Tuesday, July 30, 2013

An invitation to all ye on Ocracoke Island!



It is with great excitement that I invite you all to the Deep Water Theater on Friday or Saturday evening for my new show, A Baptist Girl's Guide to Love and Happiness (a coming of age story!)

Sundae Horn and Marcy Brenner will share the stage with me with musical interludes from decades gone by.

The show starts at 8:30 and tickets are $7.00 at the door!  Hope to see you at the show!



I took this photo of myself at age 20!

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Islanders teach their children the value of work....

Islanders teach their children the value of work - KPC Media Group: Kpcnews

Dear Friends,

Another Sunday morning on the Island. It is quiet except for the morning church bells calling folks out of cottages to attend services. 

Yesterday was full of visitors...mostly family members related to Philip in some way or other. The conversations were of Ocracoke long ago and now. Many other discussions followed about how folks were actually related...third cousins once removed?  No, my uncle's second cousin twice removed! Since I am not related to any of them, I could just shake my head and eat brownies!

The above is the link to this week's column! Enjoy. The following photos will help you see the story! Oh, I might add Sundae sent me a text saying she was not in charge of Bingo any more, but she was for a long time!


Hoisting the sail on the Wilma Lee

Susan's ice cream shop

Sundae Horn with her youngest child, Mariah Daisy




Friday, July 26, 2013

July Birthday Party!

Every year we celebrate the July birthdays in style on Ocracoke.

This year (as well as last) Philip and I hosted the party! It was wonderful grouping of friends for a pot luck dinner here at the house.

We took photos of all the birthday guests out in the yard surrounded by the bubble machine.

Let's see how many of these folks you recognize!!


How many Ocracoke folks do you know?




Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Learning to paint brings child-like joy...

Learning to paint brings child-like joy - KPC Media Group: Kpcnews

Last week I took my first ever painting class on Ocracoke Island with Mary Bassell. Mary is a wonderful artist and a very patient teacher.

She gives morning classes in her studio using pastels, and you actually come home with a painting.

I wrote the above article for my weekly column!  As always, enjoy!


I am showing off my painting with Mary!

Monday, July 22, 2013

Saturday, July 20, 2013

In celebration of my 1,000th blog post!

Dear Friends,

All of a sudden I realized that this post would be my 1,000th blog post! It is such a milestone for me!

I can't begin to mention all of the events and adventures that we have traveled on together.

Through all the joy and hardships over the past few years I have shared it with you through my writings, poems, and photographs!

I thank you deeply for enriching my life! So cheers to life and another 1,000 blog posts!

This short video was taken in Avon, North Carolina on the Outer Banks. Philip and I stopped at an art fair on our way home from the orthopedist. When I saw the hula hoops I immediately knew I wanted that for this post. My world does indeed go in circles!

Whereas I did not buy the hula hoop, the folks at spinfinite Designs were delighted to loan me one for my short video!  Enjoy and thank you again!




How can I end this post without a poem from Emily Dickinson?


That it will never come again
Is what makes life so sweet
Believing what we don't believe
Does not exhilarate.

That if it be, it be at best
An ablative estate--
This instigates an appetite
Precisely opposite

Emily Dickinson
1830-1886



Monday, July 15, 2013

A pair of Hoosiers get to meet out at sea...

A pair of Hoosiers get to meet out at sea - KPC Media Group: Kpcnews

The above headline is the link to this week's column about Andy Anderson. I had a great time hanging out with Andy one morning last week.

As always, enjoy!




 Andy Anderson and Edward Carlson

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Lazy days on Ocracoke

Sometimes the days can seem pretty hectic on Ocracoke. There are ghost tours and the Opry. There are porch talks and dockside talks as well.

But once in a while silence falls upon the day and my time is spent watching dragonflies dance in the morning sun or stars twinkle in the evening sky.

The other day when my family was visiting we found ourselves playing at the beach. My little granddaughters tossed their crackers out to the seagulls. They laughed and laughed when the gulls swooped down.

I grabbed my camera and took this shot. It defines lazy days on Ocracoke.


Thursday, July 11, 2013

Days of Wine and Roses

It is actually more like the days of Joe Bells and sand spurs during the lazy month of July. So let's talk. I would especially like to talk to new subscribers to my blog and welcome you.

My real name is Lou Ann, but I also go by Maggie Mae or Mad Mag. I am from the Midwest, Indiana to be exact, but of recent years have been spending summers on Ocracoke Island. (No, that is not in Australia!)

I am a  writer and storyteller by trade which makes for a very interesting career. In this field I travel a great deal, write and talk a lot, and listen profusely to what lives around me.

I make the best soup of anyone I know, tell more ghost stories than is allowed by law, and know the phases of the moon at any given moment.

I fiercely believe in family and have strong feelings about chocolate.

Sharing my thoughts and photography on this blog is just another way to tell stories.

And yes where I currently hang out my laundry the Joe Bells bloom and the wind blows the sand spurs right up into my clean clothes.

So, what about you?


Sunday, July 07, 2013

Howard Street ghosts did more than haunt this tour...

Howard Street ghosts did more than haunt this tour - KPC Media Group: Kpcnews

Dear Friends,

I always find it difficult to type with just one hand, but here we go again!

Reading the above column might explain my absence of late. It was fun to write this week's column even with hunting and pecking out the keys!

If you have ever walked down Howard Street on Ocracoke Island in the dark of night, you will be able to picture this story!

Lou Ann

Spring break in St. Pete...

  Adam and his pups! The late-night flight is full. Everyone is heading out for spring break. Students and teachers, moms and dads, kids and...