Wythe Notes — Blogging the food, culture and folkways of Wythe County, Virginia, and the Mountain Empire

a few summer shots

August 10th, 2010 · flora and fauna, photos

I took a stroll around Our Little Piece of Paradise this morning. The following pictures are what I saw.

→ 1 CommentTags:apple tree·bamboo·crapemyrtle·grapevines·Nasturtiums·wild mushrooms

we give up

August 5th, 2010 · musings

“No one in this world has ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the great masses of the plain people. Nor has anyone ever lost public office thereby.”
h.l. mencken

commonwealth of virginia
PETITION OF QUALIFIED
VOTERS
FOR REFERENDUM

We the qualified voters of Fort Chiswell Magisterial District of Wythe County, Virginia signed hereunder do hereby petition the circuit court to enter an order, pursuant to 4.1-124 & 24.2-684.1 of the Code of Virginia for a Special Election on Election Day, on the question listed below:

Shall the sale of mixed alcoholic beverages by restaurants licensed by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board be permitted in the Fort Chiswell Magisterial District of Wythe County, Virginia?

It was sometime in early April when I heard that my local Supervisor, Maggie Poole, was circulating a petition to place a referendum on the November ballot to allow restaurants in our District to serve mixed beverages. Like many people I subsequently met, I thought they already could. I had never given it much thought. There are so few restaurants in the 4th district anyway, I just figured they chose not to offer mixed drinks. A liquor license is more expensive and boosts liability insurance premiums.

What’s the big deal?, I thought. After all, beer and wine are widely available throughout the county. They are sold in all the grocery stores and most of the convenience and general stores. There are three wineries in the county, and most restaurants in Wytheville offer cocktails. If someone is going to have too much to drink and get behind the wheel of a car, wouldn’t it be better, I reasoned, to knock 10 miles off their dangerous journey home? It certainly would lessen the chances of being killed or injured by a drunk driver for the rest of us.

I did a little checking and found that a local businessman was interested in opening a Texas Roadhouse franchise in Fort Chiswell. As a condition of the franchise, he had to be able to serve mixed drinks. Sounded reasonable to me. Such a restaurant would mean more decent food, permanent jobs, and increased tax revenues for the two schools in this district. I decided to give Maggie a call and offer to help.

4th District Supervisor Maggie Poole

Prior to training as a chef in 1986, I spent most of the previous decade and a half working in government and politics. I was experienced in the ballot initiative and referendum procedures, having worked on a number of them in several states. I figured this would be a piece of cake. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

After I spent more than 30 hours of knocking on doors (Maggie spent an equal number or more), standing in Casa Mexicana, the New River General Store, and outside Food Country attempting to gather signatures just to give voters the RIGHT to vote yes or no on the question, I’m sad to say we failed to garner the 276 signatures necessary to put the referendum on the ballot.

During this process I met a number of people on both sides of the issue who were in favor of allowing the voters to decide. They understood that signing the petition was not an endorsement, but merely an opportunity to allow voters to exercise their constitutional rights.

The ignorance and skepticism of the way our county government works by the majority of people I came in contact with though was disheartening. Some people were down right nasty and rude. I was treated badly, lied to, ignored, preached to and lectured by people who could barely read and write. I was shocked at the number of people who announced they couldn’t vote because they were convicted felons and seemed proud of that fact. In one day, I encountered 11 people in that category, 9 of whom were women under 40. All in all, it was a very negative experience.

The organizers of the petition drive realize now that they made a mistake by limiting the referendum to just the Fort Chiswell District. If the measure had been county wide, we would have plenty of signatures. Almost half of the ones I gathered were from people who live in the adjoining District. They thought they were helping by not being truthful about their polling place, not realizing that the Registrar would strike their names from the petition.

This issue is not going away. It will be back next year, but next time the whole county will have a voice.

→ 4 CommentsTags:ballot·fort chiswell·mixed drinks·referendum·texas roadhouse·wythe county

this and that

August 3rd, 2010 · faces and places, food, recipes

Saturday, I proudly carried what I was sure was the winning entry in the Baked Bean Taste Off into the Wytheville Library and plunked it down on the counter. I had soaked two cups of dried navy beans overnight in cold water. I simmered them for 3 hours or so until they were tender. I carefully drained the beans and reserved the liquid. I then layered the beans in a two quart casserole. Layer of beans, layer of pepper cured bacon, layer of diced onions and green peppers, layer of beans, bacon, veggies, beans, bacon, veggies, ending with a layer of beans. I made a sauce of ketsup, molasses, brown sugar, dry mustard, Worcestershire sauce, picante sauce, garlic sauce, bourbon, a little salt, and the reserved bean liquid. I poured the sauce over the layered beans and tightly sealed the casserole. I placed the casserole in a 300 degree oven and baked it for 8 hours.

Yessir….it was the winning entry. Except for one thing. When I arrived at the library just before 2pm Saturday I was a little late. The Taste Off was Friday.

Clogging at the Market

The Southwest Virginia Cloggers from Rural Retreat entertained the patrons of the Wytheville Farmers Market Saturday with a demonstration of clogging and flatfoot dancing. The performers covered a wide range of ages and skill levels, but shared an infectious enthusiasm for the traditional dances.

Definition of Adorable

→ 1 CommentTags:baked beans·clogging·flatfooting·Rural Retreat·Wytheville Farmers Market

relief?

July 30th, 2010 · Sources, musings, wildlife

Maybe, just maybe a little relief from the miserable heat is in store for the next few days. I got to tell you, folks are getting MEAN. The various weather reporting services are all over the place. But as I write this, it’s 12:45pm and it’s not yet 80 degrees and the humidity is much lower. Kevin Myatt is predicting rain Sunday and Monday. Yesterday was so hot, George the groundhog lay on the foundation of the old chicken coop gasping for breath trying to catch a breeze. Anne is going to do her rain dance this afternoon…i.e. she’s going to spray the grapes. Keep your fingers crossed.

REMINDERS

→ No CommentsTags:baked beans·groundhog·Wytheville Farmers Market·Wytheville Library

i’ll have one with slaw

July 29th, 2010 · faces and places, food

“‘Tis dogs’ delight to bark and bite,”
Thus does the adage run.
But I delight to bite the dog
When placed inside a bun.

The chili dog is one of life’s guilty little pleasures. It’s as American as…well….hot dogs and apple pie.

The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council estimates that Americans consume 20,000,000,000 (that’s 20 billion) hot dogs per annum. That works out to 70 hot dogs a year for every man, woman, and child in the country.

The history is somewhat murky, but most historians credit Charles Feltman, an immigrant German butcher in Brooklyn, New York, as the first to combine a frankfurter sausage and a soft roll which he called “red hots.” The year was 1867.

In 1920, a man by the name of E.N. Umberger opened a store at 165 E. Main Street in Wytheville and began selling the wildly popular sandwich.

Today the store still exists and the world famous “Skeeter Dogs” are still their best selling item.

Walking into Skeeter’s is a step back in time. Much of the place is the way it was when E.N. ran the store. The lunch counter is the same and the steam table is the same except for the stainless steel top that has replaced the old linoleum.

The numerous advertising signs on the walls are not the reproductions sold all over the country, they’re the originals.

I chatted with Miss Elizabeth, the 77 year old lady who has worked the counter for the past 24 years. When I told her of my love of chili dogs (my name on yahoo and aol is Chilidawgguy), but that for health reasons I don’t eat them much anymore, she said, “You only pass this way once. If you see something you want, and can afford it, get it.” Words to live by. When asked about her favorite celebrity customer, she pointed to a picture of then Governor, now Senator, Mark Warner and said, “The Governor stops in a least once a year, whether he’s running for anything or not.”

Miss Elizabeth

In one of those serendipitous moments, I met Rodney and Carrie Catron from Virginia Beach. They were in town visiting Rodney’s 101 year old mother, and stopped in for a couple Skeeter Dogs before they left for home. Rodney attended the old Wytheville High School from 1948-1951. In those days, chili dogs were 15 cents a piece or 2 for a quarter. A coke from the box still sitting against the far wall was a nickel. He ate two a day….every day.

Carrie and Rodney Catron

Before I left, I took Miss Elizabeth’s advice to heart. I had one with slaw.

**********

→ 3 CommentsTags:baked beans·chili dogs·hot dogs·skeeter dogs·umberger·wytheville

cookin’ at the market

July 25th, 2010 · faces and places, food, recipes

all photographs for this post courtesy of Suzie Richert

Yesterday was cooking demonstration day at the Wytheville Farmers Market and I got to be the Ol’ Rock’n Roll Chef one more time. Folks, I had a blast. I’d like to thank all of you who stopped by to say hello. It is truly gratifying to meet my readers.

I’d also like to thank Louise Bennett, who acted as my sous chef. Louise is a Personal Chef from Rural Retreat. She cooks, bakes, shops, and does meal plans among her many talents. This lady really knows her stuff, and I couldn’t have done it without her. If you could use her services, give her a call at 276-686-5031. Louise had to leave around 11:00am, and my lovely and talented wife Anne stepped in.

I decided to make omelets, and I was able to buy all the vegetables and eggs I used from the vendors at the market. I hope those of you who got to taste the samples we gave away enjoyed them as much as I enjoyed making them.

Purchasing organic veggies from Marcie Krause as Dave Richert looks on from the next stall

Turnin' and Burnin'

→ 5 CommentsTags:free-range eggs·omelets·organic vegetables·Wytheville Farmers Market

little wayne is a weird dude

July 22nd, 2010 · photos, wildlife

Anne and I are deck people. We have had a deck for most of the last three decades, and during good weather we spend a lot of time on it. At the end of the day, we relax with a drink, often have supper, and do a lot of entertaining there.

Basically, the deck is our outside room. Adjacent to the deck is The Dead Tree. It stands there like a totem, very sculptural in its appearance. It’s a favored perch for birds and Rocky, the Demon Squirrel. I usually see the Effing Chipmunk running from the strawberry patch towards it. I’ve photographed The Tree dozens of times under many different conditions.

A couple of evenings ago, I noticed something kind of odd. Little Wayne was half-way up the tree. Now I know black rat snakes go pretty much anywhere they damn well please, but I’ve never seen one climb a dead tree before. And this one was not only up the tree, he was disappearing inside the tree.

Obviously I know squat about Black Snakes, so I did a little more research and found that not only do they climb trees, they spend a lot of time in trees. Much of their diet is derived from the various creatures that inhabit trees. Now I wonder what LW was going after. I’m sure there are plenty of insects, and I guess it’s possible mice are nesting there. The birds that nested in The Tree this spring are gone. There is a chance that Little Wayne may have been going after the Effing Chipmunk.

If that was the case, all I can say is “ROCK ON YOU WEIRD LITTLE DUDE!”

→ No CommentsTags:black rat snake·decks·entertaining·little wayne·totems

ain’t life a bitch?

July 18th, 2010 · faces and places, musings

A week or so ago, I got a letter from a retired police officer who is interested in leasing the Franklin County farm as his private hunting preserve. You know Franklin County, the moonshine capital of the world. Franklin County, the place Anne said that as beautiful as it is, it will be a cold day in hell before we build there. Franklin County, where the guy who owns the adjoining land is an ex-con with multiple felony convictions. You know, THAT Franklin County.

So Friday, we met Joe Lucas, the man who plans to lease the land (nice alliteration, huh?) at the farm to go over the deal. It’s been over a year since we’ve seen the place. It’s a little more run down, and a little more overgrown, but still beautiful.

After we roughed out a deal with Joe, Anne and I headed down to Floyd to meet our friends Amy and Doug Thompson. We hooked up with Doug at the Floyd Country Store and spent a pleasant afternoon catching up. I had a light lunch of a grilled cheese sandwich and a cup of pinto beans, both of which were some of the best I’ve ever had. I also purchased a copy of Rodale’s Organic Gardening, the bible for many organic gardeners.

Friday was Amy’s birthday and the four of us met for an early dinner at Mickey G’s. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, Michael Gucciardo is the best chef in Southwest Virginia. I had a whole Red Snapper with Livornese Sauce (tomatoes, onions, capers, and black olives) topped with fresh mussels and clams. It was to die for. Anyone within driving distance of Floyd who hasn’t eaten at Mickey G’s is really missing something.

After a leisurely drive home, we spent a quiet evening with cocktails on the deck. Saturday morning, I headed to the Wytheville Farmer’s Market while Anne slept in. If I don’t stop eating the outstanding baked goods at the Market, I’m going to gain back the 40lbs I worked so hard to lose. Some of this stuff is positively addictive. Thanks to the hard work of Market Director Suzie Richert, this year’s Market is not only a great place to purchase quality products, it has become a fun place to hangout.

Next week, yours truly will be turning and burning starting at 9am, so be sure to stop by and say hello. I’ll be giving away free samples using products purchased from local vendors.

I made it back home in time for the afternoon thunderstorm. The brief storms and showers we’ve had for the past week have not only helped the garden, they’ve cooled things down in the evening. We’ve made it this far into the summer without the air conditioner. I grilled a whole chicken using Dave Richert’s Green Grillin’ small batch applewood charcoal and accompanied it with a mess of turnip and collard greens, blackeyed peas with chopped raw onion, dirty rice and some excellent sourdough rolls I purchased at the Market.

Just another couple of days in paradise.

→ No CommentsTags:Floyd Country Store·Floyd VA·Franklin County VA·Mickey G's·moonshine·Wytheville Farmers Market