Earlier this month, Southern Living named Poole’s Diner the best diner in North Carolina and praised it as follows: “Diners often feel frozen in time, and while Poole’s has the retro chrome edging, and red artificial leather stools and booths, you won’t find anyone in old-school waitress uniforms.”
“Why do you Mecklenburgers always act so high and mighty?” I still get this question every now and then even though I moved away years ago. Last week, I remembered the best answer to that question.
Coach Lefty Driesell died on February 17. I wanted to honor him now, but I have written so many columns about him, I thought it might be a better idea to let him speak for himself.
Count on Ron Rash to take his readers on a trip back in time, usually to some place in North Carolina. His latest book, “The Caretaker,” mostly takes place in and around the mountain town of Blowing Rock in 1950.
Fred Chappell, former North Carolina Poet Laureate and longtime professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. died on January 4 at age 87. To celebrate his contributions, I have revised a column I wrote in 2009 about his book of short stories, “Ancestors and Others: New and Selected Stories.”
Jill McCorkle takes ordinary people, puts them in common situations, and makes extraordinary stories. She has done it again in her latest collection of short stories, “Old Crimes and Other Stories.”
Is George Washington’s birthday on your February calendar? February 22. Officially the third Monday in February is when we celebrate Presidents Day and honor Washington, Abraham Lincoln, who was born on February 12, and all the other presidents whenever they were born.