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 Beth and Leslie talk about the changes they have seen in life on the mountain and beyond because of COVID-19 and other issues of the day. 

Learning to live with the new normal in rural Appalachia

We tried something new to try to upgrade our sound quality, so there are some things that are a bit rough here and there with the podcast. Bear with us; we'll figure it out! Our episode this time deals with isolation due to social distancing and the corona virus. Beth has several great quotes from Get Well Soon by Jennifer Wright, a book about plagues in history. Both Beth and Leslie pointed out ways they keep their sanity during quiet times, although both are used to isolation because of nature and habitat.    Annie's Crochet Club Simple Lines Shawl by Maanel  

Weedeater by Robert Gipe   Special guest Anita Puckett, Appalachian Studies professor at Virginia Tech, discusses the powerful and challenging book, Weedeater, An Illustrated Novel, by Robert Gipe, which centers on the problems with poverty and opioid addiction in the Appalachian region. Music Attributions:   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx

Our great friend J. C. tells all about house and pet sitting across the country and the world!   For more information check out:   House Sitters America Trusted House Sitters

Noodle rodeo, hot weather, swimming in the pond, annual chicken liver pie birthday celebration, delightful visitors.   Buffalo Mountain Zipline, just off the Blue Ridge Parkway   A Little Sweet...   Mary Locke's lovely bags at Poppy's   Lenny Mud Yarn Bowls at Poppy's Phoenix by Hooked on Sunshine A Little Tart...   Trees that are close to our heart. The Handy Tree, Patrick County, Virginia   Friends in High Places by Katie Letcher Lyle   The devastation of the chestnut blight   Blue Ridge Tree Climbing   A Little Unexpected...   Trees by Joyce Kilmer   Music Attributions:   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx

Things are busy in Meadows of Dan. Leslie is busy at her shop, Poppy's and Beth has been working at the Reynolds Homestead featuring the Bushels and Barrels Festival and the annual book sale. Leslie also demonstrated spinning at Solitude at Virginia Tech for the Crooked Road Homecoming celebration. Beth talks about her Wild Women gathering today.and a special funeral where a Red Hat group honored a friend.   A Little Sweet....   Butterfly - Papillion Shawl Leslie is still making socks.     Hopscotch Socks from Think Outside the Sox, pattern by Lisa Swanson Mix and Match Knitting Tools from katrinkles on etsy.   Amy's Ball of Ladders Shawl with Wolles Creation Yarn A Little Tart...   Songs that have meaning to us:   Perfect Time by Maire Brennan Autumn to May by Peter, Paul and Mary Angel from Montgomery by Bonnie Raitt Time Passages album by Al Stewart Walking on Sunshine by Katrina and the Waves Danger by JJ. Cale and Eric Clapton Some Walls by Sammy Shelor Be Thou My Vision Hymn of Promise by Natalie Sleethe Morning Has Broken by Cat Stevens Follow Me by John Denver Here There Everywhere by the Beatles Anything by Haydn Questions by Reba Rambo   A Little Unexpected....   Lovely recent meals including lavender wonders using lavender from High Country Lavender.   Shirley Valentine.   Music Attributions:   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx

Poppy's in Meadows of Dan Catching up on all the news. Leslie's new shop, Poppy's, at 10 Concord Road in Meadows of Dan. Beth has been busy including a trip to West Virginia for a sister's birthday celebration. Hat making at the Reynold's Homestead for Mother's Day.    "Merry Widow" Hats Rhododendron and other beautiful spring flowers on the Blue Ridge Parkway.    A Little Sweet....   Lenny Mud yarn bowls at Poppy's.    Dreamin' of Tulips Sock in Lion Brand Sock-Ease Yarn A Little Tart...   Special guest Aida tells about her special name, how she found Meadows of Dan and about her interesting adventures on a motorcycle. Willville Motorcycle Camp in Meadows of Dan. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.   A Little Unexpected...   Quotes from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig.   “When one person suffers from a delusion, it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called a Religion.”    “The place to improve the world is first in one's own heart and head and hands, and then work outward from there.”   “You look at where you're going and where you are and it never makes sense, but then you look back at where you've been and a pattern seems to emerge.”   “Sometimes it's a little better to travel than to arrive”    “We’re in such a hurry most of the time we never get much chance to talk. The result is a kind of endless day-to-day shallowness, a monotony that leaves a person wondering years later where all the time went and sorry that it’s all gone. ”   “In a car you're always in a compartment, and because you're used to it you don't realize that through that car window everything you see is just more TV. You're a passive observer and it is all moving by you boringly in a frame. On a cycle the frame is gone. You're completely in contact with it all. You're in the scene, not just watching it anymore, and the sense of presence is overwhelming.”   Music Attributions:   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx    

Catching up on Reynolds Homestead and other adventures.   A Little Sweet...     Jemima Duck Soft Toy Knitting Pattern     Duck Yarn Bowl by KidAnMePotteryAndArt   George Magazine   A Little Tart...   Duck postcards Spirit animals, especially ducks, and animals as signs, robins and killdeer as signs of spring.   Return of the Bird Tribes by Ken Carey   Red Dog, movie Beautiful Joe by Margaret Marshall Saunders Lad, A Dog by Albert Payson Terhune   A Little Unexpected...   Great article by local author in Blue Ridge Outdoors, Jack's Trail Review by Rebecca Adcock.   Music Attributions:

Welcome to Quince!   The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson   A Little Sweet...   Mary Maxim Head Hugger Vintage Pattern Faux Fur Pom Poms   Lost in Time Shawl   A Little Tart...   "The world isn't just the way it is. It is how we understand it, no? And in understanding something, we bring something to it, no? Doesn't that make life a story?" Yann Martel, Life of Pi.     Eunice Yeatts McAlexander   A Little Unexpected...   Reviews of food boxes   Dinnerly   HungryRoot   Everyplate   Our beautiful area, Lover's Leap near Meadows of Dan, Virginia      

After being AWOL for three months, the girls catch up with all that has been happening. Reynolds Homestead Victorian Christmas Lots of cancellations in the area because of snowstorms and ice storms. Kindle On Deck to the rescue after a long power outage. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets Making memories for Thanksgiving and Christmas, an intervention for Beth to set up her lovely new TV from her son. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Beth is being dragged into the 21st Century with a new phone, Echo and other Smart stuff gifted by her son. Do all these things threaten our privacy? Dopesick by Beth Macy Hillbilly Drug Baby by Andrea Brunais Time for a lifestyle change for Leslie with the help of Noom A Little Sweet... The new KnitPicks catalog Spectra Bleeding Art Tissue for dyeing   Super Fine Sampler by Marken of the Hat & I Susie's Reading Mitts by Janelle Masters Yax Trax and snowshoes Farm to Feet Socks A Little Tart The Monday Night Book Club Code Girls by Liza Mundy The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate A Duty to the Dead by Charles Todd A Little Unexpected Antique Postcard and Collectibles Club Dinner Recipe   From Beth's Collection, a postcard with a corn pudding recipe Music Attributions: Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx  ccmixter.org/files/_ghost/25389

Meadows of Dan and Reynolds Homestead happenings. Shearing a rabbit, yard sales, gynecologists, hurricanes, flood memories and guardian angels.   The true story A Little Sweet...   Crocheted Blanket Pattern by TheHatandI Leather Wrist Ruler by Ilovehandles A Little Tart...   Inspired by the anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy, the topic is "Laying Down Your Life."   1 John 3:16-20 New International Version (NIV) "16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. 19 This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: 20 If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything."   The ways to serve friends and communities. Sacrifice the friendship when you have to let go because of destructive behaviors. Cut people slack. Be present for people. Motherhood. Reaching out to friends and others in trouble. "let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together, yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow." - Kahlil Gibran   A Little Unexpected... How to Can Water from Loaves and Dishes Music attributions   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx   ccmixter.org/files/_ghost/25389  

Catching up on the news. Beth's memoir classes. College for Older Adults at the Reynolds Homestead. Meadows of Dan Folk Fair and Story Space. Way too hot in Meadows of Dan this week. Guests Ruthie and Amy. Rainbows and skunks. Vintage Tony the Tiger doll that Beth bought for herself when she was very young.   A Little Sweet   Amy's beautiful yarn and Tony the Tiger Long color changes in yarns.   A Little Tart   Life on the farm with rabbits, chickens, goats, Knightley and Emma and their kitty Darcy. Beth and her kitty Clue have a skunk friend.   Leslie's little bandits Life with wild animals on the mountain.   A Little Unexpected   Contest! Contest! Contest!   Tell us a fun or unusual birthday meal request and win a prize! More info in the previous post.   Sure cures for bad muscle cramps in the legs.   "I Can Sing a Rainbow" song.   Empower Yourself to Live Well with Alpha-Gal   Dealing with ticks in the environment with tick tubes that attack the ticks in the nest.   A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles   The Mapmaker's Children by Sarah McCoy   Music attributions   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx ccmixter.org/files/_ghost/25389

      Adventures for Beth at Chataqua Institution, whimsy and wisdom. Leslie's adventures in swimming.   A Little Sweet...   Black tri Australian Shepherd stitch markers   "I Like Big Balls"   AC/DC song     Inca Trail by Svenlana Gordon   A Little Tart...   A discussion of salesman samples inspired by Reynolds Homestead Tidbits of History. Many types, including book samples and caskets, that were available into the 1970s.    A Little Unexpected...   Grandma Flanagan's Taylor Cakes / Molasses Cookies   1 cup boiling water 2 tsp. baking soda 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup Crisco 1 cup molasses 5 cups sifted flour 2 Tablespoons cinnamon 1 tsp. salt 1 pinch of cloves 2 beaten eggs   Dissolve baking soda in boiling water. Add brown sugar, Crisco, molasses, flour, cinnamon, salt and cloves to baking soda-water, and mix thoroughly. Add beaten eggs last and gently blend. Drop by spoonfuls (they do not spread) onto a greased cookie sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 425 degrees for 7 to 10 minutes. Yield: several dozen little cakes, depending on spoon size.   Frosting: Mix browned butter, a little cream and vanilla to flavor with enough confectioners sugar to spread well. Frost cooled cakes. Do not stack cakes, frosted or unfrosted.   This is a recipe from the 1800s, and makes soft, delicious molasses cookies. Mary Lois Barnes Flanagan was a 1910 graduate of the Lucy Webb Hayes Deaconess School in Washington, D. C.   ******************   A Contest! A Contest! A Contest!   What's the most unusual meal anyone ever asked you to make for their birthday dinner? Send us an email, make a comment on our Facebook page or on this web site, or mail us a postcard (we love them) to the address in the right column of the web site, with a description of the most unusual meal or dessert that anyone ever asked your for as a birthday request. We'll put together an impartial panel and the best entry will win a prize of handmade, antique and scrumptious things from Meadows of Dan. It has to be a REAL request and we hope to have a lot of fun with this on the podcast. We WILL mention your names. Deadline August 31, 2018. 

Memorial Day and Amazon Echo's Alexa singing the National Anthem.   Meadows of Dan happenings: yard sales, new stores, nice customers.   Reynolds Homestead Book Sale and History Around Us talk on the Melungeons (June 6 at noon)   A Little Sweet...   Addi Flexi Flips at VanKlikStudios on etsy   Professor Meow Sweater by Claire Slade   A Little Tart...   The reason for relationships.  Types of relationships.   Quotes:   "Men are afraid that women will laugh at them; women are afraid that men will kill them." - Margaret Atwood “When you have once seen the glow of happiness on the face of a beloved person, you know that a man can have no vocation but to awaken that light on the faces surrounding him." - Albert Camus “Stuart needs "space" and "time," as if this were physics and not a human relationship.”  - Kathryn Stockett   "You can be in love and you can be in a relationship but they're not always the same thing." From http://www.iwrotethisforyou.me/2009/06/rose-is-not-always-rose.html   “Relationships are like Rome -- difficult to start out, incredible during the prosperity of the 'golden age', and unbearable during the fall. Then, a new kingdom will come along and the whole process will repeat itself until you come across a kingdom like Egypt... that thrives, and continues to flourish. This kingdom will become your best friend, your soul mate, and your love.” - Helen Keller “A man fishes for two reasons: he’s either sport fishing or fishing to eat, which means he’s either going to try to catch the biggest fish he can, take a picture of it, admire it with his buddies and toss it back to sea, or he’s going to take that fish on home, scale it, fillet it, toss it in some cornmeal, fry it up, and put it on his plate. This, I think, is a great analogy for how men seek out women.” - Steve Harvey A Little Unexpected...   The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian   Noah's Compass by Anne Tyler   More Quotes:   “You have a very open relationship with your fans.""Yes. We have an open relationship. Obviously they can see other authors if they want, and I can see other readers.”― Neil Gaiman “When two people relate to each other authentically and humanly, God is the electricity that surges between them.” - Martin Buber “But many of us seek community solely to escape the fear of being alone. Knowing how to be solitary is central to the art of loving. When we can be alone, we can be with others without using them as a means of escape.” - Bell Hooks   Music attributions   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx ccmixter.org/files/_ghost/25389

Spring scenes (Cows by Beth and apple tree by Leslie)   Baton twirling, elder care, problems with the Veteran's Administration, a long hard winter   A Little Sweet....       Betty's Beauty by Kathleen McGrew   Baby bracelets   A Little Tart...   Signed copy of Blue Highways by William Least Heat-Moon Taking a friend to a bluegrass show in Northern Virginia during the 1980s. Missing friends at Cowles Ford in Woodbridge, Virginia.   A Little Unexpected...       New in Meadows of Dan, Concord Corner Store in the former Toy Museum building.   Lovely lunches and new ciders at Chateau Morrisette.   Greenberry House will be opening in mid-May.   Music attributions   Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx ccmixter.org/files/_ghost/25389

Blue Ridge Story Space       Beth's beautiful photos from her "Emerging Artist" show at the Reynolds Homestead    A picture of mountain serenity by Beth   Dr. Kirk Treible   Kirk holding Beth with the pony   Family photo The photo that provided the missing clue     Reverie (small theme) by _ghost featuring Pitx ccmixter.org/files/_ghost/25389

Special Guest Felix, Leslie and Beth Our special guest, Felix, talks about life as an expatriate college student and explains bitcoins, so frequently in recent news. He and Beth also talk about new trends in dating!

  Special guests Chris and Cliff talk about growing up in New England, their adventures as roving pet-sitter and musician and share some wisdom about life.

Great show featuring Beth's Aussie sisters and their wonderful revelations about growing up in Western Australia and the differences they see in health care and wages between America and Australia.