Local – Page 12 – Random Connections

From Pickens to Oolenoy

May 11, 2015 Tom No Comments

History and Genealogy, Local, Miscellaneous, Photography, Rambling

It was a spectacular Wednesday morning. I’d been doing yard work all week, and needed to escape. That seemed like the perfect time for a trip to the Pickens Flea Market. This time, rather than carry cameras, I had a backpack loaded with audio recording gear.

Apparently everyone in Pickens County had the same idea as me. I had planned to get there around 8:00, but Highway 183 from Greenville to Pickens was a zoo, and traffic was clogged headed through the town and out to the flea market. Eventually, though, I did get a nice, shaded parking space, and set out to explore.

Read More “From Pickens to Oolenoy” »

Blue Ghosts 2015

May 10, 2015 Tom 2 Comments

Local

Note: Once again life is happening faster than the blogging thereof. I’m still trying to play catch up from the last couple of weeks before I do anything else interesting.

As we were getting ready to leave Florida I got an e-mail from our friend Joyce McCarrell saying that it was once again time for the Blue Ghost fireflies. These elusive insects are only active for a limited time in the spring, and only appear in very limited areas. Of course we were going to try to make it back in time.

The Mystery of Altamont Hotel

May 5, 2015 Tom 32 Comments

History and Genealogy, Local

Ken and I had found one mystery on our outing on this particular Friday, but a second mystery was in the offing. Since we had access to the convertible we decided to drive up Altamont Road over Paris Mountain. Along the route we took a moment to drive up Tower Road to the top and admire the vista.

Sacred Harp in Greenville

April 19, 2015April 19, 2015 Tom 3 Comments

Local, Music

Each month a Sacred Harp singing is held just around the corner from my house at the First Christian Church. The singing takes place on “the Friday before the third Sunday of each month,” using the parlance of singing organizers. This singing has been going on since the 1990s, and as close as it is to where I live, I’d never attended. I decided that needed to change, so this past Friday night I decided to pay them a visit.

It had been a long time since I’d participated in a singing. I think the last one I did was the William Walker Memorial Singing in Spartanburg way back in 2009. I’ve always seemed to have conflicts with the big singing days, usually a paddling trip with my friends. I had planned to do a podcast episode on shape note singing, so I knew I wanted to take part in another one soon.

Read More “Sacred Harp in Greenville” »

Laurens Cemetery Tour

April 1, 2015April 2, 2015 Tom 4 Comments

History and Genealogy, Local, Photography, Rambling

A couple of weeks ago I received notice through Facebook that the Laurens County Museum would be holding tours of the old Laurens City Cemetery. Glynda and I had visited several weeks ago, and I thought this would be an excellent follow-up, and possibly answer some of the questions we had generated on our trip. I figured that this might also be a good opportunity to get some audio for my upcoming podcast on cemeteries.

Prior to the tour I contacted Bill Cooper, who is chair of the Laurens City Cemetery Committee. Bill works at the local library. He’s also an organist, and would fill in occasionally for me when my organist at First Presbyterian in Laurens was absent. Bill would be conducting part of the tour, and was willing to contribute to the podcast.

Read More “Laurens Cemetery Tour” »

Street Photography at the Pickens Flea Market

March 20, 2015March 26, 2015 Tom 1 Comment

Family, Local, Photography

Pickens Flea Market-015 — Pickens Flea Market

Street photography is photography that features the human condition within public places and does not necessitate the presence of a street or even the urban environment. The subject of the photograph might be absent of people and can be an object or environment where the image projects a decidedly human character in facsimile or aesthetic. (Wikipedia)

It just so happened that my brother, Stephen’s birthday fell on a Wednesday. We both love to go to the Pickens Flea Market, so it was the perfect opportunity for me to take him out for breakfast, then for a quick jaunt over to the flea market.

While the main purpose of the trip was to spend some time with my brother on his birthday, my ulterior motive was to use this as a test run for gathering ambient audio for an upcoming podcast. As always I had my cameras with me, but I also had two portable recorders with me.

I did get some audio, but the real treasure was the opportunity for candid street photography afforded by the flea market.

Darby Road Discoveries

January 27, 2015 Tom 6 Comments

History and Genealogy, Local, Photography, Rambling

I got a message from one of my compatriots on the Abandoned, Old, and Interesting in South Carolina group on Facebook. She was telling me about a couple of old schools in the area that I might have missed. One of the schools in question was Double Springs School, just around the corner from Double Springs Baptist Church on Highway 290 north of Greer. My FB friend said that her father had attended school there, so I figured the claim was legit. I checked out one of the locations in Streetview, and, sure enough, there was a school I had completely overlooked.

Since was it was fairly close, last Tuesday afternoon I decided to check it out. I had to run up to Furman, so I was cutting across country, across the back side of Paris Mountain, to get to the location. Along the way, I made a few other discoveries.

Read More “Darby Road Discoveries” »

Spontaneous Fall Lake Connestee Hike

November 6, 2014December 9, 2014 Tom No Comments

Local, Photography, Rambling

November 6, 2014

Election day – always a bummer in South Carolina for someone of the political persuasion like mine. Even so, I walked down to our local polling place to cast my ballot. While I was in line to vote, my good friend Tim Taylor came up behind me. We caught up while in line, and decided to have lunch together. Since Tim had the Election Day off from his job at the Roper Mountain Science Center, over lunch we decided to head over to Lake Connnestee Nature Park.

We drove over to the park headquarters. There we met Gina Varat and David Hargette, who work at the park. They filled me in on some of the happenings at the park, such as some of the history walks and an upcoming Nature Journaling class with author John Lane. Tim chatted with them a bit, then we headed on our way.

The Mystery of the Cross(es)

November 2, 2014November 11, 2014 Tom No Comments

History and Genealogy, Local, Religion

As you drive through several communities in Western North Carolina, you will see wooden crosses dotting the countryside. These crosses are free-standing, about ten feet high, and bear a message, usually something like “Jesus Saves from Sin” or “Jesus Died for Sinners.” These are found in front of Baptist churches in the area, and occasionally in front of private homes.

Eating in Tandem

November 2, 2014November 12, 2014 Tom 1 Comment

Local, Restaurants

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a restaurant review. Diets and limited income just aren’t conducive to eating out a lot. Even so, a new one caught my eye, and I decided to check it out. Tandem Creperie recently opened this year, right on the Swamp Rabbit Trail.

Last Sunday we had gone on a leaf-peeping drive, and stopped for the first time at The Forest Coffeehouse, down the street.

The coffee at The Forest was excellent, and it reminded me of all the new spots in Travelers Rest, and I remembered seeing an article about Tandem. I hadn’t had crepes in ages, so I decided to head up that way.