and a child shall lead them

Today at church was the Children's Sabbath. The kids ran the entire service, including the announcements, scripture reading, music, prayer...the whole shebang! They did a terrific job, teaching the congregation about the fruits of the Spirit, complete with visual aids. Here are a few pictures.

Moonlight in motion

I drove out to the beach last night, parked on the sand, turned off my headlights, and sat in the pitch dark staring at the ocean. In very little time, my eyes had adjusted and I was enjoying a light show. The full moon luminescence on the waves was mesmerizingly beautiful. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me...but even if I had, I doubt I could have captured it. You'll just have to plan a visit sometime in the winter during a full moon and see it yourself! (I recommend winter since the skies are typically clearer at night than they are during summer, so the moonlight comes through better.)

Mandolin Orange

The Mandolin Orange show tonight was excellent! If you're interested in learning more about this talented duo, check out their myspace page.They will perform at the Ocrafolk Festival this year again, so that's another opportunity to learn more about (and hear!) them. They assured the audience that their CD should be ready by then, so you can take them home with you if you like them.

Here are a few photos from tonight's concert.


The youngest fan had a good time dancing!




The oh-so-talented Emily plays guitar in addition to fiddle.


And the oh-so-talented Andrew plays mandolin (of course!) in addition to guitar.

Seriously weird

The weather was insanely odd today. For about an hour this afternoon, it fluctuated back and forth between snow, rain and sunshine. It was pretty windy throughout the entire process, only adding to the weird effect. Bizarre.

Seals

There have recently been some seal sightings on the beach. At first, I thought that the seals which washed up were in poor shape and possibly in danger of dying, but a friend explained to me that they occasionally swim ashore to rest for a while, then get right back in the water and continue their journeys. I hope he's right! I have also been told that the seals can be quite mean when approached, if startled, so it's best to leave them alone (observe them from afar) if you see any.

It just occurred to me that there's an object lesson in this: don't hesitate to rest as you travel along life's journey, but don't be mean to people who come check on you while you're doing so!

Concert this weekend

Mandolin Orange will be playing a concert here this weekend. If you haven't seen them here previously (they were at the 2009 Ocrafolk Festival, and also did an outdoor show last fall), I highly recommend catching this performance. They are excellent! Here are a few more details from the email I received about this today, including a link where you can listen to some samples.

MANDOLIN ORANGE

in concert at Deepwater Theater & Music Hall

Saturday, Feb. 27th at 7:00pm

Doors open at 6:30


This is a free concert made possible with support from Ocrafolk
Festival Outreach, Ocracoke Arts Council, Beaufort County Arts
Council, North Carolina Arts Council and the National Endowment for
the Arts.


Here is a bit from their website:

An all-around original folk duo. Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz pair
guitar, violin and mandolin to compliment alluring lyrics and seamless
harmonies. “The duo’s voices and instruments fit alongside each other
like Johnny and June Carter Cash … Mandolin Orange embodies the same
backwoods lovebirds aesthetic” (DailyTarHeel). Their debut album,
releasing in Spring 2010, reflects both the influence of traditional
music on their contemporary style and the simplified, authentic
recordings which make up the compilation. Their influences range from
Cole Porter to Doris Day to Townes Van Zandt, but their sound is
something charming and all its own.

Bills!

I just spent the last several hours paying bills! (It wouldn't have taken quite that long, except I kept being distracted by the winter Olympics.) Anyway, I just thought I'd post a short blog whining about the pain of having to pay bills, no matter where you live. (Just in case you thought Ocracoke was all fun and games...LOL).

4th of July options

Understandably, after last year's tragedy on the 4th of July, the Civic and Business Association is considering other options for Independence Day celebrations and entertainment. I got an email recently about the fact that a laser show is being considered as an alternative to fireworks. In case you're interested, here's a link where you can learn more about the company being considered, at this one, you can see some of their previous shows.

I think the laser show is a great idea personally and hope it works out to prsent it here...I'm already looking forward to seeing it! What do you think? Leave a comment and let me know.

Warm weekend

The weekend weather here was lovely - highs in the 60s and abundant sunshine. After weeks of cold overcast days, rain, and even snow, it was a welcome change! We went to the beach both days, and I had to stop Connor from jumping in the ocean he was so excited to be there!

Hope you had some nice weekend weather, too, wherever you are...

Movie night

I finally got around to watching a movie that I've had from Netflix for literally over two months! We had watched several others during that time period, but always set this one aside because it is so long. But when I realized how long it had been here at the house, I made an executive decision that we were going to watch it tonight. I'm glad I did, because I really liked it. It was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and although parts of it were somewhat sickly sweet, I enjoyed it and found it thought provoking overall. So if you find yourself with an extra 3 hours (or slighly less), check it out - you might enjoy it too.

I'm still coughing and therefore not getting out as much as usual...so I don't have any interesting Ocracoke news. Hence the blog about a movie.

Another news source

Hyde County has recently started a newsletter, so now you have another source for keeping up with what's going on around here. You can sign up to receive the newsletter (via email) here. Happy reading!

Ferry woes

There have been several times this winter when mainland ferry service was limited due to issues with inspections and/or vessel maintenance. The latest impact is worse than usual, as there are now problems with two ferries at the same time. Here's the email I received today about the current situation.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DATE: Feb. 17, 2010
CONTACT: Lucy Wallace, (252) 473-3461

FERRY RUNS MAY BE LIMITED AT SEVERAL ROUTES THURSDAY
Ocracoke, Cedar Island and Swan Quarter routes affected

MANNS HARBOR — The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Ferry
Division announces that runs at its Ocracoke-Cedar Island and
Ocracoke-Swan Quarter routes may be limited for several days.

The Motor Vessel Carteret must undergo a U.S. Coast Guard inspection
Thursday and will not be carrying passengers. The Motor Vessel Pamlico
is currently undergoing repairs to its engine and may not be available
to make runs. If both boats are out of operation, only one Sound Class
ferry, the MV Silver Lake, will be making runs between all three
ports.

If only one boat is operating, the following schedule will be in place:

Departing from Ocracoke at 7 a.m. to Swan Quarter;
Departing from Swan Quarter at 10 a.m. to Ocracoke;
Departing from Ocracoke at 2 p.m. to Cedar Island; and
Departing from Cedar Island at 5 p.m. to Ocracoke.


Once the MV Carteret passes its inspection and the MV Pamlico is
repaired, all routes will return to normal operating schedules.

For up-to-date information, call the reservations center or the ferry
terminal you wish to depart from. The telephone numbers are:

Reservations Center – 1-800-293-3779, Press 2
Ocracoke Operations – 1-252-928-5311
Cedar Island Operations – 1-252-225-7411
Swan Quarter Operations – 1-252-926-6401



***NCDOT***

Ratings

In case you've ever wondered about the level of services available in a small community on an island, rest assured that we are well taken care of out here. Recently, two of the community services which receive ratings improved those scores.

The island daycare center - Ocracoke Child Care - recently received a 5 (out of 5) rating, an improvement from the completely respectable 4 rating they had held for several years. My understanding is that it is quite difficult to achieve a rating of 5, so this was quite an accomplishment. Since Connor attends there, I can attest to the fact that they do a terrific job teaching all of the children in their care.

The other recent rating improvement was the score of the Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department, which went from an 8 rating to a 6 (lower numbers are better in this rating system). I liked this particular improvement very much, as it resulted in a reduction in my homeowners insurance of over $500! (If you live on the island and haven't seen your homeowner's rate lowered, you may need to contact your insurance agent and let him/her know about the fire department rating improvement - they can follow up on whether your rate should be lowered. I had to do that with mine.) From what I've learned, it is really difficult for an all-volunteer fire department to receive a 6 rating, and there are only 2 departments on the Outer Banks which have a better rating, one of which is not all-volunteer, so this was quite an accomplishment, too! Having personally experienced the care and concern shown by our volunteer firefighters, I can attest to this rating, too!

It's good to live in a community where people take good care of each other, and are recognized for doing so. (Well, it would be good even if they weren't recognized, too, of course. But I'm pleased that they are receiving their due.)

Sunset reflected

My sister and I took a quick drive on the beach with Connor this evening right at sunset, and Jocelyn snapped this photo of the sunset reflected in both the mirror and the side of the car.



Too bad the mirror wasn't cleaner!

Jazzy evening

I thoroughly enjoyed the Ocracoke Jazz Society Valentine's Day concert tonight, and got to support a good cause (the Fire Department) at the same time. It was a terrific evening!

The Community Center was decorated to the nines...



...there were plenty of sweet snacks...



...the music was excellent...





...and there was even some dancing!



What more could you want for a Saturday night out?

SNOW!!

Ocracoke has joined the rest of the mid Atlantic coast in the fact that we've now had snow, too! It started snowing late on Friday night, and continued for several hours, switching to rain in the early morning. Here are a few pictures I took during the evening while the snow was still coming down.

I loved the way the snow looked on my front door mat.



I elected not to sit down...



It's difficult to photograph snow falling, but this shot turned out pretty well, I thought.



These next few photos were taken on Saturday.



It cracked me up that this guy only scraped the snow off the driver side of his windshield!



Snowy fence.



I found this combination of thatched top and snow amusing.



Ducks staying warm on a Silver Lake dock.

O'cock shelling

Have I blogged before about O'cock shelling? If not (well, even if so, really), I'll explain. It's the way locals go shelling in the winter: driving down the beach, looking out the car window! When you see a good one, you just pull up close, open the door, reach down and pick it up. It's shelling for people who don't want to get cold. Love it! Here's my latest O'cock shelling find...the big ones are easy to spot!

Friendship bread

If you've ever heard of or made Amish friendship bread, you know the general idea. You get a starter bag from a friend, which you watch over for about 10 days, adding a few ingredients around day five. Then you pour it into a bowl, add more ingredients to create four more starter bags, one of which you keep and the other three you give to friends. Finally, you add a bunch of ingredients to what's left in the bowl, and bake up three loaves of delicious bread.

If you've only ever had friendship bread while living in an average sized city or town (not a small community like Ocracoke), you probably haven't had any challenges with the process. Around here, getting all the ingredients turned out to be impossible for me. When I went to the Community Store and discovered they didn't have any vanilla instant pudding mix, I didn't think anything of it. When I went from there to the Variety Store and learned that they, too, didn't have any vanilla instant pudding mix, I realized it was a pattern. And then it hit me: of course both stores are out of vanilla pudding mix! Every 10 days, an increasing number of people is coming in here to buy it so they can make their friendship bread.

The solution? I made CHOCOLATE Amish friendship bread. It is insanely delicious. I have two starter kits (one's already taken), so let me know if you want one. (The starter isn't chocolate...you can make it chocolate or vanilla, or any other available pudding mix flavor, for that matter!)

Wild and windy

The wind has been whipping the island today, rattling doors and windows and making my awning flap wildly. The mainland ferries were shut down this afternoon after the mid-day runs, and the Hatteras route stopped running early in the evening. I've heard there's some flooding on Hatteras island, but am not sure whether there has been any here or not (there isn't any in the area right around my house, where I've been most of the day since this crazy cold I have just won't seem to go completely away).

Hopefully the crazy weather we've been having recently will settle down soon...but March is still ahead, and it's often one of the windiest, rainiest months! I've certainly had my fill of wind, rain, flooding, and icy cold, but there's no controlling the weather, so I guess we'll just have to see how it goes...

Pub project

There is a construction project going on at the Pub right now. (I suppose that's one benefit of being closed for a while!) I'm curious to see when this is completed whether it's simpy an extension of the porch area, or if it will be enclosed, enlarging the bar area.



I'll try to keep you posted as the work proceeds. It should be done fairly quickly, since the Pub is supposed to reopen in March.

Sunshine and ice

It has been really cold here for the last few nights. The puddles which are still around from the last rain freeze over each evening. Just looking at them makes it seem even colder to me.

The afternoons, however, have been beautifully clear and sunny. Outside my window, there's a shady spot where the ice stays all day in spite of the sunshine, making for an odd feeling. It looks warm and cold at the same time!

I can't complain, though...at least we're not getting the blizzards that keep blanketing much of the rest of the east coast!

Party

I went to an all ladies cocktail party tonight. We had been invited to dress up, and some ladies went all out with that. There were gorgeous flowy dresses as well as short saucy ones. It was a rockin' party, with plenty of delicious punch and other drinks. The music was loud, and everyone was dancing. In short, it wasn't a tea party.

And yet, in the midst of this raucous fun, I looked around and had an incredible, quiet revelation. These women - most of whom were tipsy and at least one who was flat out drunk, all of whom were dancing like crazy - are my friends. These are the women who will celebrate together in good times and support each other in hard times. These women will hold me up when I need holding, help me when I need helping, and just be there when I need a listening ear - and I will do the same for them. It was an odd time to have a weepy moment, in the middle of a wild party, but I enjoyed it.

100!

Yesterday was the 100th day of school, and the first graders celebrated in style! They wore "100 days" hats (and made a special one for principal George Ortman), decorated the classroom, and each of them brought 100 of something. I enjoyed celebrating with them and seeing their collections of 100 things, which I thought you might find interesting too.

Several students brought toys...

Parker and Russell both had 100 pieces of Lego



Christian had 100 snap together blocks



and Yalena had 100 small toys.



That's Becky with Yalena...she was one of several kids who brought seashells...

Dylan had his in a bucket



Hannah had hers in a tin. That's Whisper with her beads, and Alexander with his stuffed animals (yes, he brought 100 stuffed animals!)



I was seriously jealous of Mason's collection of 100 whole scotch bonnets!



Cole brought in 100 white beans, which I wanted to cook and eat!



It was a fun event to celebrate the 100th day milestone. Maybe we adults should take a lesson from these kids and celebrate little things along the way in our lives, too.

That's amore...

Zillie's is planning a special wine tasting for Valentine's weekend. Here are the details.

Amore, Amore, Amore...

Food and Wine For Love...

A Special Wine Tasting For Valentine's Weekend

Since before the days when Marc Antony first fed grapes to Cleopatra, certain foods developed a reputation of being associated with the art of romance...

And not surprisingly wine tops the list as the "lovers' choice" of beverages.

Wine pairs beautifully with so many classic "love foods" offering all sorts of inspiration for a romantic Valentines celebration.

We Invite You to Join Us on
Friday, February 12th
at 6 p.m.

For A Special Valentine's Wine Tasting

Slow down, relax, and fully appreciate your senses.

Five romantic wines paired with mystical food guaranteed to Fan the Flames for $15. Call
Now to Reserve Your Spot!

252-928-9036

No provider

Getting specialized medical care can sometimes be a challenge when you live on a small island. Certainly, visits to specialists or any sort of surgical prodedure or equipment-centric testing (xray, MRI, etc.) involve a long drive, since none of those things is an option right here at home. Standard, more typical care, however, usually is not a problem. Until this week.

The Health Center was - until recently - staffed by two people who can diagnose conditions, order lab/bloodwork type testing, and prescribe medication: Dr. Moore, and Gail Covington (I think she's a PA, or LNP...something along those lines). They worked on a rotating schedule - Dr. Moore for a week, then Gail for the next, etc. Unfortunately, Dr. Moore recently decided to move on to a practice in the Triad area. He will be greatly missed here!

What that meant, this week, was that there was no provider on the island. (For emergencies, our wonderful paramedics and EMTs were - and are - of course still available and able to take excellent care of any urgent situation.)

What that meant for me today was about half of the day spent going to Hatteras and back for a Dr. visit for the entire family, since we all now have the awful upper respiratory issue that I started with last weekend (and we discovered Connor has an ear infection as well, which explained the high fever he had on Wednesday which led me to call one of our aforementioned wonderful paramedics for advice in the middle of the night). So I'm just plain tired this week...from being sick myself, from not sleeping well because of needing to check Connor's temperature occasionally during the night, and from spending a chunk of Thursday going to another island for medical care.

Would all of this make me even consider going to live somewhere else? Not for a minute. Like many of the challenges associated with living here, it's all worth it in the long run. It's not like we're sick every day, so the good days more than make up for the inconveniences!

Hope you have access to all the care (medical and otherwise) you need, wherever you are...

So sick...

You may have noticed that the last few blogs were not very personal, and there certainly weren't any photos involved. Okay, I'll admit it. They were 90% copied and pasted from emails I received, and probably made the blog look like Ocracoke Chamber of Commerce rather than a journal about my life.

There is a reason, though. I have been really sick for the last several days. I slept through almost the entire weekend, and have hardly been out of the house at all this week. Connor and John are now coming down with what I've had, so the whole family is under the weather at this point. (I'm getting better, but still not anywhere near my usual self, and going to bed early is a must, leaving less time for blogging and other more fun pursuits.)

I'll try to get back to more interesting posts as soon as I can. In the meantime, hope you are well, wherever you are...

Dajio for Valentine's Day

I got an email today about the special brunch and dinner planned for Valentine's Day at Dajio. Here's more info:

Brunch Buffet from 11-2
$15/ Adults

Dinner: 5-9
Specials include while they last:
Appetizers: Local Shellfish Ceviche
Eggplant and Roasted Red Pepper Tostada with lime chile pesto
Broiled Ocracoke Oysters with Saffron Hollandaise

Entrees:
“Surf and Turf” Grilled pepper crusted filet mignon with a pan fried shrimp and scallop butter, grilled asparagus and roasted rosemary potatoes
Nori wrapped tempura Tuna with lemon jasmine rice and sesame tomato relish
Fresh linguine with local shrimp, scallops, and oysters, caramelized prosciutto and a house made shrimp broth

A great selection of house made desserts as well as our complete winter menu!


I'm hungry already!

February happenings

There are several events planned for February on the island.

Dinner Fundraiser for Tina
Saturday February 6 - 4:00 to 6:00 PM - Methodist Church Rec Hall

Superbowl Lunch
Sunday February 7 - Creekside Cafe

Valentine's Jazz Concert and Pary
Saturday February 13 - 7:00 PM - Community Center

Lunch
Sunday February 14 - 12:30 PM - Methodist Church Rec Hall

Mandolin Orange concert
Saturday February 27 - 7:00 PM - DeepWater Theater

Come visit! (Or just enjoy, if you're already here...)