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See what Chitter found in the woods-the hump on the end of the stick-is alive! After googling around a little-I believe its a geometrid moth caterpillar.
It looked like a camouflaged inchworm to us.
Ever seen one?
Tipper
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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Chitter snapped this picture out her bedroom window. Mr. Cottontail stayed there for so long-prancing back and forth-that we decided he must have been posing for her.
I tried to remember all the rabbit folklore I knew to share with you, but only 2 things came to mind: the obvious- lucky rabbit foot; and you shouldn't kill rabbits to eat until after the first few heavy frosts in fall to make sure any wolves (parasites) on the rabbit are gone.
I checked with Frank C. Brown to see if he had any good ones to add:
Last summer the rabbits ate my sugar snap peas before they could even get big enough to bloom-this year-they've totally turned their noses up at them. I mean they haven't even nibbled on the peas-weird uh?
As more people are trying their hand at sustainable living, raising rabbits for meat is becoming popular. In fact the backyard rabbit is giving the backyard chicken a run for its money.
Tipper
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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Have you ever noticed small white spots on your fingernails? I tried to take a picture of one on Chatter's finger you can just barely see it. I used to have the small white spots on my nails all the time-but it doesn't seem like I have them much anymore.
When I was little Granny always told me the number of white spots on my nails = the number of boyfriends I had.
A few other bits of folklore about white spots I've heard:
Got any folklore to add?
Tipper
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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*When planting beans press the soil with boot for good luck.
*Plant beans in the middle of the day for a better yield.
*Beans planted on dark nights will grow the best crops.
*Plant beans early in the morning if you want to have the crop come in earlier in the season.
*Plant beans when the elms leaves are as big as a penny.
*Beans planted during a leap year will produce more than usual.
Confusing list of folklore uh? Last year I shared-how we plant our beans-if you missed it you can go here.
Do you plant beans in rows-hills-or with the corn? And maybe I should ask if you've ever planted them at night? Got any bean folklore to add?
Tipper
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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She combed her hair a hundred strokes every night before going to bed. The brown reminded me of a river as it washed over her back and ended somewhere below her waist. Every once in a while she'd take the strands that were trapped in the bristles and set them free out behind the house.
She told me it was a secret thing to do but she knew I'd never tell. In whispers she shared the story of birds who thanked her every morning with song for the brown strands which now held their nests of twigs together; of the fairies who brightened the flower beds in return for their warm blankets woven with the gift of her hair.
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Chitter took the photo above-she was trying so hard to capture the small flowers-that she didn't realize her hair had fallen into the photo too. When I saw the photo-the little story above popped into my mind.
I always heard you were supposed to brush your hair a hundred times a day-but never did. Maybe if I had mine wouldn't be so fine and thin. The Deer Hunter says I should just be glad I still have hair.
Tipper
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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One of our favorite tv shows is House Hunters on HGTV. We enjoy seeing how people live in different parts of the country-and the international version of the show almost always makes me realize how good we have it in the US.
The girls and I laugh at the folks who are picky-the 2 most common complaints-counter tops that aren't granite-and popcorn ceilings.
A few months ago we watched a show where the couple was so adamant about not having popcorn ceilings, you would've thought they were refusing to live near a meth lab.
After the show I started thinking about how sheetrock ceilings have changed over the years-with popcorn ones falling out of fashion years ago.
I was only 5 or 6 when we moved into Pap and Granny's house. But I still remember the excitement-Pap built it with his own hands-for less than $10,000.00. Granny was so happy to move into a new house-she felt rich beyond words because she'd never lived in a new house-I don't guess Pap had either.
Different folks helped Pap with the house-family, neighbors, and friends. Woody Frankum finished the ceilings. Pap's known Woody his whole life. Woody used a brush to leave the design you see above in the picture. I wonder how many times he swarped that brush through the house-too many times to count-although I used to lay in my bed and try to count the ones in my room.
By the time The Deer Hunter and Pap built our house-17 years ago-Spanish Lace was the ceiling style of choice in our area. One of Pap's friends, Jerry Ledford, finished our ceilings. He told Pap-he'd do our ceilings only because Pap asked. In those days-house building was booming here and Jerry's expertise was in great demand. 17 years later-Pap still says our ceilings are the prettiest he's ever seen. They are nice-but I think Pap's opinion of them has more to do with an old friend doing a favor for his family.
In the book, Appalachian Values, Loyal Jones, says: "Sense of place is one of the unifying values of mountain people, and it makes it hard for us to leave the mountains, and when we do, we long to return."
I think the reason I enjoy House Hunter's so much is because I'm fascinated by people who pick up and move across the country-across the world. It's something I could never do. I'm not saying my unwillingness to move is a healthy thing-it just is what it is.
I couldn't move into a house and not want to know who laid the floors-who finished the ceilings-who used a stub of a pencil to figure materials needed on the studs inside the walls.
Tipper
p.s. For all of you who've read my book-the cover photo was taken near the end of Woody's driveway.
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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There's smart people in Appalachia. The photo above is a good example.
The group is from our local Community College. Some are born and raised Appalachians some came to Appalachia later in life, some are old some are young, some are men some are women. But EACH of them received an award for their outstanding academic achievements, it's a side of Appalachia that isn't often shown.
Like I said, there's smart people in Appalachia.
Tipper
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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Solomon's Seal
According to the USDA Forest Service's pamphlet Some Useful Plants of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the roots of Solomon's Seal have been used to treat every thing from poison-ivy to hemorrhoids. I don't know about that-but I do know their nodding blooms always make me feel as though a small fairy might peek out from their bell shaped blooms and say Hello to me.
Just above Pap's big garden, is the power pole that services Steve's house.The pole is on a steep bank about 10 feet high. The EMC guys keep the area around it cut back.
Several years ago, I discovered the little cleared area was a dandy place to look for wildflowers. I guess the back drop of thick woods keeps the area just shady enough and the low vegetation allows your eyes to easily see things that are growing. Acutally it isn't that easy-first you have to run/climb up the steep bank and hold on to the edge while you survey the plants-but the view is worth holding onto pine sapplings and digging your toes into red clay.
In winter, when Solomon's Seal dies back, you can see a circular scar on the root stalk. The circular place is said to look like the Seal of Solomon-hence the name.
Does Solomon's Seal grow around your place?
Tipper
Appalachia Through My Eyes - A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
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Are you a worrier? Or maybe you know someone who WORRIES about EV-ERY-TH-ING?
Granny is a worrier-she is a worrier from a family of worriers. Pap not so much-from a family of not so much worriers.
I can't remember what we were talking about-but one time my cousin Clint and I were discussing our Jenkins family of worriers-how our Aunts and Grandmother cautioned us about everything.
I told him-in my childhood it evened out. On one side I had the worriers who told us to step carefully off the steps of the porch lest we hurt ourselves-but on the other side-I had the folks who'd send a couple of us kids to the woodpile with an ax to chop wood-and I mean kids-like under the age of 10.
Me-I'm more like Pap-not so much of a worrier. But of course there are times I worry-times things upset me-times some incident happens that flashes about my mind like a firestorm. One of the best cures I've found for worrying-is to act like a teenager.
No I don't dress in skinny jeans or any of the other cool clothes our youth of today wear-nor do I text my worries to my list of contacts-nor do I post them to my facebook page-or add them to my tweeter feed.
What do I do that's usually associated with teenagers? I listen to music as loud as it will go. I put something like the song below in the cd player of my car and I turn the volume as loud as it will go.
*Before you click the download-stop the music player in the top right of this page.
Download 04 Don't You Hear Jerusalem Moan
I feel the bass beat way down inside my chest; my ears listen to every quick lick the mandolin makes; my mind picks up every time the guitar goes around the horn; I listen for every banjo roll; I count every doublestop the fiddle makes; and I let those harmonic voices put the fire in my mind out.
Once I concentrate on the beauty of the song-on the pile driving emotion held within it-I realize my troubles aren't that bad after all and whatever is bugging me will all come out in the wash.
A few of my favorite worry blasting tunes in video form:
Do you ever act like a teenager?
Tipper
p.s. Update from yesterday's cooking class: We left the apple stack cake sitting-soaking up all that goodness; we made pepper jelly which is an old folk school recipe-it is wonderful; also on the menu-apple, blackberry, and blackberry lavender jelly. I liked the pepper jelly so much-I'll be making it myself this summer and don't worry I'll share the recipe-as well as the recipe for the apple stack cake too!
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Last night kicked off the Preserving Mountain Flavors Cooking Class I'm co-teaching at the John C. Campbell Folk School. It's going to be a great class-one of the students is a Blind Pig reader-all the way from Oklahoma!
I enjoyed meeting her so much- it made me wish all of you could be there too. Since you can't-I'll tell you a little about what were cooking in case you want to give it a try.
For our first class session we made Kraut. We made it 2 ways:
I've written about both ways before-you can click on the links above to see the details.
Tomorrow's menu: Jam and cake!
Tipper
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