Edgar Allan Poe party on Ocracoke!

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My annual Edgar Allan Poe party was held on Ocracoke this year. I hope you enjoy the article! We had such a great time. Here are just a few photos from the evening!!

Thanks to my Ocracoke friends for coming to the party, wearing black and participating in the discussion and readings. Thank you are well for making me feel so welcome during this winter month.

Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore!"

Lida and Sundae



Bill, David and someone else?

Gary and Leonard



Don, Betty, Chris

Philip and I

Philip, Merle and Jim



Emmet with his dad, Rob

Robert Frost Reads "The Road Not Taken"

I have been studying Robert Frost with my on-line Yale class. I found this wonderful video of Frost reading his poem, The Road Not Taken. It is truly a treasure that has been saved. I have moved on to Yeats, but couldn't help published this video of Frost.

I am sure you are wondering how the class is going? I love doing the homework and taking the class. I am always on-time and prepared. I am, however, having a difficult time with the professor as he never calls on me! I wave my hand, I shout out, "I know the answer!" He continues to look around the room and no one responds. "Please, please, please call on me!"

We also broke up into discussion groups last week. I was left out of that as well. Could it be because my class was recorded in 2007??

Hmmm...contemplation.



101 Things I Learned While Sailing

The other day Philip received a packet in the mail. Inside was a mini-manuscript from a fellow he met on Ocracoke. This man and his wife were sailing through and stopped here to visit. Quickly he and Philip became friends and actually went clamming.

The mini-manuscript was titled, 101 Things I Think I Learned While Sailing. There was a bit more, but I will leave all names out of this piece!! (I didn't really ask for permission.)

I found this fascinating to read, as well as thinking...hmmm...we should all write down the 101 Things I Think I Learned While.....you fill in the blanks!

Here are a few of theirs, just enjoy them! (Don't worry, I did not copy all 101 things!)

3. Your dinghy is your car and becomes your lifeline to civilization.

11. When in question whether or not to stay put, and you are in a safe harbor, stay put.

15. James Michener bought a house on San Domingo Creek in Maryland and lived there for two years while he wrote his epic novel, "Chesapeake."

18. Piracy is alive and well!

33. Meltdowns happen.

37. Everything tastes better on the boat.

46. Boats leak.

51. Attitude IS the difference between an ordeal and an adventure. It's all up to you!

58. Always have a spare everything. Everything.

60. Listen to Elvis.

65. If you don't have what you need, make something else work.

88. Nine-and-a-half million bricks were used to build Fort Macon, North Carolina.

89. I feel comfortable in my sarong.

98. Dreams do come true and miracles do happen every day.

100. "And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music." Friedrich Nietsche.

101. Blackbeard the Pirate left behind no buried treasure.

Thanks to the Mullen family for taking the time to write up what they have learned...now it is our turn!

Poetry Passage

Here is another poem from my collection:

Knocking on a Glass Table

Canopied over earth

Sat wings of darkness

Hovering

Dipping

Escaping

But not really.

The wings beat on each door...

One by one

Pulsating out each candle

Pulling the vapor northward

And then returning for the unflamed.



Art Out my Window....

Philip and I went on an Ocracoke cottage tour this weekend. We strolled the old pathways, climbed over  tree roots, and found ourselves peering out of dusty windows. All of the photos are from inside these old cottages. All are similar to Philip's cottage and were built between 1860 and 1880.

The quietness and beauty spoke volumes as we gingerly walked where those have walked before. In that dusty placidness, we listened to the echo of their voices and once-upon-a-time music upon the hearth.

Early morning walk on Howard Street....

It is chilly here today with a brisk wind, nonetheless, nothing like northern Indiana. My early morning walk down Howard Street on Ocracoke produced these lovely photos. There was a slight mist in the air, and no one was about as I strolled down this old historic street with camera in hand. Enjoy this early morning beauty. You can almost smell cedar!

Winter on Ocracoke...this week's column, enjoy!

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