Copperhead Feeding Behavior

In summertime, it's possible that you might encounter large numbers of Copperheads feeding on baby cicada insects as they emerge from the roots of trees.

Each summer, usually beginning around the first of June and continuing into September, cicada larvae that have spent their developmental period burrowed in the soil around the tree roots on which they feed, begin emerging for their metamorphosis into adults.

The larvae, looking like hump-backed beetles, begin digging their way to the surface around dusk. They emerge from the ground, crawl to the nearest vertical structure (usually a tree), climb a foot or two up the trunk, their "shell" splits along its back and the adult cicada works its way out.

Some of the highest-volume movements of cicada larvae are to large oak trees on lawns. These nocturnal emergences of cicada larvae are like the opening of an all-you-can-eat dinner for some wildlife. Yellow-crowned night herons are one of the species that regularly prey on emerging cicada larvae. Copperheads are another. And when the cicada dinner bell rings, it can draw a copper-colored, fanged crowd.

Amazing that this wasn't known before now. There's still plenty to learn in this old world of ours.

Thanks to Brock at Free North Carolina for linking it.

Blessed Are the Cheesemakers...

...there are so few good ones.

Thomas Merton put them on the map. Their fruitcakes are definitely not the kind to re-gift. And their fudge is just about as heavenly as fudge can get.

But the Abbey of Gethsemani, near Bardstown, Kentucky, is dropping one of the products whose sale has supported the monastery for years.

Because of the dwindling number of monks, the production of cheese recently came to an end, according to a report by WDRD.

Founded in 1848, Gethsemani is one of the oldest monasteries in the United States and attracts visitors from all over the world.

They may be attracting visitors from all over the world, but they aren't attracting vocations. People view monastic retreats as a spiritual vacation, not a life that they want to live. There are many reasons for this - - secularization of the US population, the catholic priest pedophile scandal, inability to come to grips with social media and the need to advertise their existence, strict bars to entry. Where are the 21st-century Mertons to draw the vocations?

Restaurant Review: BarBee's Bar-B-Que, Peachland, NC

Haven't done a barbecue joint review in a while, time to get back into the habit since I have a reliable car again. BarBee's is a small country barbecue restaurant right off of US 74, the main highway from Charlotte to the Carolina coastline and Wilmington. BarBee's is in Peachland:

It's easy to miss the turn-off coming from Charlotte, and I did so, driving nearly to Wadesboro before turning around and approaching from the other direction. Here's the road sign:

No other signage is in evidence, so the place can be hard to notice; since they have a regular local crowd, that may be what the management desires. There was a portable smoker parked out by the road sign:

There was a half-dozen cars in front of the place, a pretty good-sized crowd for a small place like this. As I looked for a parking slot I noticed several cats in evidence around the restaurant; don't know if they were restaurant cats or feral. Around back was a large, fresh woodpile, a promising note:

There was also a large propane tank, which may or not mean the use of propane smokers:

Menu. In addition to barbecue, the restaurant offers hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken and fish. The menu states that the barbecue is cooked over hickory, but this doesn't mean that gas or electricity aren't the primary heat source, with wood being used only for flavor. The waitress, a teenager, professed not to know.

The interior was handsome, with a narrow dining area, booths along each wall, a couple of small tables in the center. The walls were paneled and roofed with 4" boards stained a honey color. Three windows looked onto a second dining room the same size as the primary, but with glass windows and a view of the parking lot. I didn't photograph the interior, not wanting a flash to disturb my fellow diners.

I ordered a large pork plate, with red slaw, fries and hush puppies. It came out in about 10-12 minutes, presumably the time it took to cook the fries and hush puppies.

The barbecue was chopped fine, with no outside brown in evidence, all interior meat, not much of a smoke smell or taste, and in fact the meat was served Lexington-style, with vinegar-based "dip" already poured over the meat before it's brought out. It was properly hot, temperature-wise. The red slaw had been ladled onto the plate with an unslotted spoon, and thus was sitting in a small puddle of vinegar/brine. Normally a slotted spoon is used to ladle slaw onto the plate so as to not risk spillage. The fries were straight-cut and seasoned (they can be ordered seasoned or plain), and it was a a relief from the usual BBQ joint crinkle-cuts, which I rather dislike. The hush puppies were the size of shooter marbles and tasty, just the right size to pop into the mouth. The drink I ordered was diet Pepsi, which comes in cans at BarBee's.

The tables in the restaurant weren't fully stocked with sauces and napkins. The waitress brought sauce to some of the tables while I waited for my food, but not to all of them; mine went without, so I can't comment on the sauces. One of the tables went without napkins, which were a roll of paper towels on an upright spindle.

The customers were seemingly all regulars; at one point a female, presumably the manager, came out to banter with three men at one of the tables; apparently one of the men was fortunate not to be getting his leg amputated. Another man who came in was wearing a stained white t-shirt with prominent dark armpit stains, he went to a table in the outer dining area.

I'll give BarBee's Bar-B-Que of Peachland, NC a 3 on my 5-scale for food quality (average) and a 2 on my 5-scale for service (desultory).

Re-Open Devil's Island!

France still owns the colony of French Guiana in South America, and could conceivably ship all of the malcontent Muslims in France to the place - - rebuild the old prisons to hold the Muslim criminals, and exile all the non-criminals there as undesirable citizens. Let the jungle diseases, insects, and South American wildlife take care of population control.

Revenge!

Osama bin Laden's son Hamza wants revenge.

So, of course:

Brawl At NC Country Club - - Whodunnit?

If you read The Washington Post's account, you come away with the impression that it was a bunch of white peckerwoods. Read the comments, you'll see time and again the Lefty commenters sneering at rednecks, only to have readers who have done more research at UK NEWSPAPERS point out that the country club had rented to the Usual Suspects - - and suffered the usual consequences. Presumably the statement by country club representatives about tightening up standards will be defined as "no blacks under 60 years old" from this point forward.

Meanwhile, At Fort Sumter, South Carolina...

maintenance is desperately needed, as in so many other places in the National Park Service.

Tift Merritt

Part 6 of my series on female vocalists features my beloved Tift Merritt. I've featured her here before, but it never hurts to get her more exposure. She's a military brat and a NC native, although I believe she lives in NYC now. She's incredibly talented, being a great songwriter, singer, guitarist and keyboard player. She has a feminine vulnerability that the other women I've linked don't. She does a lot of soul/Motown-influenced pieces.

Jolie Holland, Be Good Tanyas, Po' Girl

Part 5 of a series on female vocalists. I group these all together because the music is similar and they've all played together. Jolie Holland has a quirky, affected vocal style that can be irritating, as it sounds a lot like a send-up of backwoods twang. She was a member of the Be Good Tanyas before embarking on a solo career:





After Holland left the Be Good Tanyas, Frazey Ford took over the majority of the vocal chores in BGT:





Po' Girl was originally a spin-off project from the Be Good Tanyas, allowing some of the other Tanyas to step out of the huge shadow that Frazey Ford casts:

Beth Orton

Part Four of a series of posts on female vocalists more people should be aware of. Here's Beth Orton, the only UK vocalist among this group:

Kathleen Edwards

Part 3 of a series of posts featuring female vocalists I think more people should be aware of. Here's Kathleen Edwards:

Neko Case

Part 2 of a series on women singers. Here's Neko Case, who has the best set of pipes among the women I'll be linking:







Has that honky-tonk Patsy Cline vibe really working, huh?

Eilen Jewell

Here with the first in a series of posts of favorite female vocalists. These are women that don't get much radio airplay on broadcast radio, but probably do pretty well on the satellite channels. I'd be willing to bet most of you haven't heard of them before.

First up is Eilen Jewell. She has some great drawling vocals, smart songs, and a great band behind her, especially her guitarist, who is playing a Gretsch Eddie Cochrane guitar in these videos:









Hope you enjoy it!

You Can Recognize Charlotte Man By His White, White Teefs

"Charlotte Man Charged For Stealing Almost $2K In Whitestrips."

The Perfect Trumpian Nickname for Obama

Donald Trump is well-known for giving his political opponents derogatory nicknames: "Crooked" Hillary Clinton, "Lyin'" Ted Cruz, "Little" Marco Rubio, etc. Now President Obama is injecting himself into the campaign, so Trump needs to come up with a nickname for him. How does this sound?

Imam Obama, the Defender of Islam.

Time To Water the Tree?

I Smell Jackboots

"DHS Secretary: Gun Control Should Be Handled By Homeland Security"

The DHS is turning into a Gestapo or KGB, and Jeh Johnson reeks of Beria and Himmler. Time for the DHS to be disbanded.

Shipwreck Blog: Bom Jesus, 1533, Namibia

Portugese, was traveling to India with a cargo of gold and ivory valued at over 13 million dollars, vanished with all hands without a trace.

The Fight We All Lose In the End

Muhammad Ali, the boxer who dominated the sport in the 1960's and 1970's, is dead at 74 of respiratory illness.

Sadly, he developed Parkinson's Disease shortly after his retirement and disappeared from the limelight, so many younger people have little clue how much a dominating force he was in his heyday. He won the heavyweight title three times - - which means he lost it twice, of course, mainly due to hubris and complacency - - lack of confidence was never a part of the Ali package, nor was humility.

Some Graves Can't Be Visited or Decorated

In cemeteries throughout the US this day people will visit to pay their respects to our honored dead who paid the ultimate price to defend our country, and that is right and good; but I hope you'll take a moment to reflect on our dead who never made it home to be laid to rest in US soil; the men of USS Wahoo (SS-238), a US submarine that went down with all hands on a war patrol near Japan, for example:

Wahoo wasn't even located until 2004. One of the most successful of our WWII submarines, she went down with all hands in combat with the Japanese. Her crew deserve to be remembered just as much as our war heroes in Arlington, though, and I hope you'll take the time to think of them for a few minutes.

The story of USS Wahoo can be found at Wikipedia.