Finding The Floor

I've been silent for so long you probably thought I was quitting my Blog - Not!

 What I've actually been doing is searching for the Floor in my Studio.   

The reason the floor was so hard to find is because it was covered with Stuff left over from my tassel and bag business...
thousands of yards of Trims, 
hundreds of pounds of Fabrics.

Stacked in bins were vast quantities of tassel parts. In every nook and cranny were tassel blanks, wooden beads, wooden spindles, small wooden animals, tiny garden tools and flower pots...on and on and on.

All this because in 1995 I designed a line of tassels that I named Lula Belle Tassels, and starting in 1996, it just exploded.  With the help of a fabulous staff, I made and shipped thousands of Tassels, which we made right here in Marietta, Georgia.  Calico Corners put them in 120 stores and it was Game On!

Then, I designed some handbags for the High Point Market one Fall, and BAM!  We were in the Handbag Business.  I started with a few Bags, and wound up with dozens of styles

-all of which required their own bolt of fabric-

and their own bolts of trim

and cases and cases of handles, bottoms, rivets, etc.

I rented more studio space, hired more seamstresses,

more tassel makers,and a manager.  I added larger bags, which we called Satchels.

I decided that we should make painted French Market Baskets lined with a removable Tote Bag...they were an instant hit, and we shipped thousands of those, too.  So many orders came in that we wound up with a commercial paint booth - big enough to paint a small car in.  
And, of course, I had to hire a painter to paint the baskets.  She was amazing.
All of this was fun, but it had gotten very, very big.

I had a wonderful woman in charge of Packing and Shipping, whose name was Julie.

She thankfully kept us all sane and on task, shooing me aside to organize the orders and direct the tassel making, bag sewers, and basket teams.

Then suddenly, Julie left and moved to North Georgia and somehow, things just weren't the same.  I had been designing Tassels and Bags for years, I had a LOT of money in the bank, 
but I wasn't excited about it anymore.

My Husband had built the Ocean Isle Fishing Center and I wanted to go on up there.  

So I closed the Atlanta studio, stored everything, and opened a fabric store in North Carolina.

It was just a couple of miles from the beach,
in one of the fastest growing "Golf Communities"
in the United States of America - Southeastern Brunswick County, NC.

The store was popular, and we had lovely clients who bought tons of fabrics, trims, and accessories.
 They ordered lots of Custom Window Treatments,
Custom Bedding,
Wesley Hall Furniture,
and came to shop frequently
for their favorite thing:
One of A Kind Pieces
that I scoured the Atlanta and High Point Markets and Antiques vendors for.

I had a lovely, lovely staff of women
that I looked forward to seeing
every single day.

Then, the Real Estate Bubble popped, 
the Financial Markets collapsed,
New Home Building stopped,
and things got Real Quiet.

I got homesick for Atlanta.
So, I sold the store and moved back here with all that Lula Belle Stuff.
Which I've been drowning in ever since.

Every time I walked into the tightly packed studio, I got depressed.  All those stored raw materials and painted baskets made me guilty, like I needed to do something with them.  it bugged me to distraction until it finally dawned on me:
Give it away! 

Yesterday, the last load of Trims, Fabrics, Tassel Parts, Baskets and tools drove off down my driveway.  Next week, four men will arrive to dismantle and move out the Skutt Kiln and the huge Slab Roller.  I have made some people very happy.
They got brand new, FREE Stuff.

And, I found my floor.
Which is delightfully bare, freshly painted, and peaceful.
So, so happy.

A Miracle Plays Out On The Ocean

While Captain Brant has continued his journey back to healthy wholeness, I've been very busy rearranging my life priorities.  As we all so painfully learned with Brant's accident, life can change forever in the span of one short second.  

In the blink of an eye.

When one escapes the worst imaginable outcome of an accident, the first thought that  becomes foremost in your mind is that life is short, and life is precious.  

We tend to ignore that crucial fact during our daily routines.

I don't know which group of people on Earth appreciates their surroundings and relationships the most...but I do know that certain folks spend more time on that than I have.  Perhaps it is impossible to be constantly aware of the miracles around you and still be able to do the laundry and shop for groceries, but I will be doing a better job of that now.  I'm honing my "quiet" skills so I can get rid of all the unnecessary distractions in my life - so that I can re-learn how to acknowledge and appreciate the daily miracles all around me. 

Like this one:

Yesterday, September 27, 2012 a very common activity took place out on the Ocean.  Some guys went fishing...but see, it was actually one of those miracles I'm talking about...

Two months and three days after falling 42 feet to a concrete driveway, Captain Brant levered himself onto a friend's boat, braced himself in a chair, and with the help of his brother Barrett and some good friends, left the dock at dawn and went to the Blue Waters of the Gulf Stream for a beautiful day of fishing. 

He took a picture of the sunrise and posted it on the OIFC website: 

After returning to the dock, he posted this report about the trip.

He may not have reeled in a fish, but he was back on the Ocean.  

Now THAT is a miracle to appreciate.

The Best Medicine of All

Brant is continuing to recover, one careful step at a time.  

Amy has taken him for a couple of spins out in the Fresh Air...

For a man who spends most of his waking hours on or around the ocean, 

you know how good that felt!

And besides the great work of the surgeons, nurses, Amy and the hospital staff, he has been strengthened immeasurably by the outpouring of love and support from all of you.

 But the Sweetest, Best Medicine of All?

I don't think I need to say another word!

A Time For Thanks

For those of you who don't already know, my husband's oldest son, Capt. Brant McMullan, had a horrific accident on the afternoon of July 24th.  While installing a new billboard wrap with his brother, he fell about 45 feet from the top of the billboard down to a cement pad.  He was badly injured but survived the fall, which broke multiple bones and scraped off a lot of skin - but thankfully did not result in injuries to his internal organs.

He has already undergone a long surgery by the meticulous Dr. Neil MacIntyre to rebuild his crushed hip socket and pelvic damage, and tomorrow will undergo surgery to put his arm back together properly.  He delighted us all by moving his toes on command yesterday morning, so he WILL walk again.  He may not run marathons, but he'll be back on that boat and Tournament Fishing before too long.  He and the rest of  Team OIFC have their SKA reputation to defend, after all!

Brant is very strong, and very determined to make the fastest recovery possible and resume his position at the helm of the Ocean Isle Fishing Center.  He doesn't "sit" very well, and although he is in terrific pain, he is already planning how to get himself up 12 feet of stairs so he can get back to work.

For all of you who have sent messages of support and love during these past three days,

 Brant and all of our Family cannot Thank You enough.

Your prayers, emails, and phone calls are a fountain of strength; a sweet net of support for Brant and all of us, and helps so much to hold him and all of us up through this time.

Updates on his recovery will be posted on the Fishing Center site under the Fishing Reports.

Please keep those positive thoughts and prayers coming!

I would be remiss if I did not send a huge Thanks to The Big Guy up above,  who undoubtedly (as a family member suggested) provided Brant with a Guardian Angel who took the fall barely ahead of him and cushioned it enough to save his life.

It is truly a Time For Thanks. 

Puppy Fin Settles In...

As promised, here is an update on Puppy Fin's new life with the McMullans and his difficult task of bonding with reigning Top Dog, Doppler.

All is well.  Doppler got fairly ferocious with little Fin when he got too close to him a couple of days after arriving, and Fin now has all that straight.  To the Hilt.  To the point where he travels around the perimeter of the room to get past Doppler.  And Fin's new buddy?

Little Boy Brayden, his new favorite brother.

Which is just about the way we figured it would settle out.

This is going to be a fabulous friendship.

Photo courtesy of his Daddy, Capt. Brant at Ocean Isle Fishing Center  where, incidentally, young Brayden was supposed to be helping with the Sunday morning shift.

All in good time.

October Festivals on the Carolina Coast Continue...

Yesterday, I traveled down to Myrtle Beach to go to Market Commons, a particularly pretty shopping center that has all the shops I love. 

Had to take a picture of this so that I could capture the blue October sky!

Isn't this a pretty place to shop?

I particularly love browsing through Williams Sonoma  - makes me want to have a party!  And, I've always loved their table linens...

After finishing my shopping, I walked down into an area I'd never been in before, and saw...

what looked like another October Festival!  I got closer and could see a happy crowd of people, sipping wine and enjoying some VERY GOOD music.

Turns out, it was the Myrtle Beach Wine Festival!!  I was in.  All of you know how I love wine and music.

Check out these hand-blown wine bottles.  The booth owner said they contained aged Port Wine, and each bottle was uniquely shaped.  

Selecting a wine to sample, I had my glass filled and moved closer to the music.  The band had Everyone's Attention, and I was captivated by these two little boys - who leaped up from their seat on the grass and began dancing with abandon...

They were oblivious to the crowd, and were just Grooving to the Music.

With that happy scene in mind, I left to go to the next Festival...The Annual October Fall Brawl Fishing Tournament.   When I got there, Husband was on duty as the Official Weigh Master, with cousin Brenda standing by to Tag.  Here's a photo of last year's winner - a monster King Mackerel that tipped the scales at nearly 57 pounds!

Image from Fishermanspost.

This year, the leading fish is right at 30 pounds...but the Tournament is not over yet!

Tonight, the final October Oyster Roast, hosted by the Ocean Isle Fishing Center, as they will hand out Thousands of Dollars in prize money for the largest King Mackerel, along with prizes for Lady, Senior, and Kids Anglers.  


What an October it has been!  But I'm missing Atlanta and the hardwood trees...I want to see yellow and orange and red leaves drifting down to the lawn, smell the acorns, and hear the wind in the Oak Trees.  Time to go home.


Thank you, Carolina Coast, for another beautiful October Festival Season!

Sunday Afternoon - Aground in Shallotte Inlet, NC

All members of our family are acutely aware that navigating Shallotte Inlet, between Ocean Isle Beach and Holden Beach, is nothing short of tricky.  

Here's why:

In this aerial photo by Marinas.com, you can see the muddy area to the left...that is sand, even though there are waves that make it look like, well, WATER.   The deeper channel is clearly visible on the right (Holden Beach) side.

Because of the tides that rip through here, the sand shifts around like a living creature, piling up into bars and shoals that move around.  A lot.  Mainly because of this constant shifting, the Inlet isn't marked.


In April every year, all of us develop a heightened sense of alertness, with an ear tilted toward the inlet, because we know that visitors won't necessarily know to hug the Holden Beach side to avoid the hidden sandbars that lurk on the Ocean Isle side.  To run aground in the Shallotte Inlet on the wrong wind or sea, or with night approaching, can be deadly.

Soooo, when I got the call from Husband around 4:00 Sunday afternoon that he was aground in Shallotte Inlet, I jumped in the car and drove down there.  All photos from my Iphone...sorry for the quality, but you'll "get the picture"!


This is my first view when I emerged from the beach access path:

No boat.  But, the inlet beach is very long.  So, walk, walk, walk.

 

Aha!  There he is - the boat with the black bottom.  Looks like water under him, until you get closer...

The Ocean Isle Fishing Center World Cat is standing by, and a smaller boat that came to help is in the middle.  That's Husband STANDING in the inlet.  Know what I mean?  Standing in the inlet??

In the time it took me to walk around to the tip of the sandbar, the tide almost completely went out.  That fast!  You can see the waves out on the horizon, thankfully calm and a couple hundred yards away.  Those are what get you in trouble when you run aground in an inlet. 

Husband has just figured out that I am in the neighborhood, and taking his picture.  He yells out, "Little White Dove!  I'm  Running Bear!".  Stand-up comic, he is.

Nothing to do now but put the anchor out, abandon ship and wait for the tide to come in.

Walking where water was, only 15 minutes ago.

You can see from the shadows that night is fast approaching - the absolute worst time to be trying to maneuver a boat off a sandbar with the tide coming in behind you.   

The dogs are unconcerned, and wait with us for the incoming tide and son Barrett to come join the fray. 

Barrett arrives later in the evening, and deftly ushers Dad down the waterway in inky darkness.  Working together, they swiftly engineer the boat off the sandbar with the help of the incoming tide, retrieve the anchor, and head home.

Thankfully, all's well that ends well.  Lesson learned.  Hug the Holden Beach side of Shallotte Inlet.  

No harm to the boat or engines, just to my Husband's bruised ego.  As you might imagine.  But it could've been a lot worse.  Thanks again, good old Guardian Angel!

Beach Cottage Mahi Bowl Meal

The Beach Cottage renovation is virtually finished, and now all I have to do is find everything I packed away and try to integrate the old with the new.  Not to mention figuring out how to get used to operating the new equipment. 

We've never had gas cooking out here on the island, so after 28 years of preparing meals on an electric stove, here we go!  As promised, here is a recipe and photos of the yummy Mahi-Mahi that was presented to me by the Captain, and cooked up on my new gas range:

We actually call Mahi-Mahi by the East Coast name of Dolphin...in the Keys, they call it Dorado sometimes.  This is what the fish looks like, so that you don't confuse it with the Dolphin mammal, aka "Flipper"!

This is my oldest son with a big Bull Dolphin, aka Mahi, caught on an Ocean Isle Fishing Center boat.

Mahi recipes are all over the map, as it is a very sweet tasting fish which people love, and it also freezes beautifully.  We always freeze the filets or chunks in quart Zip-Loc bags, with the fish surrounded by water.  When I thawed out the fish for our Mahi Fish Bowl, I simply put the bag in fairly warm water until the fish/ice block could be removed from the bag.  Then I let the block sit in lukewarm water until the pieces could be pried apart without breaking.  Once they were pliable, I cut them into strips or chunks about 2 x 3 inches each.  


Mahi takes awhile to cook through, so it is easier to get a consistent texture if you cut it up into small pieces.  Like this:

This photo, used on several sites, shows the dark red bloodline - I ALWAYS remove the bloodline.

When we want to just chill out in front of the TV and watch Deadliest Catch, we've found that the best way to eat is simply out of a Bowl.  That is, everything piled into one bowl, so you can curl up in your favorite spot and not be spilling something off a flat plate when the Time Bandit takes a rogue wave.  


Keep it simple - a couple of main ingredients, with condiments or accents piled on the side, and all presented on top of steamed rice is about all you'll need, other than soy sauce and, for me - always - Rooster Sauce!  I can't eat without it.

This stuff is HOT.  It's made by a company named Huy Fong, out of California.  How it started is quite a story, and you can read about it Here.  The image came from their website, Huy Fong Foods.

But, back to the recipe.  Here are the ingredients for the Asian Flour:
     Self-Rising Flour - about a cup or so.  Sometimes I cut it with some cornstarch
     Sea Salt - you can sprinkle this on the fish, but I  just put it in the flour-not too much!
     Garlic Powder - to your taste, but not too much or it will overpower the Mahi
     Ginger Powder - about a teaspoon
     Black or Regular Roasted Sesame seeds - about a quarter cup
     Assi Brand Coarse Pepper Powder - a heaping tablespoon, at the minimum

You can get this at any Asian market - I use it in a lot of my cooking...including Pinto Beans!

For the oil, I use 2/3 Peanut Oil, 1/3 Olive Oil.  Just get it hot, dredge your Mahi in the flour, and slip it in.  Turn once after the first side has turned golden.  You know it's done when a fork inserted in the fish will turn easily...don't overcook, but be sure it is done through.  Some fish is good on the medium rare side, but not Mahi.

Here is my new range, going full blast on our Mahi Bowl Meal:

Meanwhile, just oven-blast some fresh broccoli:

Thaw out some frozen Tobiko (the roe of Flying Fish-available at Asian Markets) if you like, 

and re-hydrate some Seaweed or buy Seaweed Salad at your local Asian Market.  Scoop out some fresh steamed rice, put it in the bowl and top with your Mahi and other condiments.  

Turn on Deadliest Catch, pour the wine, grab your chopsticks and go!

Poagie Bobbing at The Jolly Mon Tournament

This weekend is the annual Jolly Mon King Mackerel Fishing Tournament, put on by the Ocean Isle Fishing Center.  Since older son Brant took over this tournament from Jamie Milliken years ago, it has always had a family flair.  We've all taken our turns working under the tents - the younger women registering the hopeful fishermen at the Captain's Meeting , Grandma Mac (Vera) selling T-Shirts, friends and family feeding the crowd, and ALWAYS urging Families to Fish Together. 

A view of the crowd from the upper deck.

One of the most treasured contests at the Captain's Meeting is the annual Poagie Bobbing Contest for the kids.  For those of you that don't know, a Poagie is a baitfish - Menhaden is another name for it.  They produce a smelly fish oil that is actually used in a lot of products...but that is a post for another time.  They are small fish, they're pretty smelly on the inside, and they have the usual slime and fins associated with any fish.  And the kids have to catch them IN THEIR MOUTH.  The kid's mouth.

Here are some of the entrants, lined up in front of the stage prior to the start.  Notice the tense, competitive postures of the little ones on the grass??  They are dead serious about this.

There are different age groups, so that the 4 year-olds (yes, 4) aren't left in the dust by their fellow 17 year-old competitors.  The rule is, you cannot use your hands, only your mouth.  Like this:

This young man has elegant style, and kept his hands gracefully away from the edges of the tank.

There are ALWAYS prim little girls who join the fray:

This little girl tucked her dress under her knees to make sure it didn't fly up and embarrass her.  And then, SHE WENT FOR IT!  She was so determined, and stayed under so long that we thought she might drown.  She did catch that Poagie she was chasing in the corner of the tank.

And then there are the 3 year-olds, who have figured out that you can go up on stage, have hundreds of people focused intently on you, and still get roars of delight from everyone by simply reaching down in the tank and plucking a Poagie out with your hand...

Check out my Granddaughter's face on the right - she's realizing the coup this little girl just made - cheers and bravos from the crowd - without having to stick her head down under the water with all that fish-slime!  Rats!

There were winners in all three age divisions, and while all the kids went home with a medal worn proudly around their necks, the winners went home $50.00 richer.  I'm sure there were Poagie dreams on the pillows last night, and plans of how they would tackle it next year...

And another Jolly Mon Captain's Meeting, complete with Poagie Bobbing, is over.

 If you are in the Ocean Isle Beach area, final fishing day is tomorrow, with weigh-in starting at 2:00 and continuing until 5:00.  The awards ceremony begins at 8:00, with thousands of dollars in prizes being disbursed to the lucky winners.  Come on by and join in the fun!