February 2014 PineStraw by PineStraw Magazine

Fine Homes . . . www.prudentialpinehurst.com

“Boxwood Court”: One-of-a-kind property on 2.62 acres in the historic district of Old Town Pinehurst. Vintage home, built around 1905, with extensive renovations & upgrades. 5BR/5BA/3HB. $1,950,000 Linda Criswell 910.783.7374

“Shawdowlawn”: Stunning Old Town Pinehurst estate! Situated on 1.5 private acres of lush landscaping. Beautiful hardwood flooring, 7-Frplcs, Elevator. Amazing detail work! 6BR/7BA/2HB. $1,795,000 Emily Hewson 910.315.3324

Knollwood Heights: A true treasure built & designed by Donald Ross in the 1920s. Poised perfectly on a 2.31 acre lot. Charming estate! Leaded windows, wide plank original oak flooring, 3-Frplcs. 4BR/7.5BA. $1,650,000 Maureen Clark 910.315.1080

Old Town Pinehurst: Astonishing & masterful ground-up renovation of the former “Rectory House.” Gourmet Kitchen: 6-burner Wolf gas range, 2-dishwashers, granite countertops. 5BR/5BA/2HB. $1,275,000 Emily Hewson 910.315.3324

Clarendon Gardens: Restored with every attention to detail.

Historic Farmhouse: Stunning 3-story Victorian surrounded

Old Town Pinehurst: “Liscombe Lodge”, circa 1927, restored with quality, elegance and exquisite detail inside and out. New Kitchen, Master Suite. Charming Guest Cottage. Rich history! 4BR/4BA. $1,150,000 Emily Hewson 910.315.3324

National: Gracious and elegant, golf front home with water views. “1999” Southern Living Idea House. Beautiful architectural details inside and out! 4BR/4BA/2HB. Simply Stunning! $1,125,000 Emily Hewson 910.315.3324

Old Town Pinehurst: “Edgewood Cottage” - Vintage Dutch Colonial, circa 1928, Renovated. Loaded with character and charm! Heart pine floors; 4-Fireplaces; 2-Living Rooms; Pool with Pool House. 4BR/4.5BA. $1,000,000 Eva Toney 910.638.0972

Fairwoods on 7 - Golf Front: Specatacular home over 4,700sf - 3BR/3BA/2HF, 60’ lap pool, office, wrkshp/exercise area. Designed by Stagaard & Chao. See: www.60BraemarRoad.com Judy & Jerry Townley 910.690.7080

7 Lakes West: Lake Front! www.103CookPoint.com Exceptional home on Lake Auman! 4BR/3.5BA. Magnificent Lake view! Bulk-head, Boat Dock! Superior Workmanship! $975,000 Frank Sessoms 910.639.3099

Fairwoods on 7: Built to Green Specifications! Overlooks

Rich hardwood flooring, beamed ceilings, 2-Sitting Rooms, Master Suites up & down, Carolina Room & more! 7BR/6.6BA. $1,250,000 Emily Hewson 910.315.3324

Pinehurst: 910.295.5504

by 5-Paddocks & shaded by old hardwoods. The best of new & old! 14-Stall Barn w/2BR/2BA Carriage House. $1,195,000 Maureen Clark 910.315.1080

2nd & 6th Golf Course Holes. Beautifully designed! Gourmet kitchen opens to family room with course views. 3BR/3BA/2HB. $950K Maureen Clark 910.315.1080

Southern Pines: 910.692.2635

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in the Sandhills www.prudentialpinehurst.com

CCNC: Golf front, spacious home! 4BR/3BA/2HB, hdwd flrs, 2-car gar, office, Carolina rm, hearth rm, dining rm. Ktchn w/new stainless appliances! 5+ac, spring bulbs, azaleas, dogwoods. Beautiful! $885K Carolyn Hallett 910.986.2319

CCNC: Private & Secluded! Winding drive to 4BR/3BA/2HB brick home, 3-car garage, 6.59ac. Fabulous Master ensuite; gourmet Ktchn w/Rutt cabinets, granite & warming-oven. Park-like backyard w/waterfall. $844,500 Carolyn Hallett 910.986.2319

Pinewild: Golf Front all brick home, over 4,900 sq.ft. of elegance. 4BR/4.5BA. 31x14 master suite, 36x30 living room & 18x16 dining room. Stainless appliances & granite in Ktchn. www.19McMichaelDrive.com Judy & Jerry Townley 910.690.7080

Pinewild: Indulge yourself in this magnificent golf front, brick

Old Town Pinehurst: The dream golf retreat! Over 4,000

Pine Grove Village: Over 5,100 sq.ft., 5BR/3.5BA, new Sun

Pinewild: Golf Front, brick home with 3,800 sq.ft. of living space. Recently renovated and repainted. Hardwoods, open floor plan with 2nd floor double bonus rooms (4th Bdrm). 3BR/4.5BA. $500,000 Arvilla Sheron 910.639.5133 Mike Edie 910.603.0083

Pinewild: Elegant, comfortable living in this move-in ready, golf front home. Formal living & dining area; multi-pained windows, crown moulding, hardwood & gas-log fireplace. 3BR/2.5BA. $449,500 Kay Beran 910.315.3322

CCNC: Perfect 3BR, 2BA floor plan with gorgeous water

views; wrap-around back deck with awnings. Villas has formal rooms, wet bar, Carolina Room, eat-in Kitchen, large Master Suite. $440,000 Carolyn Hallett 910.986.2319

“Joel’s Crossing”: A magical 1900s farm house with addition

Pine Grove Village: Beautiful updated 3BR/2.5BA, brick ranch w/stainless & quartz, hrdwd floors, 10’ smooth ceilings, insulated windows, new roof, covered porch; Farm Life Schools! $348,500 Carolyn Hallett 910.986.2319

Golf Front: Dramatic 2-story living room overlooks the par 3 15th hole of Course #5 & pond. 3BR/3.5BA, over 2,800 sq.ft.! Spacious guest rooms upstairs with cozy loft. See: www.925StAndrewsDrive.com Judy & Jerry Townley 910.690.7080

home with over 6,000sq.ft. Lower level Recreational Room. 5BR/4.5BA and a Bonus Room. 3-Car Garage. $719,000 Arvilla Sheron 910.639.5133 Mike Edie 910.603.0083

that includes a great room, master suite w/sitting room, library, office & entry. Beautifully landscaped 6+acres. 3BR/4BA. $359,500 Maureen Clark 910.315.1080

sq.ft. - spacious, open floor plan, hardwood, wonderful kitchen w/Thermador ovens, 6-burner gas Thermador cooktop & more! 4BR/3.5BA. $699,000 Maureen Clark 910.315.1080

Rm, Master with 15x10 Sitting Rm. & 14x12 Exercise Rm. 4 Bedrooms upstairs & a large bonus room/office. See: www.220TallTimbersDrive.com Judy & Jerry Townley 910.690.7080

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PineStraw M A G A Z I N E

Dress the Part for Your Sweetheart

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2 February 2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

February 2014

Departments

Volume 9, No. 2

9 Sweet Tea Chronicles Jim Dodson

12 PinePitch 15 Cos and Effect Cos Barnes

17 The Omnivorous Reader Stephen E. Smith

21 N.C. Writer’s Notebook Sandra Redding

22 Bookshelf 25 Hollywood in the Hills Gayvin Powers

29 Hitting Home Dale Nixon

31 Vine Wisdom Robyn James

32 The Kitchen Garden Jan Leitschuh

35 The Love Beat Deborah Salomon

37 The Pleasures of Life Tom Allen

39 Out of the Blue Deborah Salomon

41 An Englishwoman in the Sandhills Serena Brown

43 Birdwatch Susan Campbell

45 The Sporting Life Tom Bryant

Features

Lee Pace

53 God’s Honest Truth

49 Golftown Journal

76 83 85 91

Calendar Sandhills Photo Club SandhillSeen Thoughts from the Manshed Geoff Cutler

93 The Accidental Astrologer Astrid Stellanova

95 PineNeedler Mart Dickerson

96 SouthWords

Poetry by Ruth Moose

54 Saving Sam

By Karen McCollom

A Love Story

58 Learning to Skate By Tracy Wilson

An Angel Appeared. A Lesson was Relearned

60 The Secret Life of Overhills: Part Two By Gayvin Powers

The Gentleman Painter

64 Thoroughly Modern Romance By Deborah Salomon

A Brilliant Restoration and an Affair of the Heart

75 February Almanac By Noah Salt

Cover Photograph and Photograph this page by Tim Sayer

Ed Peele

4 February 2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

PINEHURST

$295,000

This exquisite golf front home in beautiful Pinehurst #6 is located on the 18th Fairway with wonderful panoramic views from the deck! This home features stunning hardwood floors, a large open floor plan, walls of windows and the master bedroom features two large walk in custom closets! 3 BR / 2.5 BA Code 1100 17 Squires Lane

PINEHURST

$895,000

WHISPERING PINES

$259,000

$199,000

“Talent, Technology & TEAMWORK” Moore County’s Most Trusted Real Estate Team

This lovely home sits high on a beautifully wooded site and overlooks Lake Thagard and the Whispering Pines Golf Course - Stunning views from almost every room! The interior is cozy and inviting - the kitchen was recently renovated. Private dock. This is a great house! 3 BR / 3 BA Code 1101 183 Lakeview Drive

OLD TOWN

$449,000

$258.000 $179,000 Southern Pines Pinehurst $199,900 Foxfire Lovely and pristine in Longleaf CC Lovely updated golf-front home Cute cottage w/nice renovations 3 BR / 2 BA 3 BR / 2 BA 4 BR / 4.5 BA www.205HunterTrail.com www.4DogwoodCourt.com www.17ChestnutLane.com “Rosemary’s Lodge” Gorgeous home in the Village of Pinehurst. This home was taken down to the foundation and completely rebuilt and expanded by Joe Ussery in 2005. The very best of both worlds - location in the Village and up to date renovations that honor the style and period of the original. You’ll have to see this one to believe it! 4 BR / 3.5 BA Code 978 50 Orange Road

SEVEN LAKES SOUTH

Stroll over to the Seven Lakes Country Club for a drink on the covered patio and watch the golfers make their final shots of the day. Enjoy the views of the 1st hole of the Seven Lakes Country Club from the spacious sunroom of this lovely one story home. Great floor plan very open and light. This is a wonderful location on the golf course! 3 BR / 2.5 BA Code 972 122 E. Devonshire Avenue

SEVEN LAKES WEST

$698,000

$585,000 Aberdeen $145,500 Pinehurst Fantastic, all-brick golf front home Cute home on large corner lot 4 BR / 3.5 BA 3 BR / 2 BA www.80LakewoodDrive.com www.110RavenswoodRoad.com

Quintessential Pinehurst Cottage with views of the famous #2 golf course and easy walking distance to the Village! Charming and beautifully maintained, this historic home offers high ceilings and moldings, hardwood floors, oversized windows, and lots of light! Enjoy the Pinehurst lifestyle! 2 BR / 2 BA Code 986 105 Palmetto Road

Gorgeous big water view w/eastern exposure sets off the 4 BR/3.5 BA lakefront custom home. From the spacious living room to the allure of sunshine in the Carolina Room, everything in this house is crafted to showcase natures splendor! Privacy greets you in the master suite w/private door access to deck & large master bath. A split bedroom design lends privacy to guest suites & lake level family room is an excellent space for Lake Front entertaining. Vast storage space. 4 BR / 3.5 BA Code 993 129 Shaw Drive

$329,000 $890,000 Longleaf CC $449,000 Pinehurst $239,000 CCNC Pinehurst $75,000 Pinehurst Custom Built Villa Overlooking Water Custom built all brick golf-front home Brick single story w/view of 17th green Covered porch & large fenced lot Updated Immaculate Golf View Condo 3 BR$585,000 / 2 BA Baths 3 BR / 2.5 BA 1 BR / 1 BA SEVEN LAKES WEST $339,000 3 BR / 2.5 BA SOUTHERN PINES $425,000 4 BR / 4 Full & 2 Half PINEHURST www.16SteeplechaseWay.com www.110HearthstoneRoad.com www.8RoyalDornoch.com www.210StAndrewsCondo.com www.1340BurningTreeRoad.com

$1,295,000 $189,000 Pinehurst $269,000 Pinehurst $475,000 Pinebluff 7 Lakes West $635,000 Pinehurst Stunning custom home in Fairwoods on 7 Charming brick ranch home GorgeoustownhomeintheheartoftheVillage Open plan, gourmet kitchen, pool & more! Stunning All Brick Water Front 4 BRand / 4wonderful BA & 2 privacy. Half BAThis special 3 BR / 2 BA 3 BR / 2.5 BA 3 BR / 2.5 BA Southern Charm! Lovingly restored, this 3 BR / 4.5 BA Gorgeous golf front home with expansive long views Private retreat on Lake Auman! Tucked away at the end of a cul-de-sac, this charming contemappealing cottage on 1.4 wooded acres in the home features hardwood floors throughout the main living areas, gourmet kitchen with beautiful neighborhood of Weymouth in Southern Pines is one of a kind! Updates include www.170InverraryRoad.com www.145SugarPineDrive.com www.105MastersWay.com www.6HollyHouse.com www.135AndrewsDrive.com porary has lots of character and appeal. This is a very private lot with good water views and great

deck space. Inside has lots of wood and windows, wonderful fireplace and an open floor plan with water views from most rooms. Workshop and storage space downstairs is a nice plus. 4 BR / 3 BA Code 1000 105 Tucker Court

MCLENDON HILLS

$565,000

a stunning addition to the master bedroom, making this truly a master suite, completely upgraded kitchen with new cabinets, flooring, granite countertops and new appliances, expanded decking and much more. Original wood floors. 5 BR / 3.5 BA Code 1012 335 Arbutus Road

PINEHURST

$349,000

granite countertops and stainless steel appliances, deep crown moldings, two gas log fireplaces and a screened porch that’s perfect for cool mornings and relaxing afternoons. The spacious downstairs area features a bedroom and bath suite, study or den with fireplace and views of the course -great for an office, also - a separate workshop! 4 BR / 3.5 BA Code 1039 80 Lakewood Drive

PINEHURST

$898,000

$269,900 $187,900 Pinehurst $185,000 Southern Pines $225,000 Pinebluff Pinehurst $375,000 Foxfire Great home in family- friendly neighborhood Stunning new construction condo Golf front new construction in The Pines Immaculate all-brick w/golf views Elegant & luxurious w/spacious rooms 5 BR / 3 BA 3 BR / 2.5 BA 3 BR / 2 BA 2 BR / 2 BA 4 BR / 3 BA www.23BerylCircle.com www.100CypressCircle.com www.153LaurelOakLane.com www.18ShamrockDrive.com www.10StantonCircle.com

Completely renovated Mayflower Cottage in Old Town Pinehurst! This historic circa 1917 Gorgeous French country farmhouse sits high on a private wooded hill on 3 fenced acres in Spectacular end unit - the ultimate in carefree living! Hardwood floors, gourmet kitchen McLendon Hills. Zoned for horses but incredibly appealing to anyone who loves space and home is beyond charming with a wrap-around porch, manicured gardens, stunning interiors, very high quality throughout this inviting home. privacy.Seven This custom builtSouth home is beautifully designed - open andPinehurst inviting - with over 3800 Lakes South $279,500 Seven Lakes West $298,000 Pinehurst $895,000 $241,000 This Lakes $199,000 gourmet kitchen, and restored HeartSeven Pine floors throughout just to name a few! The prophas been a second home - very gently used! sq ft of living area. From the gourmet kitchen to the spacious master bath with heated marble erty also a separate guest cottage for your future guests or in-laws! 3 BR / 3 BA home inCode 1057 Town Completely renovated golf front home Wonderful 2-story home on boasts cul-de-sac Gorgeous the Old Great Charming w/panoramic floors, this home simplygolf has itfront all - too much to list but aview very special housefamily you havehome to see! w/private back yard 4 BR / 5.5 BA Code 1060 85 Shadow Creek Court 4 BR / 3.5 BA 1052 4 BR / 3BA 4 BR / 3.5 BA 4 BR / 3 BA 3 BR /600 2.5Broken BA RidgeCode 55 Linden Road 3 BR / 3.5 BA Trail

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Re/Max Prime Properties, 5 Chinquapin Rd., Pinehurst, NC 910-295-7100 • 800-214-9007

February 2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

sweet tea chronicles

My Rubber Soul By Jim Dodson

It was a mo-

ment that would change America forever. A cute girl named Trudy McGivern in Miss Esther Christianson’s Sunday School class leaned over, bit her lower lip and whispered excitedly: “Are you going to watch them?”

She clearly wasn’t paying attention to Miss Esther’s Bible story. The date was February 9, 1964, a cold and rainy Sunday morning in Greensboro. Exactly one week before, on Groundhog’s Day, I turned 11. Cute girls were suddenly of great interest to me, Trudy in particular. “Who do you mean?” I whispered back. “The Beatles, silly . . .” she said, weirdly blushing. “Haven’t you heard? They’re on the Ed Sullivan Show tonight.” I remember wondering why just saying “the Beatles” could make Trudy McGivern blush. I’d heard of the Beatles, of course, had just read about how “Beatlemania” was sweeping Great Britain and soon headed to America. A couple of their hit songs — “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and “She Loves You” — had zoomed to the top of the pop music charts and were suddenly all over my favorite radio station in town. I liked both songs, though they certainly wouldn’t make me blush. I liked the the Ed Sullivan Show, too, which I’d watched faithfully on our black and white Philco TV along with Walter Cronkite’s popular history documentary show, The Twentieth Century, for years. Sunday night, in fact, was America’s best night for TV, or at least my favorite, probably because it was the only night of the week I was permitted to watch our new RCA Colortrak TV past my usual 9 p.m. bedtime. Bonanza and Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color never looked so good. Admittedly, I was mildly intrigued to hear that the Beatles were going to appear live on TV that very evening, but frankly still in the clouds from an even bigger event earlier that week. After receiving a new Stella Concertmaster guitar for my birthday on Groundhog’s Day, my father arranged for two friends and me to go backstage and meet Peter, Paul and Mary, America’s greatest folk singing trio, after their concert at the Greensboro Coliseum. As it worked out, Mary Travers vanished quickly, but Paul Stookey and Peter Yarrow stuck around to chat with a cluster of wide-eyed kids and even allowed me to briefly play one of Paul’s guitars. He was amused when I strummed the chords of “Puff the Magic Dragon,” their own hit song on the charts that faraway winter half a century ago. He then took the guitar and played the song leaving us in silent awe. Peter, Paul and Mary had my heart. So the Beatles, as you might imagine, weren’t the top of my chart. Even so, out of simple curiosity, I plunked down cross-legged in front of our TV set at 8 p.m. that dreary February night and watched the Beatles impressively perform

three different songs on the show amid orgiastic screams from hundreds of teenage girls packed into the CBS studio from which the show was broadcast. They were weeping and climbing out of the seats, pulling at their hair and even attempting to climb over balcony railings just to get at the “Fab Four,” making Trudy McGivern’s blush look like child’s play. “The thing is,” John Lennon reflected on Beatlemania some years later, “in America, it just seemed ridiculous — I mean, the idea of having a hit record over there. It was just something you could never do.” But somehow they did — registering nine songs, in fact, in the Billboard Top 100 for 1964, an unprecedented five hits alone in the top 20 for the year. Within weeks Beatlemania had hit America full force. Celebrities began wearing Beatles wigs and “The Beatles Are Coming” bumper stickers sprouted everywhere, including on my own mother’s Buick LeSabre. She loved the Beatles, particular Paul McCartney. Paul made every girl swoon, or so it seemed, from cute Trudy McGivern to my own Southern mama — who even purchased my bald-headed father his own Beatles wig for fun. He wore it to cocktail parties for years. The same Capital Records company that had rejected three Beatles songs in 1963 poured an unprecedented $50,00 into a national publicity blitz, resulting in a commercial avalanche of Beatles souvenirs. At my elementary school, Beatle magazines and bubble-gum filled Beatle cards proliferated almost overnight — and were promptly banned from playground commerce by our dark-hearted principal. Another British Invasion group was also pretty popular that Februrary, charting five pop hits in Billboard’s Top 100. Their name was the Dave Clark Five and they would have 17 Top 40 hits before they fizzled out three years later, appearing on the Ed Sullivan Show a record 18 times. Truthfully, in the beginning, I liked them more than the Beatles, which explains why when the DC5 came to the Greensboro Coliseum during the first national tour of a British pop band, I once again snagged a backstage pass to meet the band before their performance. Sadly, I recall very little from the encounter save for exchanging a brief few words with a visibly bored Lenny, the lead guitarist, whose accent was so thick I didn’t understand a word he said. Their music quickly lost its appeal. Coming just three months on the heels of the tragic assassination of a president, more than one ’60s historian has concluded, the frenzied, landmark debut of the Beatles on Ed Sullivan proved to be perhaps the other most significant and far-reaching event of the decade. They argue, and I don’t disagree, that the Beatles were initially the lift America needed in order to get over the protracted nightmare of John Kennedy’s murder — a Valentine to America in the form of young mop-headed troubadours purveying catchy guitar tunes about love and holding hands — but in a broader context ultimately a powerful agent of transformation that reshaped American society and

PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014

LAUGH

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Southern Pines, North Carolina • www.sjp.org • 910.246.1008 February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills A member of the St. Joseph of the Pines Aging Services Network continuing the legacy of the Sisters of Providence.

sweet tea chronicles

set the stage for the racial and anti-war tumults that soon followed, a vast cultural gestalt that woke up the nation from its sleepy suburban prosperity. By the time my guitar lessons at Moore Music Company allowed me to teach myself basically every song off Rubber Soul, the sixth studio album the Beatles released in late 1965, I was fully onboard with those who believed The Beatles were the musical voice of my generation. George Harrison’s introduction of the sitar in “Norwegian Wood” took popular music far out of its normal boundaries and established a new frontier for rock experimentation, while the band’s use of American R&B and soul influences matched wih conventional orchestral influences marked it as their most daring and influential album yet — shaping my own rubber soul. Not surprisingly, Harrison became my favorite Beatle. Over the span of just seven short years, the brilliance of McCartney and Lennon’s songwriting skills, Harrison’s extraordinary guitar, and the band’s revolutionary ever-changing musicality — evolving from the smiling lads who caused a near riot on Ed Sullivan to the existential flower-power poets and members of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band whose Magical Mystery Tour redefined pop culture before they finally “Let it Be” and broke apart in 1970 — would never be matched or equaled. That year I was a junior at Grimsley High, playing my gently weeping guitar in a popular quartet from the school choir called the “Queensmen” and teaching guitar at Lawndale Music Company — wooing my girlfriend Kristin with my favorite song from Rubber Soul, Lennon’s and McCartney’s incomparable “In My Life,” which I sang and played solo at a final choir performance for the year. Even today, when I hear this haunting song it stops me cold in my tracks, probably because my sweet girl Kristin died less than four years later in a manner every bit as senseless and world-changing as the deranged fan who shot and killed John Lennon. There are places I remember All my life, though some have changed

Some forever not for better, Some have gone and some remain All these places have their moments, With lovers and friends I still can recall Some are dead and some are living In my life I’ve loved them all. As illogical as it may sound, I never played the song again. But this month I fully expect to hear it and many others owing to the new wave of Beatlemania that will hit every conceivable TV, internet music and radio outlet within days — all in celebration of, and stemming from, that historic February night in 1964 when the Beatles debuted on Ed Sullivan. There are even two documentaries and a film set too. For those of us who grew up with the Beatles and their music, much time has passed and healed many things, leaving only the bitterseet memories of people and places we loved, a world before now. Ironically, several years ago, a friend phoned me excitedly one afternoon and insisted I pick up USA Today, which had published a feature in its Thursday book section about the favorite books of celebrities. One of those listed was Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary fame, a resident of Blue Hill, Maine, which was just up the highway from our village on the coast. The book he cited was Final Rounds, of all things, the book in which I told the tale of Kristin’s murder and how it changed my life. Save for that backstage encounter 50 years ago, I never got to meet Paul Stookey again. But if I ever get that privilege, I plan to thank him for his kind words about my book and — more important — being my first musical hero, even before The Beatles shook up the world and made Trudy McGivern blush. PS Contact editor Jim Dodson at jim@pinestrawmag.com

PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014

PinePitch Write Soon

Is there a precocious writer in your family? The Southern Writers Symposium invites high school students (grades 9–12) from the Sandhills (Cumberland, Harnett, Lee, Moore, Richmond, Scotland, Hoke, Robeson, Chatham and Montgomery counties) to submit an original work of fiction and/or poetry for its second Sandhills Young Writers Contest. Cash awards for winners and their schools. Submission deadline is February 17. The Symposium takes place February 21–22 at Methodist University, Fayetteville.

Golden Tickets for All

It’s a celebration of all things chocolaty at The Pinehurst Chocolate Festival on Saturday, February 8. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., there will be contests, homemade treats, gifts, a silent auction, demos, a chocolate cookbook and more — a chocoholic’s perfect day. If you should need a flavor change from the cocoa bean, lunch will be available for $5. All proceeds are donated to area charities. Pinehurst United Methodist Church, 4111 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Information: www.pinehurstchocolatefestival.com or (910) 215-4559.

For more information about the contest and symposium: www.methodist.edu/sws or contact Brenda Jernigan at (910) 630-7454.

Brush off the Winter Blues

Indulge yourself with the Heart of the Pines treatment at the Carolina Hotel’s blissful Spa. A dry brush exfoliation is followed by light, all-over tapping using fresh longleaf pine harvested straight from the village. The bundled needles create a gentle enhancement to the massage, increasing circulation and aiding in detoxification. Uplifting and one-of-a-kind, this experience will leave you refreshed and totally rejuvenated. The Spa at Pinehurst, Pinehurst Resort, 80 Carolina Vista Drive, Pinehurst. Info and bookings: (855) 235-8507.

The Most Important Meal of the Day Surely it’s brunch? The Second Annual Hearts and Hands Brunch benefitting the Moore Free Care Clinic will be held on Sunday, February 9 starting at 11:30 a.m. Not only will there be a delicious array of Carolina Hotel brunch favorites, this event will also include a special guest who will give an insider’s view of the unprecedented back-toback U.S. Open preparations. Brunch is $60 per person, the proceeds of which will help provide health care to low-income uninsured residents of Moore County. The Cardinal Ballroom, the Carolina Hotel, Pinehurst. Space is limited so call Debbie at (910) 246-5333 to reserve seats.

February 2014P��

Buzz Buzz Buzz

Start reading the dictionary — it’s time for the 10th Annual Spelling Bee for Literacy. On February 6, at 7 p.m., enjoy a wacky evening of light-hearted competition as teams pit their spelling wits against each other. The Bee benefits the Moore County Literacy Council. There’s open seating for a donation of $10 (children free). Tickets are required. Robert E. Lee Auditorium at Pinecrest High School. Info: (910) 6925954 or www.mcliteracy.com.

Literary Honors

The Country Bookshop has a starry line-up of authors visiting this month, including Wiley Cash, Barbara Claypole White, David McAdams and Kayla Williams. On February 19, at 7 p.m., there will be a talk and signing with North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame member and multi award-winning author Elizabeth Spencer. She will be at the Weymouth Center to talk about her outstanding new book of short stories, Starting Over. It will be a very special evening indeed. For more information about this month’s events: The Country Bookshop (910) 6923211 or www.thecountrybookshop.biz. PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Play On

Trio Solisti are three brilliant instrumentalists — violinist Maria Bachmann, cellist Alexis Pia Gerlach, and pianist Adam Neiman. The trio is the founding ensemble of Telluride Music Fest in Telluride, Colorado, an annual chamber music festival. They have given critically acclaimed performances at many exalted venues, including The Kennedy Center and the Lincoln Center. On February 24, at 8 p.m., they will perform at our own Sunrise Theater, forming the third part of the Arts Council of Moore County’s Classical Concert Series. Subscription for four-concert series: $84/ACMC members, $99/nonmembers. Individual tickets: $27 (if available). Sunrise Theater, 250 Northwest Broad Street, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-2787 or www.mooreart.org.

Art and Friendship

Friends and oil painters Deirdre LaCasse, Julie Martin, Mary Ann Halsted, Bonnie Hanly, and Pat Anderson formed a group through taking classes with local artist Joan Williams. They have now been painting together for over two years and are exhibiting their work this month. The Artists League of the Sandhills is hosting the show, Wednesdays with Friends, from February 17 through March 21. The Opening Reception is on Friday, February 21 from 6 to 8 p.m. Regular gallery hours are Monday through Saturday from 12 to 3 p.m. The Exchange Street Gallery of Fine Art, 129 Exchange Street, Aberdeen. For further information: www.artistleague.org or (910) 944-3979.

A Good Course and a Good Cause

How about a round of golf at Pinehurst Resort Course No. 8? Not to mention lunch, a buffet dinner and the opportunity to bid for golf trips and equipment. Boys and Girls Homes of North Carolina, Inc., invites participants to join them for an afternoon of golf, fun and life-changing support for our at-risk children: the 10th Annual Golf Tournament will take place on Monday March 3. Entry includes green and cart fees, prizes, range balls, snacks, a Golden Corral bag lunch and Hickory Tavern dinner. And there’s a chance to win a hole-in-one prize of a Honda Civic LX. Fees are $200 per player or $750 per team (foursome). Deadline for entry is February 24; register before February 3 to be entered into the “early bird draw”. Info: Ron Jones, Golf Chairman at (910) 295-1819, Carolyn Register at (910) 295-2352, or www.bghncsandhills.org.

A Show of Art

It’s time for the eighth Annual Art Show and Sale at Penick Village. Experience work by selected artists over the weekend of Saturday March 1, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday March 2, from 12 to 3 p.m. For an advance viewing attend the preview party on February 28 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. The preview party is $50, the weekend show is free and open to the public. All proceeds from the sale benefit the Benevolent Assistance Fund at Penick Village. Penick Village, 500 East Rhode Island Avenue, Southern Pines. Further information: www.penickvillagefoundation.org.

Pots and Paints

There’s an exciting pairing of impressionist oil painting and fine pottery at The Campbell House Galleries this month. From Our Studios is an exhibition of work by Gerard Catapano and Linda Dalton Pottery, February 7–28. For a preview of the work, pop in to the opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. on February 7. Campbell House Galleries, 482 East Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-2787 or www.MooreArt.org.

All That Jazz

The 29th annual Heart ’n’ Soul of Jazz, presented by The Arts Council of Moore County, promises to be a NYC musical feast. Award-winning singer and comedienne Colleen McHugh, whose work has been described by AfterDark’s Jeff Rossen as “absolute joy to behold,” will perform with her incredible band for one night only on February 14 at 8 p.m. in the Cardinal Ballroom at the Carolina Hotel, Pinehurst. The musical theme is Love Makes the World Go ’Round. Snap up your ticket at the Arts Council offices, by visiting their website at www. MooreArt. org or by calling (910) 692-ARTS (2787). Tickets are $65 per person, which includes concert, a Meet-the-Artists Dessert Reception and a chance to win great door prizes. There’s also a special pre-jazz dinner offer at $42 per person for reservations call (910) 235-8434 — and overnight packages available at the Resort — call (800) 487-4653.

Fun at the Historical Fair

Whatever else you do this month, don’t miss the Historical Fair on Sunday, February 23. This free community event exploring and celebrating the contributions of AfricanAmericans to our local Sandhills area promises an afternoon of fun for all the family. The Pinecrest High Trio “Generation Q” starts the proceedings at 2 p.m., followed by a fabulous line-up of song, music and dance. “Granddaddy June Bug” will be there for the children and there’ll be cornhole, storytelling, putt-putt, arts and crafts, a “How old is this tree?” contest, as well as a wide variety of historical displays and presentations, booths and food vendors. Leave room for fried fish, smoked turkey legs, ribs, popcorn and pretzels — and Upro will be there with their Collard Green Sandwich. For dessert, have ice cream or a treat from the NAACP Bake Sale. Join the fun from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at The Fair Barn, 200 Beulah Hill Road South, Pinehurst. For more information call (910) 295-6022.

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February 2014 P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Cos and Effect

Valentine Follies

How do you want to retire?

! e t a n e Reju v

By Cos Barnes

I asked some friends to tell me about special Valentines they had received.

Paula Boyer, who taught English grammar and literature to juniors and seniors at Pinecrest High School for thirty years, told me about a romantic instance in her classroom. Appropriately they were studying Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways,” on Valentine’s Day. Suddenly, there was a knock on her classroom door. It was a florist delivering red roses from her husband. She said this was a surprise and a thrill for both her and her students, who were very impressed. One of the craziest Valentines I received was from my husband many, many years ago. Returning home from a business trip on Valentine’s Day, he sheepishly handed me a card. He’d arrived so late, the drugstore had sold out of Valentines, so he’d substituted a card with no hearts decorating it. It had no shamrocks or leprechauns either. Instead it bore a picture of the Jolly Green Giant. “Let me be the first to wish you a happy St. Patrick’s Day,” he said. A friend told me she jumped the gun on her husband and purchased a lovely red velvet box of chocolates, which she figured he would not think to do. It stayed on the coffee table until Valentine’s Day. After a dinner out, they settled around the coffee table and she opened the box, thinking they would have a sweet. It was full of empty wrappers. Her husband had been enjoying the candy way before she offered it. And men never throw away the wrappers. Another told of delivering Valentines to the home and stomping on the porch to announce the delivery. Another said they had little bags hanging on their desks where Valentines were deposited. Talking with others who are a few years younger than me, I commented on how unconcerned many adults were about our tender psyches when I was a child. If you didn’t make the team, you didn’t play. We had one big Valentine box at school and you put in those you wanted your friends to have. Nobody thought about the child who received no Valentines. A friend, trying to reassure me, said, “That was the way it was then, and we turned out all right.” “Yes,” I replied, “but some of us were lucky and got some Valentines.” PS Cos Barnes is a longtime contributor to PineStraw magazine. She can be contacted at cosbarnes@nc.rr.com.

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The Omnivorous Reader

Strings Attached

How a legendary guitar company duped the War Production Board and a small army of female workers called Kalamazoo Gals made 25,000 banner instruments

By Stephen E. Smith

A curmudgeonly

friend of mine is fond of saying, “You can go almost anywhere and there’ll be an [expletive deleted] with a guitar.” He’s right, at least about the guitar part. The American Fretted Musical Instrument Makers website, which is by no means a complete listing, identifies more than 1,800 American manufacturers that produced fretted instruments during the last 150 years (that’s a lot of stringed instruments stuffed under a lot of beds), so any book about guitars is a book about us. And John Thomas’s thoroughly researched The Kalamazoo Gals is surely an American tale, the convergence of big business, government and labor relations, all of it sweetened with a generous dose of sentiment.

The Gibson Guitar Corporation, founded in 1902 in Kalamazoo, Michigan (now located in Nashville, Tennessee), is almost as storied as the C.F. Martin Guitars, and the company has produced five of the ten most valuable collectable stringed instruments. At the height of the guitar bubble, a 1958–60 Les Paul could bring as much as $300,000, and among the thousands of collectible Gibson guitars, its “banner” models, all of which were produced during World War II, are much sought after (a banner Gibson features the usual Gibson logo at the top of headstock, but centered below the logo is a decal that reads “Only a Gibson is Good Enough,” a mysterious and slightly convoluted assertion). Thomas focuses on the circumstances surrounding the female work force

whose tenure with the company came and went with World War II. Gibson, like most American manufacturers, was required to contribute to the war effort, so management hired a female labor force drawn from the Kalamazoo area, and without much training, they were put to work producing guitars and winding strings. Oddly enough, company histories state emphatically that no guitars, other than those already on order, were produced during the war, a hoax that was foisted on the War Production Board and perpetuated by the company’s personnel director, Julius Bellson, who claimed in his 1973 history The Gibson that the war “forced us to stop the manufacture of musical instruments.” Thomas researched Gibson’s ledgers and discovered that the company shipped almost 25,000 instruments from the beginning of 1942 through 1945, an astounding amount of non-military goods for a company that claimed to have produced none. All of the guitars shipped by Gibson during the period were banner guitars. As for the vague wording on the headstock, Gibson may have been offering a corporate apothegm, a rationalization for producing instruments that were not up to prewar standards. Moreover, the employment of an unskilled female work force — the Kalamazoo gals — may have been perceived as disadvantageous to the crafting of quality guitars. Whatever their reasoning, the slogan inspired the Epiphone Company to concoct its own advertising maxim: “When Good Enough Isn’t Good Enough.” If Gibson’s management assumed its wartime instruments were in some way inferior — in addition to the female work force, there was a shortage of quality woods, and metal for tuners and truss rods was in short supply — the opposite has turned out to be true among the Gibson connoisseurs. Banner Gibsons are much sought after, and a 1943 maple banner J-45 in excellent condition might fetch $12,000. Moreover, there are those Gibson collectors who staunchly maintain that the tonal qualities of banner guitars are superior to the pre- and postwar models. In addition to searching Gibson’s records, Thomas interviewed surviving female employees who worked at the Kalamazoo plant from 1941 to

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18 February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

The Omnivorous Reader

1945, seeking details unavailable in written sources: What was the culture at the Gibson plant? With what tasks were the female employees entrusted? What training did they receive? What memories did they have of working for Gibson? Did the male luthiers do most of the detailed construction work? Did the women see themselves as having created objets de vertu? Thomas’s inquiries met with varying success. In the intervening years, an innate human reticence and the self-effacing attitude prevalent among informants limited the collection of useful information, and the reader may wonder if Thomas will ever discover the secret to the construction of the banner guitars. But he does, finally, eke out a feasible explanation, albeit a trifle obvious, that will satisfy the reader’s curiosity. More importantly, the reader comes to know and appreciate the women who helped craft some of the finest stringed instruments of the last century. Thomas also traces the history of a few of the banner guitars and notes that the first LG-3 was shipped on August 20, 1942, to “Pendleton’s Music and Furniture Store in Sanborn, North Carolina.” Tar Heel readers will wonder if Sanborn is a misspelling of Sanford, since no Sanborn has ever been listed among North Carolina place names. Apparently, Gibson’s disdain for federal law didn’t end with the dissolution of the War Production Board. In 2011 — about the time The Kalamazoo Gals went to print — federal agents converged on two Gibson factories and seized illegally procured wood, an act of government intrusion that became an instant cause celebre for conservative media. In August 2012, the Justice Department reached a criminal enforcement “understanding” with Gibson for violating a federal law that makes it illegal to import plant products, in Gibson’s case Madagascar ebony for fingerboards, in violation of another country’s laws. While the case was being settled, Henry Juszkiewicz, the CEO of Gibson Guitars, hit the talk show circuit and insisted that “the Obama Justice Department wants us to just shut our doors and go away,” and he vowed to continue to fight for the Gibson and its workers. It seems unlikely that the corporate culture that duped the War Production Board in the early ’40s was still in force when Gibson hoarded the illegal ebony, but this much is certain: What went ’round came ’round, even if it took 70 years. PS Stephen Smith’s most recent book of poetry is A Short Report on the Fire at Woolworths. He can be reached at travisses@hotmail.com.

race to recovery

joint replacement program

capeable of getting you back in the game Whether your passion is golf, tennis or even taking walks with your spouse, when the pain of arthritis makes you consider hip or knee replacement surgery, there’s really only one choice. Only one joint replacement program in the Sandhills has been awarded two Gold Seals of ApprovalTM from The Joint Commission, the nation’s premier accreditation agency. And Cape Fear Valley is designated a Blue Distinction CenterSM for Hip and Knee surgery by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. Just two of the many reasons we’re CAPEable of keeping you in the game. For a referral to an orthopedic surgeon who is part of Cape Fear Valley’s award-winning Race to Recovery joint replacement program, please call Carelink at (910) 615-link (5465) or toll free at 1-888-728-well.

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Nothing says Pinehurst like the Putter Boy logo. And at the Pinehurst Golf Shop in the Clubhouse, you’ll find him on just about everything. Pinehurst Golf Shop 20 February 2014 P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills Pinehurst Resort and Country Club • 910. 235. 8154

reports that her second Tudor novel, Queen Elizabeth’s Daughter: A Novel of Elizabeth I, will debut in March.

Words of Wisdom

By Sandra Redding Words, words, words . . . Chisel them; hammer them; stack them. Kaleidoscopic in color or Quaker gray, they become forms to touch, taste, bite into, love. — Anonymous February is for reading books by the fireplace. The following comfy North Carolina bookshops have one-upped Kindles and audio books by hosting authors in the flesh signing their books. Meet a writer. Be inspired. Buy a book! Flyleaf Books, Chapel Hill, www.flyleafbooks.com February 2, 11 a.m. — Wendy Webb’s The Vanishing; February 2, 4 p.m. — Wiley Cash’s ThisDark Road to Mercy; February 6, 7 p.m. — Phillip Meyer’s The Sun Barnes & Noble, Greensboro, store-locator.barnesandnoble.com February 11, 7 p.m. — Angie Kratzer’s David Webb: The American Jeweler; February 20, 7 p.m. — Rob Bencini’s Pardon the Disruption The Next Chapter, New Bern, www.thenextchapternc.com February 1, Noon: Flora Ann Scearce’s The Village: Search for Answers in a Cotton Mill Town The Country Bookshop, Southern Pines, www.thecountrybookshop.biz February 7, 5 p.m. — Wiley Cash’s This Dark Road to Mercy; February 11, 5 p.m. — Ed Williams’ Liberating Dixie; February 13, 5 p.m. — Barbara Claypool White’s The In-Between Hour; February 17, 4:30 p.m. — Kayla Williams’ Plenty of Time When We Get Home: Love and Recovery in the Aftermath of War Pomegranate Books, Wilmington, www.pombooks.net February 6, 7 p.m. — Wiley Cash’s This Dark Road to Mercy

Author Buzz

• Advised to write about home by Ernest J. Gaines, admired humanitarian and author of A Lesson Before Dying, Wiley Cash sets his fiction in Gastonia. His first novel was a New York Times best-seller. His second, This Dark Road to Mercy, is a mesmerizing Southern Gothic. Novelist Jill McCorkle’s take? “A time capsule and at times an edgy thriller, but at its fine emotional center, it’s all about what it means to be a father.” • Roland Russoli of Greensboro has recently published The Little Boy in the Tree. A Vietnam vet and former Peace Corps volunteer, Russoli writes, “On October 20th, 2005, my world crashed down around me,” in this gripping account of his own life after the death of his son. • Anne Barnhill of Supply, who dresses in Tudor regalia on book tours,

As a creative writing teacher, my chief job is to brainwash students not with edicts, but with questions, to nag them into second-guessing themselves at every turn. To plant in them a pervasive neurosis — so they’ll return habitually to make sure the door is locked, the burners are OFF, the dog’s water dish is full. A repertoire of craft questions they can bombard themselves with once I and the workshop disappear, when the writerly waters of solitude clap shut over them. Writers must develop into their own inquisitors. A hard head is requisite and a dead aim for spitting in the eye of those who say you’re a fool for writing. — Joseph Bathanti, North Carolina Poet Laureate and professor at Appalachian State University

Dates to Remember

February 1, National Freedom Day, commemorates Abraham Lincoln signing a resolution prohibiting slavery. The word lover once confessed, “My best friend is a person who will give me a book I have not read.” (Another Aquarius-born freedom fighter, Susan B. Anthony, humorously praised the liberating effects of bicycling: “It gives women a feeling of freedom and self-reliance. I stand and rejoice every time I see a woman ride on a wheel.”) February 2, Groundhog Day. Or not? Get excited about groundhogs? If bored with the mammal’s predictive shadow, use the day to write about something that matters, advocates Dr. Shelby Stephenson, affable poet/ musician from Johnston County. He has written of dead mules, hogs, tractors and a book on the Possum (opossum to city slickers). “I’m trying to give back to the possum,” Stephenson often explained, “something we took away by hunting and eating it when I was growing up.” February 14, Valentine’s Day. Take a cue from Maya Angelou, Winston-Salem’s revered author, and write poems celebrating those you most respect. Angelou wrote the poem “His Day is Done” in tribute to Nelson Mandela, who died last December. Writer’s block? Chocolate is never a cliché.

Contest News

Consider two competitions endorsed by North Carolina Writers’ Network. The Doris Betts Fiction Prize honors Chapel Hill’s esteemed creative writing teacher. Deadline, February 15, with a $250 first place. The Randall Jarrell Poetry Prize honors the renowned poet and professor at Woman’s College, now UNCG. Deadline, March 1. The award: $200 and publication in storysouth. ncwriters.org The Burlington Writers Club 2014 award — dealine, March 8 — accepts entries from writers in Alamance, Caswell, Chatham, Durham, Guilford, Orange, Randolph and Rockingham counties. Info: Send an SASE to Doris Caruso, 3015 Winston Drive, #110, Burlington, NC, 27215 or www.burlingtonwritersclub.org What do you want on this page? What writerly events are taking place in your neck of the woods? Let me know at sanredd@earthlink.net Greensboro writer Sandra Redding’s first novel, Naomi Wise: A Cautionary Tale, has just been published.

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B oo k s h e l f

February Books

By Kimberly Daniels and Angie Tally Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War by Robert Michael Gates Every year or two there is one book that we all “should” read. A few years back it was the Steve Jobs biography, prior to that it was Too Big to Fail. These books capture a moment that changed our world. They are books that we must read to understand the world we live in and to understand how it became this way. Duty is one of those books. After working under six presidents in the CIA and National Security Council, Gates was ensconced as president of Texas A&M when President Bush called him back to Washington in 2006 to serve as Secretary of Defense. Gates takes us through his personal journey answering the call of duty presiding over the longest war our nation has ever fought. This Dark Road to Mercy by Wiley Cash If you, like us, LOVED Cash’s debut novel, A Land More Kind Than Home, then get excited for the next home run by this North Carolina native. Told from alternating perspectives and alternating views (on who has the girls’ best interests at heart) the story follows two sisters and their father who kidnaps them from an orphanage in North Carolina as they travel to St. Louis for the showdown between baseball greats Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. I Shall Be Near to You by Erin Lindsay McCabe Inspired by letters from the Civil War and written in a way that will hold you long after you finish the last page, this book is about a newlywed whose marriage is tested as she follows her union soldier husband to war. Moving and inspiring, this is a wonderful work. ADHD Does Not Exist by Richard Saul Saul, a behavioral neurologist with 50 years in clinical practice, makes some pretty radical assertions in this book. While his claim that no one has ADHD will undoubtedly frustrate some readers and doctors, the book’s overview of other problems that are often misdiagnosed as ADHD is a must read for any parent, teacher or ADHD diagnosed person. Facts are that 11% of all children in the USA are diagnosed with ADHD and treated with powerful stimulants; diagnoses have increased by 40% in a decade and rules continue to change, allowing doctors to make a diagnosis with even less patients presenting behavior than ever before. The Secret of Magic by Deborah Johnson This is a good book. Thurgood Marshall sends a young, black, female lawyer to Mississippi in 1946 to investigate the murder of a young black soldier. She thinks she knows a lot about race until she reaches the South for the first time and is startled to discover that far from being separate, the opposing races are far more intertwined than she ever could have imagined. This book is more than a Southern

race novel. It has perspective and beauty and is well worth reading. A Breast Cancer Alphabet by Madhulika Sikka This is a frank and witty read about what it really is to have cancer. What are you scared of? What are you annoyed with? This book is organized by the alphabet, but it is deeper than that. This is an insightful read for a cancer patient’s support team and a book that becomes a companion for someone who is living with cancer. Plenty of Time When We Get Home: Love and Recovery in the Aftermath of War by Kayla Williams Established memoirist (Love my Rifle More than Me) Kayla Williams returns with a brilliant and searing memoir about Iraq veterans struggling to build a marriage in America. With injuries both physical and mental and our country’s difficulties supporting male and female veterans featuring prominently in this family story, Kayla’s engaging storytelling has us rooting for our veterans both on and off the pages. Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen Sarah Addison Allen has a new book, and we are so excited! After a year of mourning her husband, Kate finally wakes up and realizes she has let someone else drive her life, and it is not going the way she wishes. On a whim, she and her daughter Devin head south to visit her Aunt Eby in Lost Lake, Georgia. Eby has run the cottages at Lost Lake since she and her husband were first married, but now she, too, is mourning the loss of her husband and it’s finally time to sell the Lost Lake property. Summer proves to be a time of healing and renewal as Lost Lake regulars and townspeople come together with Kate and Devin to discover that sometimes when you open yourself to new possibilities, you find second chances you never dreamed were there. –Susan Thomas. The Queen’s Bed: An Intimate History of Elizabeth’s Court by Anna Whitelock Whitelock is a lecturer at Cambridge and has written the first ever account of Elizabeth I’s reign as told through the workings of her bedchamber. The book takes a more intimate, material approach than a conventional biography and shows a new side of Elizabethan life. A highly interesting and original book. A Star for Mrs. Blake by April Smith This book highlights a little-known slice of American history. The Gold Star Mothers, whose sons died in WW1 and were buried in France, were escorted to their graves years later by the U.S. Army. Mrs. Blake, a spunky and practical woman from Maine, is one of a group of mothers making the journey. These women, unlikely candidates for friendships due to differences in class and life experiences, are brought together by the great equalizer of grief. This band of women is quirky and full of fire and vinegar, and readers are right beside them every step of the way as they prove that a mother’s love is indomitable. –Karen Schwettman

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B oo k s h e l f CHILDREN’S BOOKS The Mystery of the Gold Coin by Harper Paris and illustrated by Marcos Calo. In the first book of this exciting new series for Magic Treehouse lovers, Second grade twins Ethan and Ella move from their hometown to travel the world with their Mom, a journalist and their dad, who is their homeschool teacher. Further adventures, Mystery of the Mosaic, Mystery of the Stolen Painting and Mystery in the Forbidden City will be released this summer. Ages 5-8. Dark Lord: The Early Years by Jamie Thomson. Fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, or any Superhero loving readers who also crave adventure, will love this wickedly humorous tale of Dirk Loyd, formerly known as the Dark Lord, who is confounded when he awakens in the middle of a small town on a planet he’s never seen before. Ages 8-12. George Washington’s Rules to Live By: How to Sit, Stand, Smile, and Be Cool! A Good Manners Guide From the Father of Our Country. Adapted by K.M. Kostyal. Featuring modern interpretations and caricature illustrations of George Washington’s Rules of Civility, this innovative book allows 21st century young readers a look into the lessons by which Washington weighed his decisions on etiquette and life in general. Ages 8-12. Ghosts of Tupelo Landing by Sheila Turnage. A companion book to her Newbery Honor winning Three Times Lucky. North Carolina writer and Country Bookshop favorite, Sheila Turnage is back with more tales of Mo Lebeau, the Desperado Detective Agency and life in tiny Tupelo Landing, reminding readers: “Small towns have rules. One is, you got to stay who you are — no matter how many murders you solve.” Ages 8-12. Scar Boys by Len Vlahos. Every boy wants to be in a band, but for Harry Jones, the story of the Scar Boys IS the story of his life. In attempting to describe himself in his college application essay, Harry tells of lightning strikes, bullying, loneliness, charismatic lead singers, heartache and road trips, all with a retro 80s beat. Like PJ Palaco’s Wonder and John Green’s Fault in Our Stars, Scar Boys will be loved by readers of all ages for years to come.

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For more information visit www.innovaterealestate.com Over $2.7 million in sales for 2013. List with us in 2014!

Friday, February 7 @10:30, Froggy will visit the Country Bookshop for Storytime to share his newest adventure, Froggy Gets a Doggy. Children ages birth-6 and their caregivers are invited to join in for Storytime. PS

Broker/Owner

Your Specialist in Horse Country Farms, Homes & Land 1020 Youngs Road | Southern Pines 910. 528.6768 | cindy@innovaterealestate.com

PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014 23

to: from: : ge messa

Ho l ly woo d a n d t h e h i l l s

The Scent of a Woman How a love of French fragrance led to true love in the pines

By Gayvin Powers

“A woman’s perfume tells more about her than her handwriting. ” — Christian Dior

Soft notes of jasmine fill the air; the scent of Anaïs Anaïs stirs comfort and nostalgia in Angela Marie, a Whispering Pines resident, reminding her of a magical childhood in Belgium. The French fragrance floods Marie with happy memories of watching her mother’s beauty routine on a date night with her father. “It was a transformation,” she says, vividly remembering the ritual. “My mum was never really ready until she put her makeup on. The perfume was the finishing touch.” Scent may be the strongest provocateur of memories, but Marie never imagined that she would find her future in the women’s fragrance business. Now, after more than ten years creating beauty lines and commuting to New York and Florida to sell products on the Home Shopping Network, she is unable to see herself any other way, an expert in the scent of a woman. With a fresh girl-next-door enthusiasm and beauty she sold fragrances such as Clean, a line that she calls “my baby,” and Dessert Beauty by Jessica Simpson, in which she worked with a team to develop the first gourmand line of “deliciously edible” beauty products. Upon graduating college in Ottawa, this lovely spirit found herself with a diploma, a retail background and an itch for adventure. On a whim, she took a job teaching English in Japan, all the while remaining in touch with her best retail client. A year later, when her teaching job was completed, Marie saw her best client on a Thursday only to find herself working for her on the following Monday. Shortly thereafter, Marie was presented with the opportunity to sell products on television. Nervous initially about going on television live without previous media training, she muses about her rambling thoughts before

she went on air. She laughs, remembering herself thinking, “If I fail, I fail. Only ninety-five million people will know.” That was years ago. Fortunately, she was a natural. The best advice came from Mindy Grossman, the president of Home Shopping Network, before she went on television for the first time. “Don’t think about it,” Grossman said. “Just go on and pretend you’re talking with your girlfriends.” That’s exactly what Marie did, treating all ninety-five million viewers as if each person was one of her cherished friends visiting her home. Come to think of it, it’s what all the other hosts on the Home Shopping Network seem to do. With hosts talking to viewers as if they were personally chatting about the latest beauty secrets to smooth cellulite-plagued thighs, soften one’s face to that of a new born baby’s derrière or vanquish unsightly, unwanted and unseemly peach fuzz, it’s easy to see why the company is just shy of thirty years in business. Personally a believer in applying the phrase “less is more” toward beauty, Marie is known to share some of her own beauty tips with her millions of viewers and Sandhills friends. “A healthy diet, a lot of sleep, a lot of water and exercise. I believe in being simple,” she says. When asked if she had time to only perform one beauty undertaking, she adds that she would “wash my face and use SK-II.” Full of tips, she goes on to tell the fascinating story of SK-II. In the 1970s, a Japanese scientist noticed the soft, smooth hands of local women working in a saké brewery. It was years before the scientist discovered Pitera, the key natural, nutrient-rich liquid that preserves skin, making it appear more youthful. With that discovery, SK-II was created and is now sold in luxury department stores. With a thriving career up north, what inspired this successful Canadian beauty to call the Sandhills her home? Love. Love inspires poems. Oceans are crossed for it. And scents invoking the spirit of one’s beloved are created on its behalf.

PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014 25

26 February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Ho l ly woo d a n d t h e h i l l s

On a balmy Florida evening, Marie wore Molecule, an independent fragrance favoring “oud,” an ingredient that hints of wood and musk. She replayed the last month on the phone talking with Jacob Patrick, a contractor at Fort Bragg who was introduced to her by a mutual friend — who had a feeling the two may have chemistry. Nothing but chemistry would do for a woman who spent her days ensuring the perfect blend of scents created intoxicating results. Their first encounter later that evening can be summed up in a quote by Carl Jung: “The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: If there is any reaction, both are transformed.” The meeting was indeed transforming. Today, when she dabs the woodsy scent to the warm pulse points on her neck, she’s reminded of the first night they met. After dating long distance for a year and a half, a time that includes when Patrick was deployed to Afghanistan, the distance only made it more evident that they needed to find a way to live closer to each other. After returning fromAfghanistan, Patrick was temporarily relieved with their reunion in New York, mentioning to her, “You smell exactly like I remember.” The next time she visited him in Whispering Pines, Patrick had a master plan to inspire her to stay: They’d frequent the quaint downtown of Southern Pines and meet the friendly neighbors in his lakeside community. When considering his proposal and the big move south, she thought, “You take risks in your career; you takes risks in your investments. Why not take a risk in love?” With that thought in mind, she said, “Yes.” Amid the spring blossoms filled their wedding will take place in Ottawa, filled with pink lilies and flowers with some of Marie’s favored scents. Afterward, she and Patrick intend to continue calling the Sandhills their home, along with Brady, their rescue dog. As a family, they foresee wanting enough children to roster a baseball and possibly a cricket team. Meanwhile, she envisions releasing her own beauty products as well as bringing back the lost art and craft of fragrance making. In the modern era where perfumes are mass-produced, she has the aspirations of a successful risk taker who dreams of revitalizing a time when women coveted their fragrances. She longs to inspire generations of females, showing that each scent is special and thoughtfully crafted, becoming the signature of a woman’s life. For Marie, it’s the kind of special that evokes the fond remembrance of her childhood and continuing adult years filled with love. PS Gayvin Powers is a frequent contributor to PineStraw magazine. PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014 27

h itti n g h o m e

My Patient Valentine Love conquers all. Even thirty years of confusion

By Dale Nixon

I guess Valentine’s Day is as good a time as any to defend my husband’s honor.

I’ve been writing tales about him off and on for thirty some years now, and I thought it was time I could write a tale for him about me. Am I making sense? If not, don’t feel left out. I don’t make any sense to my husband, Bobby, either. I say, “Yes” when I mean “No” and say “No” when I mean “Yes.” But then sometimes when I say “Yes” I mean “Yes” and say “No” when I mean “No.” He asks, “Would you like me to take you out to dinner Saturday night?” I say, “I don’t care, whatever you want to do.” Then he doesn’t take me out to dinner on Saturday night. I do care. Of course I wanted to go. I pout and simper, “Do you think I enjoy sitting at home on a Saturday night? Do you expect me to cook another meal this week?” He says, “What can I get you for Valentine’s Day? Is there anything special you’d like?” I reply, “All I want is a heartfelt card; perhaps a written word or two from you about our life together.” He took me at my word one year. He bought the card and wrote the sweet words. I cried all day and simpered, “The least you could do was to buy me some chocolates or send me some flowers.” Then there was the time I asked him how he liked my new hairstyle. He said, “Do you want my honest opinion?” “Of course,” I replied, “if I didn’t want your honest opinion, I wouldn’t have asked for it.”

He shuffled his feet, cleared his throat and started to jingle the change in his pocket. (The man was nervous.) Finally, he blurted out, “It’s too short.” “What do you mean it’s too short? It’s the latest style.” “It may be the latest style, but until your hair grows out, people will probably refer to you as Mr. Dale Nixon.” I informed Vidal Sassoon that the next time he could keep his honest opinion to himself. Poor Bobby. Do you see the state of confusion I keep this man in? And there’s more. He thinks all bathrooms come equipped with wet panty hose, tights and knee highs. He owns one pair of black shoes and one pair of brown. I list buying shoes for myself as a hobby when I fill out a form or application. I have been known to make up the bed while he is still in it, snitch dollar bills out of his pants pockets, and use his razor and hair brush. I took the largest clothes closet in the house and hung hot pink drapes in the bedroom. I chose the only side of the bed where you can view television. He watches shadows on the wall. The kitchen is to my design, as is most of the house. I gave him the basement and the spiders and dust that go with it; he seems appreciative. Now you know it all. I have told some tales about me. So, let it be said in February 2014, I defended Bobby’s honor. A patient Valentine, don’t you agree? PS Columnist Dale Nixon may be contacted at dalenixon@carolina.rr.com.

You’ll

Love

These February Author Events

Sunday, February 2, 2:00 pm David McAdams

Monday February 17, 4:30 pm Kayla Williams

GAME-CHANGER: GAME THEORY AND THE ART OF

PLENTY OF TIME WHEN WE GET HOME: LOVE AND RECOVERY IN THE AFTERMATH OF WAR

TRANSFORMING STRATEGIC SITUATIONS

Duke business professor and game theory consultant David McAdams will be joining us with his very relevant and informative overview of game theory. Military applications play a prominent role in the book, from the daring exploits of Nathan Bedford Forrest in the Civil War to the tragic (for them) miscalculation of Japanese Imperial forces in New Guinea in World War II. Alvin, E. Roth, the winner of the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economics says that, “David McAdams’s Game-Changer is a rare book: a non-technical first introduction to game theory that also offers a fresh perspective, on how the best strategy for playing a game can often be to change the rules. I can see that I’ll have lots of opportunities to recommend it.”

Friday, February 7, 5:00 pm Wiley Cash THIS DARK ROAD TO MERCY

Wiley Cash, author of A LAND MORE KIND THAN HOME (our staff pick and TCB Best Seller) returns to the store to speak about second masterpiece of fiction that is hot off the presses! In Cash’s second novel, 12-year-old Easter and her little sister, Ruby, end up in North Carolina’s foster care system when their mother dies. Their long-vanished father, Wade, suddenly reappears and promptly makes off with them, pursued by both the girls’ legal guardian and a shady figure out for vengeance.

Thursday, February 13, 2014, 5:00 pm Barbara Claypole White THE IN-BETWEEN HOUR

Brian, on his way back to base after mid-tour leave, was wounded by a roadside bomb that sent shrapnel through his brain. Kayla waited anxiously for news and, on returning home, sought out Brian. The two began a tentative romance and later married, but neither anticipated the consequences of Brian’s injury on their lives. Lacking essential support for returning veterans from the military and the VA, Kayla and Brian suffered through posttraumatic stress amplified by his violent mood swings, her struggles to reintegrate into a country still oblivious to women veterans, and what seemed the callous, consumerist indifference of civilian society at large. They confronted their demons head-on, impatient with phoniness of any sort. Inspired by an unwavering ethos of service, they continued to stand on common ground. Finally, they found their own paths to healing and wholeness, both as individuals and as a family, in dedication to a larger community.

Wednesday, February 19, 7:00 pm Elizabeth Spencer STARTING OVER

at Weymouth Center for The Arts and Humanities

Elizabeth Spencer was introduced to the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame at Weymouth Center for the Arts and Humanities alongside Reynolds Price and the same year as Glenn Rounds. The author of nine novels, many fine short stories, and the famous novella The Light in the Piazza, Spencer has received the Award of Merit Medal for the Short Story from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, of which she is a member. She has also been awarded the Cleanth Brooks Medal by the Fellowship of Southern Writers, and the North Carolina Award for Literature. She has written ANOTHER outstanding collection of Short Stories called Starting Over and will join us for a talk and signing that will undoubtedly prove to be special.

Barbara Claypole White writes love stories about damaged people. She grew up in rural England, studied history at York University, and worked in London fashion before marrying an American professor she met at JFK airport. Today they live in the forests of North Carolina with their award-winning poet son.

The Country Bookshop

140 NW Broad St., Southern Pines • (910) 692-3211 • thecountrybookshop.biz

February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

V i n e W isd o m

Pink Bubbly

Romantic and delicious — and better than you think

By Robyn James

It’s got everything you

want for Valentine’s Day: The signature pink color, the celebratory bubbles and delicious content.

So, why is it still a tough sell for those new imbibers venturing into the sparkling category? Americans still see pink and think “sweet, like white zinfandel.” Europeans see pink and think, “Yum, bone dry and rich bubbles!” They come from all over the world and cover every price range imaginable, a tasty little pink country sparkler from the Loire for about $10 or Roederer Cristal Rosé for about $500. (You have to be Jay Z or Beyonce to drink that.) You will possibly notice two different types of pink bubbles out there, labeled either “blanc de noir” or “rosé.” There is really only a slight difference between the two. If you have had any French lessons at all, you know that blanc de noir means white from black. First, you must know that all juice that comes out of red wine grapes is white. It must remain in contact with the grape skins for a certain period of time to actually turn red. So, if you are a winemaker, you take the red grapes you have chosen to use (in Champagne this has to be pinot noir or pinot meunier, other grapes can be used throughout Europe and U.S.) and you gently crush them, allowing the juice to stay in contact with the skins for perhaps only a few hours. The resulting color of the blanc de noir may be just the hint of onion skin, so pale pink it’s almost impossible to detect. Making rosé’ sparkling wine or Champagne is slightly different. The skins are left in contact with the juice much longer, imparting a darker color. The method of saignée (bled) requires the use of dark grapes that would typically be used to make strong red wine, and the juice is “bled” off after the desired color has arrived. In Champagne, making a rosé often involves adding still red wine (pinot noir or pinot meunier) to the bottle for the secondary fermentation. Rosé Champagnes are generally richer, drier and fuller than the white sparklers made from chardonnay. They have gorgeous

fruit flavors of strawberries, raspberries and cherries with bracing acidity. Champagne disciples consider the rosé to be the crème de la crème of Champagne. They are more difficult to produce and are in smaller productions. Check out the sparkling wines of Gruet, a winery founded by a French Champagne family who migrated to New Mexico. The wines are delicious, affordable and they make both a blancs de noir and a rosé. Here are some of my other favorite styles!

Pierre Chainier Seduction Rosé Brut, France, approx. $10

Fine bubbles. Forward red fruit on the nose, citrus aromas. Elegant and well-balanced.

Scharffenberger Brut Rosé Excellence, California, $26

This sleek rosé shows pinpoint focus, offering raspberry and butter cookie aromas, with crisp, elegant citrus and cherry flavors marked by ginger and spice. Drink now through 2015. Rated 91 Points, The Wine Spectator

J “Jordan” Brut Rosé, Russian River, California, approx. $40

Pretty dark in color and full-bodied for a sparkling wine, even one that’s majority pinot noir. But it’s delicious and dry, which surely are prime requisites for any bubbly. Shows ripe, flashy raspberry, strawberry, orange, vanilla, honey, yeast and toast flavors, and the mouthfeel is silky and refined. Rated 90 Points, Wine Enthusiast

Billecart-Salmon Rosé Champagne, France, approx. $85

Such an elegant, ethereal wine, this orange-pink bubbly is dry and crisp with fruity raspberry flavor at the fore. This particular bottling could improve for a year, but makes a great food Champagne now. Rated 94 Points, The Wine Enthusiast PS Robyn James is proprietor of The Wine Cellar and Tasting Room in Southern Pines. Contact her at winecellar@ pinehurst.net.

T h e k it c h e n g a r d e n

Lemon Tree, Very Pretty And guess what? You can grow them in the Sandhills

By Jan Leitschuh

Admittedly, a potted lemon tree is not the most practical way to get your citrus fix.

I look at it this way: In chilly February, when the spirit is whittled low by gray skies and cutting winds, the lemon’s attractive, shiny dark green leaves invoke a cheerful spot of the sunny Mediterranean. While growing lemons here is hardly an economic triumph, it still brings the kitchen garden enthusiast great pleasure to wrest delicious tart fruit from what is basically a winter house plant. Lemons won’t thrive in the ground here in the Sandhills, being subtropical creatures. Yet a number of diehard area plant lovers grow them anyway. Lemons take well to pot culture. Most plants are brought up from Florida and sold through local nurseries. A popular variety, one which will not quickly outgrow its pot, is the “Improved Meyer” lemon. This type produces lovely, large, yellow fruit with a unique lemon flavor. The scent of the blossoms in early summer is heavenly. Southern Pines resident and Richmond County Cooperative Extension agent Paige Burns stumbled upon a Meyer lemon at an area nursery last spring and brought it home. She’d been on the lookout for a lemon tree ever since she visited yet another local nursery and noticed a curious thing in the cold air of early winter. “They directed me to a greenhouse on the back forty. I went inside and it was filled with lemon trees. There were tons of lemons on all the trees and they were just falling off onto the ground. No one appeared to be taking care of them and the greenhouse was old — no heat, and the plastic panels were yellowed with little light coming through,” she says. “That’s when it first occurred to me that it may be easier than I thought to grow a lemon tree.” Pinehurst resident Marilyn Morgan Grube has also grown several potted Meyer lemon trees in her backyard kitchen garden for several years. “I love them for their tastiness, fragrance, productivity, beauty and the fact that the deer ignore them,” she says. “They are thin-skinned and wonderful.” Lemons thrive in our steamy Sandhills summers, gracing several area decks and patios. Come fall, most lemon-heads wisely bring their tender trees inside for the winter. “Unfortunately a hard frost caught me by surprise last year and I lost the first two I’d bought,” says Marilyn, who uses a hand truck to move the larger pots around. “But for the freezing temps, lemons seem to thrive in the Sandhills. I move them into my garage when it freezes.” Lemons are said to be less cold hardy than other citrus. I bring our 5-gallon pot inside the kitchen in late October when the temperature approaches the lower 30s. At this point, the fruits are still green but starting to ripen. Because our pot is small enough, I then dutifully sling our potted lemon back out onto the deck on the occasional brilliant warm days of November and December, pulling it back in at night. There is nothing systematic or dedicated about this, just an instinctive response

February 2014P��

to bright sun and interest in helping the fruits ripen. If we had a south-facing window at our house that wasn’t next to a leaf-dessicating heat vent, I probably wouldn’t bother with the in-and-out. In Marilyn’s winter garage, her lemons have performed “OK,” she says, “but it would be better if they had more light. By the end of winter they’ve dropped a lot of foliage and look sparse, but revive over the summer.” Once temperatures get cold, Paige puts her new tree tree on her unheated, south-facing back porch, enclosed with some windows. “I think it is starting to show some stress from being out there though,” she says. “Some of the lower leaves are looking a little peaked. I wish I had wonderful Extension-y research based experience to share with you, but I’m pretty much wingin’ it with my lemon tree!” Some nurseries graft lemons and other citrus onto a dwarfing rootstock, which helps if space is tight. If you decide to try your hand at lemons, choose a 2- or 3-year-old plant. While it is possible to grow lemon trees from seed, it would be years before seeing any fruit of uncertain parentage. On the other hand, if you have the space, it’s free and fun to do, and you might end up with something unique. While a young tree can grow happily in a smaller pot, you’ll eventually size up to a 10-15 gallon container. Lemons can grow as tall as 8 feet, but can also be easily pruned for height control. The Meyer lemon is more shrub-like, and easier to keep to a manageable size. Pot yours up in a well-draining soil. An all-purpose soil mix is fine. Heavy dirt encourages disease, root rot and decline. However, keep that well-drained soil watered regularly, sticking a finger in the dirt up to the knuckle to check for dampness. As always, with potted plants, water slowly and deeply to allow roots and soil to take up moisture. Lemons do love their sun. Pots can go back outside when temps return. However, if you use a plain, black, uninsulated pot like I do, take care in summer to protect the roots in summer from baking. Hot sun on black plastic is a recipe for scorched rootlets. Shade the pot with lower-growing plants, and let the leaves bask in the sunshine. Often, I’ll tuck a plain-potted plant into another, larger container for protection and aesthetics. Then, in winter, I just pull the smaller pot out to take inside. Inside the winter house, lemons appreciate a light misting with water, but I often forget this and still have lovely foliage and fruit. Fertilize three times a year with an organic or slowrelease fertilizer. Marilyn uses a commercial citrus fertilizer. Paige uses fish emulsion “once in a while” — which she wasn’t sure would work, but it did — and also “added good comPineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

T h e k it c h e n g a r d e n

post to the top of the container a couple of times. It bloomed and set about eight or nine lemons. They took a little longer than I thought for them to ripen but we’ve been picking them and eating them — it is wonderful.” Other citrus may well suit pot culture, too. “I also love kumquats,” says Marilyn. “You can pop a kumquat in your mouth while gardening. Very refreshing.” This tiny orange tangerine-y fruit with the sweet skin may also be tougher climate-wise than lemons. Area aficionados may want to experiment. “Last winter I was able to leave my potted kumquat out with no damage,” adds Marilyn. “It survived the same cold snap that killed the two Meyer lemons. Feeling confident, I planted it in the ground and it did very well — until the early freeze we had this year. I think the plant will survive, but it lost its fruit. I may leave it in the ground but cover it for protection in the future. Also so far it seems to resist my hungry deer.” Southern citrus growers are indeed experimenting more with freeze-tolerant citrus. Mckenzie Farms of Scranton, South Carolina, is the northernmost citrus grower in the Southeast, and specializes in breeding ever more hardy citrus, offering some for sale online that survive into the mid-teens. I purchased one of their “Thomasville Citrangequats,” an early attempts by researchers to produce a cold-hardy citrus with decent fruit. The immature fruits are said to be a good lime substitute, and the fall-ripening fruits have a kumquat/orange flavor. Best of all, it is said to be hardy to 5 degrees, once established. In a sheltered area of a garden or patio, it might work as a permanent installation. All citrus, of course, is high in vitamin C. Lemons possess strong antibacterial, antiviral and immune-boosting elements. Lemon juice is a classic digestive aid and liver cleanser. Lemons contain many substances — notably citric acid, calcium, magnesium, vitamin C, bioflavonoids, pectin and limonene — that promote immunity and fight infection. But did you know the peel contains even more vitamins, nutrients, and health benefits? Lemon peels contain about five to ten times more vitamins than lemon

juice. The peels help lower cholesterol and blood pressure, as well as maintain bone strength. The citrus bioflavonoids and soluble pectin fiber of the peels are great for detox, helping the body eliminate toxic elements. Zest the peels, or toss a quarter into your next smoothie. Fresh lemons in November and December are a boon. What salad doesn’t sparkle under a dressing of fresh lemon juice and olive oil? Pears and spinach come into season at the same time — you have the makings of a spectacular salad. The zest of your personal lemon is likely pesticide free, and can be grated into puddings, toppings and holiday baked goods. A wedge squeezed over fish, a slice with tea, a chunk in a smoothie — lemon wakes everything up. Since this is February and everyone has dieting and detox on the brain, perhaps the ultra-healthy “Green Lemonade” that Marilyn likes to make might suit. GREEN LEMONADE There are many versions, so adjust vegetables to taste: Half to whole head romaine lettuce (or use frozen spinach) 5-6 stalks of kale 1-2 Fuji apples Half or whole lemon 1-2 Tsp. fresh ginger (optional) This recipe can either be juiced or blended. Chop, toss in a powerful appliance, and blend or juice. If you chose to use the whole lemon peel, which can be bitter due to the (healthy) white pith, a bit of stevia or honey can offset the bitterness. Drink immediately. PS Jan Leitschuh is a local gardener, avid eater of fresh produce and cofounder of the Sandhills Farm to Table Cooperative.

Guess Who Got Carded?*

You can, too!

* Charlie Eichhorn “I love to read a book a week, so I LOVE the Given Memorial Library. Happy 50th Anniversary!”

No Card Fees. No Residency Requirements.

Given Memorial Library/Tufts Archives Open Monday-Friday 9:30am-5:00pm, Saturday 9:30am-12:30pm 150 Cherokee Road Pinehurst, NC (910) 295-6022 GML or (910) 295-3642 TA www.givenmemoriallibrary.org PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014

February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

T h e L o v e B e at

Build a Better Mousse Trap . . . to catch a Valentine beau

By Deborah Salomon

How ironic, that

on Valentine’s Day lovebirds indulge in potentially heartstopping foods.

Surely, this one-time treat can do no harm. Then you must have chocolate mousse, the heavenly dessert that — thank you, St. Valentine — whips up fast and easy in several permutations, including heart-healthy. Mousse means foam in French — the light, airy foam arising from the sea lapping the shore, perhaps a puffy cloud outside the airplane window. In foodom, however, the foam takes the form of whipped egg whites or cream. How sweet it is? Not always. Mrs. Patmore, generalissimo of Downton Abbey’s kitchen, helps an underling make salmon mousse. But in hearts-and-flowers February, chocolate is the operative. Presentation counts. Mousse is often served in wine glasses, ramekins, demitasse cups or straight-sided clear juice glasses. The classic vessel remains a three-ounce earthenware cup with narrow bottom, in all-white or green with white interior. Demitasse spoons are an elegant touch except for mousse piled in wine glasses. Most recipes for from-scratch mousse suggest bittersweet chocolate of the highest quality. Do not hesitate to splurge on a Belgian or Swiss “eating” chocolate bar, with at least 60 percent cacao. Espresso-flavored imported chocolate makes an interesting mousse. European mousse recipes call for raw eggs. A lovely mousse is still possible by starting with cooked custard. The first decision: fab, fit or faux?

Fabulous Chocolate Mousse

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate 4 large egg yolks, at room temperature 4 tablespoons granulated sugar 2 cups heavy cream, divided 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract Melt chocolate in bowl set over very hot, but not simmering water. Set aside to cool slightly. In a medium saucepan with heavy bottom, whisk together egg yolks, 2 tablespoons sugar and 3/4 cup heavy cream. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, about 4 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken and

coats back of spoon. Remove from heat, whisk in melted chocolate and vanilla. Strain into a bowl, cover and chill. With electric mixer, beat remaining 1 1/4 cups cream with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar until stiff peaks form. Stir about 1 cup whipped cream into chocolate custard, then fold in rest of cream with rubber spatula until no streaks remain. Spoon into cups, cover and refrigerate at least an hour, preferably longer. Serve topped with two or three perfect fresh raspberries. Makes about 6 servings.

Fit Chocolate Mousse

1 package sugar-free instant chocolate pudding (Walmart Great Value brand tastes best) 1 3/4 cups cold skim milk 1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 cup refrigerated “lite” whipped topping, such as Cool Whip Ladyfingers Buzz chocolate pudding mix, milk, coffee granules and vanilla in blender until smooth. Quickly pour into bowl; whisk in whipped topping. Spoon into dishes, cover and refrigerate. Serve topped with more whipped topping, raspberries or a sliced strawberry; stick a ladyfinger into each dish. Makes 4-6 servings, approximately 150 calories each.

Faux Chocolate Mousse

Pots-de-crème have a firmer texture than mousse but are super-easy and decadently delicious. 1 cup chocolate chips, preferably dark, with 60 percent cacao 2 tablespoons granulated sugar Pinch salt 1 large egg 1 teaspoon vanilla or coffee liqueur 3/4 cup whole milk Put all ingredients except milk into blender container. Pulse to break up chocolate. Heat milk to just below boiling point, but not boiling. With blender running on low, slowly pour milk into container through lid opening. Blend for 30 seconds until smooth. Pour into demitasse cups. Cover with plastic wrap, not touching chocolate. Refrigerate several hours. Serve with a tiny spritz of whipped cream and a dusting of cocoa. Makes 4-5 servings. PS Deborah Salomon is a staff writer for PineStraw and The Pilot. She may be reached at debsalomon@nc.rr.com.

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February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

T h e P L e as u r e s o f L if e

Gone Dental

Confession of a happy dental patient By Tom Allen

Between Valentine’s Day and National Heart

Month, during February, matters of the heart seem to grab the most attention.

But while nodding to Saint Valentine or the cardiologist, don’t forget the dentist as well as other professionals who keep your smile white and bright. Because February is also National Dental Month. Like policemen, dental professionals often get a bum rap. Movies, even cartoons, sometimes depict the good folks who crown our molars and fill our bicuspids as sadistic tooth doctors. Remember Steve Martin’s portrayal of a sadistic dentist in the film adaptation of Little Shop of Horrors? And what about Laurence Olivier as the torturing dentist in Marathon Man? Imagine having a dental appointment the day after viewing one of these films — sort of like going for a pleasant ocean swim post-Jaws. Who wouldn’t need a whiff of nitrous oxide? Not long ago, while sitting in my dentist’s waiting area, skimming a Golf Digest article on how to break a hundred, I noticed a tired young mom reach the end of her rope. After several attempts at redirecting her kid’s antsy behavior, she finally huffed, “Settle down or I’ll tell the dentist to give you a shot.” Ah, who doesn’t remember parental threats when we weren’t behaving — “You see that policeman? If you don’t straighten up, he’s gonna put you in jail.” Some threats worked. Most went in one ear and out the other, like that of the antsy little boy. Similar warnings perpetuate negative stereotypes, and although I don’t recall my mom issuing threats related to dentists or policemen, I could easily have been that kid in the waiting room. I first encountered a dentist at age 5. The waiting area, while clean and well-lit, was void of tropical fish aquariums and flat-screened televisions tuned to the Disney Channel. The experience involved a toothache, an extraction, a little screaming, lots of crying, and my mom at the end of her rope. The toy whistle the dental assistant handed me as we left offered little consolation. Our dentist, “Dr. Jerry,” was a nice chap, as gentle as a soft-bristled toothbrush, but somewhere around my 16th year and after a few drilled-out cavities, I dug in my heels. My mom finally threw up her hands at my resistance to her annual announcement — usually a day or two before the appointment — that it was time for me to “have my teeth cleaned.” No more drills for me. No more gurgling sounds when I was asked to rinse and spit into a porcelain basin. Fluoride, I learned in chemistry class, was now in our water. Miss Christy, the happy hygienist, could keep her dime store stash of rewards. My days of opening wide — finished. Fast forward ten years. My mother’s concerns continued — “Do you have a vacuum cleaner for your apartment?” “How about some new sheets for your

bed?” “When was the last time you went to the dentist?” Thanks, Mom. New sheets and a used vacuum I could use. As for my teeth, they were just fine. She was right, as moms usually are. The time had come to suck it up, pick up the phone, and make the call. Dr. Jerry was long-retired. Home was ten hours away. A friend recommended Dr. Williams. I called to schedule an appointment He could see me in two weeks. The appointment began, not in a contoured dental chair, but in a conference room, enhanced with soothing lights and cool jazz. Dr. Williams appeared, tall and soft-spoken, asking questions about my general health, my teeth, and finally any negative dental experiences. I shared that first extraction. The goal, he assured me, was an easy and relatively painless transition into a life of semi-annual checkups. We shook hands and off to the comfy chair I went. Hygienist Emily was a hoot, a tall gal with a slow, Southern drawl who immediately put me at ease. As a child, I couldn’t have cared less about that “just-had-my-teeth-cleaned” feeling. Emily sent me on my way with a handful of mint-flavored floss and a whole new oral sensation. The exam pinpointed two cavities, filled a couple of weeks after the appointment. Sure, the needle to numb my mouth pinched a little. The whirring drill was certainly no Palestrina motet, but it wasn’t bad, not bad at all. Along with those amalgamated fillings, I copped a new toothbrush and a shiny Red Delicious apple. Moreover, my name jumped onto the list of recovering dentophobes. Conquering a fear never felt so sweet. Years later, a move to Southern Pines meant finding a new dentist. We found a great one. He’s kind and gentle, personable and professional. He speaks to my kids in a restaurant and waves when he sees us around town. Even more impressive, he and his staff donated their services to some Chernobyl children my church hosted for several years. Sure, like lots of folks with several fillings, two root canals and a couple of crowns, I’ve got a semester’s worth of college tuition in my mouth. But my family receives good dental care from some fine professionals. My teenage daughters may not look forward to a dental visit as much as they do a trip to the beach, but thankfully, from early on, the dentist has been their friend, not a foe. And I’d trade a whistle any day for an apple, a new toothbrush, or a handful of mintflavored dental floss. So this month, while you’re feeding sugary sweets to your significant other, pat your dental professional on the back. Appreciate “cosmetic dentistry” that imparts that red carpet look, also “sedation dentistry” that erases the experience altogether. And don’t forget the helpers who scrape plaque off our teeth, x-ray our mandibles, and show us how to floss properly. Jewels in the crown, I say. A porcelain crown, that is. PS Tom Allen is minister of education at First Baptist Church, Southern Pines, and a frequent contributor to PineStraw magazine.

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February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Out of the Blue

One Step at a Time

A gentleman of uncommon grace, Leroy McCoy taught me a great deal about the world I was born into By Deborah Salomon

As a little girl — and a not-so-little girl — I liked to sit on the stairs, halfway up, halfway down. Maybe being in between meant I could go either way.

The steps were a bridge between my room and the action, not always pleasant, transpiring on the main floor. I’d sit there for minutes . . . longer, sometimes. In the Sandhills, February bridges winter and spring. It can go either way. And, unlike November and December, February hosts a rainbow of holidays, beginning with Super Bowl Sunday. Lincoln and Washington’s birthdays, long separate, now merged as Presidents’ Day, for the benefit of ski resorts. Valentine’s Day, Black History Month, American Heart Month, all packed into 28 days. Chinese New Year, usually in February, falls on Jan. 31. Black History Month trumps them all. I will honor it by reprising an ageless friendship. Like February, Leroy McCoy was in between, a man with one foot in stereotypical black roles, the other tramping forward. During the 1950s and 60s Leroy worked second shift as a dietitian’s assistant at a VA hospital in western North Carolina. The federal government did not discriminate. He earned an excellent salary with benefits. Mornings, Leroy cleaned houses. He was so good, so strong and so fast that bridge club ladies fought for his time, despite the rather high wage. My mother scored about two hours a week. When I was home, as he cleaned, Leroy always struck up a conversation, sometimes about school desegregation, perhaps sounding me out since I had grown up in New York. Often, Leroy would scold me when he’d catch me reading Frank Yerby novels in the sun, on the terrace, during summer vacation. “You oughta be helping your momma more,” Leroy would grin. “You make something of yourself, hear?” Every three years Leroy traded his Oldsmobile for a shiny new one, usually light blue, with whitewalls. He’d pull into the driveway and ring the basement doorbell even though it was open, and he had a key. My mother asked him again and again to eat his sandwich upstairs with us but he never did — never accepted a Coke except from a bottle or drank water in our kitchen. Leroy and his wife, Virginia, a fine seamstress who took in alterations (mostly from Montaldo’s), adopted two children and bought a nice bungalow on a hill overlooking the black ghetto. The house was perfect, from the hydrangeas outside to the curtains within. Remember the expression “ . . . so clean you can eat off the kitchen floor”? A surgeon could have removed my appendix on Leroy’s. I left for college, graduated, married, moved away, had children. We wanted

to invite Leroy to my wedding, held in a hotel, but this was 1960. After my father died in 1984, my mother moved to a retirement facility that did not accept black residents. When she gave up driving, Leroy did her errands — the dry cleaner, post office, drugstore, bank. No matter how often Leroy appeared, the teller always called to verify his transactions. When I flew in from Vermont Leroy would be waiting at the airport in his shiny Oldsmobile. He never parked or came in, just put my bags in the trunk and opened the back door for me. Nothing doing. I sat up front with him, for the shock value, as we whizzed away. When my mother sold the house I came down to help dispose of its furnishings — heartbreaking to watch her sit in the living room as strangers haggled over her possessions. I begged Leroy to come early, promised him anything he wanted — anything, including the silver, in appreciation for 30 years of service. But he didn’t show up until afternoon. I ran down to the basement when the doorbell rang that last time. “Thank you, Miss Deborah, but I’ll just take a few of your Daddy’s tools,” the tools he had admired, decade after decade, as he ate his lunch near the workbench. “And if you leave that old vacuum cleaner and some rags I’ll come in tomorrow and clean things up.” I couldn’t keep back the tears as I hugged him tight. To my knowledge, Leroy did not demonstrate, march, or become politically active. He was too busy putting his kids through college with money from one employer that didn’t discriminate, and many bridge club ladies who did. He entered my mother’s house through the basement door, used only the basement bathroom but let me sit in the front seat of his Oldsmobile while we laughed about stuff from the past. He wouldn’t drink Coke from a glass yet he hugged me warmly. His sense of self, of equality and purpose, ran deep. Then why, I wondered, did Leroy comply to Southern tradition? Because this was a way of demonstrating to the bridge club ladies how shamefully blacks had been treated for a century. Leroy was a force in my life. Contextually, he was an avatar, the first step in an unfinished algorithm. He sat on the steps, halfway down, looking up. My mother included Leroy on her list of pallbearers. Sadly, he died first, but not before enjoying retirement on a federal pension. I doubt he would have carried her coffin anyway. Because, even in 2000, among the older folks an eyebrow might have been raised — and Leroy wasn’t about making waves. Leroy was about making progress. PS Deborah Salomon is a staff writer for PineStraw and The Pilot. She may be reached at debsalomon@nc.rr.com.

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February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

A N ENG L I S H W OM A N I N T HE S A N D H I L L S

Oh, Wellie

Whither my beloved gumboots and trusty brolly? Here in mud month it’s easier to just wait on the porch for the storm to pass

By Serena Brown

Photograph by Serena Brown

The Anglo-Saxons had a variety of

words for February, of which one was “solmonath” — “mud month.” An apt nomenclature, given that most of the British Isles resemble an oozing quagmire at this point in mid-winter. The most practical and comfortable solution to the problem of how to negotiate the sticky landscape is the Wellington boot. Loved by all who wear them, fêted in written word and song, Wellingtons are a necessity, and not just in the countryside: A pair of wellies is a staple of even the City commuter’s wardrobe.

Prior to living in North Carolina I had never imagined an existence without wellies. When we packed for our move here I was uncertain whether to include my ancient gumboots. The terrain I had traversed during our previous visits had never presented much of a challenge to a normal tennis or walking shoe. I had yet to come across anything resembling mud as I knew it. I checked with my husband, the most part of whose childhood was spent playing in Moore County’s fields and fishing holes. “No,” he confirmed airily, surveying the boots, “You won’t need those, there isn’t any mud.” What? Really? No mud at all? Well, having been here for two years I can confirm that while he may

have exaggerated slightly, it was only very slightly indeed. I have observed and squelched — the true test is in the sound and suction — through actual mud perhaps twice. Our fine sandy soil and dense woodland seem to absorb even heavy downpours within an admirably short time. The first Christmas we spent here together my husband gave me a pair of smart navy blue Wellington boots. Perhaps I had looked as forlorn as I felt when he had said I wouldn’t need my old friends on that day of careful packing. Yet I sent the new ones back to the shop, signing the return form with a flourish. I really didn’t need them. On daily walks with the dogs I have missed my wellies only a couple of times, and one of those times was in the mountains so it doesn’t count. I realize that to a Sandhills native this will seem a remarkable thing to find so pleasing, but to a bespattered Brit such as myself, used to sudden bogs that appear from nowhere and puddles that become seasonal ponds, it is a thing of wonder and delight. As I trotted home in the rain on a recent winter night it occurred to me that I no longer have an umbrella in hand at all times. The tiny lightweight brolly that was once a staple inhabitant of every bag has been excised from my daily luggage. I keep one for trips back to England. It lives in my suitcase and has yet to see the light of day in North Carolina. It’s designed for perpetual drizzle, not the heavy tropical downpours we have in the South. It seems to me that true Southerners don’t bother with umbrellas any more than a reliable pair of Wellies, and in my attempt to adapt and integrate I’ve unconsciously followed suit — it’s infinitely more comfortable to wait out the storm on the porch. PS Serena Brown once worked for the BBC’s prestigious art program Arena. Originally from Cheshire, she now lives in Southern Pines with her husband, Paul Brown, and is PineStraw’s associate editor.

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February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

B I R D WA T CH

Snowy Owl An invader from the far North

By Susan Campbell

In the bird world, this winter will

Photograph by Henry Link

certainly be remembered for the largest invasion of snowy owls along the East Coast, ever. Although there are a few individuals observed in the Northeastern states each year, never before have there been dozens found as far south as the Carolinas. Reports have been rolling in from Maine to South Carolina since just before Thanksgiving. It does not take an experienced birdwatcher to spot and identify these massive owls.

Snowies are typically seen in northern Canada and, to varying degrees, into the extreme northern edge of the United States from October through March. Breeding, however, occurs in the high Arctic on the open tundra. Young birds are the ones most likely to disperse south following very productive summers. When prey such as lemmings are abundant, four or more hatchlings will survive and then face intense competition on the wintering grounds. Many juveniles will head southward in search of food. Second in size to only the great gray owl, snowy owls are large birds. Adults are almost completely white with scattered gray flecking, a smallish head and bright yellow eyes. Immature birds will be darkly barred except for the all-white face, through their second summer. As with all owls, they are feathered from the base of the bill to their powerful toes. Not only does this insulate them against the weather but, more importantly, it muffles the sound of their movements as they dive on prey, often from an elevated perch.

History tells us that the owls found south of the usual wintering range are often hungry and stressed. They are seen foraging during the daytime, which is not typical behavior. Although their preferred prey is, not surprisingly, rodents, they will settle for birds, fish and even aquatic invertebrates if need be. More than once, an emaciated owl has been taken in by a wildlife rehabilitator in the Lower 48. Since airfields mimic the open tundra with which they are so familiar, snowies are often found at large (and busy) airports, which presents risk for bird and aircraft alike. Removal of these birds during the winter months may then be necessary. Because they are such charismatic birds whose activities are monitored by local birders, the authorities have been shying away from shooting so-called problem birds, choosing instead to use more humane methods. Trained falconers have been employed to trap and move snowy owls found in places such as Boston Logan International and, more recently, JFK. The first snowy owl located in North Carolina was a bird found in the dunes at Cape Point on the Outer Banks. Others have turned up in a variety of locations, from the mountains of Brevard to Charlotte and Raleigh and locations around Lake Mattamuskeet. An individual was even photographed on a tall stack of shipping containers at the Port of Wilmington. There could very well be more reports of the species around the state this winter than all historic reports combined. So if you are driving through agricultural fields, passing through an airport or even visiting a local high school with large playing fields, keep an eye out for a big white bird. Hungry snowy owls could be anywhere this winter. And if you spot one or talk to someone else who has, please let me know! PS Susan would love to hear from you. Send wildlife sightings and photos to susan@ncaves.com or call (910)949-3207.

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February 2014 P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

T h e sp o r ti n g lif e

Little Miss Valentine

A glass of wine, a pretty young gal, and the story of a sea duck

By Tom Bryant

She was standing on her toes peering intently

up at a pair of mounted oldsquaw ducks I have hanging from the wall in the sunroom. She had one hand on the table, bracing herself to keep her balance, the other hand holding a wine glass. Dressed in a short green jumper covered with Valentine hearts, she also had the attention of all the other men in the room.

“How about letting me freshen up that wine glass for you, young lady?” “Sure, you must be Mr. Bryant.” “Yep, that’s me. Tom to my friends. I see you’re interested in that pair of oldsquaw ducks.” “I really am, and my name’s LeeAnne, by the way. Were they alive?” That question kind of caught me by surprise. “Well, they were alive at one time.” “That means you killed them? Did you stuff them?” “No. A taxidermist did that for me. He passed away many years ago. Let me get you that wine.” I went up the steps to the kitchen to the wine bar where Linda, my bride of many years, was filling glasses. “Pinot grigio,” I said with a flourish. “When did you start drinking ladies’ wine?” Linda asked. “It’s not for me. It’s for little Miss Valentine down there.” I motioned toward the sunroom. “Is she old enough to be drinking?” I asked. “She looks 16.” “Anyone under the age of 40 looks to be 16 to you, especially if they’re blonde and beautiful. That girl graduated from Boston College last year and is visiting

her aunt, who lives in Weymouth. Help me pass around these hors d’oeuvres.” We were having an impromptu Valentine going-away celebration, as we were gearing up to head south in the little Airstream for the final winter months. We were going down to what Linda lovingly calls the fish camp, an RV park on Chokoloskee Island just below Everglades City, Florida. “I’ve got to get this wine back to our little guest,” I said, giving my best lecherous eyebrows-going-up-and-down Groucho Marx imitation. “That little girl is young enough to be your granddaughter,” Linda said laughing. I headed back to the sunroom, where the blonde girl had gathered an audience. “Here you go.” I handed the glass of wine to our young guest and noticed that my old hunting buddy, Bubba, had come in the room and was leaning up against the bar wall, arms crossed. He was down for the morning, bird hunting, and just happened to drop by. When he saw me looking his way, he also did his Groucho imitation, grinning from ear to ear. “Tell me about those ducks,” the Valentine girl said. They’re sea ducks, LeeAnne, and I got them on a hunt to the Eastern Shore of Maryland back in the early ’80s, 1981 I think, to be exact.” “Wow, before I was born,” she replied. “You really know how to hurt a fellow,” I said, laughing. “I meant . . . you don’t look that old. I mean . . .” “Don’t worry, young lady. My feelings are OK. There are some advantages to being old. Older, I should say. But back to those ducks, those are oldsquaws. No, I take that back. They used to be called by that name. The political correctness police, in an effort not to offend our Native American elderly ladies, have changed the name to long-tail ducks, even though tribal members call their elderly Native American ladies old squaws. But that’s neither here nor there. That was my one and only sea duck hunt.” “Why was that?” she asked. Four or five people were listening intently as

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February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

T h e sp o r ti n g lif e

I was talking about the ’80s duck hunt. I think they were just admiring the scenery and it wasn’t the oldsquaw ducks. Bubba was still holding up the wall of the bar, grinning. “Sea ducks, as their name implies, spend most of their life on the waters of bays, sounds and even the ocean. They are diving ducks and eat fish as a main diet. Now I have an unwritten code, and so do the friends I hunt with. We eat what we kill. If we can’t eat it, we don’t kill it. Have you ever eaten a duck?” “I have and it was delicious. We were at a fancy restaurant in Raleigh, and I ordered it from the menu.” “That was a farm duck, raised for the table like chickens. Wild ducks, like that mallard on the wall over there, are all dark meat, no fat, and that’s the kind of duck I eat. They are called puddle ducks and feed on vegetation and are great for dining if prepared right.” “How do sea ducks taste?” I don’t know if the girl was actually interested in the information or was just humoring me; but hey, in for a penny, in for a pound. “We cleaned those ducks on the hotel dock there at St. Michaels and had about twenty or so, I think. We divided them among ourselves and carried them home to our freezers. About two weeks later, I decided to cook up some for dinner; so I thawed a few and marinated them in buttermilk. I had read somewhere that buttermilk would take the gamey taste out of sea ducks. I never found out if it did or not. The smell was so bad that I buried the whole kit and caboodle in the backyard behind our dog kennel. Paddle, my yellow Lab, refused to go back there for a week or so. That’s why I don’t hunt sea ducks anymore. They sure are pretty, though.” We both looked up at the oldsquaw mounts. “Wow, good story,” she said. “Thanks for telling me all that. I guess I had better find Aunt Ida. She leaned up kissed me on the cheek and softly said, looking at Bubba, “Tell your buddy over there, that he’s almost as cute as you are.” Bubba came over as the group dispersed, draped an arm over my shoulder and we both watched Miss Valentine twitch up the stairs to the kitchen. “Ah, youth,” he said. “Wasted on the young,” I replied. “Squire Bryant,” Bubba said with a flourish, “step over to yon bar for a little refreshment and while there enlighten me about that magnificent specimen of a redhead duck you have hanging next to the window. But first a question. Was it alive?” “Shut up, Bubba.” He bent over he was laughing so hard. PS Tom Bryant, a Southern Pines resident, is a lifelong outdoorsman and PineStraw’s Sporting Life columnist.

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910.295.1917 | 20 Memorial Drive • Pinehurst | www.pinehurstplasticsurgery.com PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014

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The Reluctant Twitterer A new voice for an old game

Fascinating stuff, listening to Bill Coore talk to his crew about the art of planting wire grass in random fashion, a la Mother Nature.

By Lee Pace

When I first became enamored of golf

and the words around it, I would go to the library and find the bound volumes of The New Yorker magazine, look for Herbert Warren Wind’s epic essays about the U.S. Open and the Masters and devour them word for word. They ran for page upon page, surely upward of five thousand words or more. In the 1980s and earlier there was no Internet, no smartphones and no social media. It was hardly a crime to write like Julius Boros played golf — like a man slowly floating down a river.

There’s an old saying in the writing game: “I’ve written you a six-page letter. I would have written two, but I didn’t have the time.” The point is that brevity takes thought and effort. You work up a sweat weeding out the fat. That’s one reason I’ve been slow to embrace the world of Twitter. I need a hundred words just to get my pulse up, and they want a beginning, middle and end in 140 characters? Be serious. But old dogs must learn new tricks;

even the 85-year-old Dan Jenkins dispatches tweets from Augusta National and is hailed as the Ancient Twitterer. In recognition of my leap into the world of Twitter in October and the holding company’s initial public offering at the New York Stock Exchange, I offer a bag of tweets from the Sandhills golf universe and beyond: • Is there anything quite like the late afternoon winter sunlight on a Pinehurst or Southern Pines golf course? • Winter golf was Pinehurst’s original stock in trade. Yogi Berra was a regular in the 1960s before heading to spring training. • As the author John Updike once mused, “Golf feels, on the frost-stiffened fairways, reduced to its austere and innocent essence.” • All the new hybrid Bermuda greens in the area add some winter challenge in playing the bounces into the firmer surfaces. • The new colorant being used on No. 2 in lieu of overseeding burnishes the fairways with a pale swath of green that looks perfectly natural. • A golf bag with two woods, five irons, two wedges and a putter feels considerably lighter than standard fare. • Get set for the media onslaught leading to the June Open double-header. The No. 2 restoration is front-and-center. • I have no idea if scores will be lower for the men’s Open over ’99 and ’05. But who cares? This one will be unlike any other: No rough. • Payne Stewart hit practice shots from sand-filled divots before final round ’99,

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then clipped one sweetly from a divot on 4th hole. • And what if Payne’s downhill, double-breaking putt on 16 had missed? Likely Philly Mick’s already a Grand Slammer. • Fingers crossed on the weather. Not one shot in the 1999 or 2005 Opens was delayed because of rain or thunderstorms. • Element of luck reintroduced to Open. One clunker tee ball will find a clean lie on hardpan; another will be behind a clump of wire grass. • Ben Crenshaw is an inordinately nice man, the only rock star I’ve known who’ll make eye contact with a stranger and invite him to engage. • Fascinating stuff, listening to Bill Coore talk to his crew about the art of planting wire grass in random fashion, a la Mother Nature. • One of the key tools in the restoration of No. 2 was the original irrigation lines laid down in 1933. Perfect road map. • Fairways were meant to be an oasis encased in sand, pine straw, pine needles and wire grass. • Early Pinehurst employee Tommie Currie on Donald Ross: He was very quiet, a bit stern, dignified. Just as is No. 2. • Greens for Women’s Open will be just as fast, but not quite as firm. Good shot from fairway should bounce, bounce, check. • Still never seen anything quite like Annika Sorenstam’s total domination of the Pine Needles field in 1996 Open. Talk about “zoned in.” • Wish it had been in the stars for Billy Joe Patton to have won the 1962 U.S. Amateur on No. 2. Problem was, he wanted it too badly. • Would love for the PGA Tour to set dates for 6,528-yard Mid Pines with rolled back ball and hefty purse and see what happens. • Original developers of Legacy Golf Links struck gold with site in 1990: scrub oaks, pine trees, wire grass, hardpan sand — plus five lakes. • Stability counts in the topsy-turvy world of golf course/club management. Bell family now 61 years invested at Pine Needles, 20 at Mid Pines. • Robert Dedman Sr. and Jr. entering 30th year of Pinehurst stewardship. Kudos to Junior for No. 2 restoration and clubhouse renovation. • Thankfully now the architectural backdrop to the 18th hole on No. 2 matches the timeless façade on the original south side. • Ever taken a close look at those weather and spike-worn bricks on the south side of the Pinehurst clubhouse steps? Profound, actually. • And what a neat touch on the first hole of No. 2 to replace old starter’s hut with new one patterned after same at St. Andrews. • Bob Levy Jr. the only owner of Talamore since 1991 opening and now ten years into owning Mid South (an under-rated Palmer gem). • The Robinettes are fourteen years into seeing National Golf Club stabilize around its Nicklaus course

February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

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and chart new ground with opulent cottages. • If more kids had access to courses like Southern Pines GC and were never allowed on a cart, golf would have a much brighter future. • The venerable Pine Crest Inn has been in the Barrett family hands since 1961; patriarch Bob liked to say he ran a “third-class hotel for first-class guests.” • Mike Strantz left us too early in June 2005, but thankfully Tobacco Road lives on in tribute to his quirky but inspiring design acumen. • Nothing chafes me more than a bad shot than you talking to my bad shot. I know it needs to “settle” or “come back.” Shut the hell up. • Unless it’s someone who doesn’t understand yellow and red stakes and drops improperly on some inane “line of flight” concept. • If a penny is good enough for Jack Nicklaus and Davis Love III to mark their balls on the green, why can’t it be for everyone? • Great advice from Pinehurst maven Marty McKenzie to a young beginning golfer: Get the grip right and never expect perfection. • Greensboro’s A.W. McAlister wrote in 1910 of golf and life: “You cannot worry about the future, fret over the past, be overwrought or tell lies.” • Best golf tip I ever got came from Hogan to Bolt to a Durham club pro: “Feel both hands on the club at the top of the swing.” Slows you down. • Always good sport to look for vanity plates around Pinehurst: DIVOTTEE, PAR4US, TEEITUP, 2UP2TOGO and TEE AUF are among some I’ve seen. • Wish they were still around: Harvie Ward, Charlie Price, Dick Taylor, Don Padgett Sr., Fletcher Gaines and Bill Jones among village regulars. • Durham native and ex-Tour golfer John Maginnes has created a nice niche talking golf on national radio. Smart, opinionated, connects with golfers. • Must-see in Pinehurst: Wait staff at 1895 Grille in The Holly Inn doing a “double pour” of molten Godiva chocolate liqueur into a soufflé. • Scottish influence here deep beyond golf. Aberdeen, Inverness, Dundarrach and Edinburgh within half an hour. • Little touches add up at Pinehurst: Rocking chairs, afternoon tea, Robert Murphy on the piano at breakfast, chimes from The Village Chapel. • Only two colors needed in the Sandhills: The forest green of the village and the sepia tones preserving the history. • From Tommy Armour: I have seen strangers, jaded and dull, come to Pinehurst and in a few days change into entirely delightful fellows. PS

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Find Lee Pace on Twitter @LeePaceTweet. His book, “The Golden Age of Pinehurst—The Story of the Rebirth of No. 2,” is available onsite and online at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club. PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014

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February 2014 God’s Honest Truth (A Pantoum)

I’m only telling you what I heard. What she told me not to tell. Don’t say I told you, but it’s true. I don’t want to start any rumors but I know this for a fact. I’m only telling you what I heard. Honestly, it’s hard to believe. She said he said she wouldn’t believe it. Don’t say I told you, but it’s true. Things like this don’t happen overnight. We all knew it was just a matter of time. I’m only telling you what I heard. I’m telling you because I know you can keep a secret safe as a locked tight box. Just between us I wasn’t at all surprised. Pretend to be surprised when you hear this otherwise. It’s the God’s honest truth. I’m only telling you what I heard.

— Ruth Moose

Saving Sam

From a storybook life on the track, the beautiful red racehorse wound up only hours from death. Then the Angels came.

By K aren McCollom * Photographs by Tim Sayer

he chestnut colt stepped up into the winners’ circle at Hollywood Park racetrack in California. His groom pulled the blinker hood from his head, revealing a wide white dagger of a blaze down his face. Eyes bright, his red coat gleamed and the long, smooth haunches bunched powerfully as he came to a halt, head up, to survey the crowd. The horse stood quietly in the grassless paddock in North Carolina. His mane hung in strings down his thin neck, and his eyes maintained an unfocused, glassy gaze. The veterinarian unbuckled the filthy blanket and slid it off the side of the horse, revealing a shocking skeleton barely covered by a dull red coat. Virtually every bone in his body was visible, protruding hugely and unnaturally beneath the tight and weeping skin. His backbone stood above his ribs like a sail, the head of his femur and his ischia, ordinarily buried deep inside a muscular rump, protruded grotesquely. His hips were worn bare, and open sores oozed pus down his sides from his hips, his elbows, his withers. The veterinarian and the horse rescue manager were stunned. “The only time I have ever seen these bones visible,” said the vet, pointing to the horse’s wasted hindquarters, “was in a cadaver. He probably has less than forty-eight hours to live.”

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Reggae Revolution’s career as a racehorse, while not brilliant, was wellThe desperately deprived and neglected life of this horse lies in stark managed and useful, and followed a trajectory typical of many Thoroughbreds. contrast to the pampered, valued life of the first horse. The fact remains, When he reached racing age at 2 years old, he was shipped to California to emhowever, that these two descriptions portray the very same animal only bark on his new job. After a slow beginning, he won his third race with a stretch twenty-two months apart. run, which brought him from behind down the center of the track to run past How does a horse descend so rapidly from a life as an eager and healthy the tiring leaders. He raced twice more as a 2-year-old, once with a tenacious run young racehorse in California to near death by starvation in a paddock in North just behind the front runners, which left him barely edged out for a third place. Carolina? How does something like this happen, particularly near a community In the spring, the little gelding’s owners sent him East to try his luck in the so full of good horses and horsemen as Southern Pines? When my life first 3-year-old races in Maryland and Pennsylvania. There, under the guiding hand intersected with Sam’s life, this question burned in my mind. of his new trainer, a former hunter and equitation rider in the horse show world, Reggae Revolution, as he was originally named, was born with the equine he prospered, having good results including two second place finishes at Laurel version of a silver spoon in his mouth. He was foaled in March, 2006 at Park and Pimlico in Maryland. He had become a tough little racehorse, always Crestwood Farm, a glorious and historic Lexington, Kentucky farm, with right in the thick of things at the finish, closing well and fighting to the last inch. rolling pastures enclosed by board fences and stone walls. The small red colt When he returned to the barn started his life here in these green after a fourth place finish in a fields at the side of his dam, a dark claiming race at Philadelphia Park, it bay mare called Karaoke Kid, a grandbecame clear that he was not quite daughter of the great Seattle Slew. right. According to his trainer, he was She was an experienced mother; the sore in his suspensory ligaments, a small chestnut with the dagger blaze common injury for racehorses, and was her ninth foal. needed some rest. It was decided that He was bred and owned though he had been a nice and workthroughout his racing career by a manlike little racehorse in the cheaper Thoroughbred breeding and racing races, it made more sense to retire stable owned by a large Midwestern him from racing after his lay-up time real estate company. At that time, the than to gamble the risk and expense stable owned about 200 horses includof returning him to the track. In June ing broodmares, stallions, young The day of his rescue, December 2010 2009, Reggae Revolution was sent stock and horses of racing age, most of to the Virginia farm of the trainer’s whom lived at Crestwood Farm. friend and colleague, Diana McClure. His sire, Petionville, a stakes-win“His owner just wanted him to ning son of Seeking the Gold by Mr. have a good home,” said McClure. Prospector, is known for producing “He was an inexpensive horse that not only stakes winners but horses didn’t fit in his racing program. I let “solid in mind and body,” accordhim down here for about 45 days and ing to the race trainer who trained then started him hacking and jumpReggae Revolution as well as many ing small fences.” others of his breeder’s East Coast “I break young horses and layup horses. “Even as two-year-olds, they racehorses and do rehoming of retired just ‘get it’. They’re really sensible,” racehorses out of our facility,” said the trainer said. Reggae Revolution in his racehorse days and today in competition with Karen PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . February 2014

McClure. “Reggae Revolution’s trainer and I both started in the hunter ring as kids and recognized the quality and temperament of this horse that would be so desirable in an off-the-track thoroughbred looking for a new career.” In August of 2009, McClure sold Reggae Revolution to a buyer from North Carolina who saw him listed with a service that helps racehorse owners and trainers find new off-the-track homes for their retiring racehorses. McClure recalls, “When the woman came to see him it was love at first sight. She was the first person I showed him to and she instantly bonded with him. She was a lovely lady, she was so nice, a good rider, and it was one of the smoothest, nicest deals I have ever done. Reggae was an adorable, quiet chestnut gelding, and I was sure they were a perfect fit.” His new owner made shipping arrangements and by the end of August 2009, Reggae Revolution had taken up residence in Southern Pines, North Carolina, an area well-known as a center for equestrian activities and horse farms. Up to this point the short life story of this little horse had followed a path smoother than that of many racehorses. From a story-book babyhood, he moved on to a useful and well-managed racing career and finally to a new life as a sport horse with a caring owner. This little horse’s good fortune did not, however, last long. By the spring of 2010, life circumstances forced his new owner to sell him. Through an introduction from the man who cared for her horses’ teeth, Reggae’s owner met an interested buyer from a nearby town. The buyer, a young soldier, owned a small farm, with a pleasant little two-stall barn and paddocks. After the recent death of one of his horses, he was looking for a new horse. Reggae’s owner was satisfied that she had found the perfect new home for her horse, and in the spring of 2010, Reggae Revolution, shiny and plump, and now 4 years old, was delivered to his new home in Carthage. He joined a quarter horse, already in residence at the little farm. According to his new owner’s neighbor, a woman who is an established horse show trainer, Reggae Revolution was ridden a few times that summer, perhaps once a week, on trail rides. By early fall, however, she noticed that both horses were looking thin. She became worried, reminded of the difficulties that the man had had with his previous horse, a Thoroughbred mare. She described the mare as becoming a skeleton, and despite her feeding and health care suggestions, as well as assistance with tooth care, which she provided, the mare failed to put on any weight. Assuming the mare was old and sick, she finally suggested that the kindest thing would be to put her down. When she realized that the new horse, Reggae, was also beginning to fail, she spoke to his owner. “I was concerned,” she said, “so I asked him if everything was OK, and he told me that his wife had left and he was getting a divorce.” She expressed her sympathies and made some feeding suggestions for the horses, but shortly after that both horses were moved from the property. By early December the horses returned, and by this time, they were wearing blankets. “It seemed as if the man was actually hiding the horses in a paddock behind the house where no one could see them, and covering them with blankets, but they kept breaking out to try to graze on the edge of the road, particularly the little Thoroughbred, who seemed determined to survive.” Once when Reggae was loose, the neighbor caught him and found herself actually frightened to peer under the blanket. After this she started sending her barn helpers over to sneak grain to the horses. “I didn’t want the guy to know someone else was feeding them, as I was afraid he would stop feeding them any-

thing at all himself, and I continued to make suggestions of how to feed them. It was very awkward.” Apparently, the owner had already stopped feeding the horses anything at all, as their situation continued to decline, despite the neighbor’s efforts to help. At some point, the quarter horse disappeared from the property, leaving the Thoroughbred alone. Finally one of the barn workers and a friend went next door and bravely took the blanket off the little horse. Horrified, they immediately called Moore County Animal Control. When Animal Control merely said they would “monitor” the situation rather than take any immediate action, the barn worker’s friend called Libby Schmittdiel at Healing Hearts Equine Rescue in Carthage. Libby went to the farm, bringing veterinarian Tom Daniel along. Shocked at what they found, and desperately concerned with the immediate survival of the horse, Libby and Tom suggested that the neglectful owner surrender the horse to Healing Hearts Equine Rescue. Alarmed at the earlier involvement of Animal Control and the implications of possible litigation and seizure, the owner agreed. By taking this action the man evaded any legal action against him for his horrifying neglect. Tom drew blood from the horse to test whether his open weeping sores were in any way contagious, and Libby brought over some hay and beet pulp for the horse to eat through the night. The next day, on December 15, 2010, when the paperwork was completed and Reggae Revolution was legally signed over to Healing Hearts Equine Rescue, Libby brought her trailer to transport the desperately weakened little horse home to her farm. “He was in such terrible shape, I was worried he might not be able to stand up for even this short trailer ride,” Libby described. “But I just drove really slowly and he made it safely to Healing Hearts.” Libby gives most of her rescue horses new names when they arrive. “A new life deserves a new name,” she says. She called the little starved red horse “Sam.” “We kept him in a well-bedded stall for the first couple of weeks as he was too feeble to walk around,” she said. “He was also so skeletal he couldn’t even lie down as it was too painful on all those protruding bony places. He had wounds and leaking pus at all the points in his body where the bones and blanket had pressed against his skin.” Libby fed him very small meals many times a day to re-acclimate his body to digesting food once again. Alarmingly, a couple of weeks into the early part of his rescue, Sam suddenly stopped eating. Libby called Tom, who diagnosed an upper respiratory infection which gave him such a sore throat, he couldn’t swallow. Libby had to spray medication up his nostrils at regular intervals for several days until, to her relief, he started to eat again. As winter became spring, she began to let him out in the paddock for gradually increasing periods, his wounds began to heal, and his dull, greasy hair shed out to reveal a glistening, deep red coat. The first time I saw Sam, in May 2011, only five months after his rescue, he was standing in his paddock at Healing Hearts, gazing clear-eyed and interestedly at his visitors. Though Libby had kept me up-to-date on his progress through the winter, I was completely startled by his physical presence. I am not sure what I had been picturing in my mind’s eye, but it certainly was not the glossy, sturdy little beauty that Sam had become. Libby had indeed performed a miracle in saving this perfectly lovely horse. Shortly after my visit to Healing Hearts, I headed north from North Carolina, where we have a winter farm, to our home in Vermont. The images of

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Sam, from skeleton to shiny splendor, were often on my mind during the summer, and when I returned to North Carolina in November, I gave Libby a call. I offered to foster Sam at our farm and begin his retraining to help enhance his chances for a future permanent adoptive home. After an examination by his veterinarian, and assurances that there were no limitations caused by his extreme starvation, Sam was cleared to go to work. At the beginning of December, Libby and I walked Sam into my trailer and I drove him the thirty minutes to our farm in nearby Vass. He whinnied piteously for Libby and his horse friends as we bumped slowly out the driveway of Healing Hearts, and I anxiously imagined his fear of being taken so abruptly from this place of sanctuary. When we arrived at our farm, however, much to my relief, he quickly adjusted to his new surroundings and companions with quiet poise. Both his physical grace and mental steadiness were a sheer delight for me, and it was only days later that I found myself in the local tack shop buying him a new blanket for the winter. “Hmm, I think this might mean he is staying with me,” I thought as I finalized this not-inexpensive purchase. Healing Hearts re-homes its horses through adoption rather than a sales process. Horses who are adopted from Healing Hearts can never be sold, but their adopter may return them to the rescue if necessary. Healing Hearts will always provide a safety net for any horse who comes through their door. I have been a professional horsewoman most of my adult life and have bought, trained and sold many exceptional and valuable horses. The idea of not ever being able to sell a horse in which I have invested time and money, did, for a moment, give me pause. On the other hand, in all my years of training horses, I had never encountered a horse quite like Sam. I understood completely what his race trainer meant by his description as a horse “who just gets it.” Not only is he particularly handsome, but he is probably the most level-headed, obliging horse of any breed that I have ever had the good fortune to train. As I have gotten older, I have become less interested in dealing with the usual antics of most young, green horses, and it occurred to me that despite my misgivings about the adoption contract, perhaps, at this point in my life, I needed this particular horse. And perhaps he needed me. In December 2011, only a few weeks after he first arrived for retraining at my farm, I signed the papers and paid his adoption fee. Just one year after he first arrived at Healing Hearts, horrifyingly neglected and starved nearly to death, Sam, healthy, shiny and ready for his new life, now belonged to me. Sam is now finishing up his second full season as a fledgling event horse. Each spring, he makes the annual trek from North Carolina to Vermont and has progressed quickly from not knowing much other than what he learned during his racing career to smoothly jumping 3’ 6” courses and winning ribbons

at the novice and training levels of eventing. He has steadfastly carried me up and down the rugged hills of Vermont on hunter paces and long exploratory trail rides, encountering not only deer and dump trucks, but wild turkeys, foxes, coyotes, sheep and llamas. He jumps show jumps and cross-country jumps with quiet aplomb. He bounds happily over ditches and plunges into water. His poise never falters. He is perfect. My initial and naïve bewilderment of how a healthy, young and valuable animal could so abruptly end up starving in a paddock thousands of miles from his starting point led me on a journey of discovery shaped by a steep learning curve. Sam’s story is remarkable for its sad ordinariness. Every day, horses from every walk of life, from every background, end up in desperate circumstances. Whether they are off-the-track Thoroughbreds, fancy show horses or backyard pleasure horses, these glorious animals are always profoundly vulnerable to the vagaries of human nature. Horses, as they exist now, are entirely reliant upon the kindness — or exposed to the neglect — of humans. They are creatures whose very being and physical shape is fueled by our competitive natures, our human vanity. And yet, through almost unfathomable ignorance, mental instability or poor financial circumstances, or simply a perfect storm of all these disasters at once, some horse owners are the very worst thing that could happen to these animals. I will never know or begin to understand what caused Sam’s unspeakably neglectful owner to stand by and willfully bring about his starvation and near death, but I do know that his is not a singular case. Sam is actually one of the lucky ones, pulled back from the brink and returned, almost miraculously, to the high quality of care that began at his birth in Kentucky. The tragic and commonplace fact is that so many horses, even from the best of backgrounds, fall unexpectedly through the cracks and never make it back. My life with Sam has clarified and illuminated for me, like a blazing and unforgiving spotlight, our accountability for these animals. I am very aware of the responsibility I carry for Sam; it is a mutual thing, a two-sided trust. And through him, I will be ever more vigilant that the horses who touch my life, directly or obliquely, receive the care that their very being demands. I will always hope that all of us humans, horsemen or not, can share this vigilance. PS Karen McCollom is a lifelong horsewoman who first came to Southern Pines during the winters to pursue her career as an upper level event rider during the 1990s. A part time writer and editor, she now divides her time between the farms she and her husband, Bill, own in Vass and Barnard, Vermont, while participating in slightly less heady levels of equine competition. She is a mother, and grandmother of two and the caretaker of an assortment of dogs, horses and the occasional cat.

Learning to Skate

As my father’s life ebbed, an angel named Ama appeared to guide and help us make the transition from life to death — teaching us both about the power of faith and love, reminding my of a lesson learned many years ago on the ice By Tracy Wilson

very year, in the chill of winter, I’m inspired by early flowers that somehow push their way through cold, barren soil, reassuring us that beauty and hope can break through even the harshest conditions. The lone, brilliant colors of crocus take me back to a bitterly cold, gloomy winter in suburban Detroit, where there was little hope of anything bright pushing through. I had been up north with my father for nearly two weeks when the doctors told us there was nothing more they could do for him. In a few days, they would discharge him to live out the weeks he had left. It was up to me to find the twenty-four-hour care he would need. I stood behind my father’s hospital bed, rubbing his aching neck. “Is this helping, Dad?” “Yeah, a bit. Thanks, my girl.” He paused. “I’m glad you’re here.” “Me, too.” I tried to hide the panic beneath my soothing touch. I wanted to spend every minute with him, but desperately needed to find care, too. At 82 years old, Dad was losing his battle against pulmonary fibrosis, a disease that mercilessly ravages the lungs. The strong, easy-going man who had excercised

six days a week for most of his life could barely stand up. My hands moved to rub his shoulders. The hospital room, cramped with chairs for visitors who had left, was quiet now with just the two of us. “Dad, do you remember when you taught me how to skate?” “That was a long time ago.” His voice sounded light. I imagined he was smiling. “Yeah, I was only 3. I remember you holding my hands and guiding me along. Then you just plunked me in the middle of the rink and skated away.” He nodded, remembering it, too. I had stood frozen, petrified to push my blades against the ice. “Daddy, come back.” He was forty feet away from me. “No, you can do it. C’mon.” He said it as if it was a matter of course. I finally pushed off and skated clumsily to his side, scared at first and then thrilled by every stride. “I knew you could do it,” he said with a smile. Throughout my life, my dad always seemed sure of me, which made me feel more sure of myself. For months I had been thinking back on those times and had carefully woven them into a premature eulogy, which I shared with him, wanting him to know what I would eventually say about

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

the life he left behind. Our conversation paused. “I’m tired, Trace. I want to go home.” “I know, Dad. I’m working on it.” But every option I had explored was a dead end. I couldn’t do twentyfour-hour care alone, and other family members were unable to help. The home care agencies I contacted were far too expensive, and nursing homes, while more affordable, were not what my dad wanted. Desperate to find a solution, I remembered a beautiful assisted living complex near my home in North Carolina. A move would be risky, but it provided twenty-four-hour care, my parents could live together, and I would be close by to help for as long as they needed. Two days later, the paperwork was approved and medical transportation was set up. Finally, we had a solution. That night, I dropped into bed bone-tired, wanting to feel relieved. But I didn’t. I pictured my parents in a bare-walled apartment with rental furniture, far from home, knowing no one but my husband, our kids and me. I tossed and turned thinking about my father spending his last weeks in a strange place. Wide-eyed at 3:27 a.m., I knew I had to call off the plan. I sobbed into the pillow and begged God to show me a better way. I had two days left. The long night finally gave way to morning and an old family friend stopped in to see how things were going. I gave her my discouraging update. “I know just what you should do, Toots,” she said reassuringly, using her trademark term of endearment. She urged me to call a wonderful woman she knew who owned a small, lesser-known home care agency. It turned out they had an option that was sort of like hiring a nanny. The caregiver lived with the family, providing consistent support at a price we could handle. The owner’s daughter, Megan, met us that morning in my dad’s hospital room. “What kind of caregiver do you want?” she asked. My father thought about it. “A white woman. In her 40s.” It sounded like he was choosing a girlfriend. “The only people we have who will do live-in work are black and from Africa,” Megan explained. He looked away, straight-faced, clearly not happy. My dad’s reaction completely surprised me. He had grown up in an era of blatant racism, but hadn’t participated. He was consistently kind to everyone and had done meaningful volunteer work with minority kids in inner-city Detroit. Still, I wondered if remnants of societal misperceptions lingered from years past, or whether this was simply his way of trying to control something in his out-of-control life, to at least have a say in who changed his soiled diapers. Megan gathered the information she needed and said she’d get back to us later that day. “Let’s just see what happens, Dad,” I said, trying to soften him. “Maybe they’ll come up with your dream girl.” He said nothing. That afternoon, Megan called. “Tracy, I have a wonderful match for your dad. Her name is Ama. She’s one of my favorite caregivers. She’s from Ghana and has done a lot of hospice care. In fact, she just finished working with a man who passed away last week. She stayed to help the family and will finish today. We’re lucky! She can start tomorrow, just in time for your deadline.” My mother and I agreed we should meet Ama by ourselves. When the time came, we left my dad unaware in his bed five stories above, and waited for our prospect in the hospital lobby. Ama approached us carrying her Bible and wearing a heavy winter coat and a contented smile. We talked for twenty minutes about her life and work, and about my dad and his condition. Her voice was soft and reassuring. She looked into our eyes and nodded as we spoke, seeming to understand our every hope and worry. My mom and I loved her almost instantly.

“You two have been gone a long time,” my dad said happily when we finally returned to his room. “I was starting to wonder if you went home.” We confessed our secret rendez-vous and told him about the wonderful woman we had just met. “She has the experience and kind heart you need, Dad. I know you’ll like her, too.” I paused, trying to put a positive spin on one last detail. “And she has a lovely African lilt to her voice,” I added. He scowled, rolled his eyes and shook his head slowly. No. I stood at the foot of his bed, held his eyes with mine and quietly spoke words that came without thought. “Dad, I’ve spent the last couple of weeks telling you about the life lessons you’ve taught me. Maybe God wants you to learn one last life lesson. That this,” I gestured toward my heart, “is more important than this.” I pointed to the skin on my arm. “Dad, Ama is your ticket home. Without her, it won’t happen. You should be so grateful to this woman.” He looked away, quiet for a moment, and then back again. “OK,” he said, with a little nod. Yes. The next day Ama moved in and Dad came home. He was exhausted from the ambulance transfer, uncomfortable from being bedridden, unsure of how to handle living with his impending death. When he left home two weeks before, he hadn’t expected to return and sleep in a hospital bed in the family room instead of his own bed in the room where he had slept for thirty years. A stranger now occupied the spare bedroom and cleaned his soiled body. Home was familiar territory with many unfamiliar additions. After a night of resting well in this place he loved, my father was full of life. Ama made him a wonderful breakfast, which he gratefully inhaled. He sang to us, told jokes to friends who stopped by and talked enthusiastically, as if there was nothing wrong with him. It was the first time I had seen or heard him this happy in over a year. His disease and its constant setbacks had tempered his optimistic nature. I was overjoyed to see it again. Just one day after Ama arrived, I overheard my father talking on the phone. “I’m so happy to be home.” He paused to listen and then spoke again. “Oh, Ama is fantastic. A real Godsend.” He smiled and I knew he meant it. I felt deeply grateful for that horrible, sleepless night that put my dad on the right road home. I don’t know if Ama ever sensed my father’s uncertainty about her. He hid it well and she acted like they were old friends in the trenches together. She cared for his body, spoon-feeding him when it became necessary, and he responded with words of gratitude. She nurtured his spirit, singing Gospel hymns and songs from her homeland with words we didn’t understand and a melody that soothed my father as he stared out of the window and into a world that was no longer his. She woke in the night to help me try to manage his growing pain, soothing him as he writhed and moaned. Ama prayed with us and for us and loved us through the process of watching him slip away. I had asked God for a solution and He gave us an angel. Less than a week later, my dad died. Ama cried with us and sat in our grief, as if she had known him as well as we did. And in a way that transcends practical things, maybe she did. Maybe she knew his heart. I lost so much when my father passed. He was the one who saw the world most like I do, who adored me and who taught me much about life. But I also gained in the midst of that loss. I saw incredible compassion and kindness as Ama, my African soul sister, gave everything she had to a man who, at first, hadn’t even wanted her around. My faith deepened as I watched a Divine plan unfold and my father’s spirit blossomed, even as his body was dying. It was beauty pushing through the harshest conditions that brought one last lesson to him. And it was the first of many it would teach me. PS Tracy Wilson is a Canadian and Emmy-winning writer who has written about everything from speed-walking for Oprah to following Beluga whales off the coast of Northern California. She resides in Chapel Hill and is currently at work on a memoir about her father.

T h e S e c r e t L i f e o f O v e r h i lls

Pa r t Tw o

The Gentleman Painter

Percy Rosseau’s unexpected life at Overhills provided an artist’s ideal sanctuary, allowing him a foot in two distinct worlds By Gayvin Powers

ot long ago, a rustic painting of a hunt called October on Grassy Hill, portrait of ‘Transue Bill’ and ‘Glensale Harry’ set the art world aflutter owing to its sale price of $120,000. Impressionist strokes feature hounds hunting through a straw-yellow field flanked by a forest full of autumn colors, inducing romantic overtones. This painting and others like it have resonated with sportsmen for almost a century, but this one has local ties. It is the creation of Percival Rosseau, an artist residing in the Sandhills in the early 1900s. A nationally recognized artist, Rosseau came here at the invitation of Percy Rockefeller, who was so taken with Rosseau’s work that he built the painter his own cottage at Overhills, the vanished Rockefeller family retreat that is now part of Fort Bragg. The warm climate, protective pine trees, plentiful birds and serene surroundings making up the over 40,000-acre escape at Overhills proved an ideal winter retreat and artistic inspiration for Rosseau. Rockefeller spent

time considering the artistic and creative needs when planning Rosseau’s cottage, ultimately funding a getaway that was primarily an artist’s studio. Located on a hilltop, the one-room studio featured a cathedral ceiling that let in the northern light. To take full advantage of the light, Rosseau’s home had, as Ed Bruce, Jr. fondly remembers in Overhills Oral History, “a big row of windows all the way across the side up about six or eight feet off (the) floor,” bringing nature’s enchantment indoors. Despite its straight forward subject matter, October on Grassy Hill, portrait of ‘Transue Bill’ and ‘Glensale Harry’ is much more than its simplicity would suggest, due to the expertly faded background that gives the impression of movement and skillfully drawn canines with bodies “on-point.” These subtle details are capable by a masterful artist greatly familiar with his subject. With such grand success and wealthy connections, one may think that Rosseau was charmed from birth. Not true. A look at his life reveals both times of good fortune and of great despair. Ultimately, his determination and talent rose above adversity, thus minimizing the tragedies in his life.

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

With a less than ideal start in life, how did Rosseau, an orphan, become an accomplished artist who captivated an elite class of American sportsmen, gain expert knowledge of hunting dogs, and spend the last twenty winters of his life at Overhills? The story of Rosseau’s life is more suited for a Zane Grey novel or as an accompaniment to Teddy Roosevelt’s adventurous Rough Riders. The son of a Louisiana plantation owner in Pointe Coupée Parish, Rosseau’s father and two older brothers were killed during the Civil War, and soon after that, his mother succumbed to illness. When General W.T. Sherman set fire to his family’s planation, Rosseau and his sister avoided the same fate when they were rescued by a slave. The two were later raised in Kentucky by a family friend who instilled a love of nature in young Percy, teaching him how to shoot and fish. With little more than his name and a handshake to recommend him, Rosseau decided at the age of 17 that it was time to make his fortune and acquire a dowry for his sister. In the spirit of the bourgeoning west, he worked as a cowboy from Mexico to Kansas along the Chisholm Trail for six years; failed as lumber entrepreneur; and was ultimately prosperous as a fruit importer in New York. Finally, Rosseau had achieved his financial ambitions at the age of 35. He made enough money from his investments that he retired, leaving the business in the hands of his partner. This accomplishment gave him the financial freedom to make a dramatic change and pursue his artistic aspirations. While traveling to study art at Académie Julian in Paris, a chance encoun-

ter en route changed the outcome of Rosseau’s life. While his ship stopped in Hawaii, Rosseau met Nancy Bidwell, another orphan, who was on holiday on the island. The two were inseparable; however, Rosseau honored the ship captain’s recommendation to take a guardian’s eye while spending time with Bidwell, allowing the two to get to know each other while adhering to proper courting etiquette. At the end of Bidwell’s vacation, she returned to Chicago and Rosseau continued on to school in France, but not before becoming engaged. They were married in Paris while Rosseau was attending art school. Their joy didn’t last long, though. In 1898, Rosseau was shocked to discover that his business partner had fled to Brazil with all of the company’s funds. With his finances depleted, the two escaped ruin by living off Nancy’s dowry which, fortunately, enabled Rosseau to continue attending art school. Rosseau was often quoted by art experts saying, “In France, I used to spend a great deal of time in the hunting field making sketches from the day that shooting season opened. Most of the painting over there (in France) was from such sketches.” Recognition of his artistic talent was swift. In 1903, while still in art school, Rosseau received significant notoriety for his untitled exhibition of Diana and two wolfhounds; critiques looked past the naked version of Nancy as the Greek goddess Diana and took special notice of the realistic rendering of the Irish wolfhounds. The next year at the 1904 Salon, he presented two paintings featuring setters, and the response was unlike anything he’d received before. The day after the exhibition opened, he received eleven telegrams asking about the price for his paintings — both sold tout suite.

This solidified his demand as an artist. Since this was a turning point, art aficionados also frequently quote Rosseau as saying, “Thereafter I had little trouble selling my work. A man should paint what he knows best, and I knew more about animals than anything else.” A sportsman himself, Rosseau’s talent and interest in painting dogs came at the perfect moment in time, aligning him with a national pastime of the elite. The steady surge of wealth in the United States was increasing thanks to “the rapid growth of capitalist enterprise, industrial corporations and investment banks, primarily based in New York, (and) created a sport as well as common aspects of worldview, attitude, motivation, and social affiliations,” notes the Overhills Oral History. “With massive wealth came the luxury of leisure time, which many filled with hunting for their social standing.” Such inflated financial success solidified a class of wealthy men who were prime examples of “work hard, play hard” — long before the phrase became popular. Their patronage of artists like Rosseau helped to memorialize their love of hunting and their social standing. From the early 1900s through the

1930s, Overhills was the pinnacle of this type of lifestyle and society. Content with his prosperous professional and personal life in France, Rosseau frequently traveled to the United States, staying at wealthy patrons’ homes and hunting estates to fulfill commissions until 1915. With World War I devastating Europe and threatening Paris, Rosseau moved his wife and two sons to a permanent home in Lyme, Connecticut, where the summers were pleasant and winters were astonishingly cold. With the war waging in France, for a second time in life, Rosseau averted disaster. Earlier, in 1914, Rockefeller had built Rosseau’s cottage at Overhills for him and Nancy, providing them an open invitation. The Rosseaus accepted, spending the late autumn through early spring at Overhills anually, placing them in an interesting category among the staff on site. Rosseau walked with a foot in two worlds, both as a guest who often hunted and enjoyed the amenities of the sprawling estate and who also worked for Rockefeller as his personal artist-in-residence. If the pine trees, yellow fields, manmade lake and sandy terrain were the

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

backdrop for Rosseau’s canvases, then the Walter Fox and Maryland hound dogs and Thoroughbred horses at Overhills were his subjects through the 1930s, when he and Nancy would escape from the cold Connecticut winters. Even though the subjects in his paintings were similar, no two animals in life are identical, nor were they portrayed that way on Rosseau’s canvases. Susan Leask, senior curator at San Jose Museum of Art and the daughter of an Army officer in the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg, recalls during her childhood “seeing one of Rosseau’s paintings on the wall in my friend’s father’s study. It was a yellow dog with a beautifully described head and a chin so well rendered that it ‘felt’ warm and soft.” It’s the “warm and soft” detail Leask mentions that hearkens back to Overhills, a dreamy landscape unknown to most except for the elite who visited, their friends or the workers, who remained hush about their employ-

ers to the outside world. At the restful retreat, Rosseau traded the traditional, darker palate found in popular European hunting paintings for canvases filled with golden hues and backgrounds with loose lines, thus creating the warm, romantic effect on canvas that Leask remembers as a child. Though Rosseau and his wife faced tragedies in life, they found an idyllic sanctuary among the pines, reveling in the virtually untouched landscape and days filled with art, beauty and sportsmanship. A unique refuge not found elsewhere, Nancy continued visiting the retreat long after her husband’s death in 1937. Akin to modern day photographers, Rosseau captured a beloved part of Overhills, memorializing a forgotten time and place in Sandhills’ history. A bit of a rogue aristocrat whose story would fill the pages of a western novel, Rosseau is like an old cowboy with a mysterious past who rides off into the sunset seeking solace at Overhills — a place that proved to be a haven for him and his family until the last of the northern light faded. PS

Thoroughly Modern Romance Rob Roseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s brilliant restoration blends the bones of a glorious past with the fine lines of a modern love affair By Deborah Salomon â&#x20AC;˘ Photographs by John Gessner

Story of a house

rose is a rose is a rose, but Rob Rose’s home is miles and miles and miles from being just a house. After all, how many Weymouth-area residences have model airplanes suspended from the foyer ceiling? Or a life-sized blue horse guarding the patio — let alone painted ladder-back chairs hanging high off the longleaf pines? No Georgian columns or New Orleans iron latticework here. Not a whiff of Aymar Embrey, the architect-darling of Roaring Twenties urbanites who wintered in fashionable Southern Pines. Instead, Rose’s retreat represents the Fab Fifties, when N.C. State University College of Design attracted noted California architect George Matsumoto and student-disciples Edward Loewnstein and Thom Hayes. Their burst of activity, alongside landscape designer Lewis Clark, gave North Carolina the third largest concentration of mid-century modernism in the United States. Still, an architectural mode boils down to walls and roof lines, windows and elevations. This house, designed in 1957 by Hayes, progressed to Rob is Rob is Rob.

“I just had to have it,” Rob decided in 2005 when a real estate agent found the property. “I went in the back door, came out the front door and made an offer. Where else can you get two acres with 50-year-old plantings a half-mile from Broad Street?” Not to mention an impeccable architectural pedigree. The condition of the house — red and yellow walls, pinch-pleated blue drapes, other unspeakables — made the accomplished renovator salivate. What fun he would have ripping and stripping, installing and painting over and over until the shade was right. How he looked forward to laboring away from his primary home amid Fort Lauderdale high-rises. Rob is very tall, very urbane and very clever at integrating heirlooms with secondhand roses. He grew up in a Florida ranch with jalousie windows, an aqua kitchen and pink bathrooms, which may be why he switched to earthy browns, greens, grays and rust. Rob’s first solo home was a co-op apartment (which he remodeled himself) featured in a magazine spread about bachelor pads: “The others had art collections. Mine was thrift-shop stuff.” Rob’s mother, a North Carolina debutante/schoolteacher/pubic relations czarina, contributed formidable design genes. His father captained the UNC basketball squad in the 1940s and, purportedly, took Ava Gardner to the prom. After his parents’ divorce, Rob became the (handy)man of the house. Soon, he could not only repair, but conceive and build.

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

“I can get beyond the state of anything. No plans — I just do it.” In 2000, he “just did it” to a 550-square-foot Florida shack with 7-foot ceilings, no AC or bathroom, only an outhouse. Now, the shack illustrates trendy pocket dwellings which, as a Realtor himself, Rob appreciates. Rob’s family roots are in Coastal North Carolina, Beaufort primarily. He felt an urge to own a Tar Heel pied-a-terre to offset the Sunshine State. Asheville was a possibility. Then he remembered passing through Southern Pines on the train early one morning. “It wasn’t like anything I’d seen in 700 miles,” Rob says. He returned to follow up on an ad in Preservation North Carolina for a plantation house in Mount Gilead surrounded, unfortunately, by trailers. He tried a 1926 cottage on Connecticut Avenue before finding this serene, unusual, faintly Japanese residence screened from the street by overgrowth. A true ’50s buff would value Top of the Hill, as Rob named it, for its architecture alone: large gathering area with glass wall overlooking deck. Slanted wood ceilings and terrazzo floors throughout. Smallish separate dining room. Bedrooms off a long, narrow hall with master suite (two equally sized bedrooms with bath in between — how Victorian). A glass-box foyer positioned to separate public from private wings. And a forgettable kitchen which Rob replaced — in a realm coined by Viking, Wolff Poggenpohl and Sub-Zero — with functional gray, black and white Ikea cabinets assembled by none-other. Rob cooks. Good cooks are practical. He puts kitchen cash into implements stashed in wide drawers, not islands or skylights, custom cabinetry and baking centers. The stage is set, the leading man defined. Next, furnishings other than what Rob picked up here and there. His pieces are storied, meaning each has one, starting with their source. Rob’s mother did not remarry while Rob and his sister were young. Then one night Rob attended a play in Fort Lauderdale. At curtain time a handsome gentleman announced in a mellifluous baritone that, sadly, the performance must be canceled. His charming manner prevented a revolt among the grumpy retirees. This distinguished gentleman was Mike Ellis, an actor, Broadway producer and president of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Robert Redford and Bette Davis returned his calls. “You have to meet him,” Rob told Mom.

They met. They clicked. For the next 15 years Mike Ellis wrote to Betty Lou Rose every day. Since no mail was delivered on Sunday, on Mondays she received two letters. When Ellis’ wife died, he proposed. Betty Lou accepted. They lived in Beaufort, then Pittsboro, for 21 years. Script by Nicholas Sparks, starring Tom Selleck and Diane Lane. Ellis owned a fabulous collection of furniture and memorabilia. When he died, Rob’s mother inherited. When she died in 2012 the pieces found a ready home. The collection exhibits not only taste, but drama and flair. Look first to a painter’s sleight-of-brush. Ellis purchased an imposing portrait of a 19th century gentleman, then commissioned an artist to paint his own face over the original. Well, Michelangelo put his likeness on St. Bartholomew in the Sistine rendition. Two massive cabinets dominate the living room, one so tall a section had to be lopped off. The other — a mystery. Behind glass doors metal discs, nearly 3 feet in diameter, attach to a spindle. Additional discs fill a bottom compartment of this 19th century Polyphon, Rob explains — a gargantuan French music box powered by a hand-wound motor. Almost as tall, a grandfather clock ticking since the reign of George III. Rob’s matching sofas, which appear to come straight out of a High Point showroom, came straight out of the Habitat store, two for $500, in colors reflecting his Kilim rugs. The sofas form what was once called a conversation pit, around a square coffee table. In one corner stands a restored, Cole Porter-ready 1938 Steinway grand piano essential to Rob’s soirees. The fireplace burns wood. The painted brick on random walls is real. About those stained glass panels: “My mother gave them to her boyfriend between husbands. I stole them back from his home, which was in foreclosure.” Nothing like a wall-mounted Japanese screen to grow the modest dining room. In addition, the unusual many-sided dining table has a hinged leaf for each side, allowing it to expand or contract. Chairs are related but not identical. Rob’s bar: his grandmother’s treadle sewing machine. Still in the theatrical vein, Rob frames a letter from Eleanor Roosevelt declining Mike Ellis’s request that she appear in a play. A sampler in the kitchen announces: “Owing to the illness of Miss Bette Davis there will be no performances today.” As for those balsawood airplanes, circa Rob’s boyhood: “When I first bought

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . January 2014

February 2014P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

the house I had no money. They cost $10 at Rose’s dime store in Beaufort.” Later, Rob considered removing them from the foyer ceiling. Nothing doing. “Too many people love them, their childlike spirit.” In contrast to the rather stately, antique-populated, earth-toned interior, Rob goes bonkers outside. Near the front walkway bowling balls, some on pedestals, peek out from the greenery. Rob’s mother bought the blue fiberglass horse at auction, for a lawn ornament. “The town said she couldn’t have it, so Equus became the town mascot,” Rob recalls. Naturally, some prankster absconded with poor Equus, who landed in the Beaufort dump, sans legs. “We fixed him.” The painted chairs hanging high off the pines echo something Rob’s father did, in Morrisville — except they were reachable. In retrospect, the ’50s and early ’60s stand alone — often mocked for shag carpet and foam-slab sofas. But what goes around, comes around. Rob’s friend and neighbor JoAnn Blair-Adams rides the same wave. “I live in a Better Homes & Gardens version of this house — very mundane.” But, she continues, “The modernist houses you see in Southern Pines are important, part of the hotbed created by George Matsumoto. In the last fifteen years people have begun appreciating them.” Mostly people like Rob Rose who, while curating a house with good bones, clothes it in a designer frock, ensuring that in any decade, by any classification or by any other name, this rose will smell as sweet. PS

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February 2014 P�� PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

By Noah Salt

New feet within my garden go, New fingers stir the sod; A troubadour upon the elm Betrays the solitude. New children play upon the green, New weary sleep below; And still the pensive spring returns, And still the punctual snow!

— Emily Dickinson, 1881

Modern Science’s St. Nicolaus When you gaze up at the February night sky, take a moment to thank your lucky stars for Nicolaus Copernicus, the brilliant small town Polish polymath who was born on February 19, 1473, and grew up to become a devoted physician and church administrator who moonlighted as an amateur astronomer, making the most important discoveries of Renaissance cosmology — namely that the Earth rotates on an axis that explains the daily movement of heavenly bodies as well as the change of the seasons. Even more heretically, as he posited in On Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, his profoundly influential study of the heavens published at the time of his death in 1543, the Earth is not the center of the universe but, in fact, rotates around the sun — a heliocentric theory that turned both accepted Ptolemaic world view on its head and became the basis for mathematical astronomy for the next three hundred years, a major turning point in both science and religion. His mathematical calculations were also responsible for major revisions in the Gregorian calendar in 1582. Legend holds that he died at age 70 of apoplexy on the same day the final folio pages of his earth-shaking manuscript were presented to him by assistants. Reportedly his body was buried beneath Frombork Cathedral in the town on the edge of the Baltic Sea where he lived and worked and studied the stars for forty years. Archeologists searched for his remains for more than 200 years before locating them in a modest grave beneath the floor of the cathedral in 2010.

Camellia Madness Growing camellias is an easy addiction — a sweet madness as our neighbor Max once observed. If anyone knows the power of camellias, it’s Max, whose property is home to upward of 400 mature camellia shrubs that bring forth blooms from late autumn to early spring. Much of the appeal of camellias, of course, is the lavish variety of color and bloom they provide on the drabbest winter days. This Asian import, named for the young botanist and pharmacist Georg Joseph Kamel, who discovered it in Japan — though it grows in the wild from the steppes of the Himalayas to the rainforests of Indonesia — was brought to America by ocean traders in the late 18th century and immediately caught on with gardeners for its adaptability, glorious flowerings and relative low maintenance. Sometimes called the “Japanese Rose,” with more than 200 known cultivars, camellias offer something for everyone, including a chance to compete for glory. Two of our favorite shows happen this month. First up is the venerable Tidewater Camellia Club’s annual show and competition in Wilmington from 1 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, February 22, Walter Parsley Elementary School. For information on Show or membership: (910) 509-6792 or visit www.tidewatercamelliaclub.org. Another great show, the annual Fayetteville Camellia Club’s spring show, takes place on March 1 and 2 at the Cape Fear Botanical Garden, 536 North Eastern Boulevard (NC 301), from noon to 4 p.m. For further info on show or membership: Fayetevillecamelliaclub.org

The Garden Writer “There are some optimists who search eagerly for the skunk cabbage which in February sometimes pushes itself up through the ice, and who call it a sign of spring. I wish that I could feel that way about it, but I do not. The truth of the matter, to me, is simply that skunk cabbage blooms in the winter time. There is no more cold-blooded animal than your frog, and you will not catch him stirring now.” From Twelve Seasons by Joseph Krutch, 1949

Arts Entertainment C a l e n d a r

Rooster’s Wife Concert

Printmakers of NC

February 1

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CHILDREN’S ART CLASS. 9 – 11 a.m. Create a special Valentine’s Day painting with artist Jane Casnellie. All materials provided, no experience necessary. $35 per child. Ages 9 and up. Hollyhocks Art Gallery, 905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. For info and registration: (910) 255-0665.

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MEET THE ARTIST AT WORK. 12 – 3 p.m. Phyllis Andrews. Hollyhocks Art Gallery, 905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 2550665 or www.hollyhocksartgallery.com.

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ROOSTER’S WIFE CONCERT. 6:46 p.m. Live music with progressive string band Flatland Harmony Experiment, 3rd place winners at 40th annual Telluride. The Poplar Knight Spot, 114 Knight St, Aberdeen. Seating is by general admission. Doors open at 6. Tickets available at the door and online. Info: (910) 944-7502 or www. theroosterswife.org.

“Fill Me in on the Filler”

Tai Chi in the Garden

Pinehurst Pops: A Night on Broadway with Janine LaManna. Maestro David Michael Wolff leads the Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra, with Evening with Broadway star Janine LaManna. Ticket prices vary. Robert E. Lee Auditorium, Pinecrest High School, Southern Pines. Info: www.carolinaphil.org or (910) 687-0287.

February 2

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AUTHOR AT THE BOOKSHOP. 2 p.m. Duke business professor and game theory consultant David McAdams with his very relevant and informative overview of game theory, Game-Changer: Game Theory and the Art of Transforming Strategic Situations. The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad Street, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-3211 or www.thecountrybookshop.biz.

February 3

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MOORE REPUBLICAN WOMEN’S LUNCH. 11:30 a.m. Registration, 12 p.m. Lunch. Speaker Hon. Ola Lewis, Superior

Court Judge, 13B Judicial District. Pinehurst Members Club, 1 Carolina Vista Drive, Pinehurst. Reservations and info: (910) 823-6881.

February 3—27

•

ART EXHIBITION. Times vary. It’s in all the Making: The Printmakers of North Carolina. Free and open to the public. Hastings Gallery, Boyd Library, Sandhills Community College, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Times and info: Denise Baker (910) 695-3879 or www.printmakersofnc.com

February 4

•

Tai Chi in the Garden. 10 – 11:30 a.m. Practice this gentle, flowing, eastern form of exercise while overlooking the Cypress Pond. Four-week session on Tuesday mornings. Fee: monthly session: $48 member; $55 nonmember; single class: $15/member, $17/non– member. Registration required. Cape Fear Botanical Garden, Fayetteville. Info: www. capefearbg.org or (910) 486-0221.

•

SANDHILLS WOMAN’S EXCHANGE REOPENS. The salesroom is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the lunchroom is open from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Featuring a variety of vintage brooches for sale. Knitted baby items, scarfs, hats, gloves are also available. All items are handmade. 15 Azalea Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 295-4677.

February 5

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Lunch and Learn. 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. Topic: “Fill Me in on Filler.” Join us for lunch, gift bag and specials. Reservations required. The Laser Institute of Pinehurst, 80 Aviemore Court, Pinehurst. Info: Victoria Conner (910) 295-1130.

February 6

•

GATHERING AT GIVEN. 3:30 p.m. Pete Moss will speak about the history and the future of golf. Free and open to the public. Given Memorial Library, 150 Cherokee Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 295-6022.

•

CAROLINA PHILHARMONIC. 7pm.

Key:

• •

February 2014 P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Art

Music/Concerts

•

Dance/Theater

• • Film

Literature/Speakers

• • Fun

History

•

Sports

•

EXHIBITION OPENING RECEPTION. 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. It’s in all the Making: The Printmakers of North Carolina. Free and open to the public. Hastings Gallery, Boyd Library, Sandhills Community College, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Info: Denise Baker (910) 695-3879.

•

RONALD REAGAN BIRTHDAY DINNER. 6 p.m. Dinner at 7 p.m. Hosted by The Moore County Republican Party. Speakers include Lt. Governor Dan Forest, Republican Party Chairman Claude Pope and Psychologist and Author, Dr. Timothy Daughtry. Music provided by Clarence Levine. Cost: $75. Reservations and details: www. mcncgop.org.

•

10th Annual SPELLING BEE FOR LITERACY. 7 – 8:30 p.m. A wacky evening of light-hearted competition to benefit Moore County Literacy Council. Open seating, tickets required, $10 donation (kids free). Robert E. Lee Auditorium, Pinecrest High School, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-5954 or www. mcliteracy.com.

February 7

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AUTHOR AT THE BOOKSHOP. 5 p.m. Wiley Cash with This Dark Road To Mercy. The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad Street, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-3211 or www. thecountrybookshop.biz.

•

905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 2550665 or www.hollyhocksartgallery.com.

February 9

•

Second Annual Hearts and Hands Brunch. 11:30 a.m. A benefit for the Moore Free Care Clinic. Carolina Hotel brunch favorites and a special guest who will give an insider’s view of the U.S. Open preparations. Cost: $60. The Cardinal Ballroom, The Carolina Hotel, Pinehurst. Info and reservations: Debbie (910) 246-5333.

•

EXPLORATIONS LECTURE SERIES. 3 – 4 p.m. The Explorations series hosts the Sandhills Quilters Guild for Quilts, Quiche, and Coffee. Enjoy a fabulous quilt display, a presentation from Guild members, and free refreshments. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info: www.sppl. net or (910) 692-8235. ROOSTER’S WIFE CONCERT. 6:46 p.m. Live music with old friends Tonk and The Letterjackets. The Poplar Knight Spot, 114 Knight St, Aberdeen. Seating is by general admission. Doors open at 6. Tickets available at the door and online. Info: (910) 944-7502 or www.theroosterswife.org.

February 10

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OIL PAINTING CLASS. 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Create a floral oil painting to take home by following the instructions of artist Joan Williams. This is an all day class. Bring a sack lunch - beverage & dessert will be provided. Cost: $60/Horticultural Society members, $65/ non-members. All supplies included. Sandhills Community College Horticultural Gardens, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 6953882 or www.sandhillshorticulturalgardens.com.

February 11

BEACH FRIDAYS. 7 – 10 p.m. Enjoy wine and dancing with friends under the tent with live beach music by The Sand Band. Gates open at 6. Admission: $10. Reservations and prepayments are required for parties of eight or more. Food vendor on site. Cypress Bend Vineyards, 21904 Riverton Road, Wagram. Info: (910) 369-0411 or www.cypressbendvineyards.com.

Tai Chi in the Garden. 10 – 11:30 a.m. Practice this gentle, flowing, eastern form of exercise while overlooking the Cypress Pond. Four-week session on Tuesday mornings, beginning February 4. Cost: monthly session: $48/ member. $55/non-member; single class: $15/ member, $17/non–member. Registration required. Cape Fear Botanical Garden, Fayetteville. Info: www.capefearbg.org or (910) 486-0221.

•

February 7—28

February 12

ART EXHIBITION. 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday – Friday. The Arts Council of Moore County is proud to present From Our Studios, featuring paintings by Gerard Catapano and pottery by Linda Dalton Pottery. Campbell House Galleries, 482 E. Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-2787 or www.mooreart.org.

GUEST LECTURE. 6 p.m. The English Speaking Union welcomes Dr. Elizabeth Lyerly. Dr. Lyerly will share her experiences as a rookie veterinarian on the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Alaska. Cocktails with dinner to follow. The Country Club of North Carolina, 1600 Morganton Road, Pinehurst. Info: Hope Price (910) 692-7727; reservations (910) 692-6565.

•

February 8

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ENGLISH SPEAKING UNION SHAKESPEARE COMPETITION. 10 a.m. High school students perform Shakespeare monologues and sonnets as part of a national competition. Weymouth Center, 555 E. Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-6261.

•

PINEHURST CHOCOLATE FESTIVAL. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. A chocolate lover’s dream event! Contests, homemade treats, gifts, silent auction, demos, a chocolate cookbook and more. Lunch available for $5. Free and open to the public, all proceeds donated to area charities. Pinehurst United Methodist Church, 4111 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Info: www.pinehurstchocolatefestival.com or (910) 215-4559.

•

MEET THE ARTIST AT WORK. 12 – 3 p.m. Diane Kraudelt. Hollyhocks Art Gallery,

•

EXHIBITION OPENING RECEPTION. 6 – 8 p.m. The Arts Council of Moore County is proud to present From Our Studios, featuring paintings by Gerard Catapano and pottery by Linda Dalton Pottery. Campbell House Galleries, 482 E. Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-2787 or www.MooreArt.org.

•

Hollyhocks Art Gallery

•

February 13

•

AUTHOR AT THE BOOKSHOP. 5 p.m. Barbara Claypole White with The In-Between Hour. Barbara Claypole White writes love stories about damaged people. The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad Street, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-3211 or www.thecountrybookshop.biz.

•

Family Fun Night. 5:30 p.m. Feel the love with a Valentine Writing Party! Kids in grades K-5 and their families are invited to join the Library in making valentines and crafts for their family, friends and community. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info: www.sppl.net or (910) 692-8235.

February 14

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JAZZY FRIDAYS. 7 – 10 p.m. Enjoy

Key:

• • Art

a bottle of wine and dancing with friends under the tent with live jazz music by the Mike Wallace Quartet. Gates open at 6. Admission: $10. Reservations and prepayments are required for parties of eight or more. Food vendor on site. Cypress Bend Vineyards, 21904 Riverton Road, Wagram. Info: (910) 369-0411 or www.cypressbendvineyards.com.

February 17

HEART ‘N SOUL OF JAZZ. 8 – 11 p.m. The artist for the 29th annual Heart ‘n Soul of Jazz will be New York City’s award-winning cabaret singer, Colleen McCugh. Produced by the Arts Council of Moore County. Tickets: $65. Pinehurst Resort, 80 Carolina Vista Dr. Info: (910) 692-2787 or www.mooreart.org.

February 17—March 21

•

February 15

•

Presidents’ Day fun at the Library. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. A day of fun in celebration of Presidents’ Day. Stop in the Library for special crafts and activities about the United States Presidents! The craft tables will be open all day in the Children’s area. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info: www.sppl.net or (910) 692-8235.

•

MEET THE ARTIST AT WORK. 12 – 3 p.m. Carol Rotter. Hollyhocks Art Gallery, 905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 2550665 or www.hollyhocksartgallery.com.

•

AUTHOR AT THE BOOKSHOP. 4:30 p.m. Kayla Williams with Plenty of Time When We Get Home: Love and Recovery in the Aftermath of War. The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad Street, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-3211 or www.thecountrybookshop.biz.

•

ART EXHIBITION. 12 – 3 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. Wednesdays with Friends. Oil painters Deirdre LaCasse, Julie Martin, Mary Ann Halsted, Bonnie Hanly, and Pat Anderson. The Artists League of the Sandhills, The Exchange Street Gallery of Fine Art, 129 Exchange Street, Aberdeen. Info: www.artistleague.org or (910) 944-3979.

February 18

•

Tai Chi in the Garden. 10 – 11:30 a.m. Practice this gentle, flowing, eastern form of exercise while overlooking the Cypress Pond. Four-week session on Tuesday mornings, beginning February 4. Cost: monthly session: $48/member. $55/ non-member; single class: $15/member, $17/ non–member. Registration required. Cape Fear Botanical Garden, Fayetteville. Info: www.capefearbg.org or (910) 486-0221.

February 16

•

Sunday Afternoon Movie. 2:30 p.m. Hans Christian Andersen’s enchanting fantasy of a beautiful young mermaid who falls in love with a prince is brought to the screen with a colorful and endearing cast of new characters and seven dazzling original songs. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info: www.sppl.net or (910) 692-8235.

•

BRASS CONCERT. 3 p.m. A recital by the acclaimed quintet Boylan Bridge Brass. Weymouth Center, 555 E. Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-6261.

•

ROOSTER’S WIFE CONCERT. 6:46 p.m. Live guitar jazz and Grammy nominated pipes with Matt Munisteri, Mollie O’Brien and Rich Moore. The Poplar Knight Spot, 114 Knight St, Aberdeen. Seating is by general admission. Doors open at 6. Tickets available at the door and online. Info: (910) 944-7502 or www.theroosterswife.org.

Music/Concerts

•

Dance/Theater

• • Film

League of Women Voters of Moore County Meeting. 11:30 a.m. Jan Leitschuh, co-founder of the Sandhills Farm-to-Table Cooperative, will talk about the changing picture of agriculture locally and statewide. Table on the Green, Midland Country Club. Cost: $12 for lunch and the program. Everyone is welcome, but reservations are required. Info: (910) 944-9611. Young Adult Readers’ program. 5:30 p.m. Let’s go somewhere! (Grades 6-12). Tired of winter? Wish you could get out of the house? Come to the library and go wherever you can imagine! Explore the magical lands of fantasy and far-off galaxies of science fiction through writing and drawing. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info: www.sppl.net or (910) 692-8235.

February 19

•

AN EVENING WITH ELIZABETH SPENCER. 7pm. North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame member Ms. Spencer has written a new collection of short stories, Starting Over.

Literature/Speakers

• • Fun

History

•

Sports

TransiT Damage FreighT

ca l e n d a r She will be at the Weymouth Center for a very special talk and signing. Weymouth Center, 555 E. Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-3211.

February 21

•

EXHIBITION OPENING RECEPTION. 6 – 8 p.m. Wednesdays with Friends. Oil painters Deirdre LaCasse, Julie Martin, Mary Ann Halsted, Bonnie Hanly, and Pat Anderson. The Artists League of the Sandhills, The Exchange Street Gallery of Fine Art, 129 Exchange Street, Aberdeen. Info: www. artistleague.org or (910) 944-3979.

•

BEACH FRIDAYS. 7 – 10 p.m. Enjoy wine and dancing with friends under the tent with live beach music by Terry and Jackie Gore. Gates open at 6. Admission: $10. Reservations and prepayments are required for parties of eight or more. Food vendor on site. Cypress Bend Vineyards, 21904 Riverton Road, Wagram. Info: (910) 369-0411 or www.cypressbendvineyards.com.

February 22

• •

MEET THE ARTIST AT WORK. 12 – 3 p.m. Morgen Kilbourn. Hollyhocks Art Gallery, 905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 255-0665 or www.hollyhocksartgallery.com.

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346 Grant Road | Vass, NC Just off US 1 North (Next to Carolina Storage) 910-245-4977 | Monday-Saturday 10:00am - 5:30pm www.transitdamagefreight.webs.com

Fabulous Finds in Fayetteville

MISS MOORE COUNTY PAGEANT. 7 p.m. A new kind of pageant that fosters representatives for networking, marketing and public relations for Moore County’s community businesses and events. Hannah Bradshaw Auditorium, O’Neal School. Info: (910) 639-2920.

February 23

•

3rd Annual Wedding and Special Event Showcase. 12 – 4 p.m. See how to celebrate at Cape Fear Botanical Garden: a fun-filled afternoon with three caterers, over 30 professional vendors and a fashion show. Door prizes

••• • •

Key: Art Music/Concerts Film Literature/Speakers Sports

• • •

Dance/Theater Fun History

February 2014 P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

ca l e n d a r and gift bags add to the excitement. Be inspired! Tickets: $8/ in advance, $10/at the door. Cape Fear Botanical Garden, Fayetteville. Info: www.capefearbg.org or 910.486.0221.

•

ROOSTER’S WIFE CONCERT. 12:46 p.m. and 6:46 p.m. Live music with the Gibson brothers, twice IBMA Entertainers of the Year. The Poplar Knight Spot, 114 Knight St, Aberdeen. Seating is by general admission. Doors open at 12 for the earlier show, 6 for the evening. Tickets available at the door and online. Info: (910) 944-7502 or www.theroosterswife.org.

•

HISTORICAL FAIR. 2 – 6 p.m. A free community event exploring and celebrating the contributions of African Americans to our Sandhills area. Displays, live music, food and fun for all the family. The Fair Barn, 200 Beulah Hill Road South, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 295-6022.

•

Oldies and Goodies film. 2:30 – 4:30 p.m. A 1954 romance/drama. The star-studded cast includes Elizabeth Taylor, Van Johnson, Donna Reed, Eva Gabor, Roger Moore and Walter Pidgeon. Enjoy a classic film and free refreshments. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info: www. sppl.net or (910) 692-8235.

February 24

•

SIP AND PAINT. 6 – 8 p.m. Join Jane Casnellie as she teaches you step by step to create your own masterpiece. Enjoy a glass of wine and wind down with music. All materials and wine included, no previous experience necessary. $35 per person. Stay for dinner at Elliotts on Linden and receive 10 percent off your entrée. Hollyhocks Art Gallery, 905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. Info and registration: (910) 255-0665.

•

SANDHILLS NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY MEETING. 7 p.m. Martin Farley, professor of geology at UNC Pembroke, will discuss techniques of extracting fossil pollen from geologic sediment and how the pollen can be used to determine flora present in past periods. Eastern NC will be used as an example of climate reconstruction. Visitors Welcome. Weymouth Woods Auditorium, 1024 Ft. Bragg Rd, Southern

Pines. Info: (910) 692-2167 or www.sandhillsnature.org

•

CHAMBER MUSIC: TRIO SOLISTI. 8 p.m. – 10 p.m. The third in the Classical Concert Series. Trio Solisti has performed at The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, and with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Subscription for 4-concert series: $84/ACMC members, $99/nonmembers. Individual tickets: $27 each (if available). Sunrise Theater, 250 NW Broad Street, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-2787 or www. mooreart.org.

February 25

•

Tai Chi in the Garden. 10 – 11:30 a.m. Practice this gentle, flowing, eastern form of exercise while overlooking the Cypress Pond. Four-week session on Tuesday mornings, beginning February 4. Cost: monthly session: $48/member. $55/non-member; single class: $15/member, $17/non–member. Registration required. Cape Fear Botanical Garden, Fayetteville. Info: www.capefearbg.org or (910) 486-0221.

February 27

•

WATERGATE PANEL DISCUSSION. 7 p.m. Distinguished panelists Kate Scott, Rufus Edmisten, Eugene Boyce and Ned Cline will discuss the investigation and repercussions of the Watergate break-in. Moderated by David Crabtree. Free but seating is limited. North Carolina Museum of History, 5 E. Edenton Street, Raleigh. Info: (919) 807-7873.

February 28

•

ART SHOW & SALE. 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. Preview Party Friday; cost: $50. Free and open to the public Saturday and Sunday. Hours: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturday; 12 – 3 p.m., Sunday. All proceeds to benefit the Benevolent Assistance Fund. Penick Village, 500 East Rhode Island Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.penickvillagefoundation.org.

•

JAZZY FRIDAYS. 7 – 10 p.m. Enjoy a bottle of wine and dancing with friends under the tent with live jazz music by

Key:

• • Art

Music/Concerts

•

Dance/Theater

the Mike Wallace Quartet. Gates open at 6. Admission: $10. Reservations and prepayments are required for parties of eight or more. Food vendor on site. Cypress Bend Vineyards, 21904 Riverton Road, Wagram. Info: (910) 369-0411 or www.cypressbendvineyards.com.

March 1

•

MARDI GRAS MASQUERADE. 6 p.m. – 10 p.m. An evening of fun with the North Carolina Pottery Center: New Orleans-style dinner, drinks, music, dancing, raffle, auctions and door prizes. Dressy attire and masks encouraged. Pinewood Country Club, 247 Pinewood Road, Asheboro. Info and tickets: (336) 873-8430 or www.ncpotterycenter.org.

March 3

•

10th ANNUAL BENEFIT GOLF TOURNAMENT, DINNER AND AUCTION. 10.30 a.m. check in, 12pm shotgun start. For the benefit of the children at Boys and Girls Homes of North Carolina, Inc. Entry deadline February 24. Cost: $200/ per player; $750/team (foursome). Info: Ron Jones (910) 295-1819, Carolyn Register (910) 295-2352 or www.bghncsandhills.org.

March 5

•

RUTH PAULEY LECTURE SERIES. 7:30 p.m. The Search for Josef Mengele. Featuring David Marwell who served as the chief investigator in the hunt for Nazi war criminals Klaus Barbie and Josef Mengele. Free and open to the public. Owens Auditorium, Sandhills Community College, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 245-3132

Weekly Listings Tuesdays

•

A.A.R.P. Tax Help. 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. At the Library on Tuesdays and Saturdays, February 4—April 15. Clients must register onsite, and there are no prior appointments by phone. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info and to sign up: (910) 692-8235.

• • Film

Literature/Speakers

• • Fun

History

•

Sports

You lead a busy life. You deserve a little pampering. Royalty Treatment Reasonable Prices

Soothing Surroundings Affordable Luxury

Bella Spa & Nails

That’s what the experience is all about. So come indulge yourself.

You deserve it.

Bella Spa & Nails

Professional nail Care for Women & men Located in the Village of Pinehurst (3 Doors Down from Dugans) 50 Market Square • Pinehurst, NC 28374 • (910) 215-9666

appointments & Walk-ins Gift Cards available for all occasions www.bellanailspa.us

monday, Wednesday-saturday 10:00am-6:30pm Closed Tuesday sunday 11:00am-5:00pm

ca l e n d a r

Wednesdays

•

Preschool Storytime. 3:30 – 4 p.m. for infants and toddlers (ages birth through 5 years) will be held Wed., Feb. 5, 12, 19, & 26. Join us for stories, songs, and fun, and then stay for playtime! Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info: www.sppl.net or (910) 692-8235.

Saturdays

•

A.A.R.P. Tax Help. 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. February 4—April 15. At the Library on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Clients must register onsite, and there are no prior appointments by phone. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Avenue. Info and to sign up: (910) 692-8235.

Art Galleries

ABOUT ART GALLERY inside The Market Place Midland Bistro Building, 2160 Midland Road, Pinehurst. The gallery features local artists. Open Monday-Friday 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. (910) 215-596. ART NUTZ AND RAVEN POTTERY, 125 SW Broad St., Southern Pines. Come see the potter at work. Features art, pottery from local potters, handmade jewelry, glass and more. Monday-Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. (910) 695-1555, www.ravenpottery.com. Artist GAlleRy OF SOUTHERN PINES, 167 E. New Hampshire Avenue., Southern Pines. Features art and fine crafts from more than 60 North Carolina artists. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., Monday-Saturday. (910) 692-6077.

Apparel CoolSweats Gentlemen’s Corner The Faded Rose

Boutiques Eye Max Optical Boutique Green Gate Olive Oils The Potpourri Old Sport & Gallery Tesoro Home Decor & Gifts

Salons & Spas Elaine’s Hairdressers Bella Spa & Nails

Restaurants & Inns Lady Bedford’s Tea Parlour & Gift Shoppe

Services Village of Pinehurst Rentals & Golf

Artists League of the Sandhills, 129 Exchange St. in historic Aberdeen. Exhibit hours are noon – 3 p.m., MondaySaturday. (910) 944-3979. Broadhurst Gallery, 2212 Midland Road, Pinehurst. Showcases works by nationally recognized artists such as Louis St. Lewis, Lula Smith, Shawn Morin, Rachel Clearfield, Judy Cox and Jason Craighead. Meet-the-artist opportunities available. Monday-Friday (closed Wednesday), 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Saturday, 1 – 4 p.m & special appointments. (910) 295-4817, www.broadhurstgallery.com. The Campbell House Galleries, 482 E. Connecticut Avenue., Southern Pines. Monday-Friday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. and every third weekend of the month from 2 – 4 p.m. (910) 692-4356, www.mooreart.org. The Downtown Gallery inside Cup of Flow, 115 NE Broad St., Southern Pines. Ever-changing array of local and regional art, pottery and other handmade items. (910) 693-1999. Exchange Street Gallery, Artists League of the Sandhills, 129 Exchange Street in historic Aberdeen. “It’s Southern, Ya’ll,” works of Pat McMahon and Betty DiBartolomeo. September 2-28. Regular hours noon to 3:00, Monday-Saturday. (910) 944-3979. The Gallery at Seven Lakes at the St. Mary Magdalene building, 1145 Seven Lakes Drive. Just nine miles from the Pinehurst Traffic Circle up 211, this gallery is dedicated to local artists. Wednesday-Thursday 1 – 4 p.m. Hastings Gallery in the Katharine L. Boyd Library at Sandhills Community College, Pinehurst. Gallery hours are Monday-Thursday 7:45 a.m. – 9 p.m., Friday 7:45 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Saturday 8:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. HOLLYHOCKS ART GALLERY, 905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. Features artwork by local award winning artists, Phyllis Andrews, Equine Sculptor Morgen Kilbourn, Diane Kraudelt, Carol Rotter, Jessie MacKay, jeweler Michele Garrett Laster and artist/owner, Jane Casnellie. Monday-Saturday 10:30 a.m. – 9:30 p.m. (910) 255-0665, www.hollyhocksartgallery.com. Lady Bedford’s Tea Parlour, 21 Chinquapin Road, Pinehurst. Features local artist Jude Winkley’s original oil paintings. Tuesday - Saturday 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. (910) 255-0100, www. ladybedfords.com. The Old Silk Route, 113 West Main St., Aberdeen. Specializes in Asian original art, including silk paintings, tapestries, Buddhist Thangkas and Indian paper miniatures. Monday, Thursday-Saturday 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. (910) 295-2055. SANDHILLS WOMAN’S EXCHANGE, 15 Azalea Road,

February 2014 P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

ca l e n d a r Pinehurst. All merchandise at the Exchange is handmade by consignors who live in the community. 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Lunch served 11.30 a.m – 2 p.m. (910) 295-4677. Seagrove Candle Company, 116 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. Showcases art of the Sandhills and Seagrove area. Monday, Wednesday-Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., (910) 695-0029. SKY Art Gallery, 602 Magnolia Dr., Aberdeen. Tues.-Sat. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. (910) 944-9440, www.skyartgallery.com. Studio 590 by the pond in Dowd Cabin, 590 Dowd Circle, Pinehurst. This historic log cabin is the working studio and gallery of artists Betty DiBartolomeo and Harry Neely. Fine oil paintings, commissions and instruction. (910) 639-9404. White Hill Gallery, 407 U.S. 15-501, Carthage, offers a variety of pottery. (910) 947-6100.

Bryant House and McLendon Cabin. Tours by appointment. (910) 692-2051 or (910) 673-0908. Carthage Historical Museum. Sundays, 2 – 5 p.m. or by appointment. Located at Rockingham and Saunders streets, Carthage. (910) 947-2331. House in the Horseshoe. Open year-round. Hours vary. 288 Alston House Road (10 miles north of Carthage), Sanford. (910) 947-2051. Malcolm Blue Farm and Museum. 1 – 4 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday. Group tours can be arranged by appointment. (910) 944-7558 or (910) 603-2739. North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame. 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Monday-Friday, at the Weymouth Center for Arts and Humanities, 555 E. Connecticut Avenue., Southern Pines. (910) 692-6261.

Nature Centers

Shaw House. Open 1 – 4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday. (910) 692-2051.

Sandhills Horticultural Gardens (32 acres of gardens). The Sandhills Horticultural Gardens are handicappedaccessible. Daylight hours year-round. (910) 695-3882.

Tufts Archives. 9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m., Monday-Friday, and 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Saturday. (910) 295-3642.

Weymouth Woods Sandhills Nature Preserve (898 acres). 1024 Fort Bragg Road, Southern Pines. (910) 692-2167. VILLAGE ARBORETUM. 35 acres of land adjoining the Village Hall on Magnolia Road, Pinehurst. (910) 295-1900.

Historical Sites Bethesda Church and Cemetery. Guided tours for groups by appointment. 1020 Bethesda Road, Aberdeen. (910) 944-1319.

from page 95 Use Your Bean!

February PineNeedler Answers

Union Station. Open 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Located in downtown Aberdeen. (910) 944-5902. Sandhills Woman’s Exchange Log Cabin. Open 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. (910) 295-4677.

To add an event, email us at pinestraw@thepilot.com by the first of the month prior to the event. Or go to www.thepilot.com and add the event to our online calendar.

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Looking for a great menu with a fantastic atmosphere? A Local Downtown Southern Pines Favorite for Lunch and Dinner Featuring

195

“The Bell Tree BBQ Ribs” or for the vegetarian

“Betty’s Black Bean Burger”

american fusion cuisine supporting local farmers

lunch tues-sat 11-3 dinner wed-sat 5:30-9:30 chef prem nath

195 bell avenue southern pines 910.692.7110 www.195americanfusion.com

! Delicious 155 NE Broad Street Southern Pines, NC 910.692.4766 belltreetavern.com

A health food store for Dogs and Cats We offer the highest quality

Dry and canned foods • Frozen and freeze dried meats Complete dinners • Large selection of treats made in the USA Supplements and vitamins

No food or treats from China TRY BEFORE YOU BUY WITH OUR FREE SAMPLES QUALITY PET SUPPLIES

including Beds, Collars and Leashes and Expert advice from our friendly and knowledgeable staff We offer training classes

Located in Cam Square 1150 Old US Highway 1S, Southern Pines, NC 28387 910-693-7875 Hours: M to F 10-6 • Sat 10-5 Follow us on Facebook: Cared for Canine and Cat

DON’T MISS THESE UPCOMING GPAC SHOWS! The Russian National Ballet Theatre presents

GISELLE

Peter Nero TUE, APRIL 1

FRI, FEBRUARY 21

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the groundbreaking BROADWAY musical

FRI, APRIL 4 2013-14 Season

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FRI, APRIL 15

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February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Sandhills Photography Club Doors & Window Winners

CLASS A CREATIVE

CLASS A OTIMIZED

2 8

CLASS B OPTIMIZED

12 5 CLASS A CREATIVE 1 1st – June White – A Door A Ball 2 2nd – Tom Reedy – Red Door CLASS B OPTIMIZED 3 1st – Cathy Locklear – Abandoned 4 2nd – Lana Rebert – Sante Fe 5 3rd – Matt Smith – Shattered 6 Honorable Mention – Jennifer German Mt. Gilead Church 7 Honorable Mention – Wendell Dance Windows Trio

7 CLASS A OPTIMIZED 8 1st – Dave Powers – Up the Down Staircase 9 2nd – Glynns Thomas – India Blue 10 3rd – Donna Ford – Through the Window 11 Honorable Mention – Glynns Thomas Crimcon Varanasi 12 Honorable Mention – Marilyn Owen Double Your Door 13 Honorable Mention – Debra Regula Point of Entry

CUTLER TREE

Tree Pruning • Removal Plant Site Consulting Stump Grinding • Shrub Care Tree Conservation for New Home Sites Free Estimates Geoffrey Cutler Fully Insured 910-692-7769 910-690-7657

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Bachelorette Parties Birthday Parties • Girls Night Out Build Strength, Flexibility, Body Awareness and Confidence

Special Offers

5 class package for $60 • 10 class package for $90

910-725-1931

www.aryiafit.com • 180 S. Page St. • Southern Pines, NC 28387

Whispering Pines Animal Hospital Compassionate Care for Cherished Pets E. Lyerly, D.V.M • E. Pelkey, D.V.M Wm. McDuffie, D.V.M • D. Hobbs, D.V.M K. Andrews, D.V.M

Call to schedule an appointment!

(910) 949-2111

BUYING GOLD & SILVER HIGHEST PRICES PAID!

We Are Buying: www.PinehurstCoins.com • Rare Coins & Bullion • Scrap Gold & Silver

• Sterling Flatware

• Platinum, Gold & Silver Coins

• Diamond, Gold & Silver Jewelry • US Paper Money & Notes • Free Appraisals • Private Transactions Rooms Available Upon Request • On Site Smelting and Assay • View our Entire Inventory On Our Website

PCE

Pinehurst Coin Exchange Inc.

1420 Highway 5 | Pinehurst, NC

910.235.COIN (2646)

February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

SandhillSeen

Linda Long, Jean Frost

Five Faces of Art The Hastings Gallery at Sandhills Community College Thursday, January 9, 2014 Photographs by Al & Annette Daniels

Dr. John and Mrs. Evelyn Dempsey, Denise Baker

Sandra Leaveck, Lilly, Shyla, and Skye Spicer

Calista Force, Mary Carter

Taylor Porter, Jody Bergeron, Mary Maloney

Jim Rigney, Danila Devins

Renata Gesswein, Zona Laidlaw

Shani Lagan holding Harry Hore

Mary Kay Baker, Ed Maloney, Philippa Davidson

Tiffany Teeter, Eleanor Gallagher, Susan Foster, Mary Maloney.

Janie Lefever, Barb Horan

Gwen Murray, Linda Bittner, Cos Barnes

1650 Valley View Road • Southern Pines, NC Adjacent to Hyland Golf Course on US 1

910-692-0855

www.WindridgeGardens.com

Winter Hours: Fri. and Sat. 10AM - 5PM • Sun. 1PM - 5PM

LOCATED IN THE FRESH MARKET SHOPPING CENTER MON-FRI 10AM-6PM | SAT 10AM-5PM 165 BEVERLY LANE | SOUTHERN PINES 910.692.7467

February 2014P��PineStraw : The Art & Soul of the Sandhills

Joan Matula, Virginia Kennedy

SandhillSeen Women of Sacred Heart Catholic Church Christmas Luncheon

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Photographs by Al & Annette Daniels Helen Walsh, Sandy LaComb, Marion Gaida, Hertha Grady

Donna Murray, Marcy Soltis

Carol French, Gerry Ennis, Betty DeMeglio, Sandy LaComb

Francine Cedrone, Ruth Davies, Gina Canavan

Mary Vernick, Donny Griffin, Peggy Carfi, Mary Ann Sanborn, Anne Gerwig Pat Gibbons, Anne Gerwig, Rosemarie Allen

Celebrate What You Want to See More Of! -Tom Peters

Celebrate with PineStraw!

Marty Lockwood, Father Gregory Anatuanya, Jo Mordini

For Advertising Information Contact Darlene Stark (910) 693-2488 dstark@thepilot.com

SandhillSeen Tin Whistles Winter Banquet Grand Ballroom of the Carolina Hotel Tuesday, December 17, 2013 Photographs by Al and Annette Daniels

Roe and Barry Lyons, Jay and Lisa Carothers, Jim Fitzgerald Murray Williamson, Tony Embrey, Jack McCarthy xxxxx Katie Hunter, Larry Lowe

Joe Koontz, Mary Hall Koontz, Millie Cottrell, Jan and Ron Kuklok

Liz and John McClain

Barbara and Bill Moore

Frank and Nan Corcoran, Peggy and Jim Lucey

Sue Huston, Eleanora Voelkel Margaret and Jim Hamernick, Tricia Williamson

Don and Diana Staley

Colleen and Dennis Dolgan

Bruce and Kay Monteith, Linda and Bill Sheehan, Jack and Claudie Wells

Jean and Ron Sundstrom

Derek and Ava Pszenny