Ocracoke Island is not just fishing, sunbathing, and swimming. It is also music, delicious dinners, water sports, storytelling, history, community, and much more. Sometimes visitors forget about our soundside attractions. Here are a few photos I took a few days ago.















































 Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

I recently started a new book, The Great Hunger, Ireland 1845-1849, by Cecil Woodham-Smith.

On page 24 I read this re. the pre-famine Irish peasants:

"Dancing was the universal diversion, and Lord George Hill, who owned property in Donegal, has left an account of removing a cabin with dancing and fiddling. 'The custom on such occasions is for the person who has the work to be done to hire a fiddler, upon which engagement all the neighbours joyously assemble and carry in an incredibly short time the stones and timber upon their backs to the new site; men, women and children alternately dancing and working while daylight lasts, at the termination of which they adjourn to some dwelling where they finish the night, often prolonging the dance to dawn of day.'"

Dancing has been an important part of island social life since the very first Irish, English, and Scottish settlers arrived on Ocracoke. Over the last half century rock & roll dancing has mostly supplanted traditional Ocracoke Island square dancing (a type of "big circle" dance).

Traditional Ocracoke Square Dance, 2012












But the old style dance, which was once popular throughout coastal Carolina, still survives only on Ocracoke. Ocracoke Alive, local non-profit cultural, artistic, educational, and environmental organization, will be sponsoring several dances in upcoming months. Look for more information soon. 

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

If you haven't read yesterday's post about a riddle my father used to recite, you might want to take a look at it now. Below is a version of the riddle that I believe comes closer to being the original:

Twelve pears hanging high,
Twelve knights passing by,
Each took a pear,
And left eleven hanging there.
How could that be?

I discovered a query seeking the solution to this riddle in an interesting 19th century compendium of newspapers and journals entitled Notes and Queries, A Medium of Intercommunication For Literary Men, General Readers, Etc.  The relevant London newspaper in the volume is dated Saturday December, 3 1887.

A respondent named Ellen I. Delevingne provided the correct solution: "The answer is that the [knight's] name was 'Each.'" She then adds, "I always thought it a most unsatisfactory solution."

I concurred until I read one of the other remarks: "The 'twelve knights' must have been Spenser’s 'doucepere,' F.Q.,’ iii. 10, 31. The name has reference to the 'twelve peers' of France, but the context shows that there was only one of him."
The respondent is referring to Edmund Spencer's (ca. 1552-1599) The Faerie Queen, book 3, Canto 10, stanza 31: "Big looking like a doughty Doucepere," 
Spencer's doucepere (fr. OF doze pers, doze per, lit., twelve peers) is "an illustrious noble; specif: one of the twelve peers of Charlemagne." So my guess is that this was a literary riddle that came out of the British Isles during the Victorian period, was originally a pun on the "twelve peers" ("twelve pears"), and included a nod to Spencer's "Doucepere" (just one of the twelve knights).

Maybe the original version of the riddle actually went something like this:

Twelve pears hanging high,
Twelve peers passing by,
Twelve peers took a pear,
 And left eleven hanging there.

How could that be? The solution: Twelve peers (Doucepere) was the name of one of the peers.
When the riddle was passed down in the colonies (including Ocracoke), "twelve" sometimes became "ten," and the literary reference (and the accompanying pun) was lost...resulting in "Each," not "Doucepere," becoming the name of the single knight, and the riddle becoming, as Ms. Delevingne remarks, "most unsatisfactory."
Perhaps there was more to this riddle than I ever imagined as a child. Maybe the "riddle" of the riddle has been solved!

 Hey, at least I found this all quite interesting, even if most of our readers are rolling their eyes.

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

As a child I remember my father reciting the following riddle:

Ten pears hanging high,
Ten men riding by,
Each took a pear.
How many were left?

The answer, my father said, was nine, but why?

Recently I did a little Internet research (sometimes as good a mental exercise as doing crossword puzzles) and learned the following (likely original) version of the riddle.

Twelve pears hanging high,
Twelve knights passing by,
Each took a pear,
And left eleven hanging there.

How could that be?

The solution, according to both my father and the Internet: "Each" was the name of one of the men/knights.

I always thought this was a lame riddle!

There is more to my "academic research" into this profound subject, but you will have to wait until tomorrow for more insights.In the meanwhile, if any of our readers remember hearing this riddle when you were children, please leave a comment. Thanks.

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

About twenty-five years ago my cousin Robert came back to the island with some buddies for a week of fishing. Even though his grandfather was born on Ocracoke, Robert decided he needed a guide to take him out in the sound.

Robert enlisted my father to accompany him and his friends in their small boat. They motored out the ditch, then continued past Teach's Hole and out toward Ocracoke Inlet. At the first sea buoy Robert turned to my dad and asked, "What should we do now?"

"I don't know," replied my father, "I've never been out this far."

As David Cecelski relates in his book, The Waterman's Song, Slavery and Freedom in Maritime North Carolina, "...only a few [Outer Banks] boatmen bothered to venture beyond local sounds into the Atlantic." He elaborates by noting that "[e]ven on the Outer Banks, fishing was rarely a serious vocation,...[it] was a subsistence enterprise,..."

Times have changed, of course. Charter boat captains now routinely carry sport fishermen out to the Gulf Stream, and Ocracoke has a thriving fishing industry, but most commercial fishing is still done in Pamlico Sound.

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

On Sunday, December 5, 1819 the sloop Henry wrecked on the south end of Ocracoke Island. Captain Hand was the only person of the seven on board who survived. We are fortunate that a letter he wrote from Ocracoke five days later was published on January 15, 1820 in the Norfolk Beacon and Portsmouth Advertiser.

Capt. Hand's six paragraph letter describes in detail the horrific storm, the demise of his vessel, and his near-miraculous survival. I will publish the entire letter in a future Newsletter, but today I just quote a few lines:

/* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} I...am gaining [strength], having received the kindest treatment, and every possible care from the inhabitants. My chest has been picked up, but it had been opened, and all my clothes of value taken out. I am here almost naked...."

This letter is a testimony to the empathy islanders had towards the victims of shipwreck (they provided "the kindest treatment, and every possible care"), but also the feeling of entitlement to any material goods that washed up on the beach.They were kind and generous, but also poor. 

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.  

Ocracoke guitarist, Martin Garrish, sometimes performs the 1947 song, "I'm My Own Grandpa" written by Dwight Latham and Moe Jaffe. It is a clever, funny song that is guaranteed to bring smiles to nearly everyone in the audience.

Not long ago I was doing some genealogical research for an Ocracoke Preservation Society museum display. Since I am related to most of the historic island families, my line popped up here and there. At one point I discovered that my children are also my cousins! That's right, Amy & Stefen are my 7th cousins. Of course, that makes my father, my grandparents, and my grandchildren my cousins also. Looked at from another line, since one set of my great grandparents were 2nd cousins, I am my own 5th cousin!

It's too complicated to explain in detail. I'm just glad my mother's family was from Hungary!

Here are the lyrics to "I'm My Own Grandpa":

Many, many years ago when I was twenty-three
I was married to a widow who was pretty as could be
This widow had a grown-up daughter who had hair of red
My father fell in love with her and soon they too were wed

This made my dad my son-in-law and really changed my life
For now my daughter was my mother, 'cause she was my father's wife
And to complicate the matter, even though it brought me joy
I soon became the father of a bouncing baby boy

My little baby then became a brother-in-law to dad
And so became my uncle, though it made me very sad
For if he were my uncle, then that also made him brother
Of the widow's grownup daughter, who was of course my step-mother

Father's wife then had a son who kept them on the run
And he became my grandchild, for he was my daughter's son
My wife is now my mother's mother and it makes me blue
Because although she is my wife, she's my grandmother too

 Now if my wife is my grandmother, then I'm her grandchild
And every time I think of it, it nearly drives me wild
'Cause now I have become the strangest 'case you ever saw
As husband of my grandmother, I am my own grandpa

 I'm my own grandpa, I'm my own grandpa
It sounds funny, I know but it really is so
I'm my own grandpa

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

Some time ago I watched the video, Memento, a complex, often confusing movie that was rewarding, but hard work to watch. This was my second time watching Memento, and I have to admit it made a lot more sense the second time. One more time would help, too! At least two things make it a difficult movie to watch. It proceeds backwards in time, in a series of relatively short segments...and the main character (with whom the viewer identifies) has lost his recent short term memory, so it's a challenge to follow the action and make sense of what is going on.

The first reason I mention this movie (and the main reason I chose to watch it a second time) is that I have had a series of TGA (Transient Global Amnesia) episodes. Although not as severe as the disorder portrayed in the movie, and very short-lived (TGA typically lasts only about 4-5 hours), the symptoms are otherwise quite similar.

During a typical TGA episode I am unable to recall recent, mostly new information (names, numbers, dates...during my last encounter I had no idea what year it was, though I knew it was sometime in the 2000s), but am totally connected to who I am, where I live, etc. and have no trouble functioning (talking on the telephone, making decisions, etc.). Still, I can't remember certain details afterwards, and I repeat questions and comments over and over again (like an Alzheimer's patient) because I can't remember that I already said the same thing just moments ago.

Happily, this disorder generally manifests only once (although sometimes more often -- I have had it about six times), doesn't seem to be connected to any other physical or mental disorders, and as far as I know, is not predictive of any future cognitive problems.

The second reason I mention TGA is that I know of two other people on Ocracoke who have had TGA. My understanding is that it is an uncommon disorder. Information on the Internet suggests that the worldwide incidence of TGA is between 3 & 30 for every 100,000 people. The first doctor I consulted had no idea what was going on. But it seems strange to me that at least three people in this small community of about 950 people have had at least one TGA episode. There may be more, of course. But still, that's somewhere between 10 and 100 times the worldwide average. I'm wondering if the statistics for Ocracoke really are unusual. If you've had it, do you know of other family members or friends who have had it? Just curious.

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

My house was built in the 19th century. It still has a few original window panes ("lites" or "lights" as they are still called on Ocracoke). The original lights can be identified because they are wavy. If you look out the window and move your head from side to side the trees and fences across the lane seem to shimmer and sway.

Glass is a peculiar material. Some call it a solid-like liquid; others call it a liquid-like solid. Although glass does "melt" slowly (very slowly), one mathematician estimates that it would take about ten million years for a window pane to get 5% thicker at the bottom.

In case you are interested in learning a bit more about glass, check out these two links:

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/110/how-come-you-can-see-through-glass 

http://www.glasslinks.com/newsinfo/histppg.htm

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

On Lou Ann's blog she periodically posts a snapshot she calls a "View Out My Window." Recently, as I was taking my morning shower, I thought about the beautiful view from my shower window. And I decided to share it with our readers.

View Out My Shower Window














Only after taking the photo did I realize that Lou Ann made an almost identical picture about a year ago that she posted on her blog.

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

A vendue is an auction. This 17th century word derives from the Dutch word vendu, which comes from Old French, and ultimately from the Latin vendere, meaning to sell. The word vendue was used on the Outer Banks to describe a public sale of shipwrecked cargo. This is what Joe A. Mobley has to say in his excellent book Ship Ashore! The U.S. Lifesavers of Coastal North Carolina:

"In 1800 the ever-increasing number of shipwrecks and lost cargoes led North Carolina to establish wreck districts with a commissioner or agent in charge of each of them to take possession of materials that washed ashore as the result of shipping disasters. Those officials, who initially were appointed by the governor and later by the county courts, attempted to determine the owner of the wrecked cargo and convened an auction, known as a vendue, for its disposition. According to the terms of vendue, the owner of the cargo, the person who salvaged it, and the agent all received a share of the selling price."

Wreckage near Gull Shoal (Hatteras Island) after the great storm of August, 1899:

Photo from Carol Cronk Cole Collection, Outer Banks History Center











Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

This morning I have three photos to share. My cousin Becky sent them to me a few days ago. Enjoy.

This first picture was taken in front of my house. When I initially published this post I thought the photo was taken about 1930 because my Aunt Thelma had written on the back of the picture, and identified the people as her brothers, Marvin, Enoch, and Homer. Amy looked at the picture and saw another, smaller child holding onto the arm of the man wearing the hat. I had not even noticed the younger child.

So I reconsidered, and thought maybe the photo was taken earlier, and that my dad might have been in the picture. Then I did the smart thing, and carried the photo to Blanche. She recognized the people right away. This is who is in the picture (from left to right): James Enoch Howard (b. 1903), Marvin Wyche Howard (b. 1897), Richard Olin Howard (b. 1920, Marvin's son), and Homer Rodheaver Howard (b. 1917). The photo was taken about 1930. Enoch, Marvin, & Homer were brothers, my uncles.














The next photo is of my Aunt Thelma when she was 18 years old (1930). It was taken on the steps of the Ocracoke schoolhouse.


















This last picture, of my father (Lawton) and Aunt Thelma was taken about 1990.














Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.

Yesterday afternoon I received a phone call from my grandson, Lachlan. He wanted me to come over to his house and yard...and try to find him and his dad.

I thought they were in the tree house, waiting to ambush me with water balloons, but as it turned out they were quietly sitting on the roof of their house, enjoying a snack! No water balloons. I thought briefly about joining them, but decided instead to walk across the lane to visit Blanche.














There are always exciting adventures when you are 8 years old.

Our latest Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of windmills on Ocracoke. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012113.htm.