About Cherokee County, NC

I'm especially glad to be two hours from everywhere in Murphy, North Carolina on summer mountain nights.

Last week I had to pick up family members at the Atlanta airport (which of course is 2 hours from here). It was at least 15 degrees hotter there and it seemed that tempers of the city drivers were rising as fast as the thermometer. What a relief to be back on my covered porch, feeling the evening breeze and listening to the music of the mountains at night.

Speaking of night music, we've just downloaded our first YouTube video slide show accompanied by an original song written by my husband Frosty. It's called Murphy Mountain Nights and the instrumental version you're hearing is performed by Frosty and Tony Ford. Tony is a talented young local musician who won Star Search when he was just a kid. As a teen he performed all over the country, but now he's come home to the mountains he loves. Tony has his own recording studio in Hiwassee, Georgia and is the proud first-time dad of 15 month old son Judah.

The photos in the slide show were all shot locally by family and friends and you may recognize some of the scenes. Those of us who have found a home here in the mountains discover sights like these around every bend in the road - and sometimes from our own front porch. Penny Johnson, a local artist, has included several of these photos in her series of watercolors on display at many Murphy businesses and restaurants. I walked into Macon Bank recently and saw the view from my breakfast area on their wall!

There seems to be something about these ancient hills that lights a creative spark. Maybe it's the slower pace of life, the opportunity to finally pick up that guitar or paintbrush or camera that's been in the closet for so long. Or maybe it's the opportunity to finally create the YOU that you've always dreamed of becoming. Just listen...

Sweet music fills the night

Your secret dreams take flight

These ancient hills have power - on mountain nights.

Iris: April 10-May 15

Golden Groundsel: April 21-May 15

Dogwood: May 1-May 15

Field Hawkweek: May 1-June 7

Snow Trillium: May 2-May 15

Pink Azalea: May 2-May 21

Fraser Magnolia: May 5-May 15

Flame Azalea: May 5-June 15

Small's Groundsel: May 7-June 10

Fire Pine: May 10-June 7

Bowman's Root: May 21-June 15

New Jersey Tea: May 21-June 15

Allegheny Blackberry: May 21-June 7

Mountain Laurel: June 1-June 14

Columbine: June 1-July 5

Catawba Rhododendron: June 1-June 20

Viper's Bugloss: June 1-June 30

Beard-tongue: June 1-July 5

Sundrop: June 1-June 21

Goat's Beard: June 7-June 21

American Elder: June 10-July 5

Coreopsis: June 15- August 5

Fragrant Thimbleberry: June 21-July 30

White Rhododendron: June 25- July 14

Sourwood: June 25-July 15

Beebalm: July 1-August 15

Cohost Bugbane: July 10-July 30

Tall Conefl ower: July 10-August 10

Oswego Tea: July 10-August 5

Tall Meadow-Rue: July 19-July 21

Snapweed: August 1-August 21

Boneset: August 1-August 21

Ironweek: August 1-August 28

Joe-Pye-Weed: August 1-August 28

Pokeberry: August 1-August 30

Gay Leech: August 1-August 21

Wild Lettuce: August 1-September

Cardinal Flower: August 10-August 28

Clematis: August 10-August 21

White Wood Aster: August 21-September 25

Sneezeweed: August 21-September 30

Field Goldenrod: September 1-September 25

Wrinkled Goldenrod: September 1-September 21

Swamp Aster: September 1-September 21

Canada Goldenrod: September 5-September 30

Wave Aster: September 5- September 30

Heath Aster: September 10-October 5

Aromatic Cudweed: September 15- October 5

A simple pair of children's shoes may not look powerful,
but they can make a big difference in the lives of orphans around the world.

Appalachian Land Company is teaming up with Buckner International for the month of August to ask Murphy, NC and the surrounding GA and TN residents to collect shoes for children in need. The 10th annual nationwide "Shoes for Orphan Souls" shoe drive is seeking to collect more than 250,000 pairs of new shoes, socks and shoestrings, with a nationwide campaign. Since 1999, Buckner has sent more than 1.9 million pairs of new shoes to at-risk children in the United States and in more than 68 other countries around the globe.

"Millions of children reside in orphanages throughout our world," Garton said, "and those orphanages are not receiving enough money to care for the children's most basic needs, like shoes and socks."

An unexpected benefit of donating new shoes is the sense of satisfaction on the part of the person who gives. "At Buckner, we say new shoes are good for the soul - yours and theirs," Garton said. "A person who gives can't help but feel as though they also have received a great gift."

Donated items should be for children and teens and due to customs regulations, shoes and socks need to be brand new. For those preferring to make a cash donation, $25 will buy a new pair of shoes and cover distribution costs.

PLEASE DROP OFF YOUR DONATIONS AT
Appalachian Land Company
1.800.837.9199
5510 West US 64, Murphy NC 28906

Last night I got home late, weary from another stressful day. Every Realtor is essentially the owner of a small business - insert-your-name.com - and so far there's been no bail-out money set aside for us.

I was greeted by the soothing sound of a waterfall cascading over ancient stones, each one painstakingly chosen for its color and shape. The water pours endlessly into a new pond, which will be surrounded by some of the 16 TONS of rock my husband has been putting into place, stone by stone.

While I've been dealing with frustrated sellers and unrealistic buyers looking for "that deal of a lifetime," he's been spending hours in backbreaking labor to create for us a perfect little oasis of peace - his gift to me.

He put in the small pond when we built our mountain chalet 4 years ago. It began as a home for my beloved bronze fountain, the boy on a dolphin that I refused to leave behind when we left the Florida Keys for the mountains of Murphy, North Carolina.

Soon we brought home 7 tiny goldfish. Then came the surprises. We sat on the balcony above each day like the gods of Mount Olympus, sipping our morning coffee while life unfolded below. By the end of that summer, we had 19 fish and 3 large frogs that somehow made their way up the mountain from Lake Hiwassee down in the valley. The water plants sheltered tadpoles and snails and baby fish in a rainbow of colors.

Winters are mild here in the Southern mountains and we spent time outdoors nearly every day. On "date nights" we shared a bottle of wine on the balcony, listened to old rock and roll and admired our creation. It became our refuge in a world often filled with turmoil over the past few years.

But the tiny pond wasn't big enough for the koi we'd like to raise or even for the many offsping of our original colony of goldfish. So we dreamed of some day adding a small waterfall connecting to a much larger, deeper pond that would shelter koi through the colder months. And two weeks ago I came home from work to find a trackhoe in my back yard, carefully scooping out clumps of daylilies.

Last night the waterfall was up and running. Soon we'll be bringing home Lucy and Ricky and Fred and Ethel to join our family. As I watched the full moon rise over the ridge, I realized I'm a very rich woman indeed.

Sweet music fills the night, my secret dreams take flight

These ancient hills have magic - on mountain nights.

When you're decorating your home for mountain living in Murphy, NC, be sure to visit Antiquities of Murphy at 40 Valley River Avenue in the downtown shopping district.

When I moved to Murphy, many of my favorite photographs and art prints just didn't fit my idea of rustic decor for a mountain cabin. I wasn't willing to pack away my treasured pieces and replace everything. Then I stopped in at Antiquities of Murphy and met owner Tonya O'Sullivan. Over the last few years, she has matted and reframed many of my favorite photographs to suit the more casual atmosphere of my home, showed me how to showcase new finds in a warm, "mountainy style" and provided me with hours of pleasure browsing among the furniture, candles, dishes and wall decor in her shop.

Tonya opened her store in Murphy 7 years ago, moving from the Atlanta area. "I enjoy doing business in this small community with the big heart," she says. One of her specialties is archival framing and she showed me a marriage certificate dating back to the 1800's that she recently framed for a customer. She just added a new item to her inventory - a wood plaque with the carved initial and last name of the customer. It is available by special order and would make a great housewarming gift!

On her website www.antiquitiesofmurphy.com you'll find examples of the plaque as well as many of the home decor items she carries, available for shipping. There's also a bridal registry and a decorating service for home or business.

Antiquities of Murphy is open Mon-Fri from 10 AM to 5 PM and Saturday from 10 Am - 3 PM or you can give her a call at 828-837-0764. Whether you're searching for unique mountain home accessories or need custom framing for that perfect piece of artwork you found at the John C. Campbell Folk School Arts and Crafts Fair, the personal attention and selection you'll find will make you glad you stopped in.