Color coordination

Smith St., Charleston, SC   

I like it when the house color matches the ride.

Confederate Statue - Kingstree, SC

Kingstree, SC 

Finally a Confederate statue that makes me grin with glee! It is a blooper. In front of the courthouse in Kingstree, SC is a statue honoring Confederate soldiers. There is a tiny discrepancy. The statue is that of a Yankee. The mistake is so delicious I had to get a picture for myself. Meanwhile no one seems to mind and the standard inscription honors Confederate soldiers.

KINGSTREE, SC — Around the turn of the 20th century, as veterans of the Civil War began dying off at a frightful rate, there was a burst of activity, both in South and North, to erect monuments to honor their dead and their veterans.
Williamsburg County was no exception, and May 10, 1910 was the great day of the unveiling of the Confederate soldier’s statue by the Courthouse in Kingstree. The statue was a result of much effort by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, who had raised the funds by holding many ice cream socials and strawberry festivals, and hired a noted Italian sculptor to create the monument.
According to local historian Bessie Swann Britton, there was a gasp of astonishment as the statue was unveiled and the crowd realized that it was the image of a Yankee soldier.As it turns out, the sculptor had mass produced many statues for towns all across the country, and he had switched the Kingstree statue with one intended for a Union memorial in York, Maine.
In York, the error was discovered before the unveiling ceremony, but the frugal New Englanders refused to pay for a second statue, and they went ahead to erect the Confederate statue in the center of town.
At the time, neither town knew where their intended statue had gone. Today, both statues remain in place, perhaps due to the cost of rectification, or maybe as a symbol that it’s time to let bygones be bygones.
The story is told, perhaps apocryphal, of a Confederate veteran who was present at the Kingstree unveiling, but had been imbibing freely ahead of time. When the statue was uncovered and he saw a Yankee soldier on the pedestal, he raised his arms into the air and cried, “Grant, I surrender!” before pitching forward into a ‘shine’ induced slumber.Posted by Brock Townsend at Thursday, February 06, 2014 

A spot of color on Magnolia Rd.

Magnolia Rd., Charleston, SC    

Magnolia Road had been closed to traffic for quite some time but is open now so I did my morning walk that way. This little convenience shop always caught my eye as it has before.

This storm in Texas is horrifying, isn't it? We had 24 inches of rain a few years ago but that was spaced out over a few days. This is unbelievable. They are going to need so much help.

Pancito & Lefty guest chef dinner

My friend English and I were lucky participants in a dinner at a Pancito & Lefty - a relatively new restaurant on upper King St. last night. This was my first visit and it was for a dinner presented by a visiting chef from El Destilado in Oaxaca, Mexico. The temperature was perfect for outside dining, each dish was creative and delicious, our companions all clever and interesting people. What a fun treat. Put it on your list!

El Destilado's Head Chef Julio Aguilera and his team are coming directly from Oaxaca to collaborative with P+L's Robert Berry to present creative reinventions of classic Mexican dishes. The dinner will be preceded by a tasting of rare agave spirits not available in the U.S., hosted by El Destilado's co-founder and mezcal expert, Jason Cox.

Walk with me - swamp color

Audubon Swamp Walk, Charleston, SC   

It may not be peak blooming season but there is always something in bloom at Magnolia Plantation's Audubon Swamp walk. It didn't seem so unbearably humid this morning and it was a pleasant walk.

As I began my walk the trolley with passengers came by. My least favorite thing is having a nature walk interrupted by a loud speaker but this time I heard the tour guide telling his passengers that the swamp had been the filming location for the movie Swamp Thing in 1982. After laughing at the scenes on youtube I immediately ordered the dvd. How funny to have a swamp creature scene in exactly the same place I was walking today.

Ready to dig

Garden tool gate, Hwy 52, SC   

I am always willing to detour to admire this gate made of garden tools at the now abandoned Carolina Nursery on Hwy 52 between Goose Creek and Monks Corner. No matter what becomes of the property I hope the gate is salvaged and reinstalled somewhere cool. 

Have a good weekend kids. I have the folks in the path of hurricane Harvey in my thoughts. 

Sadness in Charleston

Virginia's, King St., Charleston, SC    

It is a sad day in Charleston after a shooting at Virginia's, a popular local restaurant on King St. leading to the death of a young chef. My sympathy is with his family and friends. 

Jekyll Island ride

Jekyll Island, GA

I spotted this sweet ride on Jekyll Island over the weekend. Pretty as a picture so I took one.

I walked down to the Green Goat restaurant close to home for dinner this evening and looping around the neighborhood afterwards was able to get my 10,000 steps in. It is still hot and humid in Charleston.

I am ready for another Eclipse, aren't you? It was so much fun. 

Sip o' Cider

Carolina Cherry Company, Hwy 17 South, SC    

How many times have I/you passed this touristy place on Highway 17 South? Pretty darn many if we are truthful. I have never stopped assuming it was just for tourists grabbing the chance to buy one more gift item on the way out of town.

That may be the truth, but who cares? We finally pulled in to check the place out and have our courtesy sip of cider. They have South Carolina grits, tea, jams and jellies, soap, Nathalie Dupree's cookbooks and peanuts. What more do you want? Bathrooms of course, but they were out of order. :)

Eclipse 2017

Totality, Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital, Charleston, SC    

What a fun day! After all the build up we had so many clouds and rolls of thunder I wasn't sure if we would see anything at all, but we did. The glasses worked and the image was exactly as it was supposed to be. It was a pure delight. We set a few chairs out in front of the hospital and enjoyed the show.

I didn't worry about taking pictures of the actual event but enjoyed the camaraderie and awesome display of nature. The picture above was a cell phone shot during totality and it didn't get as dark as I thought it might but was certainly impressive. What great fun. Can we do it again tomorrow?

Church Photo in Lieu of Attendance - Jekyll Island, GA

Faith Chapel, Jekyll Island, GA

I was on the road this weekend and a bit worried about it considering all the ominous traffic warnings as folks head to eclipse viewing territory. We aimed for Brunswick, St. Simon's and Jekyll Island on the coast of Georgia. It was all new territory for me so I was in my glory. I never tire of seeing new sights.

This Sunday's Church Photo in Lieu of Attendance is the sweet Faith Chapel on Jekyll Island.

Jekyll Island is a small barrier island on the southeast coast of Georgia. It was purchased in 1886 by a group of wealthy industrialists (including J.P. Morgan, William K. Vanderbilt, William Rockefeller, and Marshall Field) and developed into the Jekyll Island Club, a private winter retreat. A clubhouse was completed in 1888, and members built 'cottages' the size of mansions nearby. 
With all the growth on the island, the members needed a place to worship. A chapel was built, but quickly outgrown; Faith Chapel was completed in time for the 1904 resort season.
The chapel's Gothic-influenced design, exterior gargoyles, luxurious carpeting, and rich stained wood interior are enough to impress. But the west wall, on the chapel's front, features a rare treasure. The stained glass window on this wall was designed, installed, and signed by Louis Comfort Tiffany, reportedly one of only five such pieces known to exist.

Luckily we found smooth sailing all the way with no traffic issues at all. We met with friends, had lunch on Jekyll Island, dinner on Brunswick Island and had a lovely water front walk along St. Simon's.

Follow Lizard Man's advice, protect your eyes

Lizard Man, Charleston, SC    

We had as much fun as you can with a $19 Lizard Man costume at our Pre-Eclipse party today. The city is in a frenzy. We ended the week with a quick break for music, pop-sickles, moon pies and a Lizard Man photo op. There are already reports of heavy traffic but I hope most of our visitors have arrived in time to enjoy the weekend in warm, muggy Charleston. 

I for one have had a hard time getting my 10,000 steps in in this heat. Puff, pant. 7,600 steps will have to do. 

My eclipse kit

Eclipse kit, Charleston, SC   

The word in the swamp is that there may be sightings of Lizard Man during the upcoming solar unrest. I have my Eclipse Kit ready.

Mail call!

Salters, SC    

This is an original! Every once and a while I consider doing a series on fun mail boxes and then I forget about it. This one called for a quick turn around for a photo op. Send these folks a letter!

I can't help think of all the excited kids ready for the first day of school in Charleston County tomorrow. I'll be looking forward to all the first day at school photos on Facebook tomorrow. 

On the road - Florence, SC

Julia Belle's, Florence, SC     

My weekend day trip was to Florence, SC and googling a place for lunch we drove directly to the Florence Farmer's Market and had lunch at Julia Belle's. I was amazed at the size of the Farmer's Market building. It was large enough for cars to drive right through the building and pull up to park under the shed.

Besides the usual produce in the building there was another huge structure with antiques and thrift items so big that it was divided into sections by rooms - living room goods, bedroom furniture and so on. Sadly for me, my house is tiny and if I bring home anything new, something old must go.

We made a stop in the historic area that is under renovation and admired the shops and Hotel Florence but not for long. The skies opened and rain put a stop to our downtown exploration. Thanks for a nice visit Florence!