Monday, September 29, 2008

Hulu-Online Television!

Ok, I am probably way behind the times on this one and it is nothing new, however, I recently discovered Hulu and love it! http://www.hulu.com/

It is THE place to watch those latest clips of Tina Fey portraying Governor Palin, which you all know are funny, very funny, Democrat or Republican, you have to laugh...out loud. So if you have not seen them, go here and watch them and be ready to laugh...out loud.


But even better you can watch Television and Movies on this site. The Movie list doesn't really excite me, except you can watch Sense and Sensibility or a whole bunch more in their entirety and even more offer clips and scenes.

The Television portion lets you watch every episode ever of Alfred Hitchcock Presents! Did you know Aunt Bea was in the pilot episode? And they have all those 80's shows like Facts of Life, Silver Spoons and Benson. I have not become THAT bored yet in life, but they are there if I need them, and that is just comforting to know. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Lane Packing





Headed south? Hungry? In need of a gift? Or just want to run around or go to a clean bathroom where they sale homemade peach and strawberry ice cream? If so, stop at Lane Packing on 75 South in the middle of no where. Well, it is actually near Perry, in Fort Valley, Georgia. If traveling 75S take a right off Exit 142, and it is approximately 5 miles on your right. They grow 30 peach varieties! They sale fresh peaches of course, and locally made syrups, jams, pecans, pecan pies, gourmet foods, pecan oil, homemade peanut butter, cashew butter and so much more. The gift shop also has a host of Georgia and Georgia Tech memorabilia, but I go straight for the homemade ice cream and recommend the strawberry. Check out their website to get an idea: http://www.lanesouthernorchards.com/





They also give tours and have those corn mazes and tons of things kids to do...but those mazes freak me out, I am too claustrophobic. But if you do the maze within the maize let me know. Also, get me a pound or two of peaches or pecans...and don't mispronounce it!

Bailey Boys Children's Clothing


This is a plug for the inconspicuous Bailey Boys outlet located near the airport in Saint Simons, but also a very good opportunity to post a photo of Nathaniel, who is one of the most adorable, "favorite things" on earth. Cheri Griggs introduced me to the factory store which is located at 373 Skylane Road on Saint Simons Island, which is off Demere Road. 912.638.7700
Bailey Boys is a Georgia based company and was once a small five sewing machine operation owned by a stay at home mom who made clothes for her boys. They use a lot of seer sucker and applique. They carry a host of matching brother and sister lines of clothing. Use this link to find a retail store near you http://www.baileyboys.com/bailey-boys-store-locator.htm

Everybody's talking about Garden & Gun!

One of the most talked about new magazines in America.With a no-excuses title, lush photography and superb writing, Garden & Gun is one of the most talked about new magazines in America. An enthusiast publication, Garden & Gun is dedicated to the sporting life and all things indigenous to the South and the Caribbean. Our subscribers tell us they appreciate a gourmet meal, a good fish story, the weight of a waxed canvas coat. One reader described the content, "Wine, food, gardens, bikes, airplanes, fly fishing, archery and money tastefully surrounded by beautiful Southern women. I only wish I had thought of it." Yes, this is our realm, our proud geography.

Garden & Gun loves Gogo too!


Natural Beauty
By: Allston McCradyAugust 08, 2008

Island Jewels: Gogo Ferguson's jewelry is cast from a variety of natural objects, including raccoon penis bones and rattlesnake ribs. credit: Terry Kuzniar
When the jewelry designer Gogo Ferguson was introduced to Bill Clinton at a cocktail party on Martha’s Vineyard, she could only wonder why he kept staring at her earrings. Did he know she made them from raccoon penis bones? She didn’t ask. Actually, Bill and Hillary Clinton are part of a cadre of A-listers who own Ferguson’s jewelry. Others include Isabella Rossellini, Laura Bush, Goldie Hawn, and Carly Simon. Ferguson also designed the wedding bands for the late John F. Kennedy, Jr., and his wife, Carolyn. Like the majority of Ferguson’s creations, the rings were cast from the bones of wild animals—in this case, rattlesnake ribs. The roots of Ferguson’s art lie in her childhood. A Carnegie descendant, she spent her early years shuffling between a Massachusetts harbor town and the family retreat on Cumberland Island, Georgia. At the time, the family owned the majority of the remote 40,000-acre island. “I remember the roar of cicadas at night, and the sounds of wild turkeys roosting, shifting and shuffling in oak trees outside my bedroom window.” Her grandmother Lucy Ricketson Ferguson was a passionate amateur naturalist and led the children on bareback horse rides through the dense forest. “My grandmother taught me how to notice things as a young child: bird tracks, deer tracks, horse skeletons, lichen on trees, the pattern on flounder. Alligator and horse skulls from the island always graced our fireplace.” Ferguson first experimented with making jewelry for herself out of found bones and shells. She started with a cluster of rattlesnake ribs, joined at the center by rattlesnake vertebrae (now her logo). Friends admired her work, and she started taking commissions. When the late Howard Gilman, a prominent philanthropist from nearby White Oak Plantation, ordered roughly $10,000 worth of jewelry, Ferguson knew she was onto something. But the bones themselves were fragile, so she learned how to cast them in various metals using lost wax casting, an ancient process used by the Egyptians. A series of molds are created with rubber, then wax, before 14K gold or silver is injected. The result, which may be anything from a necklace made from the sternum bones of an armadillo to a bracelet made from alligator toe digits, retains the intricate detail of the original object. These days, her jewelry is carried in boutiques and galleries all over the globe, and in November a display of her work will be exhibited in Atlanta’s High Museum of Art. I first met Ferguson and her husband, David, on the grounds of the Greyfield Inn, the historic family property on Cumberland Island, which now operates as an upscale retreat. We shucked roasted oysters by an outdoor fire tended by the inn’s resident naturalist and talked about her travels to Mexico and Morocco. The next night, Gogo and David showed up with freshly gathered clams and served them to the inn’s guests at cocktail hour. The couple once served an entire Thanksgiving dinner with local delicacies: venison, wild pork, oysters, bread made from roasted acorn flower, toasted seaweed. It’s easy to become enamored with Ferguson’s lifestyle—her devotion to Cumberland Island, her down-to-earth accessibility, her travel lust, her passion for conservation and sustainability, her energy (Go! Go!). “People visit my home and like what they see, so I’ve developed a line of items that you might find in my own living room: clutches, serving utensils, ceramics, fabrics, leather journals, card holders, wine toppers.” Soon, her clients will be able to purchase chopsticks cast from the serrated tails of horseshoe crabs, and clasps made from tarpon cheekbones. In addition to silver and gold, Ferguson has added Alpaca to her metals: a mixture of copper, nickel, and zinc (a lightweight, affordable alternative to increasingly costly precious metals). Ferguson splits her time between her studio on Cumberland Island, her studio in San Miguel de Allende in Mexico, and her main studio at her store on St. Simons Island, Georgia, surrounded by floor-to-ceiling drawers of shells, bones, seedpods, and stones. But she’d rather be off scouring the beaches and forests for future inspiration. “What most would step over on the tide line,” says Ferguson, “I see in a completely different light.”

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Baby Gifts


I highly recommend these as baby gifts. I found these on ebay. The lady who creates them is actually from Macon, Georgia. There are a handful of sellers on ebay who sell these and most are basically the same. The prices vary and the seller I chose was one of the less expensive ones. I picked the local girl and she was so kind to accommodate me. Once I won the auction for my set of four monogrammed burp cloths, she emailed me and we discussed what I wanted. She has a website http://www.thegiftingroom.com/ or you can order off ebay. I really liked the personal attention I got. The burp cloths turned out great. I just gave her a description of the colors and fonts I wanted. She emailed me photos of the ribbons I described. I got my nephew Nathaniel a set of four, one with his initials, his full name, his first name and of course, his nickname, Natty Bumpo! They make great gifts as it is always something they can use and they can use it for a very long time- because even when the spitting up ceases they still make all kinds of messes.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Special at Serenbe







Serenbe is offering room rates for $149 and including dinner at The Hil. Here's the skinny. On Sunday and Thursday nights they offer this special deal. You can book any room at The Inn. I recommend one of the cottages, the Dogwood or Magnolia. The Dogwood Cottage has a fireplace and a large screened in porch that overlooks the lake. The Magnolia boasts a whirlpool tub for two, but that ain't so. Unless you wanna get really close or you are both under 5 feet tall. However, it has a great little kitchen and they leave cookies for a snack. The Main House has seven rooms all equipped with TVs and Internet, of course. The $60 restaurant voucher is for The Farmhouse on Thursday nights and for The Hil on Sunday. The Farmhouse has a prie fix menu that is $36.00 on Thursdsay. It is typically a four course meal of very fresh vegetables, chicken or fish and dessert prepared in unique succulent ways. You will have to work some magic, spending your $60 dollars at The Hil. Remember the voucher is for food only and excludes alcohol. $30 each will get you both an entree and either an appetizer or dessert. I recommend you spend the extra cash and go for both. And everyone has to get something different so you can share. So as long as you spend $60, you will get that amount off your room. This leaves you with about a $90 room rate, but we do have hotel motel tax that adds up, so beware of that. Also, the room rate includes breakfast! The breakfast is really good. It will most likely be eggs, cooked to order, sausage or bacon, grits with cheese and/or butter, a side of fruit, and a really good biscuit. They have a little bar in front with yogurt, fruit, jams and honey. The honey is locally made and the eggs are more fresh than you probably want to imagine. You can easily spend the day hiking, shopping the shops at Serenbe, playing croquet on the lawn, jumping on the trampoline built into the ground, petting the array of farm animals, lounging in or around the pool or reading a book in the big comfy cushion lined swing. Call 770.463.2610 for info and reservations. You will have to ask for the special, they will not automatically give it to you if you book a Sunday or Thursday night.

Cleaning Supplies


I know these have been around a while but I have always been a big fan. They are great for tub cleaning and cleaning walls, but be careful, they will take the paint off! But I just used one of these to get tree sap and leaf junk off the hood of my car. Parking under a tree during the rain left this terrible almost rust like residue all over the hood of my new car. I took it to a car wash and was unable to get rid of it. The high pressure washers and even hand scrubbing didn't touch it. I went to Target and purchased a spray specifically for bugs and tree sap removal. You are supposed to spray this on it and leave it for one minute and then wipe it off. I did that and nothing happened. I tried again, leaving it for two minutes and of course, sprayed a whole lot more than I was probably supposed to and still nothing happened! I used a wet sponge, an old towel and my fingernails and nothing happened. So I whipped out my Magic Eraser and it took it away instantly. I first tested a spot to make sure it would not remove the paint on my hood, I honestly would not have been surprised. This thing is that amazing. It gently removed the rusty leaf debris and tree sap and the car hood is as good as new. My finger tips are still sore from scrubbing with the towel and traditional sponge. I also recommend the Mr. Clean brand over the store brand. Of course, the store brands are less, but the sponges don't work quite as well or last as long.