Monday, September 8, 2014

NORTH CAROLINA, The Tar Heel State

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Carolina,Carolina, heaven’s blessings attend her, While we live we will cherish, protect and defend her. Hurrah, Hurrah, the Old North state forever!

Did you have state history in school? In NC we did. Above was a song we learned, more verses of course. Then there was the Poem:

Here’s to the land of the Long leaf Pine,           The Summer land where the sun doth shine, Where the weak grow strong and the strong grow great, Here is to down home the old North State.

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We learned NC had Coastal, Piedmont and Mountains. It was impressed on us, not every state has all three. NC has 100 counties and we had to memorize all of them.

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The Cardinal is our Bird, The Dogwood is our flower.

We were a diversified state, Tobacco and cotton down East. Cotton and Cotton Mills in the Piedmont, and Moonshine In the mountains. Of course they did not teach about the moonshine, but everyone knew it.  The mountains produced great apples, cider and pulpwood.  We had paper mills in the mountain area. Linda’s Miss Kitty looks out at the NC Mountains, as the ‘watch cat’.

We have lost the cotton mills and thousands of jobs.  We are more paper pushers now. We boast of becoming a Finance and banking center.

We have an area called the Triangle area, around our Capitol at Raleigh. That area is becoming known for Technology and banking.  This stuff is off the top of my head so I could be wrong, maybe about one thing….

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Sherry and tobacco in Virginia. Below is the edge of a field with some leaves stripped and already in the tobacco Barn. Remember in Pennsylvania The tobacco was already YELLOW (weeks ago,being more north).

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Being down East, I am surprised at the remaining large tobacco and cotton fields. Nothing like the Heydays, but still pretty big.

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The country is beautiful on a drive, I love the lonely roads. But Below is one crop we ‘ain’t’ proud of, Kudzu. A vine that covers everything when allowed to:

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This from the net but everyone in NC has seen this or something like  it. There is a cabin under the Kudzu, wanna explore? Not me.

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I love old barns and old houses.

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I cannot help but wonder the stories held in these walls.

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In our trips here we see the roads lined with this yellow flower. It looks like a yellow daisy to me. Or something like the parson in the pulpit?  (maybe a brown eyed Susie)

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Anyway we aren’t home yet, but this is North Carolina. Bonnie of the blog ‘organic discourse’, is from this area…

Nite Shipslog

PS:

We see so many places that would be sweet to live, but when it comes down to it, we migrate back to North Carolina.Roots and kin of both families are here.

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WOW 58 Chevy

Filling up the 1958 Chevy

Mevely317 of Respice, Prospice Said yesterday they were just at a station that still filled the tank and checked the oil. I thought Hemmings in VT was the only one left.

10 comments:

Unknown said...

I love our state. I'm surprised you had to memorize the hundred counties. That must have been quite an undertaking.
The yellow flower is probably of the bidens genus. Maybe I'll do a blog post about it.

Paula said...

Wow that vine looks like it could be scary but also pretty. I like the old houses.

Unknown said...

Of course, it must be mentioned that kudzu was imported from Japan. It is not a NC native. It was brought in, like honeysuckle, to control erosion. (It's done a bang up job of that! LOL)

shirl72 said...

We live in a beautiful State North
Carolina. Although we were known
for cotton I didn't know that much
about cotton being raised in the City. I have since grown some on my deck in pots and that plant is so fascinating. With all the leaves gone and only the cotton bowls left on the stem it makes a beautiful arrangement. It is fun to watch things grow. It has a
beautiful bloom first, white, purple, pink that was my colors.

I liked seeing all the beautiful
places in North Carolina.

Mevely317 said...

OK, that 'Kudzu Fantasy Land' officially gives me the creeps! :)

Love gazing at olden images of homes... and letting my mind wander. You're so right about 'if walls could talk'!
I think you said Sherry is on FB? She might enjoy the photos featured in, 'Echoes of Time.' Here is their link:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Echoes-Of-Time/173729432822112

Hugs from soggy Phoenix!

PS - Remembering your earlier post about water? We experienced what the media is calling a "100-year flood" this morning!

betty said...

I learned a lot about North Carolina, Jack :) I do remember in school having to learn about our state history, etc., as well as us having to pick another state in the union and doing a report about that state so we could learn about it,etc. I don't know if they do that any more in schools; it was fascinating to learn about the different states and what they grew, etc., that makes up the United States.

betty

Elizabeth said...

I love N.C. too! If not for my grandchildren being here, I would be living there! We had a full service gas station in our little town until recently when the owner died. I love the pic of the old house!

I'm mostly known as 'MA' said...

You do have a beautiful state. I've had the opportunity to visit there a few times. Home is where the heart is.

TARYTERRE said...

I love those old houses and the stories they could tell.

Chatty Crone said...

Good thing you had a high IQ to learn all those counties - I have never head of that!

I am just like you - I see old building or barns and I think I wonder who lived there and what the history was.