Kroger, Publix

I hit any number of grocery stores any given month. I go to the DeKalb Farmers Market once a month, Wal-Mart, Kroger and Publix at various times. Each store has something the other doesn't so I have to vary. Greg (my husband) is a traditional eater, I tend to travel the extremes.

In a couple of my blogs I talked about my quest for the least expensive raw honey (Kroger).

Yesterday, I popped over to Publix to pick up a few things they carry that none of the other local stores stock. I really like Publix. It's clean, the people are friendly, they'll stock anything if you ask them.

However, I was shocked at the price difference in some items.

I buy a black tea at Wal-Mart and Kroger, same brand, common name. It's usually on sale at one of the two places for $2, regular price being $2.19. I've seen it as high as $2.39 but that's rare. It was $3.19 at Publix. A dollar difference. I've always known they were a little higher on some products, maybe a penny or two. Now all of a sudden prices have jumped. And when I say jumped, I mean sky-high jumped!

I thought that was an anomaly, but it wasn't! Maybe it's just because I buy things that aren't always mainstream items, but almost every thing I picked up ended up going back on the shelf. The were consistently close to a dollar higher on many things.

I still ended up spending $62 so I didn't walk out empty handed! But I put more things back than I bought.

I don't think I'll be going back to Publix any time soon, much as I like some of their foods. Just to end this on a positive note, I really like the selection of healthy foods at Publix, and I like the way they have them with the regular foods instead of stuck off in a section somewhere. I would imagine they sell quite a bit more that way.

Out riding around

I've always considered myself an optimist. I enjoy life. I love the life I have here in Fayette County.

That said, I'm becoming pessimistic about the future of our county. According to some of my friends, I'm late coming to that way of thinking.

Yesterday (St. Patrick's Day) Greg & I went to the first ever St. Patrick's Day parade in Tyrone. It was great and I'd call it a huge success. Lots of reason for optimism when you see all those wonderful folks coming out to watch the parade, participate in the dog contest, and enjoy all the other events planned for the day.

After the parade we rode around a little. Later in the day we met some friends to go out to dinner and that entailed driving across the county, seeing a different area.

Every time I go out anymore I see signs that we're heading slowly, hopefully very very slowly, toward being just like all those counties that so many wanted to get away from. If we're not vigilant, we're going to be there sooner than most in this county would want.

It seems if there's an empty space someone is building. In Tyrone, a developer wanted to put eight houses to an acre right in the middle of town. It was turned down by a 2 to 1 vote when it came before the City Council! The Mayor lives next to the property and would benefit, so she recused herself. It came down to Mike Smola, Gloria Furr and Grace Caldwell to decide. Smola said yes, Furr and Caldwell said no.

In the late 1990's I went through Leadership Fayette. We split into groups and each did a "report" on a town in the county. I didn't have Tyrone, but I know all those who did and I heard their report. They surveyed a fairly good sampling of people living in the town, asking them what they wanted for their home city. They all wanted growth to bypass them. They wanted deer in the backyard. They wanted restaurants in Peachtree City close enough they could get to them but not in their quiet, friendly little town.

If you haven't been to Tyrone lately you have missed an explosion. There are some on the Council who are staying true to what the residents want, and others who seem to want the town to become a big city overnight.

It's not just Tyrone though. It's all across the County. Some can't be stopped due to legal considerations; some can't be stopped because of poor past planning or poor past decisions by those in government.

There is almost an inevitability to the path a city and a county takes. Especially if decisions are made looking at the short term instead of the long term. Especially if the people living in the county don't take the time to monitor their government.

The only way to stop our county from becoming like any other county in the metro area is for those who live here to get involved and fight to protect what we have. Unfortunately, realistically, most people are "NIMBY's" (Not In My Back Yard). Until something directly affects us, until some developer wants to put 8 houses to an acre on the spread next to ours, we wear blinders.

Take a ride around the county. Look at how growth is nibbling at the edges of many areas in the county. Once an area is rezoned, the one next to it can be changed... and then the next... and the next... If you like what we have, get involved now.

Turkey on the Porch...

How many of you have ever walked up to your front porch and found a wild turkey perched on it? We have some HUGE wild turkeys that wander around our yard off and on.

Wild turkeys traverse wide swaths of territory each day and we've found they don't stick to the same routine. Last year we had a bunch of baby chicks that seem to have been hatched under a large growth of wild looking bushes in the back. Once they were out and about they certainly didn't hang around for long!

We'd see them on occasion. They started out a gaggle (is that term for geese only?) but ended up dwindling down to two. There was one who never seemed to stick with the rest of the group. He'd stray off into the bushes or lag behind pecking at whatever struck his fancy. He lasted longer than I initially thought, but one day he just wasn't there anymore.

I imagine our local fox enjoyed a nice turkey dinner whenever he could.

It's hard to get attached to turkeys, but I did hate to see the little ones disappear.

Anyway, back to the turkey in this story (no, not me!). I headed out to my studio one afternoon and saw something huge getting ready to knock on the door.... yeah, you guessed already, it was a turkey. This monster turkey stayed on the porch looking in the glass window for quite some time. He (I assume it was a he) seemed to be fascinated with his reflection.

I had to wonder what was going through that tiny little turkey brain as it peered at the window. It didn't get mad, didn't show off its huge array of feathers like they do when they're strutting or trying to be imposing (or trying to show off for the opposite sex). It didn't peck at the window (thankfully).

I hope we never lose our turkeys, our wild fox, the hummingbirds, and all the other wonderful wildlife that flits in and out of the yard. We have some chipmunks (really cute) that scamper around back near the studio. It's fun to watch them jumping around.

It seems that so much of Fayette County is being built-out. There are houses going up everywhere. So much commercial growth is happening in the cities. One of the things that makes Fayette County such a special place to live is our large open spaces, the large lot sizes and the quality of homes we build.

If we want to keep our way of life, we have to be vigilant. We have to be involved. There are too few who are involved and it concerns me at times. So many of my friends, and others I encounter, are saying they're planning to move. They think the county is on a downhill slide, that we've peaked and it's time to get out before it gets too bad.

I hope they're wrong. I plan to do what little I can to try and keep our way of life like it is. There's not much one person can do, but hey, you gotta do what you can.

Readers Beware!

I just rec'd a notice from SitePro News saying spammers and hackers and nasty types are sneaking garbage onto blogs. Here's the link to read about it: http://www.fortiguardcenter.com:80/advisory/FGA-2007-04.html

Watch what you click on blogs! When I put a link on my blog just know it'll be easy to tell it came from me.

Meteor?

Last night as I was working on the Fayette Front Page I saw a meteor. We converted a sunroom into an office so I'm surrounded by windows. About 10:15 or so I caught something bright out the window to the left of the computer. I looked up and saw a burning white ball with a tail of white streak downward.

It difficult to say exactly how big because I couldn't tell exactly how far away it was. It was pitch black outside... no way to tell distance looking out from a lighted room into the sky.

I didn't hear it hit, I didn't hear it as it plummeted to the ground. I'm "assuming" that if it were close the impact would have made some sort of sound. It was fast.

We went outside just to see if it were possible to see anything. I'd think if it hit close that someone else might have seen it. In this area we're all on minimum 5 acre lots and there are some properties that are much, much larger. There's a lot of woods.

I may never know what happened to the meteor. It could have hit in the middle of the woods somewhere, it could have disintegrated before it hit the ground... but I doubt that. It was just above tree leve when I saw it and it was a good size.

If anyone happened to see it, let me know!

Frustrating...

I've been unable to get in to blog for a while. Spent ages working through every different problem it could be... researching on the Internet... even went to so-called tech support on Blogger. Man that's a hoot. You go round and round trying everything, finally get to the point where you've exhausted every suggestion on their site so you opt to send an email. It takes you through all kinds of hoops, loops and just when you think you're actually going to get to a screen with an email on it you're right back where you started. I had to laugh when, after almost a full week I got their reply. It was the same canned message that's on their site (which I had already explained I'd tried). At the end, it said if none of that worked to send them an email.

I know they do this for free. I know they want us to try everything. I really appreciate the fact that I can have all these blogs, etc., etc. But geez, they should at least read the email once we manage to get through all the guard gates, land mines and barriers they have to keep you from being able to get to the email! Nothing frustrates me more when dealing with tech support --- they have canned responses that get sent once they see a key word.

I think I need to learn how to better communicate with tech support... I need to avoid using any phrases that trigger the canned response. I need to put the problem at the END maybe rather than the beginning? Anyone out there ever found a good way to cut through the layers that most places have set up to keep us frustrated? You know the routine... you call, they run you through the stuff on their list of things to do in response to the problem. You've already tried them all, but you go through it anyway. It doesn't work. They finally say they'll have to send the problem to the next level, do a ticket or whatever. You wait, wait, wait. You get an email finally... and it goes through all the same things you've already done.

Congratulations to Vicki Turner

Vicki was chosen as the Business Person of the Year by the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce. She received the well-deserved award Saturday night.

Vicki is everywhere and she's always giving. She and husband, Tommy, have made their computer business a fantastic success.

Vicki paints wonderfully and has been known to donate one or two of her paintings to support some of her favorite charities. If you've not seen any of her paintings you need to track them down. Arts & Expression Magazine did a piece on her last year sometime, the article may be on their website. You can also check with the Fayette Art Center & Gallery in Fayetteville, I've seen her work in there at times, too.

Vicki has won every award the Chamber hands out now I think! Ambassador of the Year, the Chet Wells Award and others. She is past Chair of the Chamber Board.

She supports Fayette Senior Services and is on their Board (she may be the Chair? or she was the Chair last year, don't know when they switch out).

She is in the Metro Fayette Kiwanis and is always there when needed.

Those are just the areas I know about from my involvement in various activities where our paths cross. I have always been amazed at her energy, her graciousness, her ability to draw the line when needed, her business, her giving... the list could go on. As far as I'm concerned, they could give her the award every year.

Congratulations Vicki!

Fox in Fayette!

I bet when you saw that headline your first thought was about a female type fox . Well, sorry to disapoint, but I'm talking about the real thing. The furry kind that runs on four legs.

I headed out the garage this morning toward the studio. Came around the corner and startled a real, live fox. It went streaking across the yard -- all the way across the backyard -- into the woods.

We've been here a little over three years and that was a first! I've seen plenty of wild turkey (although they're dwindling), deer, rabbits, opposum and the ever-present pesky squirrels, but never a fox.

He (or she) was a good size fox, too. Red with lighter patches. It looked like the tail was darker, and maybe the paws, too. I wish I had my camera, although it was going so fast I don't know if I could have turned it on in time!

Now I'm going to be watching for the fox. I'm also heading on the Internet to see what I can find out about them. It probably explains the bird feathers I see at times on the ground.

Hard to believe!

It's hard to believe I haven't posted anything since before Christmas! But I have been writing and I have been busy.

The biggest news is that the Fayette Forum is now the Fayette Front Page. AND... we now have the Georgia Front Page site, too. (www.georgiafrontpage.com). AND... we're gearing up for our very first television program called, surprise, surprise, the Georgia Front Page.

If having that on my plate (our collective plates... there are a number of great folks working to make the Fayette Front Page, etc. something folks want to come back to)... if having that on my plate wasn't enough I'm working on getting audio and video onto the site. You'll be able to watch shows, interviews and other fun and /or informative bits on both Front Page sites soon.

While all that is going on, if it wasn't enough alone, I've been to the Capital to visit state legislators on issues for the Front Page, been to umpteen events, am collecting items for the upcoming Fayette Youth Protection Home auction (event is Feb. 5th), went to the Governors Inauguration, had a couple of receptions at the Fayette Art Center & Gallery for my pottery (www.Hummingbird-Hollow.com), the list goes on and on. Somewhere in there was Christmas and New Years.

Family is of utmost importance to me and I drop any and everything for a chance to spend time with them. We've spent a fairly good amount of time (never enough) together in the recent past. The older I get the more value I place on family. It's funny growing up how the world revolves around your own wants and for most, family is just something you take for granted. As we grow older, most of us begin to realize that while much that we do may have an impact on the world or the future of the world in some small, small way, the biggest thing we'll leave behind are memories in other people's minds. The best memories should be in the minds of our family.

Well, back to the grind. I have about an hour that I can put into updating the site before I'm off again!!! I'll try to be a bit more regular about the things that are going on in Fayette County. Sometimes I'm so busy putting things on the main site that I forget to tell you about all the fantastic things going on in the county.

Fayette Historical Society

Fayette County is chocked full of interesting places to visit. One that many might not have on their list of places to visit is the Fayette Historical Society. The Society can't be compared to Disney World, but it certainly is fascinating in its own way!

Recently I made my first visit to the Society, not having any idea as to what I'd find inside the aged house in Fayetteville.

I could have spent hours just flipping through the file drawers of old photos alone! People have donated photos through the years to the Society. Unfortunately, many of the photos don't have any information written on them so we'll never know who is pictured. Still, even without identifying information, the photos tell a story of days gone by.

The old newspapers are wonderful. People told of their trips, family news, who was ill, and generally shared their life in little vignettes on pages titled "Your Affairs" and similar. Today's newspapers are filled with all the horrible things that tantalize and grab attention. Yes, they printed the bad news way back when, and they editorialized quite a bit, too. But maybe because of all the personal inclusions, the way things were written, and the "homey" touches, things just didn't seem so over sensationalized.

The Society has volumes and volumes of old records. It's extremely time-consuming to try and research marriages and family history though as most of the older records were hand-written. Also, there was not any consistency in the spelling of words. It takes a lot of patience to trace a family using those old records!

There are old yearbooks, mementos from all aspects of the county's history and books by local authors. It's a small building but it houses a world of knowledge. Even if you have absolutely zero interest in the history of Fayette County, you'll have fun looking through the old papers and photos. For those who are interested in the history of the county, it's well worth a visit or two or three. Who knows, you may just find a photo of one of your relatives!

Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House

I've lived in Fayette County for umpteen years and somehow have not ever managed to find time to visit the Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House! I corrected that huge oversight this past Thursday.

What a treat! I took two young home-schooled friends thinking it would be something that might make history a bit more interesting. I was right. My only mistake is I looked at it as something for them --- it turned out I enjoyed the visit at least as much, if not more, than they did!

We were lucky to visit at a time when we were the only visitors. We had a one-on-one tour led by John Lynch, official historian. Lynch is a walking encyclopedia of historical knowledge and community lore.

We started in the front "parlor" known as "The Family Room." We learned about the Holliday family and Doc Holliday's ties to Fayette County. Not only did we find out about who they were, but Lynch painted a picture of times gone by, giving us a glimpse of how it was way back when.

As it was just past Halloween, some of the costumes and articles show-cased were still hanging around. Mourning attire, photos and other bits from the past helped us to visualize how difficult life was not too long ago - and how our ideas about death and the value of life have continued to evolve.

The Dorsey and Fife history is almost as interesting as the Hollywood Holliday history! I imagine that not many know that a past Governor lived in Fayetteville! It was amazing to see the many crossties there were among the various famous families and to get a small snapshot of how Fayette Countians have played a part in the making of history in the area and in Georgia.

I had heard that Fayette County boasted some connection to Margaret Mitchell of Gone With the Wind fame. Turns out Fayette County plays a much larger part in that book than I knew. I would bet that not many in Fayette County know how Gone With the Wind, Doc Holliday and Fayetteville are connected! You'll have to go visit the Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House if you want to find out more.

There is one room in the House devoted to Gone With the Wind. Costumes, photos, artifacts and history make the book come alive and give it a place in our past.

We learned about the much photographed Starrs Mill, the War Between the States, how our great county came to be and so much more than I could ever begin to capture in a short blog.

This week we're traveling over to the Historic Society. We're going to hopefully look at some of the old newspapers and try to get a different perspective on the past.

If you'd like to find out more about the Holliday-Dorsey-Fife House visit their website at www.hdfhouse.com, call 770-716-5332 or send an email to manager@hdfhouse.com. We planned to spend an hour and ended up having to cut the visit short after a two-hour stay! Plan to relax, learn and have fun.

Vote

I have many frustrations with our voting system, just like many, many others. I sometimes don't like either candidate I have to choose from. I can't stand the negative attacks on candidates. If I gave it much thought I could make the list of frustrations very long!

No matter what though, I won't give up my right to vote. I will not relinquish what in realitiy is just a tiny, tiny little mark, barely noticeable for the government of my choice.

If you read history you'll see that the voices of a few became the only voices that were heard when country's fell. When the masses sit on their hands, when the masses don't make their voices heard, ideals are destroyed.

It's easy to throw up your hands in frustration, abdicate your responsibility, use any number of excuses to avoid voting. There will be a point in our future where we in America will be wondering what happened to our country. Some of us are already wondering! I think the majority of our problems are rooted in apathy. Laziness. It doesn't take much to vote. It doesn't take much to find out enough information about the candidates to make a choice, even if your choice is the lesser of two evils.

Want better choices? That takes involvement and time. Staying home in protest is not going to fix anything. You'll find your choices are worse in the next election. Get involved. Someday "get involved" is going to mean fighting for whatever is left of our democracy unless you take the time now to make your little mark. Vote.

Gingercake Road

What's going on over on Gingercake Road? I've gotten in the habit of counting For Sale signs as I drive down that road now... Last week the total had reached fifteen (15). Yep, 15 For Sale signs on the road (that includes a few of those small corner signs pointing down the side streets to houses for sale).

Is it just me or has the number of For Sale signs across the county been on the rise lately?

What goes with Fayette & the Arts?

Yesterday I attended the one-year anniversary celebration at the Fayette Art Center and Gallery in Fayetteville. It's a non-profit with a mission to highlight local arts in the county. I know that over 6,000 invitations were mailed out. The attendace was good, but it should have been great.

This county is filled, chocked to the top, with good artists in all genres. Why aren't we supporting each other? Where are the family and friends of the arts?

I have been truly impressed with what has been happening in Coweta County. They are hopping when it comes to promoting the arts. It would seem that given the make-up of this county that we would be in the lead on the arts. Instead it seems we're lagging behind Clayton, Coweta and many other counties around the metro area.

Is it because we have too many things to choose from? Do we put too much focus on sports (not that I have a problem with sports!)? Our children have a better chance of making money playing for a symphony, being an architect, writing for a paper, teaching art, or working for a museum than they would playing for the Atlanta Braves.

Art is somewhat of a solitary field so it can be hard to generate enthusiasm. We don't go to a museum and cheer for our team. Is that why people don't get behind the arts?

The arts should be supported in this county. What do we need to do to make it happen? I for one don't think it's the responsibility of the government to build us an art center or to make something happen. If we're passionate about the arts, we should be able to band together and support building a venue.

In Kennesaw a local developer took it upon himself to build the Dozier Cultural Arts Center as a FOR-profit venue. Instead of holding our hands out to the government, we should be taking our hands and using them to pull out our wallets. Yes, there are grants, and more power to anyone who has the initiative and know-how to get them. But lets get this movement going. Let's get behind those who want to build a center for the arts. ALL the arts, not just the theater or painters or potters or musicians.

Lets bring the Endowment Committee for the Cultural Arts, Society for the Fine Arts, the Fayette Art Center & Gallery, the YMCA, the various musical groups, theater groups and others together and make it happen. Let's quit dancing around the issue, get all the factions together and do it.

Jim, we want a do-over

Left: Bill Nigro, Mike Riley , Greg Dunn and Jim Steinbach.

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If ever a person existed who lived to give to others, it was Jim Steinbach. Jim didn’t just touch someone’s life, he made an impact.

If you knew Jim for very long, sooner or later you were going to get one of his famous early morning calls. He got up before the crack of dawn and probably paced waiting for the first glow of sunlight so he could call his target at a “decent” hour. Sometimes he would almost be mid-sentence before who ever he woke from a deep sleep registered what he was enthusiastically saying.

He would usually start out with some variation of “I need you to do something for me.” The “for me” always, always somehow actually meant “for someone else.” It might be a person he’d met in the grocery line who was having difficulty with a broken pipe, or a member of his church who couldn’t solve a problem, or a retired soldier who needed a visit.

Oftentimes it was for help on one of his big projects. He worked tirelessly to get Fayette Senior Services a new home. He worked selflessly to get “his” candidates elected. Those at St. Matthews Catholic Church know how he devoted so much to his faith and his church.

Most of us will never know how many people he impacted and how much we have to thank Jim Steinbach for doing.

Jim went through a lot physically over the past many years. He had a hip replacement, had a stroke, and had a myriad of lesser physical problems that would have most of us sitting in a rocking chair. In early 2005 we came within a hair’s breadth of losing him when his aorta burst. He was supposed to slow down, and he did. Instead of whirling around like Superman in super turbo speed, he slowed down to ten times the normal speed of most.

If Jim wanted something done and he thought you could help him do it, you could run, but you couldn’t hide! He was a bulldog who kept digging until he found the right person to do what HE needed done.

Jim was even bigger than his giving though. He was sharp with a keen sense of right and wrong. He kept up with the happenings of the world and was a veracious reader. He loved his computer and used it as a tool to – you guessed it – help and educate others. Phone calls from Jim in the morning, faxes in the afternoon and emails in the evening were just a matter of course. He was witty and had a great sense of humor.

Somehow, amidst all he did for others, he found time for nurturing his relationship with his wife, Ellen and their family. He was a loyal friend and knew what true friendship was all about. He golfed until his health made him slow down. He worked out at the gym and kept in good physical shape.

He was a member of the Fayette Metro Kiwanis and was always the first to volunteer to go for training, to sign up to help at an event or to head a committee.

Right now the world is out of kilter and it is going to take some time for it to begin to right itself. Jim Steinbach is no longer walking the earth in the flesh and many, many – more than can ever be counted – are going to miss those early morning phone calls, those visits and his caring.

Jim, we want a do-over. There are just too many who are going to miss you and too many things that need a proud old soldier's attention.

Just a quick note to all who will join Jim in heaven in the future: He’s already in the process of reorganizing things to make them more efficient, so just know it’s going to be better than it was before he signed on for duty with the angels.

The family is asking that in lieu of flowers donations be made to Fayette Senior Services or to Catholic Relief Services, Baltimore. Parrot Funeral Home is handling the arrangements with services and viewing to be held at St. Matthews Catholic Church, Tyrone. A family-style luncheon will be held in Jim’s honor after the service on Tuesday.

If you’re a friend and would like to do something to help, please know the church has the food situation pretty much under control through Tuesday. Help is needed with food for the after-service luncheon. If you are a member of St. Matthews please contact Lisa Shupenus, blessus5@hotmail.com, if you’d like to find out what is needed. If you are NOT a member of St. Matthews and would like to help, please email Janet Dunn, info@jmacsnippets.net or call 770-631-9630.

Photos 2, 3 & 4:

2. Jim decorating his truck for the 4th of July parade in Peachtree City.

3. Eating breakfast during a break from working at the annual Metro Kiwanis fund-raising pancake breakfast in Fayetteville.

4. Checking out the Easter bunny's basket at the Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast.

Hummingbirds still here?

I still have two hummingbirds hanging out at my feeders. It seems to me that they're usually gone by now? I know they'll stay the winter if they have new babies or they're too old to make the trek back to South America or Mexico or wherever they head. I'm wondering if anyone else is still seeing any at their feeders. I had a bunch for a while, but they have moved on, probably just made a pit stop here for fuel.

Flax tip

I'm always trying to find ways to sneak good stuff into food without changing the taste or the look. Greg (my husband) is pretty good about eating almost anything I put in front of him, but he doesn't lean toward eating tofu, cous cous, or anything you'll only find in a health food store! Given a choice between Bryers ice cream and Toffutti, guess which one he'll choose?

I want to keep him around as long as I possibly can, and I hope to hang in there just as long. So, I add bran or other fiber to pancakes, only buy whole wheat, buy free range whenever possible, make sure there are plenty of fruit choices, avoid sugars and fats, etc., etc., etc.

After reading a bit about flax seed, I thought it would be a great thing to incorporate into our regular diets. So, I merrily traipsed off to the store, grabbed a container of flax seed and then tried to figure out what to do with it (my typical method of operation... impulse buy, then figure out the mechanics later).

Those pesky little seeds are not easy to hide in foods. However, I came up with one way to add them to almost anything - I mix the seeds in my pepper mill with the peppercorns. Now, anytime we use pepper, we're getting some flax seed.

Next time I'm at the store I plan to pick up another pepper mill just for the flax seed. I plan to add some to soups and other concoctions just like a spice when I'm cooking.

Anyone else have any great ideas on how to incorporate healthy things into not-so-healthy dishes?

A bit about flax seed in case you don't know about it:

Benefits of flax seed as shown in many studies include lowering total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, it may also help lower blood triglyceride and blood pressure and may keep platelets from becoming sticky therefore reducing the risk of a heart attack. Flax seed oil may be able to heal the inner lining of the inflamed intestines, so those with Crohn's Disease and colitis might want to read up on the benefits.

It has a high content of alpha linolenic acids, which is a type of plant derived omega 3 oil. It also has lignan, a phytoestrogen or anitoxidant and it is high in fiber.

Has anyone noticed that everytime a new strip shopping mall goes in the first store to open is often a nail salon? It seems there are at least as many nail salons as there are drug stores.

How many women get their nails done at a salon? I keep mine short as I work with clay and fingernails are not condusive to smooth lines, plus they don't look very good at the end of the day!

I'm curious - does anyone know much about the business? How many do we have in the county? How many women regularly visit the salon and how many times a month do you have to go to keep your nails beautiful? I know nails are fun - I get a kick out of some of the designs and colors. When we have girls night we always "do our nails" at some time during the night. My nieces love to paint my short nails strange colors... which only lasts until they leave or I get home!

I guess I'll be looking up nail salons on the Internet when I have a few minutes just to see if there's any data on the growth and how they survive or thrive.

Scuppernongs Gone

A few weeks ago a friend and I stopped by the Fayette Art Center and Gallery in Fayetteville (it's on Fisher Ave. next to Fayetteville City Hall). We parked in the handicap area on the side as my friend has difficulty negotiating stairs (and yes, we were in her car and she has a handicap permit!). As I was helping her get out of the car I noted a gentleman sitting on the front porch of his house across the street watching us. I gave a friendly wave (being a friendly sort of person).

A few minutes later I looked up and he was walking across to talk with us. The house is one of the older houses that I love in this county. A huge porch to sit on in the evening or early mornings and it even has a few stained glass windows. I itched to get a peek at the inside, but in addition to being friendly, I try to be polite so I didn't ask for a tour!

We talked for a while about the house, the area, the history of Fayette County and other general things before I introduced myself and the gentleman introduced himself. Mr. Ed Travis is a true gracious southern gentleman.

After a bit we parted ways, but not before he invited us to come pick scuppernongs, apples and figs from his back yard. It has been many, many years since I had a scuppernong and many more since I picked them so I jumped at the chance. He told me to get Kathy (the owner of the Gallery) and get all we wanted as the scuppernongs were falling off the bushes.

After looking at all the new art in the gallery, Kathy and I walked across and picked our scuppernongs. They were truly falling off the vines! Ed had a wire running behind and through all the vines and the buckets he provided had hooks on them so we could hang them within reach while plucking the ripe fruit. After a short period I found it easier just to put the bucket under the vine and with a light touch let them fall into the bucket.

After filling our buckets we went back into the 2nd backyard and got a few apples from the trees. We also grabbed a few figs from the huge bushes or trees.

Ed and his wife came out to talk to us for a bit before leaving. They rent out some of the rooms in the house and, unless it's been rented in the last two weeks, there is a vacancy. I suppose that was my opening to weasle my way into the house for a look, but they were on their way out and I didn't want to hold them up.

People like the Travis' are not unusual in Fayette County. We are so lucky to have open hearted, giving and caring people in this county. I hope we'll somehow manage to keep the flavor of the county in years to come. How many places are left in this world where a huge assortment of fruit is grown between a jail/courthouse (the house backs up the county jail) and a main road?

The scuppernongs are long gone. I took them to a family get-together and had the pleasure of teaching my young nieces the "proper" way to eat them (squeeze the pulp into your mouth leaving the skin, push out the seeds with your toungue and discard... then enjoy; yes, I know some of you might eat the skin, but it's the pulp that's sweet and really, really good).

If you'd like to see more photos of the house, the vines and Mr. & Mrs. Travis, go to the Fayette Forum link on the sidebar, click and look for the Fayette Photo Gallery. Click on Scuppernongs Gone.

Sticking with organic

I'm not going nuts on the organic front, but I am buying organic whenever possible. If the difference in price isn't outrageous and the food looks frest, I'm opting to buy the organic.

One thing that completly surprised me is the difference in taste. Maybe when they grow things organically they shy away from hydroponics, picking too early and mass producing in dark rooms, too. All I know is that a tomato tastes like a tomato from the garden (well, duh, I guess it is from the garden ;-) and tonight I had peas that tasted like the peas I used to sneak from my neighbors yard.

I'm a native Georgian, but my father was in the Air Force. We moved when I was young and I lived in a variety of states and countries before coming back to Georgia. Our neighbors in England had a small back yard (RAF base housing) that they turned into a garden - completely. There was a huge commons area behind the housing which served as a community play ground so I guess they didn't need their postage-stamp sized backyard for playing.

I loved to sneak over, open a pod and eat the peas raw. That taste is something I haven't experienced until tonight when I had tried the organic frozen peas I picked up at Wal-Mart. Yup, Wal-Mart.

Surprisingly, Wal-Mart and Publix have the best selection of organic food I've found locally. I've been going once a month with a good friend to the Dekalb Farmers Market to pick up a good supply of the things you can't find around here unless you're willing to pay shockingly high prices.

Did you know the difference between cage free and free range eggs? Cage free just means the chickens weren't in a cage. They could be (and probably are) still de-beaked and cooped up in some tightly packed barn. Free range means they get to roam like chickens are meant to roam. They keep their beaks because they're not going to peck at each other as they're not crammed body-to-body.

I haven't found free range eggs in Fayette County (yet?). But the Dekalb Farmers Market has these fantastic HUGE Amish free range eggs that are less expensive than the cage free eggs at Public, Kroger & Wal-mart. I cracked one open the other day and it had two yolks! When is the last time you had a double-yoked egg? I'm not sure if they taste better, I add so much to my eggs (spinach, cheese, mushrooms, onions, whatever is left over from dinner...) that I have no way of comparing taste.

I'm thinking that next year I'm going to put in a garden (for the deer probably!). The people who owned our house before us had a vegetable garden in the back. They had an electric fence around it. I don't think I'll want to do that as the shock is enough to kill hummingbirds, so I'll have to investigate other ways to keep out the wildlife. After all, people have been growing food since long before the invention of electricity!