor Kendra Bolling Staff Writer Fred Guarino Staff Writer Jonathan Bryant Staff Writer Anna Schofield Contributing Photographer news@camelliamagazine.com ADVERTISING April Gregory Marketing Consultant Laura Gibbs Marketing Consultant sales@camelliamagazine.com Camellia Magazine is published four times per year by Greenville Newspapers, LLC.

Andy Brown Managing Editor

 THE COVER Jake Smith puts food to flame. Cover photo by April Gregory.

Camellia issue 3 • summer 2013

103 Hickory Street Greenville, AL 36037 www.camelliamagazine.com 334.382.31111 Advertising rates and information are available upon request.

Subscriptions are available for $18 Please make checks payable to: Greenville Newspapers, LLC 103 Hickory St., Greenville, AL 36037

TAME THE FLAME Tips And Tricks That Will Make You A Grill Master

+ Summer Sippin’ A Tw i s t O n S o u t h e r n S w e e t Te a

Big Screen Blockbusters R e v i e ws O f Th e S e a s o n’s H o t te s t H o l l y wo o d H i t s

All photographs and copy included in Camellia Magazine are copyrighted 2013 Greenville Newspapers, LLC and cannot be republished or reproduced in any manner without the consent of Greenville Newspapers, LLC.

FIVE worth

the DRIVE 1

80TH ANNUAL ALA. DEEP SEA FISHING RODEO Dauphin Island l July 19-21, 2013 More than 3,000 anglers from at least 24 states will fish in the Gulf of Mexico for three days for a chance to win more than $400,000 in cash and prizes across 30 categories.

2

W.C. HANDY MUSIC FESTIVAL Florence l July 19-28, 2013 The W.C. Handy Music Festival is a weeklong celebration of the musical heritage of northwest Alabama, honoring Florence native W.C.Handy, “Father of the Blues.” Over 200 events take place during the week, ranging from mini-concerts to headliner concerts, plays to art exhibits, picnics to restaurants and clubs. For more information visit wchandymusicfestival. org.

3

W.C. HANDY MUSIC FESTIVAL

SUNFEST July 19-28, 2013 • Florence Alexander City l July 20-27, 2013 The first-ever SunFest will include events such as block parties, a veterans program, athletic clinics, cheerleading and dance workshops and an Aubie versus Big Al fan day among others. Multi-platinum country music artist Jo Dee Messina will headline the SunFest concert at the Charles E. Bailey Sportplex. The concert on July 27 will start off at 6 p.m. with area performers including Kowaliga Idol winner Cheri Edwards, Sid Phelps and Rexton Lee, followed by Messina at 8:30 p.m. closing with a 90-minute show.

Tickets for the concert cost $12.

4

WORLD’S LONGEST YARD SALE Gadsden l August 1-4, 2013 Travel the scenic byways of America for more than 450 miles of yard sales and unique treasures. Follow the Lookout Mountain Parkway from Gadsden, Ala., to Chattanooga, Tenn., for the southern portion of the sale. Connect with U.S. Highway 127 in Chattanooga for the remainder of the route to Hudson, Mich.

5

BLACK BELT FOLK ROOTS FESTIVAL Eutaw l August 24-25, 2013 Unique celebration which brings together craft persons, musicians, dancers, storytellers, food specialist, artists and community workers--all of whom are considered bearers of the traditions and folkways of the West Alabama region. Held the fourth Saturday and Sunday in Aug., 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

camellia magazine | 5

6 | camellia magazine

Blush Beauty Boutique 139 W Commerce St Greenville, AL (334) 371-6400

Greenville Storage 327 Greenville Byp Greenville, AL (334) 383-9000

Bent Tree Electric 809 Highland Ave Selma, AL 888-9SPEEDY

6KRZ \RXU FDUG DW WKHVH ORFDO EXVLQHVVHV DQG VDYH RQ HYHU\GD\ SXUFKDVHV With the Pioneer Electric Co-op Connections Card, keep money in your community and save at local businesses.

Discover all the ways you can save today at www.pioneerelectric.com. camellia magazine | 7

8 | camellia magazine

BBQ

ULTIMATE BACKYARD

the

PHOTOS BY APRIL GREGORY camellia magazine | 9

Getting Started Temperature is everything The No. 1 rule in grilling is preheating. How do you know if it’s hot enough to start grilling?

To gauge the temperature of a grill without a thermometer, place your open palm about 5 inches above the grill rack; the fire is high if you have to move your hand in 2 seconds, medium if you have to move your hand in 5 seconds and low if you have to move your hand in 10 seconds.

Clean ‘em up!

Cleaning the grill can help in its air circulation. By using a stiff brush, remove the burnt food from the last cookout. It’s easier to remove debris when the grill is hot, so after preheating, use a long-handled wire grill brush on your grill rack to clean off charred debris from prior meals. Scrape again immediately after use.

Oil the grill Even on a clean grill, lean foods may stick when placed directly on the rack. Reduce sticking by oiling your hot grill rack with a vegetable oil-soaked paper towel: hold it with tongs and rub it over the rack.

Sorry, we’re closed Keep the lid closed when grilling so that the temperature inside will remain consistent.

Though you need to watch it closely, just watch the time and temperature but not the food itself every single time.

A closed lid will also prevent flare-ups, retain natural juices and moisture.

Be prepared Keep all the cooking materials near you. If you think you’ll be using the spatula, make sure it’s already there or else, you’ll be running back and forth from the kitchen to your backyard.

10 | camellia magazine

If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen — and fire up the grill.

On second thought, even if you can take the heat, go ahead and get outside and fire up that grill.

Grilling is the simplest, most basic cooking method there is. All you really need is food and fire.

And while you don’t have to be a five-star chef to prepare a meal on the grill, there are a few tips and tricks that can help turn you from burger burner to grill master.

Gas vs. Charcoal?

The debate of charcoal versus gas started the day after the first gas grill was introduced, and it’s a debate that is still being carried on in backyards across the nation.

Which camp you fall into ultimately comes down to one question. Do you prefer smoky flavor or convenience?

Gas grilling is clean and quick. There’s no messing with briquettes, no stacking, no lighting and no waiting around for the coals to glow. If you want to come home from work and throw a couple of steaks on the grill with virtually no hassle, then an electric or gas unit might be what you are looking for.

Charcoal grilling might not offer the same level of convenience as gas, but it does boast one benefit that stands out above all others: smoke flavor. The dry, whitehot heat of charcoal sears meat quickly, creating a crusty, caramelized exterior and smoky flavor.

Now We’re Cooking

getting

SAUCY There are almost endless choices when it comes to barbecue sauces.

Sauces can be sweet or hot. Sauces can be thin or thick. No matter how you want to categorize barbecue sauces, you will always end up with exceptions, but most serious barbecuers categorize sauces by what they are based on. Most barbecue sauces are based on tomatoes, vinegar or mustard. Below are some of the more popular sauces.

Tangy Gold Tangy gold sauces are mustard based barbecue sauces find their origins in the Carolinas and Georgia and are the perfect BBQ sauce for pork whether you are talking whole hog, pork shoulder, or BBQ ribs. These sauces add a savory, tart flavor to barbecue, but are also great on many foods you grill or smoke.

Easy does it A chimney starter makes starting a charcoal fire a breeze. Just place crumpled paper in the bottom of the chimney, fill it with charcoal and light the paper. In about 20 minutes the coals will be ready to spread evenly in the bottom of the grill — no kindling, no lighter fluid, no perfect pyramid required.

Adding the smoke Whether you grill over gas or charcoal, use hardwood logs, chunks, briquettes, or chips to impart a smoky flavor to foods. Different wood varieties add subtle nuances; try applewood for sweetness, mesquite for tang, or hickory for a baconlike taste.

Line it up When grilling, lay food on the grate in orderly lines, moving from left to right. Or for quick-cooking items, such as shrimp and scallops, arrange in a circle going clockwise. This will help you keep track of which foods hit the flames first as well as allow you to group raw items away from cooked ones.

Forgo the fork Every set of barbecue tools comes with an extra-long two-prong fork.

Leave it in a drawer. A fork should never be used to turn over meat. Every time you pierce meat with a fork, moist juices flow out. So, forget the fork and pick up a pair of tongs to lift and turn meat. By using tongs you’ll not only get juicier steaks, chops and chicken, you’ll also gain much more control when moving the meat around on the grill.

Kansas City Kansas City barbecue sauces are thick, tomato-based sauces that are just as sweet as they are spicy. Endless variations are possible, but the sweet-thick-tomatoey elements need to be there for KC BBQ. This is the most common and popular sauce in the U.S. and all other tomato based sauces are variations on the theme using more or less of the main ingredients.

East Carolina East Carolina sauces are made with vinegar, ground black pepper, and hot chili pepper flakes and are primarily used as a “mopping” sauce to baste the meat while it was cooking and as a dipping sauce when it is served.

Thin and sharp, it penetrates the meat and cuts the fats in the mouth.

There is little or no sugar in this sauce.

Safety first Food safety is a top priority, so keep these simple rules from the USDA in mind: avoid cross-contamination by using separate cutting boards, utensils and platters for raw and cooked foods; refrigerate foods while marinating; and never baste with the marinating liquid. (Make extra marinade just for basting or boil your marinating liquid first.)

camellia magazine | 11

Too busy to write up a shopping list? Don’t sweat it. We already created one for you, complete with all the BBQ basics. Here’s what you’ll need: MEATS Hamburgers Hot dogs Ribs Steak Chicken APPETIZERS AND SIDE DISHES Salad Veggies Chips and dip Cheese and crackers Finger foods Rice Corn on the cob Potatoes CONDIMENTS Ketchup Mustard Barbecue sauce Steak sauce GARNISHES Lettuce Tomato slices Onions Pickles Cheese slices Chili BUNS, ROLLS AND WRAPS DESSERT Fruit Ice cream Cake Pie Cookies DRINKS Water Soda Juice Beer Wine Cocktails COOLER, ICE BUCKETS AND ICE CHARCOAL OR PROPANE GRILLING TOOLS NAPKINS AND PAPER TOWELS DISPOSABLE PLATES AND UTENSILS Forks Knives Spoons Cups ALUMINUM FOIL AND PLASTIC WRAP SEPARATE PLATTERS FOR RAW AND GRILLED MEATS

12 | camellia magazine

Indirect vs. Direct Grilling?

To truly become a grill master, one must understand indirect and direct grilling, and when to use each technique.

So, what exactly is indirect grilling and direct grilling?

Simply put, these are really the only two ways to grill, and knowing what to do when can make a huge difference to your grilling success.

Direct Grilling is the most basic and simple way to cook. Foods are cooked, or grilled, directly over the heat. There is one basic variation to direct grilling, however: leaving the lid up, or keeping it down.

The foods you cook with direct heat are the traditional grilling fare: steaks, burgers, fish fillets, etc. Anything that is less than two inches in thickness should be cooked by direct grilling. These are things that generally cook quickly and benefit from the fast cooking of a hot grill. As for having the lid up or down, generally you want to go with down. The only reason to grill with the lid up is for items that need a lot of basting, or cook so quickly that having the lid down increasing the risk of over cooking.

Indirect grilling is almost like baking on the grill.

This method requires that the fire be built off to the side of where the cooking will take place. For example, on a typical gas grill, imagine having the burners burning on only half of the grill. This is the heated side. You then place the food you wish to grill indirectly on the unheated side and close the lid.

Convection and radiant heat will then cook the food. Since the food is not being exposed to direct heat from the burners it will cook more evenly and be less likely to burn on the exposed side. This also means that it will cook more slowly.

It’s best to indirectly grill foods that will burn on the surface before it can get cooked through to the middle. This includes cuts of meat over two inches in thickness, poultry, roasts, etc.

LOCAL GRILL MASTER

Real Pit Barbecue a Greenville tradition Real Pit Barbecue has been as permanent a fixture on Fort Dale Street as one is likely to find within the Camellia City.

For a quarter of a century, owners Jesse and Linda McWilliams have been serving interstate wayfarers and Greenville residents alike with an assortment of barbecue, including ribs, turkey sandwiches, Boston butts, camp stew and more.

Jesse McWilliams contributes much of his establishment’s longevity to a number of outside factors.

“We’ve been very fortunate and blessed to have been here as long as we have,” Jesse said.

“For one thing, we have a really good location with interstate traffic, and we have a good local business. I think we provide a good, reasonably priced product, and it’s pretty easy for people to come in and out. If they want to get gas, they can stop at the Shell Depot and

grab a sandwich for lunch.”

But Real Pit Barbecue’s most distinctive quality lies in how the food is prepared.

The barbecue pit itself isn’t operated with gas or electricity, but a combination of hickory and pine wood.

The meat smokes for one day, and then it comes off the pit the next day.

The tried-and-true method of slow-cooking means that the couple only makes what they are prepared to sell, and 25 years of gauging their customers’ tendencies has made it less of a guessing game and more of a science.

But even more impressive than the length of time they’ve remained in the restaurant business is the fact that they’ve done it all without help from any employees.

Instead of viewing it as a limitation, Jesse considers it a strength.

“Sometimes, when you have employees,

they don’t take as much pride in the restaurant that owners would take,” Jesse said. “So it’s always just been me and (my wife).”

But it hasn’t always been easy for the couple.

Between 17-hour workdays, waking up at 4 a.m. to prepare or constant driving back and forth at night to check to see if the fires are still going, one thing is clear — it takes a certain level of dedication to remain in business.

Fortunately, dedication is something that the couple has in spades.

“It’s very time consuming, but we enjoy it,” Jesse said. “I think we’ve got a reputation to uphold for having some really good barbecue.

We could’ve done another type of restaurant years ago, but we decided not to venture that way and just stay like we are. And we hope to stay that way for a few more years to come.”

PHOTO & STORY BY JONATHAN BRYANT camellia magazine | 13

LOCAL GRILL MASTER

BBQ 65 cooking up true Southern fare The lingering aroma of barbecue in the air is as revealing of summer’s approach as any other sign of the season in the South.

Even BBQ 65 owner Joseph Connell, who has traveled much of the United States in the pursuit of his craft, can’t quite put his finger on what makes barbecue so ingrained within Southern culture.

But it’s one mystery he is perfectly content with leaving unsolved.

“I’ve cooked all across this country, from as east as South Carolina to the Rocky Mountains of Nevada and Colorado down to the beaches of Florida, and it’s just something about the South and barbecue,” Connell said. “You can’t find anything like it anywhere else — the time of year, the smell of honeysuckle and barbecue in the air everywhere you go — it’s hard to beat. People love it.”

It’s a love that Connell has relied on for the past several months, and he’s received it from locals and interstate traffic alike.

And with several summer functions looming on the horizon and the impending football season, BBQ 65 will be busier than ever before in the months to come.

But catering services for crowds of all sizes is something that the restaurant has begun to excel at and, more importantly, local customers are beginning to pick up on that fact.

And though one would be remiss to dismiss the charm in cooking outdoors in the comforts of one’s own home, Connell aims to save Greenville residents a little hassle during those big celebrations.

“A lot of times when you get people over to your house, and you’re the one doing the entertaining, your plate’s pretty full,” Connell

PHOTO & STORY BY JONATHAN BRYANT 14 | camellia magazine

said. “Barbecue isn’t something you can throw on the grill and walk away from, and it’s just so easy for people to come and get a slab of ribs or two instead of taking three or four hours to cook it. It just makes life easier.”

But he has placed a deliberate focus on the customers that make return trips.

“We’ve been welcomed with smiling faces and open arms, and people have been very supportive,” Connell said. “I concentrated first of all on getting to know the locals and getting the word of mouth out locally before I did any big signs for the interstate because the locals are who will really support me and get behind me to make it work. And that’s who I want to go after first and let them know what we’re here for and what all we can do for them, and so far, so good.”

Discover... the difference we make at Butler County Bank.

281 Greenville Bypass • Greenville, AL 36037

(334) 371-1000 • www.butlercountybank.com

camellia magazine | 15

Summer Sippin’

16 | camellia magazine

W

hen the mercury begins to climb to triple digits, Southerners know just where to turn for both refreshment and relief — a tall glass full of ice cubes and tea.

And by tea, we are of course talking about sweet tea. After all, we did say Southerners.

Sweet tea has long been a staple of hot summer days in the Deep South, dating back to 1879 when the first recipe resembling sweet tea appeared in Marion Cabell Tyree’s “Housekeeping in Old Virginia.”

Down below the Mason-Dixon line, sweet tea recipes are a source of pride. In some families, they are handed down from generation to generation.

Some recipes call for the use extra tea bags to increase the astringency.

Others allow the tea to steep longer. Some add the sugar to water and stir until it dissolves, while others add the sugar to the hot tea.

And of course, there is the amount of sugar to be used.

Whatever the recipe, one thing is for certain. Sweet tea is king on Southern summer days. But if you’re looking to add a little variety to your summer sipping, try some of these recipes that put a new twist on the Southern staple of iced tea.

SUN TEA Ingredients: 3 family sized tea bags 1 quart water Glass or translucent pitcher Directions: Put the water and tea bags in the pitcher. Put the pitcher in direct sunlight and let sit. In 30 minutes to an hour the tea is ready to drink. Add cold water to get the tea to the desired strength and refrigerate.

Note: The sun does not usually heat water up enough to kill all the bacteria, so you should take proper cleaning procedures and throw out the tea if you notice that it’s extra thick or has strands in it, or is syrupy. These are all signs of bacteria.

PEACH ICED TEA COOLER Ingredients: 1 pitcher of iced tea chilled and sweetened to taste.

4 cups of fresh or frozen peach slices without peel.

Directions: Blend 1 cup of peaches in a blender with 1 cup of the iced tea to make a very smooth puree. Mix puree into the pitcher of iced tea. Add the rest of the frozen peach slices into the pitcher of iced tea. Let sit in refrigerator for 1 hour. Stir and serve chilled.

PINEAPPLE ICED TEA Ingredients: 1/2 gallon water 12 regular size tea bags 3 teaspoons of fresh mint 1 2/3 cups if sugar 12 ounces of pineapple juice 6 ounces of fresh lemon juice Directions: Bring water to a boil. Put in tea bags and mint and let steep for 3 minutes. Remove the mint. Continue to steep the tea bags until water is very dark. This should take about 30 minutes. Remove tea bags. While tea is still warm, add sugar and juices, stirring to dissolve sugar. Pour into a gallon container, adding enough water to fill to the gallon level mark. Chill. Serve iced with mint sprigs and pineapple spears if desired.

camellia magazine | 17

ICED PEPPERMINT TEA Ingredients: Water 4 peppermint flavor tea bags 1/4 cup of honey 2 tablespoons of lemon juice Ice cubes Lemon slices Directions: In a 2 quart heat proof pitcher pour 2 cups of freshly boiled water over tea bags. Let steep for 6 minutes; remove and discard tea bags. Stir in honey, lemon juice and 2 cups of cold water. Add ice cubes and lemon slices.

STRAWBERRY ICED TEA Ingredients: 1 pint of fresh strawberries 1/2 a cup of granulated sugar 5 cups of boiling water 5 tea bags (green or black tea) 1 can (12 oz.) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed 1 quart of sparkling water, or seltzer Ice Directions: Clean and trim the strawberries. Place them in a bowl with the sugar-mix to coat and set aside. Steep the tea bags with the boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove tea bags and cool. Stir the cooled tea into the strawberry mixture. Add the lemonade. Place in a large pitcher and chill. Before serving stir in the seltzer and pour over ice cubes.

LAVENDER AND LIME TEA Ingredients: 3 tablespoons of crushed fresh lavender flowers or 1 teaspoon dried lavender flowers 1 cup of boiling water 1 6 ounce can of frozen limeade concentrate 5 lavender flower sprigs Directions: Place the lavender in a small teapot or bowl. Pour the boiling water over the flowers. Steep, covered, for at least 10 minutes, or until cool. Prepare the limeade according to directions. Stir and strain the tea into the limeade. Serve over ice, with the flower sprigs for garnish.

18 | camellia magazine

My mom and dad read the newspaper.

They know what’s up around here.

The Greenville Advocate www.greenvilleadvocate.com

Consider a

Healthcare Profession Education is available

Lurleen B. Wallace Community College Andalusia Greenville and Opp Campuses

334-222-6591 www.lbwcc.edu

camellia magazine | 19

home

Something old,

20 | camellia magazine

something new

camellia magazine | 21

Dewey, Donna Marie, Davis and Kathryn Crocker pose on the front steps of their home in Pine Apple. The home, which was completed in 2001, blends well with its neighbors, many of which are more than a century old.

D

ewey and Donna Marie Crocker’s new home blends well with its neighbors, many of which are more than a century old.

From its double verandas on the front, to its gentle-sloping hip roof, to its row of nine over six windows, the Crocker’s home appears at home, so to speak, among the 19th century homes that line the street in Pine Apple.

That’s no accident.

When the Crockers purchased the lot in 1999, just four years after the home, which originally sat on the lot, burned to the ground, the Crockers set out to build a modern home that paid tribute

to the historic homes in the area.

The couple enlisted the help of architect Ward Thigpen to design the house, and Galahad Smith’s Southland Builders to bring the design to life. The house was completed in 2001.

“We wanted our house to fit in with the other houses in the area,” Donna Marie said. “We wanted it to have the look of a home built in the 1800s, but still be a modern home.”

Mission accomplished.

“We had some guys in laying carpet, and one of them made the comment that whoever built this old house sure got it square,” Dewey said with a laugh.

It’s easy to understand why

the man would have believed the house was a historic home with a few modern touches added inside.

The Crockers have gone to great lengths to mimic the older homes in the area, such as finding just the right shade of blue to paint the ceilings above the porches.

“That’s the same color that would have been used in the late 1800s,” Donna Marie said. “It’s suppose to help keep birds from building nests, and it also helps keep the bugs off of you because they fly up toward the ceiling.

Whenever we could we wanted things to be as close to how they would have been done during

PHOTOS & STORY BY ANDY BROWN 22 | camellia magazine

the time the other houses in this area were built.”

Why go to such great lengths to blend old with new?

Because older homes offer something newer homes typically do not — character.

The charm of an old home lies in such adornments as fireplaces, open staircases, high ceilings and wood floors.

The Crockers home, while just more than 10 years old, has all these features, while also adding the modern conveniences typically found in newer homes.

It truly is something old, and something new — a near perfect blend of the 19th and 21st centuries.

A PIECE OF HISTORY: The Crocker’s home site is listed as a historic landmark on the National Register of Historic Places as part of Pine Apple’s Historic District. While the home wasn’t built until 2001, the home site featured plenty of history with a round brick well dating back past 1937, landscape elements such as a stone retaining wall and notable box, redbud, juniper and camellia plantings, as well as large pecan and oak trees. With these landscape features taken into account, officials added the site to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999, despite the fact that the house that originally sat on the lot, which was built around 1880, burned to the ground in 1995.

camellia magazine | 23

ALL IN THE FAMILY: A pair of cast concrete planters that were made by Donna Marie Crocker’s great uncle McDuffie Stallworth sit on both sides of the steps leading up to the front porch. A playhouse built by Stallworth and his wife Juliet Norred Stallworth also sits adjacent to the house. The playhouse was built in 1935 for the couple’s nieces. The two-room playhouse is made of heart pine with five windows and a small front porch.

When the house was built, it also featured a working fireplace and brick chimney. The playhouse, which was used by Crocker’s mother, Kitty Lamkin, Crocker and her daughter, Kathryn Crocker, was moved to the Crocker’s home in 2002.

24 | camellia magazine

JUST A TOUCH: While the Crockers try not to overdue the use of the pineapple in decorating their home, there are several items that pay homage to the town’s name scattered throughout the house, including a golden pineapple lamp and a crystal pineapple in the living room.

camellia magazine | 25

SUNDAY GATHERING SPOT: The dining room serves as the home for Donna Marie Crocker’s piano, which was a college graduation gift from her parents. The room also features a pair of china cabinets that hold the family’s china collection and a buffet made of English Oak. While the room features a number of family heirlooms, Donna Marie said the room isn’t only for display. “We use every room in our house, including the dining room,” she said. “We have several tables throughout the house that we can eat on, but this is our favorite spot to gather for Sunday breakfast.”

26 | camellia magazine

NOW WE’RE COOKING: The house’s kitchen was designed to be a work space, first and foremost. The kitchen was designed in such a way to allow multiple cooks to be working on multiple tasks, while still providing room for guests to visit with their hosts in the kitchen. “I designed this kitchen as a place to cook, not a showcase,” Donna Marie said. “I love to cook and when we built the kitchen we made sure there was plenty of counterspace.

There’s also plenty of room for guests to sit at the table and visit while we cook.” Shelves that hang above the L-shaped counters put dishes easily within reach, while also putting the dishes on display.

“I like to have them out, because I collect them, but we use all of them,” Donna Marie said.

camellia magazine | 27

GREAT ESCAPE: The home features three porches, each 40 feet by 10 feet. The porches, one of which runs the length of the house on the second floor, serve as a favorite reading spot, a place to drink coffee in the morning and shady spot to enjoy the outdoors and even a meal.

28 | camellia magazine

OUTDOOR LIVING: When the Crockers built their home in 2001, a swimming pool was added to the property. The family maintains the pool year round as has been in the water as late as October and as early as the first of February. “It’s important for us to be outside, and we love to be out around the pool all year long,” Donna Marie said. “We grill out here, eat meals out here, and just enjoy the water. We’ve loved having it.”

camellia magazine | 29

Box office

BY MICHAEL NIMMER

T

he summer of 2013 has been a huge success at the box office and we are only half way through the movie season. In part due to Man of Steel, June has had the highest box office sales of any June in movie history. And with more highly anticipated movies to come, this summer could easily be a box office record.

THE LONE RANGER - JULY 3 After the huge success of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Disney began looking for a new movie with sequel potential. Hoping to equal the worldwide success of Pirates, Disney settled on The Lone Ranger. With the same producers, director and film crew from Pirates, it was only fitting that Johnny Depp be added to the cast to play the iconic Tonto and add his creative talent to the character.

The Lone Ranger follows the tale of a Texas Ranger, played by Armie Hammer, left for dead who is rescued by an eccentric Indian named Tonto. In order to fight the people that killed his Ranger posse, Tonto convinces our hero to hide his identity and with his help, fight back as a masked Ranger with his white hat and white horse. Trailers show a big budget action movie mixed with humor and a Tonto that only Johnny Depp could bring to the big screen.

The Lone Ranger will be the big box office draw over the July 4th weekend and certainly looks to be one of the biggest movies of the year.

TURBO – JULY 17 Turbo is an animated movie from DreamWorks Animation that tells the story of a snail that dreams of being fast. Despite his constant training and practice, he can only manage to crepe along at a typical snail’s pace. While out dreaming of being faster, Turbo is sucked into a nitrous unit in a car and his body is altered, making him super fast. With his new speed, he wants to go after his biggest dream, winning the famed Indy 500 and racing against the fastest cars in the world.

30 | camellia magazine

hits heating up screen RED 2 – JULY 19 RED was an unexpected hit in 2010. It followed a retired CIA agent named Frank Moss (Bruce Willis) that attempts to adjust to a normal, boring life after life as a top agent.

His mundane daily routine is interrupted when he is attacked at his home by heavily armed assailants trying to kill him. To find out what is happening, Frank breaks into CIA headquarters where he learns he has been labeled RED, Retired Extremely Dangerous. The secrets he knows have made him a top target for CIA agents, so he contacts his former associates to help him stay alive while he tries to end the mission to eliminate him.

That success has led to a sequel entitled RED 2 scheduled for midJuly release. This time our retired heroes are on a mission to track down a missing portable nuclear device before it reaches terrorists or rouge dictators looking for the latest weapons technology. With limited resources, they must rely on their old school training and skills to save the world and stay alive at the same time.

RIDDICK – SEPT. 6 After his success of Fast and Furious, Vin Diesel returns to play Riddick in the third installment of The Chronicles of Riddick series.

After a disappointing sequel, this movie returns to the formula that THE WOLVERINE – JULY 26 made Pitch Black a surprise hit.

Our movie opens with Riddick After 3 X-Men movies and one solo movie, Hugh Jackman has built a huge following playing Marbetrayed by his people and left for vel’s The Wolverine. The next release follows Logan as he continues to look for clues to his past while dead on a desolate planet where trying to understand the mutation that allows him to heal almost instantly and live forever. Lonely and he fights for survival against alien struggling with his immortality, he realizes that everyone that he loves dies and he lives a tormented, predators. Bounty hunters learn painful life of loneliness. about his location and arrive to Attempting to get away from his inner pain, Logan travels to Japan where he meets a person from kill him and collect the reward. his past promising to reverse his mutation and make him mortal again. Doubting his ability to reverse Unknown to them, they soon realthe mutation, Logan undergoes the procedure that will finally free him from his eternal torment. ize they are part of Riddick’s plan Only after mortal and vulnerable for the first time does Logan learn he has been tricked and ento escape the desolate planet and emies from his past are revealed. Now mortal, Wolverine must face those out to kill him without his return to his home world of Furya ability to heal his wounds. His only chance for survival is to defeat his personal struggle with mortality to save it from destruction. and face his enemies with renewed purpose. camellia magazine | 31

Perceptions

Fashion Versus Function

T

he older I get the more practical I become. That seems to be the curse, and somehow the perk, of growing older. Yet, in my youth, I often fell victim to quite a few dilemmas over practicality. None were greater than those made over fashion versus function.

If you are a woman, at some point in your life, you have had to deal with this debacle, which seems to occur most often when shoes are involved.

Why must we, sensible women that we are, let cuteness be the victor in shoe choice when we know that some of the adorable shoes we covet will become the bane of our existence when we wear them? Have our blisters and cramped toes taught us nothing over the years?

Although I have stumbled, fallen, and sprained a few things because of cute shoes, I wish I could tell you those were my worst crimes when fashion and function clashed in my life. Yes, I wish I could tell you that, but of course, I can’t.

In my early twenties, I started wearing glasses to correct my nearsightedness. For a brief period, glasses were even fashionable. People would buy frames with plain glass lenses to achieve the supposed “intelligence” factor that was the rage at the time. This 32 | camellia magazine

Mollie Smith Waters trend quickly fell out of favor, though, most likely due to the fact that glasses are uncomfortable and leave imprints on the nose.

Whatever the reason for their demise, I was unable to give up my glasses because I needed to see, but the thought of putting something foreign in my eyes, say contact lenses, just never interested me.

Unfortunately, my desire to be cute often won out over my need for vision, so I would banish my glasses to the bottom of my purse for many a night of fun and frivolity. Of course, this is where the fiasco comes in.

My two favorite cousins and I traveled to Destin to celebrate a birthday. While there, we went to a club that had a large outdoors area where people could mix and mingle.

At one point, I noticed a man looking in the general direction of our table.

Blind as a bat because of my vanity, I couldn’t tell what the guy was really looking at, or even looked like for that matter, but I smiled all the same. That was a mistake. As the man approached our table, I quickly checked with one of my cousins to find out what exactly I had just attracted.

She frowned. Just my luck, the guy turned out to be a homely hulk of a man from Europe.

When I asked which part of Europe, I got the vague answer of “all over.” I spent the next hour getting rid of our nomadic European, who could have been avoided altogether had I just been practical enough to wear my glasses.

Fashion certainly won out over function in that case, but I learned my lesson! From then on out, I wore my glasses, until I got Lasik, which cured that particular problem at least.

These days, I no longer have to worry about glasses, yet my desire for shiny objects still leads me astray from time to time. Thankfully at least, my longing for cute shoes tends to lose out over my need for blister-free feet, but every now and then, I still indulge my craving to be fashionable only to be reminded that function is more important. It’s a lesson we must all learn, but unfortunately, most of us have to learn it the hard way.

Surefire best-seller

BY MOLLIE SMITH WATERS

D

an Brown has a recipe for success: take Robert Langdon, add a female love interest, and put them in a race against time to save the world.

The outcome?

Bestseller!

Brown’s latest thriller Inferno follows what has become the author’s status quo writing formula, but as the old adage goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”

Just released in May 2013, Inferno is the much anticipated follow-up of The Lost Symbol. An improvement over the previous book as far as plot and location go, Inferno finds Robert Langdon, Harvard professor of symbology, waking up in a hospital in Florence, Italy, with a bullet wound to his head and absolutely no memory of the previous two days’ events. Before the doctors can explain what has happened to him, a woman breeches hospital security, kills one of the doctors, and is about to finish what she previously failed to do: assassinate Langdon. Fortunately, the surviving doctor, Sienna Brooks, is quick on her feet and manages to get Langdon to safety before the hit woman can complete her mission.

Following this second murder attempt, Langdon and Brooks must work together to discover why he is in Florence, what the strange artifact in his possession is, and more importantly, why someone is trying to kill him! Their only clue is that the artifact has a hidden projection device that depicts a map of hell based on Dante Alighieri’s work The Divine Comedy. Standing in the way of the duo’s quest for answers are the female assassin, a special operations unit of the Florence police depart-

ment, a secretive group known only as the Consortium, and a mysterious silver-haired lady.

Devoted Dan Brown fans will be pleased with Inferno. Although it is not as engaging as the critically acclaimed The Da Vinci Code, Inferno is better than The Lost Symbol and has a plot that is slightly more probable than Angels & Demons. Those new to Brown’s series featuring Robert Langdon will be able to follow the work with ease, though knowing the character’s previous experiences is helpful.

Like all of his other novels featuring Langdon, Brown once again incorporates the vast world of science into this book as well. Previously having explored genetics and dark matter, this time Brown gives his readers a mad scientist, Bertrand Zobrist, bent on saving the world even if it means destroying half its population in the process. Although Zobrist commits suicide during the story’s opening segment, he leaves behind a little gift that could very well spell doom for mankind. How Zobrist ties in to Langdon’s troubles might seem obvious, but what Brown does with this complication is to bring a current and very real problem to the forefront of his novel.

Although the book weighs in at a hefty 480 pages, Brown’s ability to end each chapter with a nice hook keeps the action going at a steady pace. Some readers may find that the escape segment through Florence’s Boboli Gardens goes on for too long.

Yet, the author’s worst crime is his usage of Langdon’s remembrances of past lectures to move along important elements of the plot. This approach for divulging crucial information just seems lazy.

Full of history, symbolism, litera-

ture, and geography, Inferno makes a good summer read for those who enjoy the action of a thriller and who do not mind having to research one or two of the author’s finer points. Sure to top bestseller’s lists for months to come, Inferno is another Dan Brown success.

Mollie Smith Waters is an English, speech, and theatre instructor at Lurleen B. Wallace Community College in Greenville and a contributing writer to Camellia Magazine.

Inferno

By Dan Brown Doubleday, $29.95 480 pages

camellia magazine | 33

out & about 4

1 2

5

3

OPENING NIGHT OF PUTTING ON THE RITZ 1. Christy Bozeman, Camille Bozeman and Karen Fail 2. Barb Ausderau and Ellen Burkhalter 3. Veronica Blackmon, Zymia Canaty and Debra Canaty 4. Heath Peavy, Chloe Peavy and Stephanie Peavy 5. Amy Morris, Pete Waller and Cari Waller

PHOTOS BY TRACY SALTER

34 | camellia magazine

out & about 1

3 4

2

5 TABLESCAPES 1. (Standing from left to right) Kathy McGough, Lisa Huggins, Tina Woodson, and Stacey Edwards. (Seated from left to right) Madden Bozeman, Abbie Salter and Anna Salter 2. (Standing from left to right) Edna Woodruff, Velma Blackmon, Martha Matthews, Larry Blackmon, Deb Crook, and Pauline Alexander. (Seated) Sue Crook 3. Susie McIntyre and Jeanie Cobb 4. Mandy Little and Cynthia Andrews 5. April Gregory, Holly Lowe, Joann Mathews, and Laura Gibbs PHOTOS BY TRACY SALTER

camellia magazine | 35

out & about 1

4

2 5

3

6

STABLER CLINIC & SOUTHERN CARE AFTER HOURS 1. Tonya Mahan, Dr. Kristine Ortega, Dr. Vijay Tirumalasetty and Wendy Killough 2. April Cowles, Kay Bowden, Joann Mathews, and Monica Stringer 3. Jerome Antone and Ann Browder 4. Rodger Harris, Laura Sadowski and John Snellgrove 5. Theresa Scott, Caroline Snellgrove and Kathryn McGowin 6. David Norrell, Niki Bennett and Kevin Pearcey PHOTOS BY TRACY SALTER

36 | camellia magazine

out & about 1

4

2 5

3 6

RELAY FOR LIFE 1. Raymond Harrison, Charles Langford, and Van Earnest 2. Tina Luker, Denise Colvin, Chastity Waters, and Susan Braden 3. Natalie Langford, Clyde Mills, April Langford, and Bryan Hilton 4. Brandy and AnnaBell Morris 5. McKinna Duke and Kelsey Crysell 6. Dale and Lane Simmons PHOTOS BY TRACY SALTER

llassea

sleep systems

camellia magazine | 37

out & about SENIOR CENTER BINGO

1

1. (Sitting) Elizabeth Raybon, Dorothy Willians, Nina MacGuire and Louella Parsons. (Standing) Nancy Kahle, Bruce Kahle, Valeria Stacey, Cathy Brown, Myra Blackburn, Joann Mathews, and Mary Lawrence. 2.

Mavis Sawyer, Gayle Knighton, and Frances Jordan. 3. (First row) Rilla Gardner, Lois Martin, and Vondell Herring. (Second row) Syble Vaughn, Mary Jones, Joann Mathews, and Loraine Pierce.

PHOTOS BY TRACY SALTER

2

38 | camellia magazine

3

out & about 1

2

3 4

CALICO FORT 1. Mylean Hitson, Leta Heartsill, Richard Payne and Bonnie Stinson 2. Elizabeth Gregory, Mason Till, Rosie McLain, Austin Till and R. T. Gregory 3. Kennedy Kemp, Loletta Kemp, Jaden Kemp and Bruce Palmer 4. Donna Johns and Shelby Overstreet PHOTOS BY MICHAEL RODGERS

速

camellia magazine | 37

out & about CALICO FORT

1

1. Sam Barganier, Allen Piggott, Jennifer Piggott, Emily Myrick and Emma Ryals 2. Adrian D. Johnson, Mandy Johnson and Harper Johnson 3. Joseph Barganier and Owen Stassi

PHOTOS BY MICHAEL RODGERS

2

40 | camellia magazine

3

out & about 1

2

3 4

NWTF BANQUET 1. Pat Gregory, Richard Smith, and Kenneth Hadley 2. Russell Gregory, and Reuben Burkett 3. Joy Rogers, Michelle Barrow, Jennifer Skipper 4.

Melisa Campbell and Todd Campbell

PHOTOS BY APRIL GREGORY

5

6

CAMELLIA ON VACATION 5. Joshua Bullard, John Landon Bednarski, Alexx Bednarski, Duchi Bednarski, Skye Bartlett, and James Jones 6. Dewey Boggan and Chae Brown

camellia magazine | 41

lasting impression PHOTO BY APRIL GREGORY

“Of two sisters one is always the watcher, one the dancer.”

— Louise Glück

Keeping You Connected

TV t Free Standard Service on additional outlets t Even more viewing options with the Bright House TV app for select Apple® and Android™ devices

HIGH SPEED INTERNET t Choice of speeds to fit your needs t Save on your mobile data plan with FREE access to Bright House Networks WiFi™ HotSpots – available in public locations around town

PHONE t Unlimited Nationwide calling to the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada t International Long Distance plans to 50+ countries

Visit us at: 320 Greenville Bypass, Greenville, AL 1-855-222-0102 | brighthouse.com Serviceable areas only. Some restrictions apply. Products and price of equipment and services subject to change.

Apple is a registered trademark of Apple Inc. Android is a trademark of Google Inc.