Up Front

This is a fun issue involving the great outdoors, food, art, living from a van, and some tips on home schooling for all the parents taking on this new task.

BY

Pat Bradford gets an up-close look at bumblebees at the New Hanover County Arboretum for our August 2018 issue. | WBM file photo.
Pat Bradford gets an up-close look at bumblebees at the New Hanover County Arboretum for our August 2018 issue. | WBM file photo.

With the state still in Phase Two of virus lockdown reopening, more people are taking to the great outdoors — including me, swimming in the sound daily for aquatic therapy now. This issue brings RV travel and outdoor equipment sales into focus. Funny, a lot of people have the same great idea, thus finding good gear and campsites is a new challenge.

If you’re getting restless and need a new pastime, check out our story on birding basics. It is simple to get started in bird watching, fun to do alone or with a friend, and you can start immediately. And you will be in great company from the past. Naturalist Edna Appleberry put Wilmington on the birding world map. Read about her pioneering efforts in this issue.

Enjoy reading about the evolution of some unusual delicacies, such as chitterlings and pigs feet, then shop local to support our grocers and restaurateurs. Along the lines of using what you have, former TV reporter Casey Roman took the loss of her job in 2018 as a springboard to new adventures. You can find out about her van-life and blog in these pages.

Like the art of Jeri Greenberg, featured within, our goal is to bring you snippets of life in our beautiful coastal region. Not every day is like a refreshing painting, but, like the artist, keep looking for loveliness in all places — even in colorful coffee cups.

Lastly, it saddens me to know that the 9/11 observance of reading the names of those who died with the fall of the Twin Towers in New York will not take place this year. At least not in the same manner as the last several years, due to the need for social distancing. Those ordinary people, those heroic first responders and good Samaritans of all kinds, will not be forgotten.

Gratefully yours, Pat Bradford







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