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An Evening of Magic, TOM ARNOLD Memories and Truth Friday, September 18 • 7:00 PM
Friday, April 10 Roseanne. True Lies. Austin Powers. SNL. Netflix’s FUBAR… 7:00there’s PM only one Tom Arnold. Don’t miss this unforgettable night of standup comedy with the Golden Globe-winning actor-writer-comedian.
Special Event
DR. LINDSAY ZANNO, PHD National Geographic Live “Rise of T. Rex” Tribute
April 28 COMING HOME:Tuesday, THE MUSIC OF JAMES TAYLOR 7:00 PM
Family
THE GLENN MILLER ORCHESTRA
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Friday, Oct. 16 • 7:00 PM Featuring James Gedeon Ruth Thursday, Oct. 8 • Pauley 7:00 PM Speakers
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Comedy Monday, June 1 KOBER JEN James Gedeon 7:00Featuring PM Friday, Nov. 20 • 7:00 PM
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AtAt Penick Village, wellness isn’t isn’t ajust program. It’s a philosophy built intobuilt day.every The newly Penick Village, wellness aaccess program. It’s aindoor philosophy into day.fiopened The VanCamp Wellness Pavilion givesjust residents to a full-size pickleballevery court, state-of-the-art tnessnewly opened VanCamp Wellness Pavilion gives residents access to a full-size indoor pickleball court, state-of-the-art fitness VanCamp Wellness Pavilion designed gives residents access toand a full-size indoor pickleball equipment, and active programming to keep you moving engaged. From group fitness court, classes state-of-the-art equipment, and active programming designed to keep you moving and engaged. From group fitness classes equipment, and active programming to keep you moving and engaged. and guided meditation to quiet walks along ourdesigned scenic campus trails, there’s something for every interest From and group fitness c and guided meditation to quiet walks along our scenic campus trails, there’s something for every interest and and guided meditation to quiet walks along ourlearning scenicopportunities, campus trails, something ability level. Combined with chef-prepared dining, lifelong and there’s a full continuum of for every interest ability level. Combined with chef-prepared dining, lifelong learning opportunities, and a full continuum of
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INDE PE N DEN T L IVIN G | A SSISTED L IVIN G | SK IL L ED NUR SING
INDEPENDENT LIVING | ASSISTED LIVING | SKILLED NURSING MEMORY SUPPORT CARE | SHORT & LONG TERM THERAPY SERVICES MEMORY SUPPORT CARE | SHORT & LONG TERM THERAPY SERVICES I N D E PE ND E NT L I V I NG | A SSI ST E D L I V I NG | SK IL L E D N U R S IN G MEMORY SUPPORT CARE | SHORT & LONG TERM THERAPY SERVICES
Steven J. Menendez Managing Director – Investments Senior PIM® Portfolio Manager
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Investment and Insurance Products: Not FDIC Insured / No Bank Guarantee / May Lose Value Wells Fargo Advisors is a trade name used by Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC, Member SIPC, a registered broker-dealer and non-bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company. © 2026 Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. PM-02062028-5820001
September 2026 DEPARTMENTS 19 24 29 31 33 37 43 45
Simple Life By Jim Dodson PinePitch Tea Leaf Astrologer By Zora Stellanova From the Archives By Audrey Moriarty The Omnivorous Reader By Jim Moriarty Bookshelf By Kimberly Daniels Taws Hometown By Bill Fields State of Mind By Tommy Tomlinson
49 51 53 55 57 63 140 156 159 160
Pleasures of Life By Peter Doubleday Dissecting a Cocktail By Tony Cross Out of the Blue By Deborah Salomon Birdwatch By Susan Campbell Sporting Life By Tom Bryant Golftown Journal By Lee Pace Arts & Entertainment Calendar Sandhill Seen PineNeedler By Mart Dickerson Southwords By Jim Moriarty
FEATURES 69 Proto-Indo-European Speakers Poem by Ross White
70 A Stitch in Time
Every quilt tells a story
By Sharon Swanke
80 Chalk Talk
Are you ready for some football?
By Mike Pagel
86 Tables of Togetherness A guide to stylish spreads
By Emilee Phillips
90 Falling in Love
And planting in abundance
By Randy Boyd
96 Dracula Diana
A lunar eclipse in bloom
By Jason Harpster
98 Point of View
Lakeside living in the Sandhills
By Jenna Biter
109 September Almanac By Ashley Walshe
Cover Photograph of Capel Brendel by John Gessner 6 PineStraw
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
For Every Stage of Life…
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M A G A Z I N E Volume 22, No. 9 David Woronoff, Publisher david@thepilot.com
Andie Stuart Rose, Creative Director andiesouthernpines@gmail.com Jim Moriarty, Editor jjmpinestraw@gmail.com Keith Borshak, Senior Designer keith@thepilot.com Miranda Glyder, Senior Designer miranda@pinestrawmag.com Alyssa Kennedy, Digital Art Director alyssamagazines@gmail.com Emilee Phillips, Digital Content emilee@pinestrawmag.com Campbell Pringle, Design Intern CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
Jim Dodson, Stephen E. Smith CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
John Gessner, Laura L. Gingerich, Diane McKay, Tim Sayer CONTRIBUTORS Jenna Biter, Anne Blythe, Tom Bryant, Susan Campbell, Bill Case, Tony Cross, Brianna Rolfe Cunningham, Mart Dickerson, Bill Fields, Mary Novitsky, Lee Pace, Gary Palmer, Todd Pusser, Joyce Reehling, Deborah Salomon, Scott Sheffield, Kimberly Daniels Taws, Tommy Tomlinson, Daniel Wallace, Ashley Walshe, Amberly Glitz Weber ADVERTISING SALES
Samantha Cunningham, Advertising Director 910.693.2505 Christy Phillips, Sales Manager 910.693.2498 Kathy Desmond, 910.693.2515 Terry Hartsell, 910.693.2513 Erika Leap, 910.693.2514 Ginny Trigg, 910.693.2481 ADVERTISING GRAPHIC DESIGN
Mechelle Butler, Scott Yancey
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Henry Hogan, Finance Director 910.693.2497 Darlene Stark, Circulation Director 910.693.2488 Tonnie Nester, Distribution Specialist SUBSCRIPTIONS 910.693.2488 OWNERS
Jack Andrews, Frank Daniels III, David Woronoff In memoriam Frank Daniels Jr. 145 W. Pennsylvania Avenue, Southern Pines, NC 28387 www.pinestrawmag.com ©Copyright 2026 Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. PineStraw magazine is published by The Pilot LLC
10 PineStraw
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
Photograph by Matthew Gibson
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SIMPLE LIFE
Sweet September Lessons From freshman tomfoolery
By Jim Dodson
During the years
ILLUSTRATION BY GERRY O'NEILL
we lived on the coast of Maine, I was always amused by the visible relief and joy locals expressed over the arrival of September. Every year like clockwork, it marks the departure of summer tourists in Maine when tens of thousands of vacationers pack up and head home to the lower 48, leaving Maine bank accounts flush and pockets of local merchants brimming with cash. With Labor Day weekend done and dusted, the annual sight of the Maine Turnpike backed up for 25 miles — folks “from away” creeping through the southbound tolls in vehicles loaded down with suitcases, bicycles and kayaks — is a sign of liberation to many Mainers. Within days of the annual exodus, the price of the average shore dinner drops by at least 30%, town traffic returns to its sleepy pace, and locals begin to venture out from their hiding places to shop and greet neighbors and friends they haven’t seen since Memorial Day. Up on our forested hill west of town, I had my own way of welcoming September. Afternoons were visibly shorter and the abundant wildlife around us — like their counterparts in town — became much more visible and active. A herd of white-tailed deer and a lady porcupine that terrified our dogs never failed to waddle into my garden, finishing off my daylilies, hosta plants and ostrich ferns. And almost every time I walked down our long, gravel lane to pick up the mail, a gorgeous ring-necked pheasant or a congregation of wild turkeys would cross my path, unconcerned by my presence in our peaceable September kingdom. Down here in North Carolina, the autumnal equinox that arrives around September 22 is a far more subtle affair, as white bucks and seersucker are put away even before the intense heat of summer begins to fade. Swimming pools close for the year, and the The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
young ones — to mom’s delight — go back to school while the older kids trek off to college. Last September, a former university suite-mate passing through town invited me for coffee. His grandson was headed off to college. With a smile, he reminded me of my chaotic start as a freshman at East Carolina in 1971. It briefly became something of a freshman dorm legend. My folks dropped me off at my College Hill dorm with a window fan, my bicycle and 50 bucks for the student dining program. The first thing I did was hop on my bike and follow a winding country road to New Bern, mesmerized by the flat green landscape of eastern North Carolina. I had no idea that it was a 40-mile trip each way, however, and it wore me out like an old shoe. As a result, I slept through the first day of mandatory freshman orientation. A few days later, I foolishly allowed new friends in the dorm to convince me to try out for the school’s club football team. There was a rumor that incoming football coach Sonny Randle was looking to find a handful of walk-ons to use as practice squad dummies. In a galaxy long ago and far away (junior high days), I’d been the starting cornerback on a city-league championship team. Foolish sports dreams die hard. Not 10 minutes into tryouts, I stepped on a rubber kicking tee and tore the cartilage in my right knee. One of Randle’s highly regarded recruits on an adjacent practice field helped me hobble to the fieldhouse. His name was Danny Kepley. The coaches were already taking notice of him. We chatted a bit and he wished me well. I returned to school on crutches after Labor Day, just in time to commit my third stupid act that faraway September. A pair of friends from back home and I met a trio of cute girls at Greenville’s (in)famous Elbow Room that Friday night, and they invited us to a party down the road in Little Washington. Freshman couldn’t have cars at school in those days, but these girls had a new VW Bug because they were sophomores. On the way to Little Washington, our “dates” demanded PineStraw 19
SIMPLE LIFE
beer. So, we purchased a couple six-packs and wound up at a gorgeous house overlooking the Pamlico River. My date’s name was Trisha. Suspiciously, her parents, who owned the home, were away. As my buddies and their dates wandered off to other parts of the house, Trisha and I settled on the couch, my sore leg propped up, to watch the Miss America Pageant. Suddenly, Trisha’s annoying little brother appeared, announcing, “Trisha, Jerry is outside. And he’s really mad!” Jerry turned out to be Trisha’s boyfriend. She hadn’t lied. She was indeed a sophomore — in high school. Jerry had brought along half a dozen beer-buzzed pals to defend his girlfriend’s blemished honor. Having realized our horrible mistake, I hobbled out on crutches, hoping to smooth things over. The negotiations did not go well and took a worrying turn when Jerry snapped the antenna of Trisha’s VW Bug and waved it at me. At that point, my college buddies appeared and Trisha burst into tears, wailing that her daddy was going to murder her when he got home. Mercifully, a police car rolled up. When the officer learned that we were just a trio of stupid college freshmen, he ordered us into his car, probably saving us from getting murdered. He drove us to the edge of town and put us out. It was a nice September night and only 23 miles back to campus. We walked for several hours until the sun began to come up. Somewhere after sunrise, a drunk in a weaving Cadillac picked us up and dropped us at the bottom of College Hill. I got back to my dorm as my new roommate was heading out for breakfast. He won-
dered where I’d been all night. “Learning I’m not a good party guy,” I said. A few days later, I swore off beer, joined the school newspaper and soon became The Fountainhead’s columnist and features editor. Forty years later, on another memorable September Southern evening, I was about to give a fundraising speech at Wayne Community College in Goldsboro, when my host said, “There’s a guy who wants to say hello to you.” It was Danny Kepley. During his playing years at ECU, Danny became an All-American linebacker known for crushing tackles, earning the nickname “Captain Crunch.” Drafted by the Dallas Cowboys, Danny chose to join the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League and went on to lead them to six Grey Cup championships as MVP of the league. I asked him if he remembered helping a foolish fellow freshman off the practice field way back when. “I think so,” he replied, pointing out that his memory was a bit foggy from a career of issuing crushing hits. “What I remember most is your stories in the school paper. I liked them. And now, you are a famous sportswriter about golf.” And then Captain Crunch added with a smile, “So, we both did kinda OK, I guess.” “Yes, we did,” I agreed. PS Jim Dodson’s 17th book, The Road That Made America: A Modern Pilgrim Travels the Great Wagon Road, is available at The Country Bookshop
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PinePitch Stevie Nicks. Enough Said The tribute band Tell Me Lies — the Fleetwood Mac Experience! performs in the Sunrise Theater, 250 N.W. Broad Street, Southern Pines, on Saturday, Sept. 19, at 3 p.m., and again in the evening at 7:30 p.m. If we said we’re Never Going Back Again we’d be lying. For information go to www.sunrisetheater.com.
Live After 5 and Beyond Gary Lowder and Smokin’ Hot bring a beach music vibe to the Village Arboretum, 375 Magnolia Road, Pinehurst, on Friday, Sept. 11, from 5:15 p.m. and on into the night. Food trucks? Yep. Kids’ stuff? Yep. Admission? Nope. Outside alcohol? Never. For more information go to www. vopnc.org.
If It’s Friday . . . It’s a First The Jon Stickley Trio takes the First Bank Stage from 5 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. on the greenspace next to the Sunrise Theater for First Friday on — you guessed it — Friday, Sept. 4. The ensemble from Asheville combines Stickley’s rapid-fire guitar picking with the melodies of Lyndsay Pruett on violin and the groove of Patrick Armitage on drums. All the usual rules apply — anything with a snout needs to stay at home, and don’t even think about smuggling in that flask. Food and drink are available onsite. For information go to www.sunrisetheater.com.
They’re Baaaaaack! The Sandhills Woman’s Exchange, 15 Azalea Road, in Pinehurst, reopened for the fall and winter on Tuesday, Sept. 1. The café serves lunch Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and the gift shop is restocked with goodies, all to keep the little historic cabin up and running. For more information go to www.sandhillswe.org.
Wide Open Art The opening reception for “Into the Woods,” featuring the work of Venessa Grebe, begins at 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 4, at the Artists League of the Sandhills, 129 Exchange St., Aberdeen. For more info go to www. artistleague.org. And a mere 5 miles away, the Arts Council of Moore County presents “Quiet Dialogues with Canvas & Paper,” featuring the art of Sharon Ferguson and Merilyn Vendemia, beginning Sept. 4 at 6 p.m., at the Campbell House, 482 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. For more info go to www. mooreart.org. Both exhibits hang through Sept. 25.
Party Like It’s 1941 The Sunrise Theater has been a beloved Sandhills institution for 85 years. Celebrate and support it at the Sunrise 1941 Charity Gala beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 18, at the Fair Barn, 200 Beulah Hill Rd. S. Pinehurst. Single tickets are $150 with a full table going for $1,500. Miss Candace, the “International Champagne Chanteuse,” and her band provide the 1940s jazz. The plated dinner is by Elliott’s on Linden. There will be both live and silent auctions, all going to support the ever-widening range of entertainment provided by the Sunrise, from touring concerts to Broadway productions, ballet, first run and independent films, tribute bands and on and on. For more information go to www.sunrisetheater.com.
24 PineStraw
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
Books and Such David Dockery will discuss his book I Am the Night: The Ultimate Unauthorized History of Batman: The Animated Series, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 9, at The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. Then, beginning at 10 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 28, hang out at the bookshop for the highly anticipated midnight release of the Empyrean Series latest, Threshing Day, by Rebecca Yarros. There will be themed activities to get everyone in the mood. For tickets and information for both events go to www.ticketmesandhills.com.
We Need Details Tom Arnold is a single dad with a 12-year-old son, a 9-year-old daughter and four ex-wives. He’s been stabbed, arrested naked and charged with kidnapping a Peter Criss impersonator. There might a story there. You can hear it from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 18, when he brings his stand-up comedy routine to BPAC’s Owens Auditorium at Sandhills Community College, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. For tickets and information go to www.ticketmesandhills.com.
Autumnfest Come for the crafts, stay for food, the fun and the entertainment. The Arts Council of Moore County and Southern Pines Parks and Recreation host the annual arts and crafts festival from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3, in the Downtown Park, 143 S.E. Broad Street, Southern Pines. For more information go to www.mooreart.org.
Heritage in the House The Shaw House Heritage Fair & Moore Treasures Sale kicks off with the free-to-all pre-sale beginning at 9 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 11, at the Shaw House, 110 W. Morganton Road, Southern Pines. The festivities crank up on Saturday, Sept. 12, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $2 and includes a raffle ticket. There will be vendors, food, music, pottery, jewelry, art, books, toys and just about anything you can walk away with in exchange for U.S. currency. For more information go to www.moorehistory.com.
Monarchs on the March Interact with and feed hundreds of newly emerged monarch butterflies in the Magical Monarch Tent at the seventh annual Flutterby Festival on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Village Arboretum, 375 Magnolia Road, Pinehurst. Hosted by the Village Heritage Foundation and the village of Pinehurst, this family-friendly event celebrates butterflies and other pollinators. There will be crafts, food trucks, educational exhibits, native plant demonstrations and sales. The event is free of charge, but tickets are required and can be obtained at www.ticketmesandhills.com. PS The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
PineStraw 25
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PineStraw 29
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FROM THE ARCHIVES
Pinehurst Cigarettes The taste that refreshes
Pe
Lo Every morning that you wake up in a pest-free home is a good morning. And the easiest way to ensure that stress-free feeling?
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PHOTOGRAPHS BY TUFTS ARCHIVES
on healthful living once had its own brand of cigarettes?
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The R.W. Swain Tobacco Company of Danville, Virginia, introduced the “Milder Smoother Smoke” on Nov. 19, 1940. The cigarettes were a short (70 mm), soft pack, with 20 cigarettes. The first pack was presented to Richard S. Tufts, grandson of Pinehurst founder James Walker Tufts, at a formal launch and luncheon at the Pinehurst Country Club. In attendance were more than 50 people, including Donald J. Ross, manager of the club; Robert J. Harlow, of the Pinehurst Press Bureau and founder of Golf World magazine; Harris Norris, manager of the Carolina Hotel; and Edward Horne, manager of the Holly Inn. According to R.L. Swain, president of the tobacco company, Pinehurst brand cigarettes contained a new ingredient never before used in the manufacture of cigarettes. That ingredient, Panax Quinquefolium — from the plant commonly known as American ginseng — was tasteless and produced a milder, smoother smoke. It was a humectant, a substance that attracts and holds onto water molecules providing hydration, such as aloe vera, glycerin or hyaluronic acid. Due to this humectant, according to the product information, there was “an amazing lack of sore or raw throat after smoking many of them.” In the tobacco company’s search for a name for the new brand of cigarettes, “Pinehurst” was chosen due to its association with outstanding quality and pleasurable satisfaction. PS
Audrey Moriarty is the Library Services and Archives director for the village of Pinehurst. The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
PineStraw 31
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OMNIVOROUS READER
Seeing Spirits And the decisions that haunt us
By Jim Moriarty
Let’s dispense with the easy part. “Gram
calls photographs paper ghosts. She says they’re the only ghosts everyone can see.” So says Willamena Wester — Wills to her friends — the central character of Sarah Addison Allen’s new novel, Paper Ghosts. The real apparitions show up later.
Gram is Alice Wester, the dowager of Hen Town. Nothing escapes Alice’s ability to know it or divine it in some quasimystical way. “Rewind,” the first of the novel’s three parts, takes place in 1976. Wills is a teenager, and her posse is known as The Feathers, named for their teased-to-the-max hairstyle. “By the time the bell rang, Wills had managed to get Dorothy’s feathers back in place, though she’d used so much hair spray that Dorothy was now combustible,” writes Allen. We meet Andy Smooth, the head of a traveling musical group, and Jack Vaughn, the band’s youngest member and the person Wills falls desperately in love with. “He was quoting Shakespeare again, while dancing to a song no one could hear under an umbrella when there wasn’t a storm, with his hand to her waist as if it was meant to be there.” Ratted out by one of The Feathers — with a Polaroid, of course, of the young clandestine couple — Gram is determined to keep Willamena in Hen Town and tries to buy off young Jack, who accepts the money as a get-out-of-town stake, then tries to convince Wills to go with him. “And I lie awake at night thinking about a beautiful girl I just met whose grandmother has made her believe that she can only exist here, that she will vanish like magic if she steps outside of this place, so she’s afraid to leave. And I can’t stay,” says Jack.
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
A tussle ensues in Gram’s “redbrick, federal-style home . . . three stories tall and imposing with more windows to see what was going on than any other house in town.” Jack tumbles down a flight of stairs — perhaps or perhaps not helped along by Gram — and dies. He’s buried in the basement but his ghost remains. And so does Wills. We “Fast Forward” in part two, and Wills, who married (and outlived) the man she was supposed to marry before Jack came along, has remained in Wester House and, in almost every respect, morphed into her grandmother. Her nickname, to the living, has morphed, too, into Mim. At the door are her widower son, Tug (Terrance), and her granddaughter Bailey, who are moving in. “‘You’re a remarkable woman, Wills, but even you can’t open a door without turning the knob first,’ she heard Jack say from behind her.” Tug gives Bailey the tour. “For the next half hour, the presence in the house followed them as Tug made sure Bailey knew every nook and cranny, most of it off-limits due to what he called the Wester Rules,” writes Allen. “The Wester Rules weren’t actually his rules. They were Mim’s. And they weren’t made up on the spot, either. They’d been around for a long time.” Those rules included no visitors, no music and a double-lock on the basement door. Bailey, it turns out, can see Jack if Jack wants to be seen. “To her astonishment there was now a handsome young man standing next to the piano. He looked like someone from decades ago with his dark hair touching his shoulders and a shaggy mustache shaped like a horseshoe. His jeans had bell bottoms so long they touched PineStraw 33
OMNIVOROUS READER
the floor, and the snaps of his shirt were undone nearly to low-rise at this hips. There was a yellow rose pinned to the wide collar. He seemed so happy to see her that he didn’t know what to say. Or maybe he was just happy for her to finally see him.” Mim becomes as protective of Bailey as her grandmother had been of her, a choice that leads to a different kind of disaster when Bailey is accosted, not by a true love like Jack, but by a thug of a man named Clutch, which calls for a different kind of accident altogether. Let’s just say, Clutch gets his — another mystery solved in the end. “I know I made you dependent on only me and your father for companionship, but I thought it was the one thing that would keep you safe until you could make your own decisions,” says Mim. “But what really happened was you grew up desperate to feel connection, which led you to Clutch. If I had just told you this story of the man I fell in love with, instead of imposing on you something you didn’t understand, things would have ended differently.” Allen writes in the opening of her epilogue, “Once upon a time, there was a family of witches. But witches, it turns out, are sometimes only women who have been hurt, and are determined not to be again.” The toing and froing through the generations can get a bit confusing at times, but the trip is worth it. The great fiction writer Raymond Chandler once counseled others to try to put three things on every page that mean something to you as a writer. A sentence, a description, maybe just a word.
34 PineStraw
The cumulative effect will be quality. Allen’s ability to turn a phrase is a fine example of it. Of Jack: “It was such a vulnerable moment, his guard down, loneliness beaming through the cracks.” Of Mrs. Orr, the housekeeper: “. . . taking every smudge on the furniture as a personal insult . . .” On Jack: “It was Jack. Her beautiful Jack. He looked so out of place, a wildflower in a manicured garden.” On Wester House: “This was an old house and the floorboards creaked like knee joints.” On the neighborhood in Hen Town: “There was a curious element of the unseen, like if money could haunt you, it would haunt you here, where the air was as soft and cottony as a veil.” When Mim leaves the house: “People immediately got on their phones and called their neighbors, tracking her movements across town the way they might have tracked a grizzly bear that wandered out of the woods.” On Bailey: “Every time she colored her hair, she liked this moment best — looking in the mirror and seeing someone she didn’t recognize, hoping it was someone she finally wanted to be.” And so on. They were among the many little treats that made Paper Ghosts a pleasure to read. PS Jim Moriarty is the editor of PineStraw. He can be reached at jjmpinestraw@gmail.com
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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Equal Housing Opportunity. Information not verified or guaranteed. All imagery is representational and does not depict specific buildings, views, or future architectural, community, or amenity details. All services, pricing, square footage, bed/bath counts, finishes, floor plans, and renderings are subject to change without notice and at the sole discretion of the seller. Pinewild Builders, LLC is the owner and developer of the project. Obtain the property report or its equivalent, required by Federal and State law and read it before signing anything. No Federal or State agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of this property.
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BOOKSHELF
September Books
FICTION Ply, by Hernan Diaz Centuries from now, at the dawn of a historical epoch filled with both uncertainty and promise, an orphan is adrift in a city on the brink of a great transformation. The state has been dismantled, and humans are reinventing social bonds and learning new ways to coexist with nature. Following a childhood defined by loss, survival and found family, the orphan grows up to become a “pincher,” someone who steals electricity from the grid to sell on the black market. It’s a high risk life, one that brings her into a rich art and music scene, using her stolen electricity to power underground concerts. It also leads her to a colossal scientific invention that could change the very fabric of reality. Ply questions the place of technology in the American experiment with a plot that grabs both heart and mind, combining Dickensian odyssey and family drama. Dodge City, by Patrick deWitt It’s 1967 in Los Angeles, and Lee Clarke has received his draft notice, calling him up to fight in the Vietnam War. A straitlaced, apolitical 23-year-old from Concrete, Washington, Lee is studying at UCLA until a fistfight leads to his expulsion — and his removal from the deferment list. The draft notice forces him to make the first political decision of his life, and though he’s happy in California and loves his girlfriend, he will leave the country and head for Canada. He signs up at a car-delivery service, chancing into a showroom-new Jaguar bound for the East Coast. Bringing only a single suitcase and a bag of amphetamines, he makes his stimulated progress against the width of the country, pining for the life he’s left behind and wondering what his decision will mean for his future. In four different towns strung out along the northern United States, Lee visits each member of his immediate family: his father, a World War II veteran in a state of degradation; his mother, engaged in a buoyantly manic and never-ending performance with her shut-in sibling; his heartThe Art & Soul of the Sandhills
broken, misanthropic brother, Harry; and finally his twin sister, Grace, a brash young nurse-in-training mired in romantic drama at a Manhattan psychiatric hospital. NONFICTION An Unexpected Life: A Memoir, by Gloria Steinem Before she became a feminist leader, Gloria Steinem was a curious child: going on road trips with her itinerant father, caring for her mother, and devouring every book she could find. In An Unexpected Life, Steinem reflects on the unlikely experiences and pivotal moments — from a childhood rat bite that opened her eyes to the dangers of poverty to the 1970 Women’s March honoring the right to vote — that shaped the visionary woman she would become. She shares her years living in India, learning from the nonviolent movement there, and her travels around the world advocating for women’s rights. Along the way, she honors the people who influenced her most, including trailblazers, writers and thinkers who expanded her understanding of power, community, justice and solidarity. Moving between past and present, Steinem examines the progress and setbacks of six decades of activism. As she reflects on the movements she helped build and the victories won for women’s and human rights, she also looks ahead, urging new generations to imagine bolder, more inclusive paths forward. An Inconvenient Woman: The Extraordinary Life of Lillian Smith, the Southerner Who Defied Jim Crow America, by Keri Leigh Merritt After teaching school in China in the early 1920s, Lillian Smith (1897-1966) moved to a small rural town in northeast Georgia. Along with her lover, Paula Snelling, Smith began running a socially progressive summer camp for girls in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Together the couple created and published a magazine devoted to creating a new vision of the former PineStraw 37
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BOOKSHELF
Confederacy that passionately championed equality and integration. They were the first white Southerners to publish Black writers, and Smith wrote articles instructing white Southerners to stop supporting the dictates of Jim Crow. In 1944 she published a bestselling novel, Strange Fruit, which became a national sensation and was banned in Boston and Detroit. She went on to publish six more books, both fiction and nonfiction, exploring topics ranging from racism and human suffering to sexual repression and Freudian psychoanalysis. Because of Smith’s provocative work, the FBI spied on her for decades, she received countless death threats, and her home was burned three times by angry racists, resulting in the loss of multiple worksin-progress. Undaunted, she continued her ardent fight against segregation, maintaining friendships with some of the great leaders of her day, including Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr, W.E.B Dubois, Paul Robeson and Pauli Murray. CHILDREN’S BOOKS Be the Acorn, by Jason Douglas Griffin There’s a hole in the ground where the squirrel family tree used to be, and so they set out on a hunt to find a new home. Choko Choko, the smallest squirrel, is determined to help . . . but he’s told he’s too little to join. Luckily his grandma, Great Haha, always knows just what to say. “Like an acorn, you may be small, but you have big possibilities . . . Be the acorn.” When Choko Choko discovers the largest acorn he has ever seen, he remembers Great Haha’s wise words, and he realizes that although he’s small, he can dare to dream big. In this bright-eyed and bushy-tailed story about a valiant squirrel, young readers learn that, with patience and time, they too can grow into something beautiful. (Ages 4-8.)
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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September at Weymouth
September 20 • 4:00 pm
JAZZ UNDER THE STARS The First Annual Weymouth Jazz Festival featuring Sarah Hanahan, Butler Knowles, and local student Brooks Myrick.
September 25 • 5:00 - 9:00 pm
Blazers, Bourbon & Blues
Also, this month at Weymouth Center: September 2 • 11:00 am September 13 • 11:00 am - 4:00 pm September 15 • 2:00 pm
Women of Weymouth Pop Up in the Pines James Boyd Book Club Weymouth Equestrians Presents Hug-a-Horse!
weymouthcenter.org
40 PineStraw
BOOKSHELF
Horizontal Crocodile, by Scott Rothman In a nice, loooooooong swamp, lives a nice, loooooooong Horizontal Crocodile whose loooooooong lost best friend is coming over . . . but Horizontal Crocodile’s nice, loooooooong house is one HUGE mess! Can he get it cleaned up in time for his best buddy’s visit? See the lengths Horizontal Crocodile goes to in the name of being a caring and considerate friend in this hilarious and heartwarming read-aloud. (Ages 4-8.) Socks & Secret Quests, by Triona Murphy Peri has been waiting for her magic to show up, but there’s been no sign of it since she was chosen as an Apprentice Shopkeeper a year ago. Now she travels with a magical shop that equips adventurers for their quests, unsure if she'll ever do more than stock shelves, mend mittens, and knit non-magical hats that don’t do anything but keep heads warm. Then a dark wizard kidnaps the Master Shopkeeper, intent on using her power to create an unstoppable army. To save her master, Peri must leave the cozy shop and seek help from the closest adventuring party, who is really good at arguing and really bad at working together. As Peri’s magic unexpectedly begins to show itself in the items she’s knitting, it’s up to her and her team to stop the dark wizard before war breaks out — or it won’t be just her shop at stake but the entire kingdom. (Ages 10-13.) PS Compiled by Kimberly Daniels Taws, manager of The Country Bookshop.
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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HOMETOWN
Back to School Daze Ticonderoga and a crew cut, too
By Bill Fields
Summer moved
slowly, like a bunted ball unsure if it was fair or foul, but once the dog days had come and gone, the pace quickened. Little League was over. The beach was a pile of Polaroids, a stray Skee-Ball ticket and a chipped conch shell that looked a lot bigger on the Strand. By the time I rode shotgun with my two-pack-a-day father to a tobacco auction in Fairmont or Whiteville, the strong smell and strange sounds within the vast warehouse signaled that September — and a new school year — loomed. This reality tended to hit me on the drive home as I attempted an annoying imitation of the auctioneer’s rhythmic chant, which usually got Dad to buy me some crackers so I would shut up. Even a boy who loved those lazy summer days knew there was such a thing as too much watermelon and horseshoes. After a couple of idle months, I looked forward to seeing a new Currier & Ives scene on our wall calendar (an annual freebie from Hobbs Insurance) and returning to the classroom. Preparation for the first day of school felt like its own season, about which I had mixed feelings. Since I kept my hair closely cropped by getting a crew cut every few weeks, timing a visit to Billie Hill’s Broad Street barbershop certainly was no hardship. I loved the ritual: waiting for my turn, magazine in hand, listening to the adults’ conversation; settling into the chair, smock clipped on and paper band secured around the neck; calming whir of the clippers; a powdered brush when her work was done. After paying Mrs. Hill $1.75 for my haircut, I left ready to take on the world. Being obsessed with school supplies, stocking up on them was far from a chore even though my mother kept a close eye on the bottom line. We read the “Back to School” ads in The Pilot closely.
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
Valu-Mart might have Flair pens on sale for 39 cents apiece, but they could be three for 99 cents at Mann Drug. I had to be at my persuasive best to get Mom to spring for Ticonderoga pencils instead of a less expensive variety but had better luck with that than I did lobbying each August for a pair of Converse All Star sneakers instead of the brand’s slightly cheaper Coach model. Mostly, back to school in the late 1960s and early ’70s meant going back to Collins, which had been situated on Main Street in Aberdeen, “the shopping center of the Sandhills,” since the 1930s. It was part of a regional chain of about 30 department stores founded by William Augustus Collins, who opened his first location, in Conway, South Carolina, in 1927. The Collins Co. boasted it was “A Good Place to Shop for Nice Things” while emphasizing its mid-priced mindset that suited folks on a budget. One of its early advertisements said, “Stars in the skies are like bargains at Collins, too thick to be counted.” Another said Collins was “where quality is never expensive.” Deals on dungarees notwithstanding, my enthusiasm for clothes shopping didn’t come close to matching my gusto for pens, pencils and paper. Although I could play outside for hours in the heat sustained by a few gulps from the garden hose, I tired easily on those annual excursions to Collins, with little patience for changing room visits to see if I fit in regular or “husky” pants. Regardless of the size Mom paid for, it wouldn’t be too long until I’d worn a hole in a knee. She would have to apply an iron-on patch, making me resemble a repaired old tire on one of our well-used cars. The Collins chain lasted another decade or so, until I had the survived the fashions of the 1970s and was about to graduate from college. Its dozen surviving stores were bought in 1981 by the Peebles Department Stores. William Collins died the following year. “He was a man that never quit dreaming,” Raymond Collins, one of his children, told the Charlotte Observer. “But he believed in backing up your dreams with elbow grease.” PS Southern Pines native Bill Fields, who writes about golf and other things, moved north in 1986 but hasn’t lost his accent.
PineStraw 43
The Best Things in Life Are Wild
Grow something wild. 2415 Underwood Road Carthage, NC
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STATE OF MIND
Our Unique Beauty The greening of home
By Tommy Tomlinson
This year my wife and I drove to Michigan for
ILLUSTRATION BY GARY PALMER
summer vacation. (July is way cooler up there than down here.) One day we were cruising on a highway somewhere south of Mackinaw City, headed for the Upper Peninsula. We rolled through mile after mile of farmland and trees. There was no way to count every shade of green.
In some ways it felt familiar. I’ve been down similar roads all over North Carolina. But it wasn’t . . . quite . . . right, like a picture that had been run through the copier one too many times. The shades of green up there weren’t the shades of green back home. My GPS — not the one on the screen, the one in my gut — told me I was somewhere else. I would’ve known that even if I had just awakened from a Rip Van Winkle nap. It got me to thinking: What makes a landscape distinctive? And in particular, what makes North Carolina’s landscape distinctive? What are the clues that tell us where we are? I’m not really thinking about pride of place, although maybe that’s part of it. I grew up in Georgia, down on the coast. When we go back to visit, and we cross the Savannah River coming down from South Carolina, I look over at Alix and say: Ahhhh. We’re in God’s country. (Sometimes I say it if I’m the only one in the car.) But the North Carolina marsh is different than the Georgia marsh — and the South Carolina marsh, for that matter. North Carolina marshes, to me, feel smaller and more scattered. They play peek-a-boo with you as you drive down toward the coast. They even smell different. Every marsh has a salty funk — it comes from dead plants and animals decaying in the mud and The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
washed by the tides. North Carolina’s marshes smell a little cleaner somehow. Maybe it just feels that way to me because I grew up near pulp mills in Georgia. Millworkers like to say it’s the smell of money. I guess that’s possible, if money smelled like rotten eggs. North Carolina beach sand is its own thing, too. The sand on the Outer Banks is what I think of as sandbox sand — tan and clean. Georgia sand is grayer and a little muddier. Florida Gulf Coast sand, down around Panama City, is sugar-white and crunches under your feet. I would not bet money on this, but part of me thinks that if you put me on one of those beaches blindfolded, my toes would be able to figure out where I was. (FYI, the Michigan beaches were nicer than I expected . . . they reminded me of North Carolina’s. Lots of rocks in the water, though.) Coming off the coast, the natural feature I think about most in North Carolina is the longleaf pine forest. The strands we have in the Sandhills and down toward Wilmington are the northern edge of the longleaf habitat (it stretches south and west in scattered spots all the way to Texas). Most of the woods we see from the highway are dark and thick. A longleaf pine forest feels like a planned community. The trees are spaced wide, giving one another room to grow. The wiregrass underneath is a tasteful carpet. That orderly design depends on fire to come through every so often — a spring cleaning of sorts. When the natural cycles line up, what’s left is astonishing. Years ago, a guide walked me a mile or so into a longleaf pine forest down in the southeast corner of the state. We were looking for Venus flytraps. You might know that a little circle down there — maybe a 75-mile radius from Wilmington — is the only place on earth where Venus flytraps grow naturally in the wild. We got to a tiny pond — no more than a big puddle, really — where clumps of flytraps grew a few yards off the bank. Not too dry, not PineStraw 45
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too wet. If all you know of flytraps is Little Shop of Horrors, you might walk right past one without ever seeing it. They’re small and close to the ground. In the wild, most of the traps are no bigger than dimes. You might also know that the tiny pond I described was probably a Carolina bay — one of thousands of shallow depressions strung along the East Coast all the way up to Delaware and New Jersey. Most of them are ovals aligned northwest to southeast. There are many scientific theories about how they came to be; the most intriguing theory is that they’re the result of a long-ago meteorite shower. Of course, those are the scientific theories. But when you’re standing next to one, surrounded by Venus flytraps, inside a longleaf pine forest that looks like it was designed by an interior decorator . . . your mind does start to wonder if North Carolina is some sort of Del Webb development for future retiring aliens. I realize, at this point, that we have wandered far afield. This started out being about what makes North Carolina’s natural splendor distinctive, and ended up being about what might make us the next Area 51. Let’s just leave it here for now: Our beauty is unique. If you’ve lived in North Carolina long, you can smell it and feel it and taste it. It doesn’t mean we’re better than everybody else — although if you want to claim that, go ahead. It just means that there are some things our bodies just know. And when we’re in North Carolina, we’re someplace special. I hope the human race is not the only one to have figured this out. PS Tommy Tomlinson is the author of two books, The Elephant in the Room and Dogland. He was a longtime columnist for the Charlotte Observer and has written for Esquire, The Atlantic, ESPN the Magazine and many other publications. His online newsletter is called The Writing Shed. He lives in Charlotte with his wife, Alix Felsing.
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
MEET THE AUTHOR
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More Space. More Care. More Pets Saved. For 60 years, Moore Humane Society has carried out one of this community’s most meaningful missions: giving animals shelter, compassion and a second chance. Proudly no kill. Now, we’re expanding that promise. Our new shelter, slated to open Early 2027, will allow us to care for exponentially more animals in far more comprehensive ways. Modern, larger kennels, more outdoor space, separate shelter veterinarian clinic, and much more! With this growth comes a greater need. Together, we’ve made this new facility possible — now we need the resources to sustain it.
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48 PineStraw
SAVE THE DATE
Nov. 18th at CCNC The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
PLEASURES OF LIFE
Hello, Muddah. Hello, Faddah. Here we are at Camp Grenada
By Peter Doubleday
Every summer my thoughts meander to
ILLUSTRATION BY MIRANDA GLYDER
the summers that were like no other. Sure, I had great friends and schoolmates at home in Syracuse, New York, but my special buddies were all heading for Brentwood Camp, a three-hour drive to the southwestern part of the state, in Angelica. Before leaving, my mother helped me organize my clothing list — the prime directive came in the mail from the camp like an astronaut’s checklist. I identified each pair of shorts, underwear, T-shirts, bathing suit and jeans with my initials in indelible Magic Marker. Laundry was done once a week. Even after this meticulous exercise in labeling, when I was 10 I got a bra back in my laundry the first week. The drive to Angelica — could it have had a more perfect name? — cut through rural countryside and the Finger Lakes. For a city boy, it was like leaving planet Earth for six weeks. Cabin assignments and bunk positions — upper or lower — were doled out on arrival. There were 80 kids at these summer reunions, 40 boys and 40 girls, with the cabins segregated by sex and separated by a giant stream that ran through the middle of the camp. Ages ranged from 10 to 17, and kids came from all over the country. Trunks, with all your personal possessions, were positioned at the foot of each bunk. The toilet experience was rustic, to say the least, with limited hot water in the shower building. Bathing suits that never seemed to dry hung on the lines outside each cabin, perfuming the air. The camp’s specialty was horseback riding. I learned a lifetime of equestrian skills but not without some challenges. One year a female instructor asked me to jump a few obstacles in the ring. I did but got “left” in the saddle (not moving forward with the horse) and came down in a very uncomfortable way for a boy. Sick to my stomach, the instructor insisted I try again. “Can we wait just a couple of minutes?” I begged. The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
I became one of the leaders in the barn, mucking stalls, cleaning tack and saddling up for others. I learned to drive the tractor, a mower and the camp pickup. Trail rides were highly anticipated, especially when we passed the abandoned house on the railroad bed supposedly occupied by a mean old hermit who loved to scare passersby. Curiously enough, we never saw him. Once every two weeks a chosen few would trail-ride to an area for an overnight campout, just like on TV’s Rawhide or Gunsmoke. It was the first time I sampled coffee. Yuck. And, of course, when I was 13, I fell in love with one of my instructors. Camp days were divided into four periods, two in the morning and two in the afternoon. Along with the horses, we had a daily swimming session, a 90-minute arts and crafts period where I fashioned one boondoggle after another, and a final period devoted to baseball, kickball, etc. I learned to shoot a .22 rifle and a bow and arrow. After dinner, we had a giant campfire, scary stories and, naturally, a weekly snipe hunt. The mess hall was our meeting place. A large bell called everyone together. When someone had a birthday “around the mess hall you must go” was sung, and everyone celebrated. After dinner we stopped by the commissary for a treat — candy, ice cream or a Popsicle. It took me a while to figure out why everyone snickered when someone ordered a Hershey’s candy bar and the counselor would ask, “Male or female?” The summer was not without an occasional romance. Don’t tell anyone, but there were the late night “sneakovers” to the girls’ side of the stream. If the camp owners found out, you could face the ultimate punishment — expulsion. But it was worth it. At the end of each summer, as Labor Day loomed, it was invariably a sad day when we were fetched by our parents and returned to the real world. But oh, the memories. I still run into a fellow camper once in a while and all we can do is smile. PS Peter Doubleday was the equestrian voice of the Atlanta Olympics and a 50-year resident of Southern Pines. PineStraw 49
& Maestro David Michael Wolff invite you to an exciting 2026/27 Concert Season beginning with
THE WIZARD OF OZ No Place Like Home
Saturday, October 17th, 2026, 3:00 & 7:30 PM R.E. Lee Auditorium, Pinecrest High School Step inside a world where film and symphony become one. The Carolina Philharmonic performs the iconic Wizard of Oz soundtrack live to picture—every soaring melody, every magical moment— under the baton of Maestro David Michael Wolff. A full-sensory experience for all ages.
Brought to you through the generous support of Alan and Sharon Kane
Get Tickets
This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.
You are Cordially Invited to The Carolina Philharmonic’s 17th Annual Gala
A Fundraiser for Music Education in Moore County Experience the joy that The Carolina Philharmonic’s exceptional music education programs have brought to over 25,000 Moore County children. Thursday, October 29th, 2026 • 5:30PM • The Pinehurst Fair Barn Live/Silent Auctions. Open Bar. Elegant Buffet catered by Chef Mark Elliott. Valet Parking $175 Per Person/$1,200 Per Table of Eight For Tickets: call 910-687-0287 or visit www.carolinaphil.org Season Tickets Still Available! The Carolina Philharmonic is a 501(c)3 non-profit.
DISSECTING A COCKTAIL
Manhattan Story and Photograph by Tony Cross
Like most classic cocktails, there are a couple of theories
about the creation of the Manhattan. The truth is rarely, if ever, clear. In the case of the Manhattan, one thing is certain: It was definitely created in New York (and probably by a Manhattanite). But who? One theory suggests that it was launched at The Manhattan Club in the late 19th century by bartender Iain Marshall at a banquet held by Lady Randolph Churchill (Winston Churchill’s mother). Another points to bartender George Black, who had a bar on Broadway called The Manhattan Inn. Regardless of its origin, there’s no mistaking that this is one of the most classic cocktails of all time. The first time I made a proper drink, it was a Manhattan. I had to special-order a case of rye whiskey from our ABC because it wasn’t on our shelves . . . yet (after a few more orders it became a staple). After that I made a trip to our local wine shop to purchase a bottle of vermouth. Rittenhouse was the rye, and Carpano Antica was the vermouth. The drink forever changed the way I viewed cocktails. There are two camps when it comes to which type of whiskey to use: bourbon or rye. In my opinion, it should always be rye, and I’ll debate anyone who says otherwise. When the Manhattan was created, rye was definitely the whiskey used. Post-Prohibition might be a different story. The drink itself isn’t hard to make and keeping Manhattan’s original area code, 212, in mind helps you remember the specs. Two ounces of rye whiskey, one ounce of sweet vermouth, and two dashes of Angostura bitters. You won’t see too many variations of this cocktail, but I do like to add orange Curaçao or chocolate bitters to mine from time to time. The addition of Grand Marnier is something I learned from a New York City bar years ago. PS
Specifications 2 ounces Rittenhouse rye 1 ounce Carpano Antica sweet vermouth 1/4 ounce orange Curaçao 2 dashes Angostura bitters Lemon peel or brandied cherry (or both!)
Execution Combine all ingredients, sans garnish, in a mixing vessel with ice. Stir until cocktail is cold and proper dilution has occurred. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. If garnishing with a lemon peel, express lemon oils over cocktail and then place peel in glass or discard. To add a cherry carefully place in glass after pouring cocktail.
Tony Cross is an on-again, off-again bartender who founded and runs Reverie Cocktails, a kegged cocktail distribution company that has been represented everywhere from dive bars to baseball stadiums.
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
PineStraw 51
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52 PineStraw
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The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
OUT OF THE BLUE
California Dreamin’ The princess of Montecito
By Deborah Salomon
Once upon a time, an attractive
young woman from a Los Angeles neighborhood described as “modest” and “interesting” decided to become a princess.
Duchess, actually. Still impressive. Sure, hon. Don’t we all. Only two methods work: Be born into a royal family or, more likely, marry a prince. Hey, movie star Grace Kelly did it. Never mind that this prince has wiry red hair and a wild streak. Its story line echoes those found in literature pre-dating the pyramids, the Bible, the tabloids. So the presumption is that current maiden with the alliterative name took the same yellow brick road to fame: wrangle an introduction, hang around, smile a lot. She met her prince, Harry by name, on a blind date — yeah, really — arranged by a mutual friend whose identity has been kept secret. Within weeks the smitten kittens were off on a camping trip to Botswana while the British press panted at the fence. The royal family managed smiles in public, gnawed their nails over tea and crumpets (biscuits passing as English muffins). American! Actress! Divorced! Black! was whispered at polo matches. But to their credit, the royals stiffened those upper lips and, in true British style, carried on. And carried on, to co-habitation, then marriage, sealing the deal with the birth of red-haired Prince Archie, followed by Princess Lilibet, strategically named for her great-granny, the Queen. The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
Thus ensconced, our American TV actress Meghan pulled off her biggest coup, many years in the planning: relocate from smoggy London to a sunny California neighborhood where her $20 million estate felt comfier than Buckingham Palace. But beware, fair lady: Your glamour is shrinking while the bills, they groweth apace. The tennis court needs resurfacing. And the guesthouse could use a rainforest shower head. Oprah can’t dig you out of this one. Then, a brotherly plot . . . er, feud . . . escalated over security during a planned trip to introduce grandkids to King Charles, who is ill. He received them at one of his country estates, more suitable than having the monarch show up at a bouncy-house birthday party. Can’t you just see Camilla in face paint? All the while, Prince Harry was being ripped from the bosom of his bloodline, with sweet Kate (from non-royal mercantile wealth) doing most of the ripping, or so the press chatters. Otherwise a cold shoulder here, an unkind remark there, with little to no brotherly love emanating from William, whose frown shouts “off with his head.” Reconciliation? Fat chance, shared the California fashionista who can hardly pay the pool boy. What a kettle of Dover sole, fast becoming rather tiresome, enlivened only by a parade of glossy TV specials à la Diana and Charles, JFK Jr. and wife Carolyn, with subheads proclaiming Americans “can’t let go the monarchy.” Yet every little girl dreams of being a princess. At least a Duchess, dressed to kill, who still calls the shots. PS Deborah Salomon is a contributing writer for PineStraw and The Pilot. She may be reached at debsalomon@nc.rr.com. PineStraw 53
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54 PineStraw
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
BIRDWATCH
An Unexpected Guest The wandering little blue
By Susan Campbell
Late summer can be an especially excit-
ing time for birders — we need not travel far to find unexpected visitors. Sometimes weather events cause individuals to be blown off track and show up in the neighborhood. These lost birds may stick around for mere hours but, in other instances, it may be a more deliberate response to environmental conditions that brought them our way. One bird that frequently appears in wet areas later in the summer is the little blue heron. And it may be more than one who show up. Furthermore, they’re not usually blue. Young of the year, which these inland wanderers almost always are, are actually white. Except for the very tips of the wing feathers — usually a challenge to make out — these birds are covered with white feathers. Unlike the great or snowy egret, which also may turn up in the Piedmont or Sandhills this time of year, the bill of these small herons is pinkish or grayish, and the legs are greenish. All of these white waders may be spotted in shallow wet habitats: streams, small ponds, water hazards, retention areas, etc. Little blue herons may be by themselves, mixed in with other white, long-legged waders, or even seen with the much larger great blue heron. Little blues can be identified by their more upright foraging posture, their slow, deliberate movements, and
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
a downward angled bill as they stalk prey. Unlike other smaller waders, they will hunt in deeper water, often all the way up to their bellies. Little blues watch not only for small fish but frogs and crayfish as well as large aquatic insects. It is thought that their coloration allows them to blend in inconspicuously with similar white species, allowing the association to provide protection from predators. Also, it has been found that little blues are significantly more successful predators when foraging alongside great egrets. These larger birds are likely to stir up the water as they move after underwater prey, which can flush a meal in the direction of nearby little blues. It takes these herons at least a year to develop adult plumage — not unlike white ibis, which also breed along our coast (but who sport dark plumage their first summer and fall). They may have a pied appearance for a time in late winter or early spring. By April they will be a slatey blue-gray all over with a handsome bluish bill. Unlike our other wading birds, they lack showy head or neck plumes. They are also unique in having projections on their middle toes that form a comb, which is used as an aid when grooming. Unfortunately, this species has experienced an alarming drop in population numbers over the past half-century across North America. Loss of coastal wetland habitat, continued declines in water quality, as well as being eliminated as a nuisance in fish hatcheries, all are thought to contribute to the decline. So, be sure to stop and appreciate these stately birds should you come across one. PS Susan Campbell would love to receive your wildlife sightings and photos. She can be contacted by email at susan@ncaves.com. PineStraw 55
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The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
SPORTING LIFE
Gearing Up September, a personal new year
By Tom Bryant
You could feel it coming in late August,
when the shadows grew longer and the dogs were not digging in the shrubbery, trying to find some cool. And sometimes early in the evening, a soft breeze would settle in for a spell, making everything a little cooler. September was about here, and my new year was about to start. Most folks I know celebrate their new year the first of January. A new start, in with the new, out with old. Good for them. I used to be like that, but the older I got and the more time I spent in the great outdoors, September became my renewable time. Mornings were brisker. The warm, misty grayness was gone from the atmosphere, replaced by a little crispness in the air and a promise of things to come. It was a time to get out surf fishing gear, pull out the shotguns and rifles, and make sure everything was in order for the busy, exciting times ahead. Late August was kinda like the first days of December. The The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
real fun time was ahead, but planning all the fun things was as important as celebrating the actual event. Dove season was the kickoff, usually beginning the first Saturday before Labor Day. Good time things got started and didn’t slow down until the end of January, when duck season expired. Even going back to school in September had a few redeeming values. The new jeans and crisp shirts and even sometimes a brand new pair of leather shoes eased the pain of school regimental requirements. You got to see old friends you hadn’t seen since June and make friends with the newcomers, sometimes even a pretty girl or two. Football practice was cranking up; a sense of excitement prevailed those first few early days of September school. Before I had a summer job and the beginning of responsibilities, probably about the ripe old age of 13, I’d spend the last couple of weeks in August down in the Low Country of South Carolina on my granddad’s farm. Now Granddad was a stickler for work when the time was ripe for it, but he was also just as enthusiastic for a good time when the work was done. His idea of a good time was fishing on the Little Pee Dee River. And when he went fishing, he went fishing. None of this afternoon, PineStraw 57
SPORTING LIFE
Shop local & handmade at Downtown Southern Pines’ own pottery studio and gallery Mon-Sat 10 to 5 or by appointment
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58 PineStraw
or just a day, of the sport. He would go for a week or 10 days. I was fortunate at a young age to go with him on these long fishing forays. Granddad had a fish camp on the river, nothing fancy, a one room shack built with rough boards and a salvaged tin roof, a makeshift bed on one side of the little space and a counter on the other. There was an old aluminum sink that drained into the side yard. The counter had open shelves where the cast iron skillets were stored. Put it all together and you had a kitchen. Shelves were built on the back wall to store gear, and there was one screened-in window over the bed. An outdoor privy was about 40 yards behind the compact camp. A watchful eye for snakes was required if you had to venture to the facility in the dark. I never knew when Granddad would pull the plug on work. Late August and early September were the money months. All the spring and summer plantings held forth for harvest, predicting a good or bad year, a time of celebrating, or a time to batten down the hatches and survive to another planting season. Even though modern farming has more up-to-date information and science to help forecast a successful crop, it’s still a gamble. I reckon most folks who make their living successfully from the fields are good poker players. My last late summer and early fall weeks spent on the farm came during a breathing space for farmers. A record tobacco crop promised happy times along with a good crop of corn, soybeans and milo. Granddad was a smiling man when we loaded the pickup for our trek to the river. We’d get to the camp a little before dark, and he would check out the little cabin before we carried all our gear inside. “Let me go in first, son. After being away from here for a while, I’ve found a snake or two lying about in the shack. They like to get out of the heat in the middle of the day.” I was perfectly willing to let him go right ahead. The Little Pee Dee grew some mighty big cottonmouths. The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
ndhills
dge
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andhills
All are Welcome.
www.uucsandhills.org www.facebook.com/uucsandhills
The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Sandhills, Whereopen openminds mindsand and open open hearts hearts come come where together together in in aa spirit spirit of of love love and and respect.
Comebe beaapart part of of aa community community that that encourages encourages Come personal growth, social justice, and compassion.
personal growth, social justice, and compassion .
Join us at 1320 Rays Bridge Road, Whispering Pines every Sunday at 10 AM
YOU’RE INVITED
to our Open House & Community Celebration! Saturday, September 12 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Embrace diversity, foster connection, and journey with us toward a more compassionate world.
All are welcome
– come together!" Come as as you you are, are, and let's let’s grow together!
Sundayofofevery everymonth monthisispot-luck potluck breakfast. breakfast. st 11st Sunday
www.uucsandhills.org
www.facebook.com/uucsandhills
Join us as we celebrate our new home in the Sandhills. Dreaming about your next vacation? Whether it’s a luxury cruise, a European river voyage, an African safari, or an all-inclusive beach escape, our Open House is the perfect opportunity to gather ideas, meet our travel experts and start planning your next adventure. Enjoy light refreshments, enter to win travel-inspired prizes, and discover how Expedia Cruises of Pinehurst can help you create unforgettable travel experiences around the world.
444 Mill Creek Road Whispering Pines, NC 28327 Harris Teeter Shopping Plaza
(910) 621-9700
pinehurst@expediacruises.com The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
PineStraw 59
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SPORTING LIFE
After we unloaded all the gear, it was time for supper. Granddad was a stickler for good eats, and eggs usually played a big part in his menus. He had a small two-burner Primus gas stove that had almost a permanent home in the pickup. It was his favorite tool for cooking and on any outing that required his country culinary art, it was right there. We carried mostly fixin’s: eggs, bacon, ham, beans, grits, bread, homemade butter, a can of Crisco and coffee. Sometimes Grandma would bake us a pound cake to tote along for dessert. As for the rest of our meals, we lived off the land, and that meant fish, mostly fried. “The menu tonight, son, is ham and eggs and grits and toast and a little redeye gravy. What do you think?” I’ve had the opportunity in my lifetime to eat at some of the finest restaurants all across this country, and I have never found one to beat those simple meals cooked on the banks of that blackwater river. Cooking aside, the next day we got down to business and some serious fishing. That summer of my 13th year went by too fast, and it was the last I would spend fishing with my granddad. In those early days of my outdoor learning, I didn’t think much about time passing. It just seemed I was always in a hurry, wishing for one season or another. In the fall, dove shooting and surf fishing. Winter ushered in duck and deer hunting. In spring, there was camping and pond and river fishing. Summer opened a plethora of outdoor fun and adventures, mostly camping and river fishing. As a youngster, all those good times rolled around pretty fast. Now in fall, winter, spring and summer, when I really think about the seasons and my time of life, every month is a blessing and the dawn of good times ahead. PS Tom Bryant, a Southern Pines resident, is a lifelong outdoorsman and PineStraw’s Sporting Life columnist.
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GOLFTOWN JOURNAL
The Spirit of ’76 When the “World” came to Pinehurst
By Lee Pace
A quarter-century
PHOTOGRAPH FROM THE TUFTS ARCHIVES
before Payne Stewart dropped his 20-foot putt for birdie to win the 1999 U.S. Open, there was another dramatic and electrifying moment on the 18th hole of Pinehurst No. 2. A PGA Tour event was hanging in the balance. A popular golfer crouched behind his ball, some 15 feet to the right of the cup, to get the proper read. Record crowds circled the green. Ray Floyd struck his putt and the ball hung on the edge of the cup for a millisecond. Some in the gallery thought it had stopped for good, the first strains of “Awwww . . . ” rising in their throats. Finally, the putt had just enough juice left to tumble over the edge. Floyd balled his fist and thrust it above him. The crowd erupted in celebration. Over to the side, Jerry McGee winced. “I was positive in my mind I could birdie 18,” Floyd said. “I’d made only one birdie all day. I was playing too well to just make one birdie.” McGee thought he’d won the tournament only moments before when he made a 25-foot putt for birdie to go up by one stroke on Floyd, the 34-year-old who was a leading contender for 1976 PGA Tour Player of the Year. “Somehow that ball fell uphill,” McGee noted incredulously. Floyd and McGee proceeded to the first tee for a playoff in the 1976 World Open. Floyd, the Fayetteville native who helped draw a record gallery of some 24,000 spectators on the The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
final day, drove his ball into the rough to the right of the fairway. McGee was comfortably in the middle of the fairway. The advantage appeared solidly in McGee’s favor. But Floyd caught a good lie and stuck his approach to 4 feet, and McGee missed the green on his second shot. Floyd rolled his birdie putt into the cup and collected the $40,000 first prize. “I was lucky,” Floyd said. “I drew a good lie from the rough and hit a terrific shot.” That was 50 years ago. Pinehurst was six years into a new ownership regime, with the Diamondhead Corporation led by Maxton native Malcom McLean having bought the resort, club and five golf courses from the founding Tufts family at the end of 1970. It was halfway into a decade of having a regular PGA Tour event and wrestling (as it would for many years) to find the proper strain of grass for its greens — bent grass to be pure and smooth during the resort high-seasons of spring and fall, or Bermuda to hold up during hot Southern summers? At that moment in 1976, the greens were bent after a 1972 conversion. But these PGA Tour events were held in late August or mid-September, and the putting surfaces were left defenseless. Players like Hale Irwin said the greens “were like sponges” when he shot a 62 in 1977. The victory in 1976 for Floyd, the reigning Masters champion, was his eighth on the PGA Tour but his first significant triumph in the shadow of his hometown. Floyd was born in Fayetteville in 1942, and his father, L.B., was a career Army man and in charge of Stryker Golf Course, the Fort Bragg course used by enlisted men. Floyd was more of a baseball fan PineStraw 63
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growing up and even played the game in the minor leagues. He never had an amateur career to speak of and retains only spotty memories of traveling to Pinehurst as a boy to play golf on No. 2. “I remember my first trip was in the winter and the grass was dormant,” Floyd says. “And I remember how tough it played, especially the front nine. I was excited because it was a treat to be leaving town to play another golf course, but I wasn’t even aware of the history or tradition. Back then, there was no such thing as rough. There was sand and pine straw, and the natural environment was the rough.” The big names in pro golf in the mid-1970s were Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller, Tom Weiskopf and Tom Watson. The 1976 competition was significant because it marked the end of Nicklaus’ streak of 105 consecutive PGA Tour events without missing a cut. He had last missed the 36-hole cut in October 1970 and was bearing down on Byron Nelson’s run of 113 straight made cuts set in the 1940s. Nicklaus shot rounds of 72-74 for a 146 total, missing by one shot. “The record had been brought to my attention — weekly,” Nicklaus said. “Sure, I’m disappointed I didn’t get it, but the streak is over.” The ’70s were a decade of change around Pinehurst — some for the good, some for the bad — and after that 1976 World Open there was another interesting development. When the PGA Tour returned in 1977, it was no longer the World Open. It was now the Colgate Hall of Fame Classic. There were only a few corporate names attached to tournaments on the PGA Tour in the ’70s. The 1976 schedule included events named for Eastern Airlines, Mutual of New York, Kemper Insurance and Buick. It was star power that ruled the day, with other tournaments named for entertainers or star golfers like Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Glen Campbell, Andy Williams, Jackie Gleason, Byron Nelson, Danny Thomas and Sammy Davis Jr. The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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GOLFTOWN JOURNAL
David Foster was the president and chairman of Colgate-Palmolive and in the early 1970s recognized the marketing power of golf. He partnered with actress and singer Dinah Shore in 1972 to launch the Colgate Dinah Shore Winner’s Circle at Mission Hills with an unheard-of purse for the time of $110,000. His company’s investment in golf led Foster to a seat on the board of directors of the World Golf Hall of Fame, which was launched in Pinehurst in 1974 — ergo Foster’s connection to Pinehurst and his decision to have Colgate as a title sponsor for Pinehurst’s PGA Tour event from 1977-79. The pro tour wasn’t long for Pinehurst, though, fizzling out in the early 1980s amid bad dates, a soft golf course and Diamondhead’s financial struggles that led to losing the resort to a consortium of banks. The table was being set for the resurrection that began when Robert Dedman Sr. of Dallas bought the resort in 1984. After his win at Pinehurst in 1976, Floyd would collect 10 more titles in six years and be a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame when the Tour Championship visited Pinehurst in 1991 and ’92. He failed to qualify among the top 30 players for the 1991 competition, but he was a contender in 1992 and tied for fifth place. Two years later, Floyd had turned 50 and was among the favorites for the 1994 U.S. Senior Open at Pinehurst. “I was really impressed with the course in the 1994 Senior Open because it was in such great condition,” Floyd says. “Among the players, No. 2 was known as a great golf course, maybe top five or top 10 in the world, but that wasn’t for its conditioning. It was just such a great layout. “But the week of the Senior Open, the course was in superb condition. I had never seen it like that.” PS Lee Pace has written about golf in the Sandhills for more than three decades from his home in Chapel Hill. Write him at leepace7@gmail.com and follow him @ LeePaceTweet.
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AS YOUR STORY.
September 2026 Proto-Indo-European Speakers Those steppe-dwellers had words for apple and bee, so we can guess at where they were and weren’t, can guess at the wheeled wagons and lactose-tolerant mutations and skills on horseback that helped them spread the tongue. I love learning how thick forests kept languages isolated, how textiles weren’t possible until sheep ascended mountainous terrain in western Asia and evolved longer wool, and all these factors led to a family of shared sounds reaching across continents, across time. Our words for mouse and mead and star and new aren’t so different from theirs, and I can’t help thinking that they looked drunkenly at the night sky and felt the same wonder and renewal that I do when I stumble into the darkness and am swallowed by a night whose constellations form the same shapes those nomadic herders would have seen — bear, serpent, warring god — each a light from someone else’s sun, so distant it might as well be eternity. And someday, my human descendant may reach one of those planets and may have on the journey a record of the words I spoke during this time of ignorance, and he may see in his own words some parallel to mine: remember or solace or joy.
— Ross White
Ross White is the director of Bull City Press, an independent publisher of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. He is the author of Charm Offensive, winner of the Sexton Prize for Poetry. He teaches creative writing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and co-hosts The Chapbook, a podcast devoted to tiny, delightful collections.
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EVERY QUILT TELLS A STORY By Sharon Swanke
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Quilter: Mary Abbott Williams Quilt Name: The Bucket List Burgoyne Pattern Name: Burgoyne Surrounded Technique: Machine pieced and hand quilted with eagles and circles of stars
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E
very other year “Quilting in the Pines” fills the Pinehurst Fair Barn with color and creativity. Since its beginning in 2004, the show has gathered quilters and their work from all over the Southeast to be shown and judged. Sponsored by the Sandhills Quilters Guild, the 2026 show is Friday and Saturday, Sept. 25 - 26, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults and free for children under 18. Beyond the judged quilts, the show includes a variety of vendors, a boutique of quilt-related and craft items made by guild members, a quilt raffle, a silent auction, a children’s scavenger hunt, raffle baskets and food trucks. All proceeds from the show go toward gifting handmade quilts and pillowcases to local charities, including Habitat for Humanity and Falcon Children’s Home. Members of the Sandhills Quilters Guild include traditional and modern quilters, art quilters and storytellers. All quilts are true expressions of the artist’s vision, often telling stories of why the art was created. Among the guild’s award-winning members, Mary Abbott Williams started her quilting journey at age 5, choosing fabrics to add to her babysitter’s projects. Abbott Williams has matured into a multiple award-winning traditional quilter who finds joy in studying and PineStraw 71
re-creating antique quilt patterns and motifs with the ultimate goal of “making quilts that look like they belong in another century.” This year she’s curating the balcony display, which will feature her reproduction quilts from the 1760s to the 1800s in honor of the nation’s 250th anniversary. Christine Weld is a modern quilter and Army spouse who has found quilt guilds across the country ready to welcome her wherever her family has relocated. From the Colonial Piecemakers Guild in Williamsburg, Virginia, to the Hudson Valley Modern Guild, Weld has discovered a social network of sewists. She joined the Sandhills Quilters Guild before her family even moved to the area. During the pandemic she designed modern quilts on her blog and submitted a pattern to Moda Fabrics for its “Bakeshop” line. Now, with Moda quilt patterns in four books published by Martingale & Co., Weld continues to lend her talents to the challenge of creating new and exciting modern quilts using precuts. Linda James’ art quilts are exquisite expressions of her creativity. She started her sewing journey making doll clothes, and her search for appropriate fabric led her to
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Quilter: Linda James Quilt Name: Blue Danube Pattern Name: Variation of Halo Medallion Technique: Machine pieced, hand guided longarm machine quilted
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Quilter: Mary Abbott Williams Quilt Name: Star of Freedom (Sandhills Quilters Guild Raffle Quilt for 2026) Pattern Name: Lone Star Technique: Appliqués of bouquets and eagles are added for interest, machine quilted by Ellene Place and friends
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the Quilters Gallery Shop, where she gawked at the completed quilts for so long the staff came to check on her. James loves it when her quilts tell a story that engages the viewer. “My first show entry featured funky twinkling stars with odd cuts of fabric. It reminded me of peering at the stars in New Mexico with my brother at my side,” she says. James won the Viewer’s Choice award at the 2024 show. Her work with needle and thread has led her to create eye-popping quilts, winning multiple quilting awards and launching a longarm quilting business. Abbott Williams, Weld and James are just three reasons “Quilting in the Pines” captures the passion and creativity of the art. PS
Quilter: Christine Weld Quilt Name: Where the Heart Is Technique: A fun house block quilt made with charm squares, or 5” squares
Sharon Swanke learned to sew at age 11 and joined the Sandhills Quilters Guild in 2018. She has lived in Pinehurst since 2012 and continues to enjoy sewing as a hobby.
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Quilter: Christine Weld Quilt Name: Prismatic Patchwork Technique: An exploration of color using a different color palette in each block
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Quilter: Christine Weld Quilt Name: Family Reunion Technique: A classic granny square block in a medallion style, with each round becoming a less complex block
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Quilter: Linda James Quilt Name: Room For All-In My Garden and In My Heart Pattern Name: An original design from a photograph Technique: Machine pieced, machine appliqué, broderie perse, photo transfer, beaded, hand guided longarm machine quilted The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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Quilter: Linda James Quilt Name: Snowy Woods Pattern Name: Redesigned pattern of Over The River & Through The Woods Technique: Added machine appliqué words and different star designs. Hand embroidery, machine pieced, hand guided longarm machine quilted with metallic thread.
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Quilter: Christine Weld Quilt Name: Boomerang Technique: This modern quilt is made with various shades of blue on a light gray background. It was included in an exhibit of modern quilting at the Virginia Quilting Museum in date. The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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A r e yo u r eady f or som e f ootball? By Mike Pagel • Photograph by John Gessner
SAME PLAYS, DIFFERENT LANGUAGES The key for an offense is to develop a system that can communicate the action plan or play to all the offensive players in a concise but still complete way. The responsibility of creating the play calling language falls on the offensive coordinator. Most take various portions of play calling systems they’ve known before and create their own version. There are various methods for an offense to notify all its players where, for example, a running play is to be executed. Some teams use a numbering system, while others may use names. In numbering systems the “holes” or running lanes can be numbered from right to left, with 1 being wide right and 9 being wide left. Other teams number left to right. Some teams will use even numbers to the right (right guard is 2 with 8 signifying wide right) and odd numbers to the left (left guard is 3 and 9 wide left). Zero and 1 represent the center’s right and left hips, respectively. And, of course, some teams use odd to the right and even to the left.
And then there are naming systems. Instead of numbers, teams may use specific words to explain where a play is to be executed, with a category of names describing the play (examples may include cities, states, animals, etc.). Using states as an example, Ohio may designate an outside or wide play, while Texas may mean an inside play. If, say, Ohio means a wide play toward the tight end, Georgia may mean a wide play away from the tight end. At times, a directional call is needed. Any pair of “opposite” words can be used. Common examples: red = right and blue = left or hot = right with cold = left. Teams usually settle on 2-3 ways to call a direction. Pass play calls are even more complex because they include not only the line blocking scheme but also the routes the receivers need to run to stretch the defense. Plus there are audibles (plays called at the line of scrimmage), which may or may not be changing the play. Remember Peyton Manning and “OMAHA”?
BEND, DON'T BREAK VS. THE ATTACK DEFENSE While an offense needs to determine if they will be a ball control offense (stronger emphasis on running plays) or a more aggressive passing attack offense, defenses need to determine what style of play they want to use. The two basic styles are “bend, don’t break” and the “attack” defense. The “bend, don’t break” defense focuses on the defensive players not allowing the opponent’s offense to make big yardage plays, the theory being the longer it takes for an offense to penetrate deep into the defense’s territory, the more likely the offense will make a mistake putting themselves into a more difficult situation to obtain a first down or to score points. The problems with this defensive philosophy are the defensive team’s offense will have fewer chances to score plus it can lead to the opponent’s offense dictating the tempo of the game. In the early 1980s, the Miami Dolphins were very successful in utilizing the “bend, don’t break” philosophy. They had numerous experienced veteran players who were very good at anticipating how an offense would try to attack them, which led to the Dolphin players rarely being out of position. They would give up yardage but were able to capitalize on an offense’s mistakes to thwart drives. During my four years with the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts franchise, we were in the same division as the Dolphins, which meant we played them twice a year. In 1984, we added four new plays against the Dolphins when they visited us in Indianapolis. By utilizing these four plays throughout the first half, we were
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able to confuse and disorient their defense, which led to us being in complete control of the game. At halftime, the decision was made to go away from the new plays (I still don’t understand that one), which led to the Dolphin defense regaining their composure and holding us scoreless in the second half. Meanwhile, the Dolphin offense, led by Dan Marino, got untracked, and we ended up losing the game. The opposite defensive theory is the “attack” philosophy. The goal of the “attack” defense is to impose its will on the opposing team’s offense. This philosophy calls for the defense (especially the defensive linemen) to penetrate into the backfield of the offense to disrupt the timing and to force the offense into making mistakes. If successful, an opponent’s offense can become very frustrated. But if the pressure does not disrupt the timing of the offense, the second and third line of defenders have much more ground to protect which could lead to big yardage plays. The 1985 Chicago Bears’ “46” defense was an attacking style defense. Their alignment allowed their talented players to be blocked by one player at a time. Often, at least one of the Bears’ players would defeat their opponent, which would disrupt a play. In 1985, the Indianapolis Colts lost to the Bears 17-10 because we did not capitalize on two scoring opportunities. After the opening kickoff, we marched deep into Bears’ territory. We could not score a touchdown, so on fourth down we tried a short field goal, which was missed. Late in the game, one of our receivers got behind the Bears’ secondary. Unfortunately, the pass was not completed. We had our chances but didn’t take advantage of the opportunities — a fatal mistake against those Bears because you weren’t going to get many.
PLAYMAKERS VS. STEADY PLAYERS For a football team to be successful, the offensive and defensive units need a specific combination of players. Each unit needs to consist of three or four steady players and seven or eight playmakers. What’s the difference? Steady players put themselves into the proper position to make a play. If they fail to do this, they are more easily defeated. Playmakers have the ability to overcome being out of position yet still be successful. Unfortunately they tend to be out of position more than steady players, which can create opportunities for their opponents. Why three or four steady players? If there are more than four steady players within a unit, that unit is less likely to make out of the ordinary plays. With fewer than three steady players, a unit can be very effective until their opponent gains some momentum. To stop the momentum, playmakers are forced to gamble
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more. This often leads to the players being even more out of position, which creates more opportunities for the opponent’s offense. Just because a player may be classified as a steady player doesn’t mean he can’t make great plays, nor does carrying a playmaker label mean the player tends to be out of position too often. Mike Singletary, the Chicago Bears middle linebacker from 1981 to 1992, always seemed to be in perfect position while being very intense. That combination made him a steady player who was also a playmaker. On the other hand, Jerry Rice, the San Francisco wide receiver from 1985 to 2000, would be considered a playmaker. He could shred a defense, but that happened because he was disciplined running his pass routes as designed which made him very consistent. He was a playmaker who was also a steady player. Only a few players have the ability to do both as often as Singletary and Rice did, which is why these two are in the NFL Hall of Fame and the vast majority of players are not.
DON’T BE A HERO! Late in my career and as a member of the Los Angeles Rams, we were playing the Minnesota Vikings in Anaheim, California. We were losing 21-7 in the second half when our coaching staff made a change at quarterback. As I ran onto the field, my thought was, “Don’t try to do too much.” Instead, I focused on speeding up our tempo. This caught the Viking defense offguard. We marched down the field, the drive ending with a touchdown pass to our tight end. Now the score is 21 - 14 and our crowd is getting excited. We kick off and one of our players crushes the ball carrier, causing a fumble that we recover around the Vikings’ 20-yard line. As I ran back onto the field, the thought crossed my mind that if we scored, we would have a great chance to win the game and I might be considered a hero. We drove inside the Viking
F IRST NFL START Five minutes before the opening kickoff of my second NFL preseason game, the coaches told me I was going to start the game at QB. That was OK with me and I was very excited. Early in the game, we faced a third down passing situation. The defense played a two-deep zone with man-to-man coverage on our five receivers. On the left side of the field, both of our receivers ran an inside (toward the middle of the field) route, which left that side of the field devoid of defenders. I sprinted into the voided area on the left. Just as I recognized how open the left side of the field was, I experienced what felt like a freight train running behind me. Approximately 20 - 25 yards downfield, the freight train began catching up to me. Wisely, I ran out of bounds. It was at that precise moment that I realized just how big, fast and talented NFL players were. Oh, by the way, the freight train was named Lawrence Taylor.
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10-yard line when a pass play was called. Instead of throwing the ball to a receiver who was on the goal line, I tried to throw to a receiver deep in the end zone. Huge mistake. The pass was intercepted, ending that drive and effectively taking away any chance we had to win the game. All because my mindset changed from “do your job” to “you can be the hero.”
BUILDING AN OFFENSIVE LINE One of the most important but also one of the most difficult tasks in creating a good football team is to develop a solid offensive line. First, you need five players with enough talent to play in the NFL. Next, the five players need to develop the trust and respect of the other linemen. And then, as a group, they need time playing alongside each other so they can develop the understanding and instinct of how their line mates will react in every situation. They have a split second to make the correct decision and then complete the block. If one fails, they all fail. Some NFL teams have figured out what type of offensive lineman fits in their system. Every year they tend to have a solid group. Some teams struggle to figure out the type of linemen that fit their system, or they cannot find the linemen with the required skill sets. These offenses tend to be very inconsistent. For decades, the offensive line for the Pittsburgh Steelers looked the same. The players changed but the replacement had very similar skills as the previous player. The Steelers knew what type of player they needed for each of the five line positions, and they would sign players who fit their criteria. During the late ’80s, when I was with the Cleveland Browns, we had a very solid offensive line. Most had been together for a number of years and had developed a solid group chemistry. Cody Risien was an extremely talented right tackle who was often tasked with pass blocking the defensive end over him all by himself. This allowed the other four linemen to work together to block the other pass rushers. In the running game, they were well-versed on how to block the defensive players based on how the defensive players reacted.
TRANSITION FROM STARTER TO BACKUP When players join the NFL, they can find themselves in an unfamiliar situation. Most NFL players had great college careers, but instead of being on the field most of the time, they’re relegated to part-time duties. Not only can it be tough on the ego, it also limits the opportunities to improve. Because the starters take most of the repetitions during practice, the backups must find a
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way to maintain and improve their skill sets to ensure they can perform at their highest level if called upon. This takes determination, desire and consistent effort. Those who figure out how to be ready are often rewarded with longer careers. During my first four years in the NFL, as a member of the Baltimore, then Indianapolis, Colts, I started the majority of games. Before my fifth year in the league, the Colts traded me to the Cleveland Browns, who had a talented second year QB named Bernie Kosar. Early in our pre-season camp, Bernie was named the starting QB. At first, this did not sit well with me. I had to change my mindset. The first adjustment was to convince myself that I was the starting QB but wouldn’t be getting much playing time. Second, instead of getting physical repetitions in practice, I had to take mental reps. I would stand behind the offense and “read” the defense to determine which receiver should be targeted with a pass. Learning how to practice the mental game helped me to produce when my chances came.
JOHN TEERLINCK John Teerlinck was a former NFL player who became a wellrespected and accomplished defensive line coach in the NFL. In fact, he was such a great coach, the award given annually to the best defensive line coach is named after him. In 1990, John was the defensive line coach for the Cleveland Browns. As the backup quarterback for the Browns that year, one of my responsibilities was to simulate our upcoming opponent’s offense for our defense. (The group of players who simulate an opponent's offense or defense in practice is called the “scout” team.) Every Wednesday — which is usually the first day of an NFL work week — John would ask me to simulate some characteristics of our upcoming opponent’s offense. If our opponent’s quarterback liked to scramble, I was asked to scramble in practice. If our opponent’s QB stayed in the pocket, so did I. Sometimes John would notice a certain movement a QB would make just before the ball was snapped. He would ask me to simulate the movement in practice so our defensive linemen could get a split-second jump on the snap in the game. Over the course of that season, John and I developed a great bond. After the 1990 season (the Browns won three and lost 13 games), John and I were released (fired) by the Browns. John quickly signed with the Los Angeles Rams. Luckily for me, he developed a friendship with the Rams offensive coordinator, Ernie Zampese. After John saw that I had been released by the Browns, he told Ernie that I’d be a good fit for the Rams. The Rams gave me a tryout and allowed me to be part of their 1991 preseason training camp. Because of John’s recommendation, I ended up
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as a member of the Rams from 1991 through 1993, my last three years in the league.
EMBRACE THE ‘NO ONE’ ROLES One day while I was a member of the Cleveland Browns, Clay Matthews Sr. made a comment that has always stuck with me. He said he would rather be the “rush” linebacker instead of the “cover” linebacker. This confused me, so he explained. As the “rush” LB, not many fans see him unless he makes a sack. Everyone cheers the sack. As the “cover” LB, no one notices until he fails and the guy he’s covering makes a catch. No one cheers after that. To be clear, Clay was a terrific player who was equally adept at rushing the QB and covering a receiver. There aren’t many like him. As a backup, 1 was always searching for ways to get onto the field. One of the few opportunities for a backup QB was to be the “holder” on extra point and field goal kicks. Like a “cover” linebacker, no one notices the holder unless he makes a mistake. In simple terms, the holder kneels on one knee approximately 7 yards from the line of scrimmage. When the ball is snapped, the holder has to catch the ball, place it on one end, rotate the laces away from the kicker and put the proper tilt on the ball. All of this needs to be completed within one second. Fortunately, I was afforded the opportunity to be the holder for the Browns for a few seasons. During my first preseason with the Rams, I didn’t get the chance to “hold” for the newly acquired veteran kicker, Tony Zendejas. Instead, I held for a rookie left-footed kicker. During the preseason games, the first team (Zendejas) had a number of mishandled extra point and field goal attempts. After one last mistake in the final preseason game the special teams coach pointed at me and said, “You're holding from now on.” And with that statement, I knew I would be a member of the 1991 Rams.
BROKEN NOSE In the early 1980s, the New York Jets defensive line was called the “New York Sack Exchange.” And yes, they could put some serious heat on an opponent’s quarterback. Their left defensive end was Mark Gastineau. He was one of the NFL sack leaders for multiple years in a row. Since we played them twice each of my first four years in the league, he had plenty of opportunities to sack me. During one of our games in Indianapolis, his forearm “inadvertently” went inside my face mask, which broke my nose. (In today’s game, that would be illegal, but in 1985, not so much.) After the game, one of our team doctors told me my nose The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
would be off to one side of my face in the morning and to simply push it back into place. The doctor was right. A few weeks later, we were playing the Cowboys in Dallas. One of their running backs caught a pass near our sideline and our linebacker pushed him out of bounds. As fate would have it, the running back’s helmet hit the same doctor in the face, which broke the doctor’s nose. As he was lying on the sideline with his nose bleeding, I took the opportunity to tell him his nose would be off to one side in the morning and to just push it back into place. He laughed, got up, stopped the bleeding and finished the game on the sideline.
UNBREAKABLE RECORDS There are two records of mine that will never be broken. In 1983, I threw the last touchdown pass in Baltimore Colts’ history. And in 1984, I threw the first touchdown pass in Indianapolis Colts’ history. Robert Irsay, the owner of the Colts at the time, packed up and moved the team from Baltimore to Indianapolis in the middle of the night on March 28, 1984.
AUTOGRAPH REQUESTS Believe it or not, fans still send autograph requests through the mail, which I sign and return, time permitting. Here are a few pro tips if you’d like to get an autograph from a former player: 1. Don’t tape the back of the envelope. It’s a pain to open. 2. Try to provide a self-sticking SASE. It’s kind of disgusting licking a bunch of envelopes. 3. Don’t tell the ex-player how many years he played. We already know. 4. Provide a short, fun experience or memory. They’re a blast to read. PS Mike Pagel played quarterback in the NFL for 12 seasons with the Baltimore and Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland Browns and the Los Angeles Rams, retiring from football in 1994. He moved to Moore County in the spring of 2020 with his wife, Lisa. They have three adult sons, two adult daughters and 12 grandchildren. The creation and development of their 20-acre horse farm is nearing completion and they plan to begin a design-build consulting firm with an emphasis on architectural landscape design. With five years' experience serving on two homeowners associations — three years as the president — Mike plans to start a blog about HOAs.
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A guide to stylish spreads By Emilee Phillips • Photographs by John Gessner
T
he beginning of autumn means the holiday season is right around the corner. With that brings the innate desire to gather. But you don’t have to wait for a special occasion to host. Dinner parties invite guests into your world in a way that technology never can. As the seasons settle into a gentler rhythm, let your evenings do the same. Allow conversation to fall in step with the changing season — intentional, comforting and unhurried, like wax slowly melting from a candle. To help inspire your next dinner party, we asked two elite hostesses their favorite tips and tricks for throwing together tables of any size, in a way that welcomes guests to relax, slow down and stay awhile. 86 PineStraw
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Harvesti n g Hospitality Maribeth Tumberg has a knack for making people feel welcome. In fact, the running joke among her closest friends is that she could talk to a brick wall, which means hosting comes naturally to her. “My goal was always to make our house the house everyone comes to,” says Tumberg. As a military spouse, she knows how important community is, and moving often means searching for it again and again. To her, a dinner party is a golden ticket. “It’s the easiest way to make friends. Who doesn’t want to go to a cute dinner party?” Tumberg thrives on Southern hospitality. “I find smaller events give you more freedom with the choices you make,” she says. “But for me, just being around the people you love most and having a good meal makes it a great time.” Every plan of hers begins with a mood board. Tumberg uses a lot of color when she’s decorating for a party, no matter the season. She says unexpected elements, patterns and textures tie everything together. “I love to be creative; I get that from my grandma.”
MUST HAVE: Patterns, whether it’s the plate,
the cup or the napkin — something should pop. Substance-wise? Wine.
TIP:
If you’re on a budget but still want things to feel special, you can find plenty of rentals for things like linens and glassware in the area.
SETTING: : If the weather permits, always host
outside. Nothing matches the beauty of the outdoors. Maribeth Tumberg owns Party with MB, an event planning and design business for anything from a two-person dinner to small weddings. Originally from Greenville, South Carolina, Tumberg has been soaking up life in Southern Pines for the last 2 1/2 years, until her next move.
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Grandeur , Simply Served Capel Brendel believes a house is happy when it’s full. When she hosts, her goal is to make the atmosphere seem effortless. “People want it to feel easy and comfortable. It’s less intimidating to reciprocate if you’ve gone to someone’s house and it’s not quite perfect.” Brendel fondly recalls her parents’ dinner parties, and now, as a frequent hostess herself, she strives to create those memories for others. “To me, that’s the best gift to give,” she says. Her place settings often consist of borrowed items like napkins or plates from her mother and grandmother, giving each table spread a sense of character she cherishes. If you have an extra set of hands, Brendel recommends dividing the responsibilities: Have one person greet guests, chat and mix drinks, while another handles the behind-the-scenes work like cooking and cleanup. Games are an underrated tool to get folks talking and laughing. “You can linger around a table in someone’s home longer than you would in a restaurant.” Use that to your advantage.
TIP: Don’t wait to take a shower; you always run out of time at the end. DRINKS: Greeting guests with a sparkling rosé or ending the evening with a port gives the occasion a nice touch.
MUST HAVE: Local flowers from the farmers market Capel Brendel was born and raised in Southern Pines. A mother of four, she lives in Southern Pines and works remotely with Laforce, a communications firm in New York City. She considers the Sandhills the definition of a hidden gem, and you’ll often find her at the farmers market.
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And planting in abundance By R andy Boyd Photographs by John Gessner
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Y
ou do learn some things at your mother’s knee, which is how I ended up falling in love with gardening. I was raised by a passionate gardener, and while my chores started with mowing the lawn, my eyes inevitably fell on my mother tending her many beautiful rosebushes. Over the years she had more than 30 varieties, all flourishing the way the joy of gardening did in me. Being raised in Laguna Beach, California, and having designed a number of gardens there, I knew the plants and care appropriate for the West Coast like the back of my hand. When I moved to Pinehurst a little over a year ago with my husband, Mark, my desire for a garden came with me, but the requisite knowledge did not. I had to learn the plants that love to grow in the Sandhills. In our home here, a walled brick patio and a small, long side yard presented their own promises and problems. I had to rethink what to use and how to landscape this new area. My
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greatest influence is English gardens, particularly in the Cotswold area, and I approach landscaping like I approach interior design for my clients — I look to see what entertainment or area of interest needs to be found and supported. On the patio this translated into pots of various sizes and materials to help add interest, along with some art pieces like a tall, vintage aviary and some statuary. We located a dining table there to entertain as well. I watch the sun and temperatures to see what will thrive in what place. My pots are lush because I tend to plant in abundance. I don’t want it to look like we are waiting for something to fill in. Because my side yard has fencing and the patio has brick walls, I have the freedom of not worrying about deer — a luxury not everyone enjoys. I use pots of various sizes, 18-22 inches, filling each with three or four plants purchased at a decent size, anchoring with a 1-gallon plant and adding 4-inch containers.
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One important factor in either the side yard or the patio is to have things — pots, statuary, plants — that take the eye up and down so there is constant visual interest and movement. Color needs to be thought through to give a sense of peace, avoiding the kind of clash that can throw off the natural feel while still maintaining a curated plan. In the first year for the patio I’m using climbing roses on a trellis, hostas, potato vine, shasta daisies, hydrangeas and geraniums. For the side space — inspired by an English garden’s sense of controlled chaos — I plan for height in the back, using color as the eye trails down and forward. Flowers are intentionally planted at the edge of the path to soften the lines. In California I took a more Mediterranean approach, which has to do with temperature, dryness and the look of the houses where I lived. All the elements, from architecture to flower bed, need to complement one another. I tend toward a cooler color palette of pale pinks, lavender both in color and the plant itself, hostas in various shades, and
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grey hews from accent plants for contrast. We also have some small lemon trees and a Japanese maple in large pots. Gardeners love every step from preparing the dirt, filling pots and even watering (although next year I am getting a drip line). Gardening doesn’t just happen — it takes planning and executing and then the daily job of weeding and deadheading so it always looks neat and tidy. All of this brings me great satisfaction as I wander out first thing in the morning with a cup of coffee, or in the evening with my glass of wine. I feel at home and at peace. England has been called a nation of gardeners. Pinehurst may be called the Home of Golf, but some of us think it could be the Home of Gardeners, too. PS Randy Boyd is a resident of Pinehurst and the founder of Thurston/Boyd Interior Design with offices in Pinehurst and Laguna Beach, California.
By Jason Harpster Photograph by Jeremy Losaw
T
he Ides of August marked the Festival of Torches, a three-day Roman celebration to honor the goddess Diana. More than two thousand years later, Diana remains closely associated with the moon, from classic mythology to modern spiritual traditions. Southern Pines now has its own connection to that legacy with Dracula diana f. xanthina ‘Southern Pines Lunar Eclipse ‘ AM/ AOS, awarded on June 15, 2024. Dracula diana is a species from western Colombia that grows in cloud forests at elevations around 4,000 feet to 5,250 feet where temperatures rarely exceed 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Arguably the most attractive species in the genus, Dracula diana is typically recognized for its creamy white flowers accented with golden-yellow overlays and maroon markings. The xanthina (yellow) form replaces the usual creamy palette with glowing yellows
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and oranges that make the flowers look like they are ablaze. Horticultural color forms of different orchid species are inherently exciting as they allow you to re-imagine what’s possible. Some varieties can also be very hard to find or rare. Although ‘Southern Pines Deity’ remains the highest-scored award ever granted to the species, ‘Southern Pines Lunar Eclipse’ stands apart for an entirely different reason; its exceptionally rare xanthina color form. Alba forms lack anthocyanin pigments, while xanthinic flowers retain carotenoids that produce yellow and orange coloration. Regardless of the science and vocabulary, these flowers are absolutely spectacular. In addition to being visually striking with stripes and spots, the flowers invite a gentle touch with their soft, fuzzy texture. Sometimes the rarest of flowers don’t redefine a species, they simply reveal another side of its beauty. PS
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STORY OF A HOUSE
Point of View Lakeside living in the Sandhills By Jenna Biter Photographs by John Gessner
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A
t the end of a sleepy cul de sac, beneath a Southern canopy of magnolia, dogwood and pine, stands a dove gray house with a water-lover’s view. Bob and Mary Jo Newman enjoy 270 degrees of Lake Pinehurst from their place on the point. “We wanted every room available to the view,” says Mary Jo. The Newmans hired Mark Parson to make that happen. The architect spent hours on the acre-and-a-half property, envisioning a traditional-style design that works with the trees, shoreline and lake itself. The 4,000-square-foot build combines stone with wood shingle siding, white accents and porthole windows that evoke a weekend of sailing. A rounded veranda takes advantage of the view. “It’s a very serene and relaxing place to finish the day,” Bob says. Heaters and a ceiling fan make the space comfortable yearround. Way up in the tower, a baby blue room takes equal advantage of the view. No TV, no distractions, just sunsets and the lake. Off to one side, there’s a dock for the Duffy cruiser. “You can’t be on a lake like this and not have a boat,” says Bob. The Newmans found Pinehurst by way of nearby real estate investments. “I discovered what a great place it would be to live,” Bob says. Residents of Minnesota, the Newmans camped out in the Sandhills while searching for a place to purchase. The hunt was shortlived. The lakefront lot had been on the market for six years, probably because the home that sat on it was a bit of a project, but the Newmans were ready to take it on. “We just fell in love with the property,” says Mary Jo. It was the trees and lakeside living. Bob grew up in California, competed as a rower, first at Orange Coast College, then UCLA, and then the U.S. National Team before coaching for 17 years. Their plan was to remodel, but due to restrictions, it didn’t work out. “So, we scrapped it and built,” says Bob.
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That was about three years ago. The Newmans relocated their primary residency from Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota, to Lake Pinehurst. Now they’re consolidating life in their North Carolina home. They spend mornings and evenings outdoors and retreat to air conditioning when the summer sun is unbearable. They open the glass on the double front doors to let the lake breeze waft through screens when it isn’t. Bob’s Swedish ancestors would be impressed by the Viking-worthy wood beams holding up the vaulted ceiling of the great room. “I’m 6’ 6” so I really appreciate volume around me, particularly height,” Bob says. The men’s locker room at Forest Creek Golf Club inspired the design. A wood-burning fireplace stretches to the ceiling, and a pair of Mary Jo’s watercolors flank the column. They’re portraits of dogs past and present. Dog present, a Welsh springer spaniel named Winston, puppies around on the hardwood floors. “I love a center island,” says Mary Jo, moving on to the kitchen. “I do a lot of cooking.” She wanted counter space to work and room for people to congregate during parties. She got both. There is a telescope and a dining table that seats 12 when both leaves are inserted. “This was an add-on, an afterthought we call ‘the alcove,’” Bob says, referencing their favorite room, a sitting area by the kitchen. “It was supposed to be open patio, but we thought that a
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large open patio wasn’t going to be used as productively as it could.” They pivoted. The shingle siding had already been installed. They kept it and closed the outdoor space in. It’s flooded with natural light and became the place where they spend much of their time. There’s an oar on the wall from Bob’s rowing days. The Newmans purchased the coffee table from an English antique shop when they were abroad for the Henley Royal Regatta. It features a segment of a rowing boat, Bob guesses from the 1800s. Another favorite space, Bob’s office, is on the first floor, plus the master bedroom with an heirloom needlepoint chair from Mary Jo’s family. Two guest bedrooms, one decorated with green and the other navy, are on the second. Both have dormer windows on two walls. “The fact that you can see the water from almost every room — it’s like living in a park,” Mary Jo says. “It’s a little hideaway,” says Bob, “a real pleasure to live here.” PS Jenna Biter is a writer and military wife in the Sandhills. She can be reached at jennabiter@protonmail.com.
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Imagine your home, totally organized! Custom Closets, Garage Cabinets, Home Offices, Pantries, Laundries, Hobby Rooms
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September By Ashley Walshe Here it comes, that slow, sweet kiss. That luscious ache. That dance that leaves you breathless. September is a fleeting lover. You know in your bones that she’ll leave you wanting, but you’re here for it. Agony and ecstasy are intertwined. The light has washed everything golden. In the garden, long-tailed skippers flit from ironweed to aster; butterfly pea to goldenrod; late-summer bloomers to early autumn wildflowers. Never mind that the zinnias are fading. Coneflower skeletons whisper of what’s to come. At the forest edge, muscadine vines drip with fruit, dark and plump. You pluck one, sun-warmed and pungent, and hold it in your palm. Can you feel the wild pulse of summer? Allow it to sync with your own beating heart. You don’t yet know that the whippoorwill has departed for warmer climes; that the mantis has released her mass of eggs and, in her final act as mother, swaddled them in a papier-mâché womb. The bees are humming tunes of natural wonders, and you’ve anchored yourself here in this sun-soaked moment. Indulge your senses. Press the warm grape to your eager lips. Sink your teeth into its tart, leathery skin. Taste the bitter punch, the earthy musk, the pleasant burst of sugary-sweetness. When you open your eyes — no, you hadn’t realized you’d closed them — a tidal wave of swallows casts a shadow on the quiet earth. This is the moment you remember: summer is slipping from sight. You reach for another muscadine, willing time to slow. Let the bitter punch linger as summer fades. Let the juicy pulp sweeten the sudden ache. Let it all be true at once.
All the months are crude experiments, out of which the perfect September is made.
Apple Season Galas, Honeycrisps and Ginger Golds. Red and Golden Delicious. Cortlands and Crispins. Jonagolds. When life gives you ripe local apples by the bushel and peck, bust out the cinnamon for sauces, pies and chutneys. And when it comes to cooking with your favorite autumn fruit, keep in mind: Not all apples are created equal. As their names suggest, some stay firm and crisp (essential for baking), while others cook down quick for bright and smooth sauces (Golden Delicious, Cortland and Jonagold). Experiment with firmand-soft combos to up your pie game, but save Red Delicious for snacks and fresh salads, as the heat will make flavorless mush of them.
Goodbye, Hello Summer farewell is blooming in the pinelands and coastal plains. Bull elks are bugling in Cataloochee — a quiet valley nestled in our state’s Great Smokies. And somewhere between them — perhaps your own garden — a praying mantis has just devoured her mate. Such is the season of endings and beginnings. Farewell, summer. Welcome, wild and whistling autumn. PS
— Virginia Woolf
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HOME MAKEOVER Find inspiration for your next home makeover project in the following pages. Whether you’re looking to beautify the inside of your home or add a touch of luxury to your outdoor living, this portfolio of local resources will help you enjoy the place you call home.
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Cabinetry of Pinehurst 905 Linden Rd Suite D, Pinehurst, NC 28374 (910) 235-5233 | www.cabinetryofpinehurst.com
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Hughes Supply Pinehurst has proudly served the community for over 40 years, offering top-quality plumbing supplies for residential, commercial, and industrial needs. Visit our showroom for expert guidance on kitchen and bath remodels, or stop by our parts counter for tools, supplies, and advice. We carry trusted brands like Kohler, Delta, Brizo, Watermark, Kallista and MORE! Open to the public — come browse today!
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Area 5695 US HWY 1 North | Vass, NC 28394 (Across fromLogo/Image Bob’s Pizza) (Optional) 910-692-6411 | shortcarpetone.com
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Best Kitchen & Bath Cabinetry Company
MAIN LOCATION 3910 Ellison Street Hope Mills, NC 28348
ABERDEEN SHOWROOM 105 Parkway Drive, Suite C Aberdeen, NC, 28315
(910)703-8760 • capefearcabinets.com
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rts
SEPTEMBER
2026
ntertainment
To add or delete an event, email us at pinestraw.calendar@gmail.com
Although conscientious effort is made to provide accurate and up-to-date information, all events are subject to change and errors can occur! Please call to verify times, costs, status and location before planning or attending any events.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1 REOPENING. 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. The Sandhills Woman’s Exchange reopens for the fall and winter season. Stop by and shop the artisan gift shop. The cafe will serve lunch Monday Friday from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Sandhills Woman’s Exchange, 15 Azalea Road, Pinehurst. Info: www.sandhillswe.org. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2 WOMEN OF WEYMOUTH. 11 a.m. This month’s meeting features speaker Kathy Byron, master gardener, with a presentation on humans and honeybees. The Great Room, Weymouth Center for the Arts & Humanities, 555 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.weymouthcenter.org. FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4 SIGHTSEEING TOUR. 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Adults 55 and older can cruise down the Cape Fear River on a sightseeing tour. Lunch at Anne Bonny’s after. Cost is $54 for residents and $75 for non-residents. Info: (910) 692-7376. OPENING RECEPTION. 5 - 7 p.m. The Artists League of the Sandhills presents “Into the Woods,” featuring the art of Venessa Grebe. The exhibit will be on display through Sept. 25. Artists League of the Sandhills, 129 Exchange St., Aberdeen. Info: www.artistleague.org. OPENING RECEPTION. 6 - 8 p.m. The Arts Council’s exhibit “Quiet Dialogues with Canvas & Paper” features work by Sharon Ferguson and Marilyn Vendemia. The exhibit is on display through Sept. 25. Arts Council Galleries at Campbell House, 482 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.mooreart.org.
140 PineStraw
GLASS PUMPKIN PATCH Saturday September 19, 9 a.m. Starworks
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5 CRAFT DAYS. Children and families can come by the library for a drop-in craft day to work on a fun, hands-on craft at their own pace. Crafts are designed for children in grades K-5 and their families. This is a self-guided activity, so caregivers should plan to assist as needed. While supplies last. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. TWEEN CRAFT. All day. Tweens and teens can visit the teen space to work on a fun, hands-on craft at their own pace. These crafts are designed for older tweens and teens in middle school and high school. This is a self-guided activity, so caregivers should plan to assist as needed. While supplies last. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.sppl.net. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7 QUILTS OF VALOR. 12 - 4 p.m. Quilts of Valor meets the first Monday of each month to create lap quilts made especially for veterans. If you sew, bring your machine. If you don’t sew, you can iron or cut out fabrics for new designs. This is a free program.
Moore County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15-501, West End.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 SHOPPING TRIP. 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Adults 55 and older can join Southern Pines Parks and Recreation for a monthly shopping trip. Info: (910) 692-7376. HATHA YOGA. 10 - 11 a.m. Adults 55 and older can increase flexibility, balance, stability and muscle tone while learning the basic principles of alignment and breathing. You may gain strength, improve circulation and reduce chronic pain by practicing gentle yoga postures and mindfulness. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 TECH TIME. 11 a.m. Join a walk-in tech time where you can get hands-on help with tech questions. Whether you’re new to computers, want to learn more about your smartphone, or want to learn how to use your eReader, staff will guide you. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: jmilford@sppl.net. The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
SEPTEMBER CALENDAR
BOOK EVENT. 6 - 7 p.m. Daniel Dockery discusses his book I Am the Night: The Ultimate Unauthorized History of Batman: The Animated Series. The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: www.ticketmesandhills.com.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 GARDEN TOUR. 10 a.m. Come to the Sandhills Horticultural Gardens to learn more about perennials and how they can be used in your home garden. Free of charge. Limit of 15 people. Ball Visitors Center, 3245 Airport Road, Southern Pines. Info: www. sandhills.edu/gardenevents. HOT GLASS, COLD BEER. 5:30 p.m. A monthly series of live artistry and cold drinks. This is a family-friendly event for all ages. Tickets are $5 per person. Starworks, 100 Russell Drive, Star. Info: www.StarworksNC.org. FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11 MOORE TREASURES SALE. 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. There will be collectibles, pottery, jewelry, art, antiques, books, toys and more, at great prices. The sale will continue through Sept. 12 from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Cash or check preferred. Shaw House, 110 W. Morganton Road, Southern Pines. Info: www. moorehistory.com. HISTORICAL PRESENTATION. 10 a.m. Come to the Sandhills Horticultural Gardens for an in-depth look at the Knollwood Maneuver conducted during World War II at what is now the Moore County Airport. Cost is $10 for members and $20 for non-members. Limit 100 people. Ball Visitors Center, 3245 Airport Road, Southern Pines. Info: www. sandhills.edu/gardenevents. COMMUNITY ART DAY. 4 - 6 p.m. All ages are welcome to browse artwork in Southern Pines’ downtown area. Downtown Park, 145 S.E. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. LIVE AFTER 5. 5:15 - 9 p.m. Dance the night away with Gary Lowder and the Smokin’ Hot. There will be kids’ activities, food trucks and more. Free event. The Village Arboretum, 375 Magnolia Road, Pinehurst. Info: www.vopnc.org. FAMILY CAMPOUT. 7 p.m. Bring your
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
own tent and camp out under the stars. Space is limited. Downtown Park, 145 S.E. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 SHAW HOUSE HERITAGE FAIR. 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. The fair offers unique vendors, food, live music, demonstrations and more. Shaw House, 110 W. Morganton Road, Southern Pines. Info: www.moorehistory.com.
ART LECTURE
Wednesday September 16, 5:30 p.m. Arts Council Galleries at the Campbell House
MENOPAUSE CHAT. 10:30 a.m. Join an informative program exploring the changes of menopause. Learn what to expect, discover ways to manage symptoms, and have your questions answered in a welcoming environment. Stay afterward to connect and explore helpful resources. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. COMMUNITY FIELD TRIP. 11 a.m. Join a behind-the-scenes look at Caring Hearts for Canines in Aberdeen. Learn about the rescue’s mission, lend a hand with meaningful volunteer activities and discover how you can make a difference for animals in our community. Teens and adults are welcome. Space is limited and registration is required. Info: mhoward@sppl.net. LASER TAG. 11:30 a.m. - 6:45 p.m. Ages 12 - 17 can travel to Kersey Valley for laser
tag. Info: (910) 692-7376. CROCHET. 12 p.m. Ages 10 and older can come to “Crocheting with Kendra.” In this beginner-friendly workshop, participants will learn how to create a crochet chain with guidance from instructor Kendra Robinson. Registration required. Each session is limited to five participants. There will be a second session at 1 p.m. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info and registration: kbroughey@sppl.net. POETRY SHOW. 7 - 10 p.m. “Pull up Poet: Lost Voices Edition” is more than your typical poetry show. There is emotion, storytelling, music and more. Cameo Art House Theatre, 225 Hay St., Fayetteville. Info: www.ticketmesandhills.com.
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13 POP UP IN THE PINES. 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. Wander through stalls of talented makers, savor delicious bites and soak in the kind of community spirit that feels like an old-fashioned block party. Weymouth Center for the Arts & Humanities, 555 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www. popupinthepines.com. STEAM. 2:30 - 3:30 p.m. Elementary-aged children and their caregivers are invited to learn about topics in science, technology, engineering, art and math and to participate in STEAM projects and activities. This month build your own paper sculpture. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14 PHOTO CLUB. 7 p.m. The Sandhills Photo club’s monthly meeting presents “Lens of Love,” by John Barclay. He will share stories and thoughts from a 25-year journey. Guests are welcome. Sandhills Horticultural Garden Ball Visitors Center, 3245 Airport Road, Southern Pines. Info: www.sandhillsphotoclub.org. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15 JAMES BOYD BOOK CLUB. 2 p.m. This month the club will discuss Nineteen Minutes, by Jodi Picoult. Free admission but registration is required. The Great Room, Weymouth PineStraw 141
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Center for the Arts & Humanities, 555 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www. weymouthcenter.org. SPEAKER EVENT. 7 - 8:30 p.m. Rich Logis, founder of LeavingMAGA.org and author of One Betrayal Too Many: Why I Left MAGA shares his seven-year journey deep into MAGA and what it took for him to leave. Free program. West Southern Pines Cultural Arts Auditorium, 1250 W. New York Ave., Southern Pines. Info: friendsforcommonground@yahoo.com.
come. Cannon Park Community Center, 210 Rattlesnake Trail, Pinehurst. Info: https://l1nq.com/3b4x31h. ART LECTURE. 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. Ellen Burke presents “The Life & Art of Caravaggio.” Arts Council Galleries at Campbell House, 482 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.mooreart.org. TRIVIA NIGHT. 6 p.m. The Sandhills Woman’s Exchange holds a trivia night. Sandhills Woman’s Exchange, 15 Azalea Road, Pinehurst. Info: www.sandhillswe.org.
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16 ACTION HOUR IN THE GYM. 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Kids ages 2 - 12 can come to the gym for open play. Southern Pines Recreation Center, 160 Memorial Park Court, Southern Pines. Info: www.southernpines.net. LUNCH & LEARN. 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. Local professionals will provide practical guidance for older adults, caregivers and families on in-home care, assisted living insurance, elder law, estate planning and more. A complimentary boxed lunch will be provided. Space is limited, and advance registration is encouraged. Walk-ins wel-
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17 DRIVE THROUGH ZOO. 7 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Adults 55 and older can enjoy the Lazy 5 Ranch and see exotic animals up close, feed them and enjoy a one-of-a-kind adventure. Cost is $37 for residents and $51 for non-residents. Info: (910) 692-7376. CIVIL WAR ROUND TABLE. 6:30 p.m. The guest speaker will be Jim Morgan, with a presentation on “Civil War Officers in the Service of Egypt.” Meeting starts at 7 p.m. Open to the public. Civic Club, corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Ashe Street, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 246-0452 or mafarina@aol.com.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18 BAT PRESENTATION. 2 p.m. Join the Sandhills Horticultural Gardens for a presentation about bats by expert Taylor Norfleet. Cost is $10 for members and $20 for non-members. Limit 100 people. Ball Visitors Center, 3245 Airport Road, Southern Pines. Info: www.sandhills.edu/ gardenevents. CHARITY GALA. 5:30 p.m. Celebrate the Sunrise Theater’s 85th anniversary with a “1941 Glamour”-themed charity gala. Fair Barn, 200 Beulah Hill Road S., Pinehurst. Info: www.sunrisetheater.com. THEATER. 7 p.m. Encore Center Theatre presents The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. There will be more performances on Sept. 19, 25 and 26. Encore Center, 160 E. New Hampshire Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.tix.com/ticket-sales/encorepac/6988. STAND-UP COMEDY. 7 - 8:15 p.m. Enjoy stand-up comedy from Tom Arnold. Owens Auditorium, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Info: www.ticketmesandhills.com. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19 GLASS PUMPKIN PATCH. 9 a.m. - 5
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p.m. Shop through more than 3,000 hand-blown glass pumpkins. Each one is handmade by the artists at Starworks Glass. Sales will continue through October. Starworks, 100 Russell Drive, Star. Info: www.StarworksNC.org. HUG-A-HORSE. 10 a.m. Weymouth Equestrians presents Hug-a-Horse. There will be a second session at 11 a.m. Free and open to the public, but registration is required. Limit of 15 participants per session. Weymouth Center barn, 555 E. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.weymouthcenter.org. SILENT BOOK CLUB. 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Bring your e-books, audiobooks or physical books to read with strangers. Silent Book Club is a space for an hour of uninterrupted reading followed by an hour of optional discussion. Spend time reading and maybe get a few recommendations from other attendees. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. WOOFSTOCK. 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Dog owners and dog lovers can participate in contests and other events. Memorial Park,
210 Memorial Park Court, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. STORYTIME. 10:15 a.m. - 12 p.m. Saturday Storytime is our once-a-month program for children from birth to age 5. There will be stories, songs, rhymes and smiles as caregivers and young children interact and explore the fun of language and early literacy. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www.sppl.net. GARDENING PRESENTATION. 12 - 2 p.m. Join SPPL and the Moore County Cooperative Extension for a presentation on seed harvesting. A seed swap will follow the presentation, so feel free to bring seeds from your own garden to trade with other gardeners or browse the existing SPPL seed library. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. THEATER. 2 p.m. Sandhills Repertory Theatre presents Mostly Bacharach. There will be a second performance at 7 p.m. Lee Auditorium, Pinecrest High School, 250 Voit Gilmore Lane, Southern Pines. Info: www.sandhillsrep.org.
CONCERT. 3 p.m. “Tell Me Lies — the Fleetwood Mac Experience!” performs. There will also be an evening concert at 7:30 p.m. Sunrise Theater, 250 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: www.sunrisetheater.com. DANCE. 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. Put on your dancing shoes and join the Carolina Pines Dance Club for swing, shag, ballroom, Latin and line dances. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. There is a lesson at 7 p.m. and dancing is from 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. Cost is $10 per person. Given Outpost/Brim, 95 Cherokee Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 331-9965. TRIVIA NIGHT. 7 p.m. Bring a group of friends and meet new ones competing to see who has the most trivia knowledge. Free of charge. Starworks Cafe and Taproom, 100 Russell Drive, Star. Info: www.StarworksNC.org. COSTUME DRIVE. Have a costume your family has outgrown? Give it a second chance to make someone else’s Halloween special. Clean, gently used Halloween costumes, accessories and dress-up items will be collected from Sept. 19 - Oct. 2 for a Halloween Boo-tique. Southern Pines
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Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net.
ond showing on Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. Sunrise Theater, 250 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: www.sunrisetheater.com.
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20 LECTURE. 2 p.m. The Moore County Historical Association’s next lecture will be from Jackson Wittkamper on “How to Research Your World War II Military Relative.” Southern Pines Civic Club, corner of Ashe St. and Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: www. moorehistory.com.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 LUNCH ‘N’ LEARN. 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Historian and local author Dr. Julia Hans will speak about the history of the penny postcard. Cost is $30 per person, which
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 CREATIVITY CLUB. 3:45 - 4:45 p.m. Creativity Club at the fire station is a monthly program. Activities are designed for kids in grades K-5 but are adaptable to other ages and abilities. Topic this month is kinetic art. Caregiver participation is required. Fire Station 82, 7850 NC-22, Carthage. Info: www.southernpines.net/FormCenter/Library-11/ Creativity-Club-Registration-117. RUTH PAULEY LECTURE SERIES. 7 p.m. Meteorological expert Reed Timmer, who has been chasing tornadoes and hurricanes for decades, kicks off the 39th season of the Ruth Pauley Lecture Series in Owens Auditorium at the Bradshaw Performing Arts Center, Sandhills Community College, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Tickets are free but registration is required. Sign up at ticketmesandhills.com. For more information go to ruthpauley.org. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 DOCUMENTARY. 7 p.m. Jimmy Buffett: Occupational Hazard. There will be a sec-
RUTH PAULEY LECTURE SERIES Tuesday September 22, 7 p.m. Bradshaw Performing Arts Center
includes lunch, beverage and dessert by chef Katrina. Sandhills Woman’s Exchange, 15 Azalea Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 2952477 or www.sandhillswe.org. BOOK BROWSE. 4:30 - 6:30 p.m. Browse the newest young adult books before they hit the shelves. Flip through upcoming titles, hear quick book talks from the librarian and discover your next favorite read. Vote for the books you’re most excited about and leave with a list of new reads. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W.
Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 SPARK STORYTIME. 10 a.m. Join a special, once-a-month storytime at Fire Station 82. Ages birth to 5 are welcome. Fire Station 82, 7850 NC-22, Carthage. Info: www.sppl.net. CONCERT. 7 p.m. Phil Vassar will be live in concert. Sunrise Theater, 250 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: www.sunrisetheater.com. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26 FLUTTERBY FESTIVAL. 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Celebrate butterflies and other pollinators with a day of family fun and educational activities. Free, but tickets are required. Village Arboretum Timmel Pavilion, 105 Rassie Wicker Drive, Pinehurst. Info: www.ticketmesandhills.com. STATIONERY SWAP. 2:30 p.m. Bring washi tape, notebooks, stickers and more to swap. Stay and make your own postcard or greeting card to send to a loved one. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. LIVE MUSIC. 6:30 p.m. Jamie Trout performs. Free of charge. Starworks Cafe and Taproom, 100 Russell Drive, Star. Info: www.StarworksNC.org. SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 27 DINING IN THE PINES. 11 a.m. Join Moore Free & Charitable Clinic for a brunch. Cost is $100 per person. Forest Creek Golf Club, 100 Forest Creek Drive, Pinehurst. Info: www.moorefreecare.org.
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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28 BOOK EVENT. 10 p.m. - 12 a.m. Join other Empyrean fans for the release of Threshing Day. There will be themed activities in preparation for the midnight release of the book. The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: www. ticketmesandhills.com. CORRESPONDENCE CLUB. 3:30 - 4:30 p.m. Children in grades 3 - 5 can join a special program in partnership with the Moore County Library. Learn how to write and format a letter, address an envelope, design your own postcard, and even send a note to a Moore County Library patron. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30 ACTION HOUR IN THE GYM. 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Kids ages 2 - 12 can enjoy open play in the gym. Southern Pines Recreation Center, 160 Memorial Park Court, Southern Pines. Info: www.southernpines.net.
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UPCOMING EVENTS
DINING IN THE PINES. 6 p.m. Join Moore Free & Charitable Clinic for a chef’s table dinner. Cost is $175 per person. Elliott’s on Linden, 905 Linden Road, Pinehurst. Info: www.moorefreecare.org.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3 AUTUMNFEST. 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. The Arts Council of Moore County and Southern Pines Parks and Recreation Department host the annual family-friendly arts and crafts festival. There will be creative crafters, food and live entertainment. Downtown Park, 145 S.E. Broad St., Southern Pines. Info: www.mooreart.org.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15 TAG SALE AND RAFFLE. 11 a.m. The White Elephant Tag Sale and Raffle will have a selection of furniture, jewelry, household items, artwork, toys, treats and more. A silent auction and raffle will be held. The sneak peek sale is Oct. 15 from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Tag sale continues Oct. 16 from 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. and Oct. 17 from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. Raffle tickets needed for admission to the sneak peek sale. No entry fee Friday or Saturday. Proceeds benefit Sacred Heart Church Ministries and Moore County charitable organizations. Founders Hall, Sacred Heart Church, N.C. 211 and Dundee Road, Pinehurst. Info: (516) 578-5966.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4 WRITING GROUP. 3 p.m. Are you interested in creating fiction, nonfiction, poetry or comics? Come to the Sunday Afternoon Writing Group. Connect with other writers and artists, chat about your craft and get feedback about your work. All levels welcome. Info: lholden@sppl.net. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6 COSTUME DRIVE. 4 - 6:30 p.m. Find a costume, add an accessory and celebrate the Halloween spirit. Costumes are free, and everyone is welcome. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net.
WEEKLY EVENTS MONDAYS CHAIR YOGA. 9 - 10 a.m. For adults 55 and older. Help offset body aches encoun-
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tered with desk work. This is an accessible yoga class for bodies not able to easily get up from and down to the floor. Do standing or sitting in a chair. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. JIGSAW PUZZLES. 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Adults 55 and older can enjoy puzzle fun with friends or solo. Free of charge. Puzzles can be done Monday through Friday. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. FITNESS MEMBERSHIP. 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Adults 55 and older can use a variety of equipment such as treadmills, free weights, stationary bikes and more. Cost for a six-month membership is $18 for residents and $26 for non-residents. The fitness room is open Monday through Friday. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. INDOOR WALKING. 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Adults 55 and older can get an indoor walking membership in the climate controlled gym. Membership can be used Monday through Friday. Cost for a six-
y a d n u S at the
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@ Weymouth Center 555 E Connecticut Ave
month membership is $18 for residents and $26 for non-residents. Southern Pines Recreation Center, 160 Memorial Park Court, Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. SENIOR FITNESS. 11 a.m. Adults 55 and older are invited to a TruFit gym class to improve strength, mobility and flexibility. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. RESTORATIVE YOGA. 12 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Practice gentle movements that may help alleviate pain and improve circulation. Bring your own mat. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. BRIDGE. 1:30 - 4:30 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Enjoy games of bridge with friends. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. ACTIVE LIVING. 2:30 - 3:30 p.m. Adults 55 and older are invited to join a 12-week program that teaches sedentary people the
skills necessary to overcome barriers to becoming physically active. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376.
TUESDAYS VIRTUAL SPINNING CLASS. 8:30 - 9 a.m. Adults 18 and older can do a 30-minute bike workout that is fun and effective. Limit of seven people per class. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. INTERVAL WALKING. 9:15 - 9:45 a.m. Adults 18 and older can do interval training alternating between periods of brisk and slow walking. Free of charge. No class on the second Tuesday of the month. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. PLAYFUL LEARNING. 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Come for a drop-in, open playtime for ages birth - 3 years to interact with other children and have educational playtime. Given Memorial Library, 150 Cherokee Road,
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The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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SEPTEMBER CALENDAR
Pinehurst. Info: (910) 295-3642. BABY RHYMES. 10:15 a.m. Baby Rhymes is specially designed for the youngest learners (birth- 2 years) and their caregivers. Repetition and comforting movements make this story time perfect for early development and brain growth. There will be a duplicate session at 10:45 a.m. An active library card is required. Dates this month are Sept. 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. GAME DAY. 12 - 4 p.m. Fun, fellowship, games and activities. For adults 55 and older. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. CHESS. 1:30 - 5 p.m. Join a chess group, whether you’re an experienced player or new to the game. This is a free program. Moore County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15-501, West End. TABLE TENNIS. 3 - 5 p.m. Adults 55 and older are invited to enjoy free games of table tennis while making new friends. The second Tuesday of the month games will be
played on that Thursday instead. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. LINE DANCE. 4:45 p.m. Put on your dancing shoes and line dance. This is for beginners and is a free program. Moore County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15-501, West End.
WEDNESDAYS INTERVAL WALKING. 9:15 - 9:45 a.m. Adults 18 and older can do interval training alternating between periods of brisk and slow walking. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. CHAIR AEROBICS. 10 - 11 a.m. For adults 55 and older. Get fit to dance, partying up a sweat to great music through the ages. You can stand and chair dance to this energizing, low-impact aerobic workout. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. BRAIN BOOST. 10 - 11 a.m. Test your memory while creating new brain connections. This is a free program. Moore
County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15-501, West End. KNITTING. 10 - 11 a.m. Learn how to knit or come to enjoy knitting with other people. This is a free program. Moore County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15-501, West End. BABY STORYTIME. 10 - 11 a.m. Have fun developing the foundation for your baby’s later reading with stories, songs and play. Open to parents and caregivers of infants from newborn to 24 months. Moore County Library, 101 W. Saunders St., Carthage. Info: (910) 947-5335. LEARN AND PLAY. 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Come in for an open play date with your toddler or preschooler. There will be developmental toys and puzzles as well as early literacy tips on display for parents to incorporate into daily activities. Dates this month are Sept. 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. SENIOR FITNESS. 11 a.m. Adults 55 and older are invited to a TruFit gym class to improve strength, mobility and flexibility.
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Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. PIANO. 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. Join Flint Long to play piano or just listen. This is a free program. Moore County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15-501, West End. LINE DANCING. 12 - 1 p.m. Looking for new ways to get your daily exercise in and care for yourself? Try line dancing. For adults 55 and older. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. CHAIR VOLLEYBALL. 1 - 2 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Get fit while having fun. Free to participate. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. BRIDGE. 1:30 - 4:30 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Enjoy games of bridge with friends. All materials included. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. DANCE. 2 - 2:30 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Instructor Maria Amaya will introduce you to dance fitness in this class designed for anyone who wants to gently and gradually increase their cardio function, mobility and balance and have fun at the same time. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. LINE DANCING. 2 p.m. The town of Vass will host line dancing for seniors every other Wednesday. Cost is $5 per session. Vass Town Hall, 140 S. Alma St., Vass. Info: www.townofvassnc.gov. LIBRARY PROGRAM. 3:30 p.m. At The
• Top dress blue and grey stone driveways • Driveway repair and new construction • Install gravel patio and walkways • Bobcat service: grading and light clearing
Keith Kelly
148 PineStraw
910.690.6225
Library After School (ATLAS) is an afterschool program for children ages kindergarten through second grade who enjoy activities, crafts, stories and meeting new friends. Dates this month are Sept. 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. TAI CHI. 6:30 p.m. Learn tai chi. There is no age limit and the classes are open to the public. Cost is $10 per class. Seven Lakes West Community Center, 556 Longleaf Drive, Seven Lakes. Info: (910) 400-5646.
THURSDAYS VIRTUAL SPINNING CLASS. 8:30 - 9 a.m. Adults 18 and older can do a 30-minute bike workout that is fun and effective. Limit of seven people per class. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. MOORE COUNTY FARMERS MARKET. 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. The year-round market features “producer only” vendors within a 50-mile radius providing fresh, local and seasonal produce, fruits, pasture meats, eggs, potting plants, cut flowers and local honey. Crafts, baked goods, jams and jellies are also available. Market is located at the Armory Sports Complex, 604 W. Morganton Road, Southern Pines. GIVEN STORY TIME. 10 a.m. Bring your preschooler to enjoy stories, songs and activities. Given Memorial Library, 150 Cherokee Road, Pinehurst. Info: (910) 295-3642. BALANCE AND FLEXIBILITY. 10 - 11 a.m. Adults 55 and older are invited to enjoy a class to help reduce the risk of tak-
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ing a tumble and increase their ability to recover if they do. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. MUSIC AND MOTION. 10:15 and 10:45 a.m. Does your toddler like to move and groove? Join us for Music and Motion to get those wiggles out and work on gross and fine motor skills. For ages 2 - 5. An active library card is required. Dates this month are Sept. 3, 10, 17 and 24. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net. GENTLE YOGA. 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. Adults 55 and older are invited to unwind, recharge and find peace in their week. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. MAHJONG. 1 - 3 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Mahjong involves skill, strategy, calculation and luck. Requires four players. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. 3 - 5:30 p.m. IMPROVERS LINE DANCE. and line dance. Put on your dancing shoes This is a free program. Moore County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15 501, West End.
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The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
SEPTEMBER CALENDAR
LITTLE U. 3:45 p.m. Little U is a preschool program for children ages 3 1/2 - 5. There are stories, songs, rhymes and activities that explore the world of books, language and literacy. Little U is a fun and interactive program designed to help preschoolers develop early literacy skills in preparation for kindergarten and beyond. Dates this month are Sept. 3, 10, 17 and 24. Southern Pines Public Library, 170 W. Connecticut Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-8235 or www.sppl.net.
FRIDAYS AEROBIC DANCE. 9 - 10 a.m. For adults 55 and older. Enjoy this low-to-moderate impact class with energizing music for an overall cardio and strength workout. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. JAM SESSION. 9:30 - 11:30 a.m. Do you like to play an instrument, sing or just listen to music? Come join a music jam session. This is a free program. Moore County Senior Enrichment Center, 8040 U.S. 15501, West End.
TAP CLASS. 10 - 11:30 a.m. For adults 55 and older. All levels welcome. Cost for six-month membership: $18/resident; $26/ non-resident. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. SENIOR FITNESS. 11:30 a.m. Adults 55 and older are invited to a TruFit gym class to improve strength, mobility and flexibility. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. QIGONG. 1 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Classes will consist of chair and standing movements that can help soothe achy feet, tight hips, lower back pain and ease restriction in mobility. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. BRIDGE. 1:30 - 4:30 p.m. For adults 55 and older. Enjoy games of bridge with friends. All materials included. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376. DRUM CIRCLE. 2 - 3 p.m. Adults 18 and older can feel the rhythm, find their groove
and connect through beat. No experience necessary. Free of charge. Douglass Community Center, 1185 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Southern Pines. Info: (910) 692-7376.
SATURDAYS MOORE COUNTY FARMERS MARKET. 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. This market features “producer only” vendors within a 50-mile radius providing fresh, local and seasonal produce, fruits, pasture meats, eggs, potting plants, cut flowers and local honey. Crafts, baked goods, jams and jellies are also available. The market runs through Nov. 21. Downtown Southern Pines, 156 S.E. Broad St., Southern Pines. SANDHILLS FARMERS MARKET. 10 a.m. 1 p.m. The Sandhills Farmers Market features the area’s farms, nurseries, bakeries, meat and egg providers, cheesemakers and specialty food producers. The market runs twice weekly through Sept. 30 at Tufts Park, 1 Village Green Road W., Pinehurst. For more information visit: www.moorefarmfresh.com. PS
Arts & Culture
910-944-3979
Gallery • Studios • Classes
129 Exchange Street in Aberdeen, NC artistleague@windstream.net • artistleague.org
Into the Woods
Featuring the art of Vanessa Grebe Opening Reception: Friday, September 4, 2026 5:00-7:00 Gallery Hours: Monday - Saturday 12-3pm
Ask Us About Becoming a Member The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
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Arts & Culture
Chrysalis Chamber Players
300 Works. 30 Artists. Endless Inspiration. Featuring artists from the Sanford Brush & Palette Club
From paintings and pottery to notecards, journals, sculptures and one-of-a-kind treasures… there’s something for everyone to discover.
Monday, October 19 | 7:30 PM Sunrise Theater
Hours: Thursday - Sunday, 11 - 4:00 PM and Special Events Location: 507 N. Steele Street, Ste. 211, (in the historic Mann Center), Sanford, NC 27330
The CHRYSALIS CHAMBER PLAYERS is an ensemble committed to performing a kaleidoscope of high caliber chamber music. In collaboration with a variety of other musicians in innovative & exciting programs, they perform works ranging from Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos to the chamber music of living composers. Chrysalis musicians have performed at the Marlboro Music Festival, Banff Centre for the Arts, Verbier & Lucerne Festivals in Switzerland, & with the Louisville, Naples, & New World Symphonies. The ensemble in this concert will consist of trumpet & string quartet.
Tickets: $39 per person Call (910) 692-ARTS or visit the ACMC offices to purchase tickets
910-692-2787 | www.MooreArt.org 482 E. Connecticut Ave., | Southern Pines, NC
150 PineStraw
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
Arts & Culture
DOMINATE THE STORM
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
A Heart-Pumping Evening with Reed Timmer, America’s Most Famous Storm Chaser Tuesday, September 22, 2026 • 7 PM
Having intercepted over 1000 tornadoes and a dozen powerful hurricanes since he started chasing 20 years ago, Reed Timmer is well-known as the most successful and extreme storm chaser in the world, and is one of the few people in existence to document both an F5 tornado, and the most devastating hurricane in U.S. history (Hurricane Katrina).
DEXTER INGRAM
Tuesday, November 10, 2026
CPT TOM MURPHY
Tuesday, March 23, 2027
Reed’s “hands-on” experience with a vast assortment of hazardous weather and natural disasters, as well as his extensive education in the science of meteorology, have made him one of the world’s most respected experts on severe weather forecasting, safety, and survival.
Owens Auditorium at BPAC | Free Admission | Tickets Required Tickets available at TicketMeSandhills.com
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC LIVE
DR. LISA BRIGGS
Tuesday, April 27, 2027
LISA DOUGHTEN
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Arts & Culture
Celebrate Festival Month in Scotland County Four Festivals. Three Weeks. Tons of Family Fun. KUUMBA FESTIVAL
CARLOS MIGUEL PRIETO, MUSIC DIRECTOR
You’re swept into this concerto from the very first note. — JUSTIN BRUNS, CONCERTMASTER
Celebration of our African American heritage and culture. Saturday, September 26th McDuffie Square in Laurinburg, NC. Free!!! kuumba-nc.com
te Festival Month in Scotland Scotland County Festival Month County vals. Three Weeks. Tons of Family Fun.
an
HIGHLAND FLING STREET FESTIVAL
A free Street Festival held Friday, October 2nd at McDuffie Square in Downtown Laurinburg. Food Trucks. Music. More. Scottish-Fling.com
Scotland County Highland Fling SCOTLAND COUNTY Highland Games GAMES Street Festival HIGHLAND
John Blue Festival
OPENING NIGHT!
Held Saturday, October 3rd at the NC Rural A free Street Festival held Held Saturday, Oct. 4th at the Celebration of our rural Heritage Center. Friday, October 3rd at Athletic NC.Competition. Rural Heritage Center. roots. Saturday, Oct.11th Music. McDuffie Squar e Athletic Competition. at the NC Rural Heritage Dance. Tartan Glory. Music. tickets on sale. in Downtown Laurinburg. Advance Dance. Tartan Glory. Center. $5 for adults. Free Food Trucks.carolina-highlandgames.com Music. More. Advance tickets on sale. forTHU, childrenSEP 6 and24 under. | 7:30PM Scottish-Fling.com JOHN carolina-highlandgames.com johnblue-cottonfestival.com BLUE FESTIVAL OWENS AUDITORIUM, BRADSHAW Celebration of our rural roots. PERFORMING ARTS CENTER, PINEHURST Saturday, October 10th Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor at the NC Rural Heritage Center. Justin Bruns, violin $5 for adults. Haydn: Symphony No. 39 Free for children 6 and under. Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto johnbluefestival.com Mozart: Symphony No. 40
Mendelssohn Violin Concerto
urinburg, NC - www.visitnc-soul.com SAVE THE DATE
Sky High Aerospace Expo on October 17th at Laurinburg- Maxton Airport
Laurinburg, NC www.visitnc-soul.com 152 PineStraw
Seats selling fast— buy now! ncsymphony.org | 877.627.6724 Dates, titles, artists, programs, venues, and prices subject to change.
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
Arts & Culture
Sanford Brush & Palette Club October 10-17, 2026
2026 61st Annual Art Show
OCTOBER 3-11, 2026
2025 Best In Show Rich Flanegan, Summer Morning Path
Harper Center - First Presbyterian Church 203 Hawkins Avenue, Sanford NC 27330
Step Out and Step In!
Experience 250+ years of Craft Demos and Kiln Openings
www.DiscoverSeagrove.com
Join Us for an Artistic Journey Exploring New Paths and Creating New Footprints
SEE Hundreds of pieces of original art for sale MEET Our Artists from the 4 county area WIN Door Prizes and Raffles DISCOVER Unique vessels by NC Artists VIEW County Fairs Exhibit FIND Great gifts in our Holiday Gallery VISIT Art After Dark on Friday night Hours: Saturday, October 10th ----------------------------- 10am to 6pm Sunday, October 11th ------------------------------- 2pm to 5pm Monday-Saturday, October 12-17 ---------------- 10am to 6pm Friday, October 16th (Art After Dark) ------------ 6pm to 9pm
JOIN US FOR
SEPTEMBER EVENTS I Am the Night: The Ultimate Unauthorized History of Batman: The Animated Series The Country Bookshop
Tom Arnold – Comedy Owens Auditorium at BPAC
2026 Flutterby Festival Joyce’s Meadow in the Village Arboretum
Midnight Release: Threshing Day The Country Bookshop
Sanford Brush & Palette Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization The Art Show is also supported by the City of Sanford Tourism Development Authority
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
Buy tickets & see more events at ticketMEsandhills.com CREATE YOUR OWN EVENTS: INFO@TICKETMESANDHILLS.COM
PineStraw 153
From Our ATTIRE
S M
Partners CATERING+CAKES+DINING
SEW MOORE S M
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SandhillSeen Summer Sidewalk Sale Southern Pines
Saturday, July 18, 2026 Photographs by Diane McKay Michael Patrick, Rebecca Tucker
Maryann Jackson, Sandra & Mclendyn Weathersby
Daena Rae
Josie Duncan, Kaleigh Peterson, Joey Lucas
Meadow Downing, Lauren Lynch
Gracie Scarboro, Jen Cambria
Ava Moore, Katelyn Atkins
Debra Facciolo, Crystal Brown, April Nayman, Sarah Baker
Alexis Williams, Madelyn Kelly
Mary Duffy
DJ Saxy
Amber Dunlop, Taylor Lee
156 PineStraw
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
SandhillSeen PeachGrass Festival Weymouth Center For The Arts & Humanities
Saturday, July 25, 2026 Photographs by Diane McKay
Renee Felter, Glenda Kirby
Judy Winston, Carmen Kanne
Bob & Jane Asdal, Lee Rudman, Karen Brewer
Burt Ozment, Ro Kachel
Dave Baker, Kelly Altman
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
The Grassomatics Band
Hollie, Adeline, Danielle, Luca, Hank
Craig & Caroline Chavez, Lily & Celia Rehburg
Will & Kyla DuVat with Kit & Joe
Kathy Wagstaff, Bonnie McKee, Norma Jean Thomas
Cheyenne, Dillon & Cooper
Sheryl Gendron, Charlotte Vetter, David Gendron
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Pine ServiceS
Vintage Watches Wanted ROLEX & TUDOR Omega, Hamilton Breitling Patek Philippe, Panerai, Seiko
MILITARY COLLECTIBLES & GUNS
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15+ yrs. Experience • Unlimited License Jon Snyder • West End, NC 27376 • 910.986.5572 The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
September PineNeedler Animal GAnimal roupsGroups Across Across 63. Brushed up on 1. It should be in time for a 1. It should be in time 64. Writes a poem in concert mourning for for a concert 9. Like some excuses 65. Cab fare devices 15. Like a repaired bicycle 9. Like some excuses 66. Aromatic 16. Tag again 15. Like a repaired Down 17. Able to make amends bicycle 1. SQUIRRELS 18. Added attractions 16. Tag2.again Baptism, for one 19. Longing make noodle 3. toJapanese 20. “___ bitten, twice shy” 17. Able amends 4. Chess pieces 22. Houston university 5. attractions Bleat 18. Added 23. Flower perfume 6. Recede 25. Drenches 19. Longing 7. Apportion 26. Anatomical ring 20. "___ twice 8. bitten, Adolescent 30. Some are inert shy" 9. At liberty 32. CROWS 22. Houston university 10. ____Luther, DC comic 33. Catch a glimpse of 23. Flower character perfume 34. 911 patient transfer support, 11. Emcees’ lines for short 25. Drenches 12. Newswoman Shriver 37. Ad pages, as a magazine 26. Anatomical ring 13. JELLYFISH 39. Act the fool ( 3 wds) 14. are Affirmatives 30. Some 41. No longer working, for short inert 21. RHINOS 42. Dance shoe attachments 32. CROWS 23. Sent signals to 44. Spin 33. Catch glimpse of 24. aBagpiper’s wear 35. Turn off the sound 45. Jeans material 25. “Little Shop of Horrors” hero 34. 36. Didn’t dilly-dally 911 patient transfer 59. 12. Newswoman Opposite of 46. Made soapy 26. Gulf V.I.P. support, for short 38. Ill will storebought Shriver 47. Sobbed 27. Ancient alphabetic character 40. “— be a pleasure” 37. Ad pages, as a 50. GIRAFFES 63. Brushed up on 13. JELLYFISH 28. ____while (at one time, at one 43. Cover completely magazine 52. Suspended 64. Writes a poem in 14. Affirmatives time) 45. Extent 53. “Amphetamine” lead-in 39. Act the fool, ,( 3 29. “___ to Billie Joe”mourning for 47. HUMMINGBIRDS 21. RHINOS 54. Attain wds) 31. Lean 65. Cab fare devices 48. Indian coin 23. Sent signals to 57. Outline 41. No longer working, 34. Flight data, briefly 49. Dormant 66. Aromatic 59. Opposite of store-bought 24.
for short 42. Dance shoe attachments 44. Spin
Bagpiper's wear
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25. "Little Shop of Horrors" hero 26. Gulf V.I.P.
51. Like some milk
53. Plasters the wall
54. RACOONS 55. Biblical garden 46. Made soapy 56. Exam. 47. Sobbed 58. "Wheels" 50. GIRAFFES 60. ___ school 52. Suspended 61. "I" problem 31. 7. Apportion Lean 53. "Amphetamine" Puzzle answers on page 148 62. "Cool" amount 34. Flight data, briefly 8. Adolescent Mart Dickerson lives in Southern lead-in 35. Turn off the sound Atwelcomes liberty suggestions Pines9.and 54. Attain from 10. her fellow puzzle masters. She 36. Didn'tdillydally ____Luther, DC 57. Outline can be reached at martaroonie@ comic character 38. Ill will gmail.com. 11. Emcees' lines 45. Jeans material
The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
2. Baptism, for one
27. Ancient alphabetic 3. Japanese noodle character Sudoku: 28. ____while (At one 4. Chess pieces Fill in the grid so every row, 5. column and every 3x3 time, at one time) everyBleat to Billie Joe" box6. contain the numbers 1-9. 29. "___ Recede
PineStraw 159
SOUTHWORDS
Deer Me
Our inconvenient guests
“You’re prancing
along, you get thirsty, you spot a little brook, you put your little deer lips down to the cool clear water . . . BAM! . . . Now I ask ya. Would you give a f*** what kind of pants the son of a bitch who shot you was wearing?” Cousin Vinny, we got trouble right here in River City. Most days the War Department goes to her gym, the Petri Dish, before sunrise. She’s greeted on these mornings by a deer who, if it was wearing a chauffeur’s cap, would open the car door for her. It might just as well be an Uber driver. You don’t need to order a bunch of camouflage gear from Cabela’s to stalk these deer. Bozo the Clown could sneak up on them. You could play Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 on a klaxon horn and they’ll stand there and stare at you like they’ve got orchestra seating. Sure the fawns are cute in their little spotted outfits, but the bad news is that they grow into eating machines. Going all leafy and pastoral in our neighborhood is something of a fool’s errand. You might just as well pile the whole herd into a Suburban and drive them to Ruby Tuesday for the salad bar. Hostas in the front? Magnifico. Our compliments to the gardener. In the backyard they ate the oakleaf hydrangeas down to the toothpicks. They never met an azalea they didn’t like. And camellia blossoms? It’s like Cool Hand Luke eating hardboiled eggs. In addition to the buffet, we may have attracted our fourlegged buggers with, of all things, a birdbath. The bluebirds, finches, sparrows, robins and whatnot do a lot of sipping and a fair amount of flapping around in it but, for the most part, they behave themselves. The deer, on the other hand, hang on it like drunks down at the end of the bar in the Bitter and Twisted. I’m pretty sure the head deer put both his/her front hooves up on it and tried to lick it dry, because one morning the whole thing was
160 PineStraw
dumped over. This isn’t some lightweight birdbath, either. It’s solid Lake Superior stone. But what do they care? We’re pretty sure they’re targeting us because there have been off-property incidents as well. You know the way World War II aces put little decals on their Spitfires to represent downed enemy aircraft? My son has three Bambis on his bumper. The only thing is, he didn’t run into them, they ran into him. Same thing happened to the War Department one night when she was on her way home from a Bruce Springsteen concert and a deer ran full throttle, Kamikaze-like, into the passenger side rear door. Truly Born to Run. One year a friend of ours thought it would be a splendid idea to make life-sized plywood deer using a jigsaw. The body and head were the largest piece. It settled into notches carved into the front and rear legs. There were a couple of ears to stick on and, of course, a tail. All of it was painted bright white and begging to be draped with festive lights, a perky red nose and wreaths for the Christmas season. The neighbors across the road and up the hill just happened to be bowhunters, and the morning after we proudly displayed our white Christmas deer in the front yard, we arose only to find that they’d been massacred with crossbows. Maybe our current deer are, at this very moment, massing to exact their revenge. I’m a believer in going green — wind, solar, the lot — and I’m convinced that the ultimate fossil fuel solution may in fact be right under our feet. Pretty much everywhere you look in our yard there are little black piles of deer poop. In the garden. By the birdbath. Everywhere. If there was some way to convert all that poop into energy, I’m pretty sure we could be the Saudi Arabia of scat. It helps to look on the bright side. PS Jim Moriarty is the editor of PineStraw. He can be reached at jjmpinestraw@gmail.com The Art & Soul of the Sandhills
ILLUSTRATION BY CAMPBELL PRINGLE
By Jim Moriarty
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