The Native North Carolinian

Memorial Day has passed, and that is the official start of summer here on the coast, calendar dates to teh contrary. We’ll have many tourists between now and Labor Day, and most of them will be hitting the beaches. But tourists are not the only ones who enjoy the sea. We have family friends who actually live at the campground in Surf City for much of the summer. They even have church on the beach!

[tag]Topsail Island[/tag] rentals will go quickly this time of year, so I suggest you make your travel plans early. Remember that there are many attractions in the area, and the beach is never very far away. [tag]Sand Dollar Real Estate[/tag] handles rentals all over this area, and if you find that you just can’t tear yourself away once you get here, which I can certainly understand, they can help you out with purchasing a home as well. And with a name like Sand Dollar, you know they’ll share your love for the ocean.

Where did babe Ruth hit his first home run? If you read the title of the post, then you already know, so it isn’t a trick question. The city of Fayetteville has other honors as well. It was in the State House there that North Carolina ratified the US Constitution. It’s the only namesake city that teh Marquis de Lafayette ever visited. And only one vote kept it from becoming the capital of North Carolina.

Fayetteville was founded when the towns of Cross Creek and Campbellton joined. It was a thriving commerce center, connected to the Wilmington post by the Cape fear River. It is still thriving today, but the focus has shifted to arts and entertainment. The city is home to the International Folk Festival and the Dogwood Festival. Museums abound there, and historic buildings are also numerous.

You can read more at the Official City of Fayetteville website, Discover Fayetteville and Wikipedia.

I blogged the other day about the cost of hurricanes, and you are liable to hear quite a bit more about hurricanes between now and the end of November. Living in this area can make finding good Homeowners insurance tricky. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to get such insurance at all if you are east of I-95. It seems the insurance like to categorize the entire area as a flood zone, whether or not your property is actually subject to flooding. For instance, my property never floods. The soil is sandy loam, and even after the storms a couple of years ago, we only had small puddles, and those were confined to the driveway. Nonetheless, I pay through the nose for insurance.

Another trick insurance companies pull here is to re-define words to suit themselves, and to add little caveats to your insurance policies. For instance, my policy covers damage from storms (including flood), but it doesn’t cover damage from standing water. So, essentially, if my house is dislodged by a massive wave of rushing water, I’m covered, but if the foundation weakens and crumbles from exposure to the saturated ground, I’m screwed. But since I am in a mobile home, east of I-95, that’s the best we could find.

So, I’ve said all that to say this: if you are looking for home insurance in North Carolina be sure to comparison shop. Make sure that you read and understand exactly what your policy does and does not cover. If your area is prone to flooding, make sure you get coverage for that. And whatever you get, be sure you have storm coverage.

June is rapidly approaching, and with it, the start of [tag]hurricane season[/tag]. The news cast last night was full of gloom and doom predictions. There will be several “hurricane fairs” over the next couple of weeks. For those not in the area normally effected by hurricanes, these are informational type things, with different companies offering hurricane preparedness advice and products. Hurricane tracking maps will be given out in abundance, and evacuation plans and lists will be in the forefront of people’s minds for a bit.

Now this stuff is all well and good, because one really should be prepared, but last night on the news there was a real short addendum to the story that made my jaw drop in amazement. One of the local towns has asked people to pick up their re-admission passes early, and not to wait until a [tag]hurricane[/tag] is upon us. This town can only be reached by bridge, and during a hurricane that bridge is closed. Once it re-opens, only residents will be allowed back in for awhile, and that pass is the only way to prove you have a right to get back in. So far, so good, that’s pretty standard in areas hit by hurricanes. Here’s the kicker–the passes are $45 a pop. Yep, you read that right–the town is charging you $45 bucks to be allowed the privilege of returning to your own home.

It’s shaping up to be a great weekend here in coastal North Carolina. The weather will be in the 70s and lower 80s, and there’s a lot going on.

The [tag]Blue Crab Festival[/tag] is taking place this weekend just over the border in Little River, South Carolina. I’m including it because it’s close enough for me to get to enjoy it. Tickets are less than 10 bucks for both days, less than 5 for one day only. Kids under 12 are just $2.

Roanoke Island Festival Park is presenting [tag]Bloody Mary and The Virgin Queen[/tag] on the 23rd and 30th. It’s in the middle of the week, but the musical farce is probably worth seeing if you can get there. Admission is included in the cost of park admission.

Closer to home is the [tag]Wilmington Greek Festival[/tag] hosted by St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. I’ve been meaning to check that out for year, and maybe this time I’ll do it. I love Greek food, and coul deal with some gyros and spanikopita about now.

Asheville is a beautiful city in the Blue Ridge Mountains. For you non-natives, that’s the western portion of the state, near the Tennesse border. The world famous Asheville zoo is there, and I fondly remember visiting it as a child. It was quite a drive, but totally worth it.

The Asheville area, like most of North Carlina, is growing at a rapid pace, and that means the Asheville Real Estate market is booming. One of the development companies there is doing something a bit different, and it’s something I really like. Instead of working to eradicate natural obstacles to development, Red Wolf Run is working within the natural constraints to offer homesites in such a way as to preserve the environment. With 250 acres, they intend on offering only 70 homesites, and they are also supporting Red Wolf and Chestnut Tree proliferation.

When we lived in Colorado and Kansas, we would drive home to North Carolina, and my kids and dh would get so excited thinking we were “almost there” when we crossed the border near Asheville. In truth, we had another day’s drive ahead of us. The climate, therefore, is quite a bit different that what we have here on the coast, and there are ample opportunities for skiing and other winter sports. I hear tell they still have four actual seasons there as well, LOL!

One of my sons went on a tour of the [tag]U.S.S. North Carolina[/tag] this weekend and had a great time. I’ve been meaning to post on it for quite awhile, and this has spurred me to do so. This great battleship served in the Pacific during WWII. She’s been docked in Wilmington since 1961, having been saved from the scrappers by a [tag]Save Our Ship[/tag] campaign by the citizens of North Carolina.

Check out the official site for more on this ship.

Some friends and I were having a discussion recently on the cost of living in various areas of the country. I was pleased and surprised to find out that North Carolina is less expensive than other places to live. Even after our recent phenomenal growth North Carolina Mortgages are still a pretty good deal. Since mortgage rates are a pretty good indicator of the general cost of living, I can continue to say The Tarheel State is a great place to live. Of course, I’ve always known that, but now I can say the numbers back up my opinion, LOL!

Saturday, we had quite the goings-on at my place. I had some blogging friends come over, and we had a wonderful time. Deb came in from New JerseyMarcus was here as well. You’ve met Marcus on this blog before, since he’s from right here in North Carolina. And if food can make someone a native, we can now count Deb among our number. I fed her fried chicken, fried okra and boiled peanuts. We had a grand time.

In this picture, Marcus’ tall self is in the back, and Deb is beside him. I am right there in the front, and no, I wasn’t sitting down!

Hey Ya’ll! I just want to let you know real quick that this blog has commercials. There are lots of fine businesses in North Carolina, and I’d be pure silly not to let you know about them, seeing as how this blog is all about North Carolina. And I’d be pure foolish not to accept compensation for doing so when it’s offered, right? Well, Mama didn’t raise no fools, so there ya go.