From Flatlander to Mountain Woman (Ha, ha)

One of the attractions of moving to NC had originally been the proximity to the ocean. "Only five or six hours to the ocean" - I said to myself, and I saw us whizzing down the freeway to Myrtle Beach all the time. Well, even though I still hope to go sometime, it seems that the mountains closeby win out over the beach far away. Who needs driving for hours and spending a hundred bucks a night in a motel if we have some of the most scenic tourist spots right in front of our door? We can pick just the right, sunny days for our outings, get to stay home if it rains and sleep in our own beds, not to mention cook at home if we like or go out, if we want.

In Iowa we complain about our hills (especially if you are a bicyclist). Contrary to public opinion, Iowa isn't completely flat, but the landscape is gently undulating, with a few bluffs near the river banks. But it's no comparison to the Appalachians. In our NC county alone the elevations vary from between 1,800 feet to 4,200 feet. A little further, and the mountains rise to 5,000 or 6,000 feet. Pretty puny compared with the Alps, the Rockies, or the Himalaya, but for a flatlander like me it means: Those are real mountains!

So the first thing I've been doing is to get equipped. Trail shoes with traction, walking stick, water-proof hat and jacket, backpack for lunch, water, etc. I look cool! Never mind that I always seem to forget the camera and would be in serious trouble if a bear came along ("let him have your lunch"), I'm becoming a bit better equipped with each outing.

I may look cool, but what gives me away immediately as a flatlander is the shape I'm in - or rather, the lack of it. If the path goes up and up, I have to stop every few feet, seemingly to admire the scene, but really to catch my breath. I'm completely out of shape. Perhaps I need to start training on the hill behind our subdivision and hike up and down there every day.

Today we traveled less than 45 minutes to a NC State Forest, parked the car, and hiked to two different water falls. One of them, called Triple Falls Water Falls, is particularly spectacular, with the water cascading in several stages. With the recent record rainfall of close to a foot in some areas, the streams have plenty of water, which added to the appeal of the water falls.

By the way, we saw the very first leaves turning and falling to the ground...

Guns and Rain

When I was signing in at the outpatient clinic for my mammogram, I noticed a line on the fairly short form asking:

"Are you carrying a weapon?"
And, "If so, has security been notified?"

I had noticed a sign at the entrance saying "No concealed weapons permitted" but never expected this on an admission form. They sure wouldn't ask this in Iowa, or Germany, for that matter!

For someone like me who is at least a semi-pacificist, this passion about guns is frightening. In South Carolina, just a few miles from here, a mayor got into trouble with the NRA because he joined a group called, "Mayors Against Illegal Weapons." Note - this was about illegal weapons, and they wanted him to resign over this. If I were to name the three biggest passions here, it is God - Country - Guns: or perhaps in reverse order. It seems to have escaped some of them that perhaps Jesus wouldn't have toted an assault rifle or concealed weapon, because he said to love your enemies, and he advocated non-violence.

The other thing I learned today is about rain. It's impossible to say how much rain the county gets because it varies everywhere, but the average is 58 inches a year. Iowa City has about 30 or 36 inches a year. I didn't realize I would be moving into a much wetter climate!

A Trip to Atlanta

We just came back from our first overnight trip since moving to Hendersonville, NC. Here are some of my observations, in no particular order:
1. No matter which way you're driving to Hendersonville, you're driving through some gorgeous scenery. I love the mountains more each time I drive through them. On that account Hvl wins hands-down.
2. As soon as we got the "flatland", we were hit with the reality why I don't like living in the South: the heat and humidity. Even at temps in the 70's and 80's it seemed pretty unbearable. Hvl. was humid, too, but cool, in the upper sixties. It felt good to be home!
3. On the downside, gas is much more expensive here. In both Georgia and SC they charged $2.16, and here it's 2.49 - a difference of 33 cents per gallon, and that along the highway! NC is a high-tax state in other ways, too - a high state income tax of 8 %, a sales tax of nearly 8 %, and even necessary groceries being taxed. Both the county and the city have already sent us a property tax bill, even though we just moved in. I wonder what they are doing with all that money??
4. Shopping is fabulous in Atlanta, and even along the way - we stopped at an outlet mall and bought a coat, other clothing, several pairs of shoes all in about an hour. In Atlanta we strolled through a fancy mall and saw quite a few stores we don't see everywhere - including a Lindt chocolate store. I went in, looked at the wide variety - overpriced, in my opinion - and walked out, not having bought anything, to the admiration of my husband at my restraint. I bet the poor sales lady was disappointed.
5. That evening, we celebrated a birthday, and I got to ride in one of those fancy stretch limousine with a bar and a long bench. One thing is sure - there is no lady-like way to get in and out. I wonder whether these fashion models and film stars take lessons on how to step in and out graciously in the light of the cameras?
6. All and all, though, I much rather live in Hendersonville than in Atlanta!

End of the summer season

As you are well aware, with Labor Day a change of season is in the air. In Iowa it meant Hawkeye Football games, high school football, cooler weather, sweat shirt weather, etc. There is a certain routine I was used to.

Here Labor Day means the craziness of Apple Festival (see previous post) with its traffic jams. I can't wait until all these tourists are gone and the town is ours again (spoken like a true local!) But they'll be back in October for leaf season and clog up everything for several weeks. Aghh!

What seems weird though is that I don't know what to expect of the coming fall and winter season. Since we moved into this house in the summer, it feels more like a summer home than anything. It's hard to imagine needing a furnace or being cold in here. How cold will it get? Will I need my Iowa winter clothes?

Some of my friends and neighbors will disappear (temporarily) and go to their Florida homes. They think it weird that we moved here to escape the Iowa winters since they think the winters are too cold.

Which football team do I root for now? How do I follow the Hawks, since it's unlikely they'll be on ESPN? Will the kids be out trick-and-treating in our community which prohibits soliciting? Will the condo association have rules about Christmas decorations?

One thing is sure - activities are picking up. I started to attend a few activities in conjunction with a large pentecostal church, in addition to my main church, signed up for several volunteer opportunities and am thinking about having people over. It's amazing how many people we've met in the past two months - some of them we know well enough that we could even ask them a favor, if need be.

So we're taking it one day at a time, and we'll discover what fall has to offer in the Carolinas (besides apples).

Apples anyone?

Henderson County is Apple Country. Within a five mile radius of our home, there are a number of orchards, and altogether we supply a big chunk of the apples in NC and nationwide.

So what would be bigger and better than the annual NC Apple Festival right here in Hendersonville? In its 63rd year, it runs over four days and draws an estimated 225.000 people. Keep in mind that the county only has 100,000 inhabitants, and more like 80,000 in the winter. So this is a boon to business, and hotels, innkeepers, restaurants, and vendors are smiling all the way to the bank. It's bigger than Christmas., the biggest event of the year. Only leaf season in October comes close.

We went on the first day. The traffic was terrible, because the festival is held downtown, and most of the traffic goes through downtown. And where to park? It reminded me of Melrose Avenue on Game Day. We finally backtracked, parking in a big parking lot of a local park and taking a shuttle. Much less stressful. (This would be Jackson Park, for you locals and visitors.)

The main attraction, of course, were apples in various forms - au naturelle, as cider, ice cream, fried apple pie, etc. Alas, since my husband is allergic to apples, we didn't really indulge in it. I only bought a T-shirt with a giant apple tree as its logo. Since the apples for sale were only offered in large quantities which I didn't want to schlepp back to our distant car, I didn't buy any. I'll wait until our next visit to the Hendersonville Curb Market - which is really a year-round farmer's market in a regular, heatable building - where the same vendors offer the same kind of apples.

Entertainment was fun, too - various booths, live music, and "Remembrances of Mayberry" with "Barney Fife" and "Andy Taylor" strutting around, guns in holster, either swaying to the music or being photographed with tourists. I thought the Barney character was a closer fit, perhaps he only had to twist his face into a lop-sided grin. I didn't know until I moved here that Mayberry originally was set in NC, or so they say. Perhaps Tennessee and Kentucky are making the same claim. It could be true, though.

The rest of the weekend we are staying away, leaving the town to the tourists, even taking roundabout ways to get to church on Sunday. Anything to avoid the traffic jams downtown!