1958
Solomon Barnett reported that he observed the big wild cat’s tracks again in the heavy snow early Thursday morning. He said the wild cat had travelled in the big snow Wednesday night. It was a trail that leads from Jake Hollow to Byrd Creek and the wild cat has been going the trail for several years. Some people who live in those areas report that the wild cat has killed several hens for them the last few years.
Floyd Barnett had the misfortune for his car to catch on fire in the heavy snow here on Byrd Creek highway Friday and burn up.
1/2/58
—1974 Winter Edition of the Foxfire Magazine written by Harvey Miller
Harvey Miller wrote a weekly column for the Tri-County News located in Spruce Pine, North Carolina for about sixty years. I’ve shared his columns from the collection in the Foxfire magazine often over the years.
The old newspaper pieces are fascinating because of the cultural and historical information shared. I’m grateful for that aspect of Miller’s writing, yet that’s not the main reason I enjoy his articles.
I love the everydayness of them. Floyd’s car burning up would have been big doings in Pigeon Roost. You know everybody and their brother would have been talking about it. Miller often wrote of people who were sick or had recently been injured. Again folks would have been talking about them and worrying about them too.
In other words, I love the simple news of Pigeon Roost he shared because it is relatable and feels like home. Those everyday incidents are the moments that make up our lives.
Yesterday my brother Steve came for a visit. He told us one of our good friends was sick and couldn’t work last week. He’d meet his men at the door every morning and tell them what to do for the day and then go back to bed. One day he told them to take a truck that hadn’t been cranked in a while. They started it up and it caught on fire. Might have been a rat’s nest. Three fire extinguishers and a fire department couldn’t save it and it burnt to the ground. Thankfully the building it was in did not catch fire.
If you’ve been reading the Blind Pig for a long long time you’ll remember the big snow we had in December one year and the mountain lion story from our snowy walk. Miller’s talk of the tracks reminded me of that special Christmas.
Last night’s video: Easy Breakfast Bread & Goodbye to the Christmas Cards.
Tipper
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Good Morning all.
I love reading Mr Millers columns. I would love to have a copy of all his writings. His columns were relatable to the people back then just as your blogs are relatable to us today.
Tipper it was 65 degrees. this morning at 5 o clock and dropped to 45 degrees this afternoon at 4 o clock here in southwest ohio It’s no. Wonder that everyone has a cold or flu
Hi,
We never had pigeon roosts here in our community years ago. We do have plenty of bobcats, skunks, possums, turkeys, doves, plenty of song birds, our monarch butterfly pair, foxes, a few coyotes, a few mink, a few musk rats, a heron, several eagles, hawks, and our beloved osprey. Plus some critters we don’t really talk about like the mountain lion youngster that crossed the road when we were coming back from Stuart near Vesta and our beloved bear that lives where ever he chooses. We haven’t had a good snow this year to show animal tracks. It has been cold and about 3 inches of snow in December. I miss the old 6 inches of snow in January that caused school to be out all month. Take it easy,
Kathy Patterson
In Oktibbeha County Mississippi, where we lived in the Summer of 1980, my husband was driving back from taking his daughter back to her Mom’s house & saw a black panther jump across the gravel road in front of to him. We lived in the country & it was about 6:30 pm (way before dark in the Summer). He called a game warden & he said there were no such thing as panthers in Mississippi & definitely not a black one because black panthers were old world cats. My husband knew what he saw & an acquaintance told him there had been a picture of a man & a strung-up black panther in the Oktibbeha newspaper many years back. My husband researched old newspapers until he found the picture & that validated what he saw. My husband was an attorney and you know what they say about attorneys….. they all lie, lie, lie, but my husband was the most honest man I knew other than my father. Even after my husband went back & told the game warden about the newspaper picture he found, the game warden still said my husband could not have seen a panther.
Funniest radio announcement I ever heard. One day I think it was back in the late 1960’s, I was driving in SC and while I was listening to the radio, the host broke into the program with a special announcement. A man’s mule named “Clyde” had escaped his pasture and was lost. The host requested that all his listeners be on the lookout for the man’s mule and anyone saw/found the mule would they please call the owner or the radio station. That mule was important enough for everyone in that area that the owner called a radio station for help, the station felt it was important enough to interrupt their broadcasting to ask for help and I’m sure the man’s neighbors went looking for the mule. Never heard any more on the story.
This is how life should be
Norman, I am praying that the medicine works well for you.
Tipper, I remember watching that video when you, Matt and the girls were walking up that snow trail and Matt commented on those tracks. I was so enjoying the beauty of the snow on the trees, and the girls having fun. My thoughts turned serious when Matt found those tracks, and I thought oh my goodness that painter is tracking them. But I remembered that Matt always carries a gun when he goes out in the woods but it made me feel a lot better when ya all got back to your house:)
Tipper, I’ve seen a lot of comments on ways to use those beautiful cards. I’ve got to email you or mail you a pattern to take a card’s front and make it into a beautiful little box that you can put a small gift in. One of my older Christian sister’s in our Sunday School class taught us how to do it. Also, you can make beautiful book markers out of them and gift them to family, friends, senior centers, libraries, assisted living places, etc. I would hold on to them for a while and study on it.
May God bless ya all and I’m praying Granny has a good day and weekend!
yes, about 25 yrs. ago I met an old, old man who, by himself, had a table at our local Red Cross Christmas Craft Fair . . .I approached his table (I remember having to get on my tippy-toes to discover his faire, over the shoulders of just 1 couple at his table), with curiosity over “what was he selling?”. Whatever he had “must be pretty small”, and there were no posters or signs to solve the mystery!
When it came my turn to step-up, I discovered what I think you wrote about . . .’small (& tiny, too!) little shiny & colour-full(!) boxes, made from “last year’s” Christmas cards! The man explained that once he had been shown this craft and he has found such delight in people’s reaction to them, that he has been making them since his retirement and sharing “how to”, as well as “having the chance to give somethin’ IN ONE”. Each box (none measured, just cut n’ folded “by eye” according to the need) was different from the next — some showed *hints-of Christmas, with bright red & green, while others were more subtle (almost “formal”) in silver or gold, and some looked ‘pearlescent’!
I always remember this man and his generous character to this day (he seemed to find as much joy in spreading ‘how-to’, as he did in selling them by the handful), every time I have the need to wrap a v.special trinket or single piece of jewelry and — ever since — I ALWAYS tear the front of “this year’s” Christmas cards off when I take them down,…remembering the old man at that card table, spreading joy with these unique little gems,. . . and taking “one last peek” at the inside for the last time, to see ‘who the card was from’. I mentioned these boxes in a Comment last year, here — I’m glad that you’re offering-up the idea, too! It’s a small world, after all!
I don’t know how often events where I grew up made the newspaper, but the community knew. There was a Baptist church and a Methodist church in the area. If anyone was hurt or died the church bells rang. Everyone went to the church to see what was needed. I’ve helped put up hay and tobacco, helped dig graves, cut firewood, milked the cows for several days and probably several other tasks that I can’t remember. After telephones were common word went out on the party lines. Even if you didn’t get a call you heard about it by “eavesdropping”.
My father’s family lived in a small Michigan town, Gladwin. The weekly newspaper, The Gladwin Record, had articles from different people around town telling of the comings and goings of the people. We got the paper in our Dearborn Heights, Mi home and my father and I always read every page and I always looked to see what family visited who. And always delighted if mention was made of our visit to our family up there. Blessings for the New Year to all. Prayers ❤️
Just out of curiosity, was “Pigeon Roost” a breeding ground for the passenger pigeon in colonial days, thus, the name?
V.A., yes that is where the name originated 🙂
Too bad y’all shot them all… 😉
Good Morning Tipper, Matt and everyone. We had a woman , Ruth Bowling, that lived in Shady Valley, TN that wrote a weekly column for our local newspaper, The Tomahawk. It was just like this. Births, sickness, visits and visitors, travels, and deaths she reported everything that went on up on the Iron Mountain. I loved it. I loved visiting Spruce Pine with my Late BFF, Nikki. We went at least once a month for years. I loved those little day trips/adventures. She like to stay on the road and I liked being with her. I stay home now and I love it too. TY for the great video last night. I’m gonna bake the bread. My Postum came in the mail yesterday. I made a cup this morning. It stirred easily into the hot water from my Hamilton Beach Brew Station. Sadly it had no flavor for me, but that is ok. When GOD wants me to taste something HE will let it happen. My son can enjoy it too since he can’t have any caffeine anymore. Praise Report: Seems this new heart doctor says his Immune System is attacking his whole body. He wants us to go to Vanderbilt Hospital or to Cleveland Clinic to see specialists. He doesn’t have insurance so we are trying to contact the hospitals to see if one of them are doing research in the field and will take him as a free patient. We would sure appreciate everyone’s prayers that if it is GOD’s will that he will be able to go. I keep you all in my prayers. I hope your day is blessed, mine always is : that’s another Praise report 😉 . I love y’all. -Barbara
Barbara, I will pray for God to open up a spot for him at one of the hospitals!!
Enjoyed todays post, thank you.
As always praying for Granny.
I love reading your posts everyday. I want to make the breakfast bread. It sounds good and easy.
It’s already 63 degrees in Monroe, Georgia. Too warm for January.
Have a blessed day❣️Prayers for a good day for Granny
That big snow you had in December must have been better than any gift Santa brought you. I don’t remember your snowy walk in the woods, but it sounds exciting with or without a mountain lion’s tracks. When it snows here, I love to go looking for animal tracks. It is currently 63 degrees here in KY. On today’s date in 2009, we had one of the worst ice storms this area has ever seen. I was without electricity for ten days.
Good morning Pressleys! Very windy in SW Ohio today. Big rain coming through. Hope you have a wonderful day.
I don’t comment everyday but I read each article you post. Enjoy them so much! Blessings
christmas 2010, i remember it well. i was snowed in a cabin for a week and, instead of enjoying it, spent the time worrying i wouldn’t be able to get back home in time for my teaching job to start in january. i wouldn’t do that today. i wouldn’t have read your christmas story then, though, as i had no wifi there!
good morning friends and family, God bless you, I have received some medication, would you be so kind as to pray, but this medication has no negative side effects, no poison no impurities, pray it only does what it’s supposed to do, heal my body, in the name of Jesus, thank you and God bless you very much
Norman, I pray it helps you!!
Well, I used to think those little personal, gossipy kind of notes in our county newspaper were silly. But now I know they were about community and relationships and the particular facts were not the most important part. BP&A is the same. The backbone is community based on relationships in common whether it be shared experiences or shared interests. One way it might be said is ‘we are more alike than we are different.’ I am fascinated in reading the comments to see how far from beyond the geography of Appalachia they originate. Often they are 3rd generation memories that show just how durable the Appalachian life ways and speech are. BP&A has reinforced in me the idea that I could live anywhere within Appalachia and feel at home within 6 months or so. I do not have a similar confidence for anywhere else.
I remember when some of the small country towns in my area would have a once a week newspaper. Now I only know of one town that still prints a paper. I guess today’s “social media” put them out of business. These papers would have a section about people or things going on in the community. Many years ago while out hunting with my father in law we came across a red dirt spot in the woods, there were large cat prints in it. They were too big for a bobcat, along about the same time, there were reports of people seeing some cougars. They DNR said the stories were not true, I know a man that trapped in the area and probably knew the area better than any DNR officer said there were two in the area. I called him a modern day Daniel Boone. I know they were a couple of horses killed and the owners said there were large cat tracks around the horses.
Yeah, Randy, the official story for a very long time was, “No cougar here.” But that has been breaking down, in part because of wildlife cameras. Cougars range over large areas and are only seen in one vicinity every once in a great while. Knowing what we know has happened with deer and with turkey, I think it safe to say animals will find and occupy any suitable habitat. They don’t need our agreement or acknowledgment either. Seems jaguars coming from Mexico into Texas is another example in recent years.