Vote: Which Mountain House is for You?

Posted in History & Culture on January 22nd, 2012 by marklynn
Vote: Which Mountain House is for You?
I am a sucker for open houses. When I’m walking around town and see those tell-tale balloons tied to a real estate sign, I make a bee line. I will stand-up friends or be late for a meeting. It doesn’t matter; I won’t pass up a chance to nose around someone else’s place. If I open the door and find the house empty, I do a brisk walk through, maybe critique the bathroom’s tile job or admire a fireplace. I won’t Read More »


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The Magic Question: Can Appalachia Keep Its Young People

Posted in History & Culture on January 15th, 2012 by marklynn
The Magic Question: Can Appalachia Keep Its Young People
I will never under estimate the power of the blue and gold. Native West Virginians have flocked to Jason Headley’s love letter to his home state, entitled “Dear West Virginia.” Since it posted last Sunday, more than 42,000 people have read it and hundreds have left heartwarming comments. All of them share Jason’s love for the state’s hills and hollers and many asked an important question – how do we keep gifte Read More »


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Dear West Virginia

Posted in History & Culture on January 8th, 2012 by marklynn
Dear West Virginia
"One Man's Dream" by Cheryl Tarrant. Used with permission. This post is for anyone who has left home. I don’t mean to go to the grocery store or even for vacation. This is for folks who have packed their possessions, hugged their mammas and daddies, and pulled away from the curb with their cheeks wet and their eyes on the road because if they glance in the rearview mirror, they might not go. It’s for those who bookmark Read More »


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Appalachian NYE – Last Minute Options

Posted in History & Culture on December 31st, 2011 by marklynn
Appalachian NYE – Last Minute Options
If you’re like me, you don’t plan your New Years Eve activities until the eleventh hour. We just decided two days ago to ring in 2012 playing pool and eating pickle flavored potato chips (our local billiard’s specialty). For all of my fellow stragglers, here are five favorite Appalachian NYE options: 5) SnowShoe Mountain’s Gone Country New Years, Snowshoe, West Virginia: Snowshoe’s 15,000 square foot entertainment v Read More »


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Under My Tree: Dolly’s Recipes and Coal History

Posted in History & Culture on December 25th, 2011 by marklynn
Under My Tree: Dolly’s Recipes and Coal History
Check out my gifts! With 125 of Dolly’s favorite recipes and a coal history classic under my tree, it’s been a very Appalachian Christmas. I hope you’re having a wonderful day too, full of home cooking, maybe some country crafts, and more loved ones than you can count. Read More »


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Christmas Ghosts in Oak Ridge, Tenn

Posted in Music on December 18th, 2011 by marklynn
Christmas Ghosts in Oak Ridge, Tenn
Y’all might remember my surprise when I learned that fissionable plutonium originated in Tennessee’s foothills. Well, I just learned that Oak Ridge, the secret production facility that pioneered it, wasn’t just cooking up nuclear magic. It was also the birthplace for one of country music’s most enduring bands. If you could pick up WNOX out of Knoxville in the 1940s, Wally Fowler was a name you’d have known. He was a Read More »


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10 Great Places to Get Appalachian Crafts

Posted in Art & Lit on December 11th, 2011 by marklynn
10 Great Places to Get Appalachian Crafts
It looks like Appalachian crafters are finally getting their due. This week, USA Today ran 10 Great Places to Shop at Craft Galleries, and not one, not two, but three of them are in the homeland. That has me feeling big waves of pride for our region’s artists, and it makes me want to tell Target, Walmart and Best Buy to lump it this season. Rather than just filling my loved one’s stockings with mass-produced doo-dads, I’m going Read More »


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Moonshiners – Tonight at 10 on Discovery

Posted in History & Culture on December 6th, 2011 by marklynn
Moonshiners – Tonight at 10 on Discovery
Y’all know that the days of bootleggers, backwoods stills and “white lightning” aren’t over, but did you expect them to end up in prime time? Tonight at 10:00 PM, Discovery Channel premieres its new series Moonshiners. Here’s how they’re billing it: “Moonshiners tells the story of those who brew their shine – often in the woods near their homes using camouflaged equipment – and the local autho Read More »


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Are You Ready for High Allegheny National Park?

Posted in Outdoors & Travel on December 4th, 2011 by marklynn
Are You Ready for High Allegheny National Park?
View of potential park land from Seneca Rocks area Over on the outdoorsy blogs, the long standing debate over a new national park in Maine has been upstaged by one humdinger of a proposal for West Virginia. It would merge three protected areas along with some privately owned land into a single mega-park, covering half a million acres or more. Most folks are calling it High Allegheny National Park. Some call it High Allegheny Park and Preserve. Read More »


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Plum Pitiful Bluegrass

Posted in Music on November 27th, 2011 by marklynn
Plum Pitiful Bluegrass
If you’ve not been listening to bluegrass on The Ray Davis Show, then you’ve not been listening to plum pitiful bluegrass. This old timer plays some of the saddest songs around. Dead mammas, prison terms, train wrecks–no tragedy is off limits during his three hour block, which airs Sundays at 10 am ET and Monday through Friday at 3 pm ET on WAMU’s Bluegrass Country. While Davis has a penchant for sorry songs, his line up Read More »


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