Friday Shorts: April 5

Hmmm. More like Friday Long Woolies. Spring was nice. Remember?

:: First, thanks to Blue Mt Mamma for including two Floydians in her “Thinking Blogger” Awards post this week, after herself being tapped thusly, twicely.

:: Google has made custom map-labeling easy for the common man (or wo- of the same species.) Here’s a quick start on a Floyd County map. Come back for updates over the coming weeks. (Serving suggestion: Click HYBRID to show the terrain as well as roads and featured locations.)

:: Did you know that grapes and raisins could be poisonous for dogs? We’ve been paying more attention to what we feed Tsuga lately, knowing that people foods are not necessarily the best dog foods (though Tsuga protests loudly when I say this.) Last night we fed Tsuga the better part of a whole chicken. Partly because of the scare with processed dog foods. Partly because she thought I would and I thought she would move it from the counter (where it was defrosting for last night’s dinner) and the fridge. Ooops.

:: Friends of the BLue Ridge Parkway is sponsoring a viewshed tree planting event near Roanoke, Saturday, April 14 (Step it UP DAY). I’m going to do my best to be there for at least a while. You come, too!

:: Radio Readers: If there are any of you who know visually impaired in the New and Roanoke Valleys of Virginia, let them know they can listen to the author reading Slow Road Home on their special WVTF receiver starting (last official word was) on April 10.

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fred
fred

Fred First holds masters degrees in Vertebrate Zoology and physical therapy, and has been a biology teacher and physical therapist by profession. He moved to southwest Virginia in 1975 and to Floyd County in 1997. He maintains a daily photo-blog, broadcasts essays on the Roanoke NPR station, and contributes regular columns for the Floyd Press and Roanoke's Star Sentinel. His two non-fiction books, Slow Road Home and his recent What We Hold in Our Hands, celebrate the riches that we possess in our families and communities, our natural bounty, social capital and Appalachian cultures old and new. He has served on the Jacksonville Center Board of Directors and is newly active in the Sustain Floyd organization. He lives in northeastern Floyd County on the headwaters of the Roanoke River.

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  1. “spring was nice, remember?”….yes! i was just getting accustomed to having my morning coffee on the porch with my little feral/wanna-be-lap kitty in my lap, enjoying the smells, sights, and sounds of spring.

    i even did a post yesterday titled “spring has sprung”…. i jinxed myself! 🙂

    and your award is much deserved!