Blue Ridge blog

Cold toes and a piggie nose, that's what Marie's morning was made of....

Today I got a much needed dose of Valle Crucis. I went to the Goodnight Family farm and visited piggies. At first I thought they had escaped, but after a few minutes noticed a huge pile of mud in the pen. Upon closer inspection, the pile of mud was piggies in disguise. They were sleeping in. Lazy pigs. They were happy to see me, until it was clear I did not come bearing piggie gifts.
Everything about the spring morning was refreshing, especially the frosty grass. I wandered over to the Valle Crucis wetlands and waited for the sun to illuminate the reeds. During my patient moments I noted the singing birds recognizing the happy season, though my cold toes missed the point entirely.

The Piggies are safely back at home

Harley and I rode to the farm yesterday to see if'n by chance the piggies had returned. And yep, they were back looking no worse for the wear. For this, I am thankful.

And speaking of thankful...

I am going to the Land of No Internet for Thanksgiving supper where my primary duties this year will be to cook the feast, maintain world peace, and hide the hooch from Granny. And honestly, the first two tasks are a cakewalk compared to keeping Granny from her beloved Fresca and Tequila :)

If'n I don't talk to y'all in the meantime, please have a good n safe one.

A tale of two piggies...

I saw my friend B yesterday and we had a small conversation through car windows. "You should see the little piglets down at the Goodnight farm. They are so cute," she said.
I squealed in delight at the thought of taking photos of baby pigs. I had all kinds of preconceived notions in my head of the warm fuzzy piggie images I might share with you today.
Boy, was I wrong.
As I drove up to the Valle Crucis farm I saw one piglet in a comfy-looking fenced in area and the other outside the cage exploring the gardens. As I got my camera gear ready I witnessed the other pig escape to join his friend. The pair wandered down a grass path towards a wetland. I followed to see just what sort of antics they would get into. I realized there was not a thing I could do on my own to get the oinkers back in their pen, so I watched as they crossed Dutch Creek Rd and onto the Taylor's property. I saw the herd of cattle regard the little piggies and I briefly wondered how the cows would react to the intruders.

It did not take long for this to happen:

The piggies were not happy with their cow encounter as they went "wee wee wee" into the safety of the woods. And, they haven't been seen since.

The End

The Three Little Piggies

Trying to capture these piggies on pixels reminded me of my days mothering toddlers....
Now here's a couple of people I think you might find interesting and a visit is worth your while. Please visit Mark. It isn't just because he has a countdown contest going on, but more because he is a photojournalist's photographer. When Mark speaks, I listen.
I have no garden to rant about so I rely on Garden Rant to do it all for me. Fun stuff for those of you who have greener thumbs than I.
And finally, Rick Lee is the best Hillbilly Food Photographer. Period. Just looking at his produce makes me hungry. If you argue with me on this one, I'll stuff you down my outhouse.

Eating it all up...

Meet King and Queen, the precocious pigs on Charles Church's organic farm in Valle Crucis. According to Church, he bought the pair as his farm's waste disposal plant.

"They eat all the produce not fit for selling. It beats hauling the stuff elsewhere," he said.

After showing this photo to my eldest, I made the illicit comment that the pig's noses seem perfect for pickin'.

Eldest rolled her eyes at me. "You're gross, Mom."

I live for these moments.

Now, onto the blog front:

I was delighted to find a familiar name on my news aggregator. Because I read David's blog I already knew that he had a new job. However, I was delighted that my Google Alerts found an article written about him in his community newspaper.
Way to go David & Gretchen!

Also, my buddy Rob shows me LOVE all over his blog! Be sure to scroll down several posts to see a photo of Lance Armstrong sporting a farmer's tan. I took the photo BTW...

And. Brianna started a photoblog. She just graduated from Watauga High. Brianna is young. She is eager. And Brianna is getting a digital camera as a graduation present in the next couple of weeks. She will be hangin' with me over the summer and we're gonna be shootin' together. You will see more of her work soon.

And finally. Randy started a new blog . It is an informational blog to help cyclists participating in the Blood, Sweat and Gears bike ride. I am delighted folks around Boone are recognizing blogs as communication tools.