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Taste the New Delights

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Chasing Sunsets and Waterfalls

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Castle Ladyhawke

Once upon a time, there was a girl, and this girl had a very big dream.  She dreamed of herself walking through a castle. Over and over this dream occupied her nights. She would wake each morning with a clear memory of all she saw in slumber. She knew she was destined to not just walk the halls of this …

Covid’s Emotional Chill

Since Memorial Day, Highlanders have talked more than ever about the pandemic as we’ve seen a rise in cases diagnosed.  It was late March when I became aware of my personal reactions to the pandemic. And what I saw were the masks of grief: denial, bargaining, anger, depression, and acceptance. Aware that the virus was moving in long-term, ready, or …

The Days of Helen’s Barn

When Charles Nicholas Wright died in a car wreck in 1927, he left behind a widow in her mid 30s,  and five young children.   Wright — a former mayor of Highlands himself and father of Mayor Harry Wright — was famous for having won (along with his friend Will Dillard) the Carnegie Medal for his 1911 heroic rescue of …


A Season Within a Season

Seasonal wellness is at the core of Therapeutic Yoga.  We can all agree, the focus on Covid-19 has been a focal point this summer, a season in which is rarely known for illness.   Why are we rarely ever ill during the Summer months? We usually associate colds and flu with Fall and Winter, and Spring has a reputation for …

Investing 101

How do you invest in general?  With your finances, are you smart, discerning, prudent with your risks, protecting your investments for long term gains? With your car, do you keep it tuned up on a regular basis, protecting your investment so you can rely on its performance?  With your health, do you care for your body in ways that will …

This is Our Home

Close your eyes.  Glide back-and-forth in a favorite rocker on a century-old porch floor. Listen as the yielding wood gently creaks a soothing mantra. Sip and savor a fresh mint julep. Inhale the intoxicating fragrance of honeysuckle. Hear cows mooing across the meadow. Fill your lungs with delicious, safe air.  Voila!  You just entered a timeless realm, experiencing the kind of passionate …


COVID-19 Testing Update

There are a variety of tests and testing procedures for Covid-19. Understanding them all can be confusing. Richard Ellin, M.D., of the Highlands Cashiers Health Foundation Board of Directors, explains the different types. Testing for Covid-19 made simple: There are two types of tests for Covid-19: Diagnostic Tests and Antibody Tests. A diagnostic test can show if you have an active coronavirus infection. An antibody test looks for …

Old-timey Touring

Accommodating tourists was always paramount in the minds of the local citizens of the highest elevations of the Blue Ridge Mountains, from Highlands to Toxaway.   Running boarding houses quickly became a main source of income for its citizenry as far back as the 1840s.  Indeed, except for looking for the county government to appoint overseers and road crews to …

Benny, the Police Force

If you’ve seen The Princess Bride, you’re bound to remember how the big, big Fezzik is appointed to The Brute Squad to impose order on the Thieve’s Forest. Well, that mirrors the story of super-size, no-nonsense Bennie Rogers and his term (c. 1912-1945) as the Police Force, aka Brute Squad, of Highlands. Bennie was big, his hand doubling the size …


Acorns Trunk Shows

While it may seem like the pandemic marched into March and changed everything, many businesses on the Plateau are presenting as much normalcy and agreeable distractions as possible.  One of those pleasant opportunities is found at Acorns – The Shop at Old Edwards Inn. Scheduled in October are two anticipated trunk shows.  The first, scheduled for October 2-18, is a …

From Practical to Whimsical

Another glorious fall day here in Highlands is a perfect excuse to go off the beaten path just a bit and browse the shops and businesses on 64 West.   Parking is generally plentiful, and you’ll find just what you need in this little corridor, from the practical to the whimsical. Highlands Pharmacy is quite simply one of our most …

Oyster Lovers Rejoice

In the South Carolina Lowcountry where I lived most of my adult years, an Oyster Roast is simply a way of life. Indeed, of the thousands of meals I have eaten over many decades, no meals have been as pleasurable or memorable or left me as happily contented as those that occurred in the outdoors, shucking and slurping briny mollusks …