April O.Henry 2024

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Life Plan Community

Call for your tee time today: 336-373-5850

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April 2024

FEATURES

51 Penumbra Poetry by Maura Way

52 The Remix

Who ever said you needed a matching set?

58 Fooled Ya Foods? Imposter-ble!

By Cassie Bustamante

These devilish dishes are not what they seem

62 Kicking It at the Curb By Ross Howell Jr.

For 150 years, Greensboro’s farmers market has cultivated community

68 Questions for Greensboro’s Mr. Baseball

By Jim Dodson

Donald Moore’s extra inning

74 All in the Family By Cassie Bustamante

A 1970s time capsule in New Irving Park

89 April Almanac By Ashley Walshe Cover

DEPARTMENTS

13 Chaos Theory

By Cassie Bustamante

17 Simple Life By Jim Dodson

20 Sazerac

25 Tea Leaf Astrologer By Zora Stellanova

27 Life’s Funny

By Maria Johnson

32 The Omnivorous Reader By Stephen E. Smith

36 Art of the State

By Liza Roberts

41 Home Grown By Cynthia Adams

45 Birdwatch

By Susan Campbell

47 Wandering Billy

By Billy Ingram

114 Events Calendar

125 GreenScene

128 O.Henry Ending By Cynthia Adams

HOUSING MARKET UPDATE

Kim Wilson sits down with Tommy Camp,

President & CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Carolinas Companies

What is your opinion on the state of the market with regard to buyer demand?

The answer to that question begins with the fact th at we have the good fortune of living and working in Nort h Carolina. An extraordinary place with extraordinary people that the rest of the world has discovered in recent years is a great place for business. Recent announcements like Toyota and the expansion of Honda Aircraft have all had a positive impact on our economy, which in turn drives residen tial real estate. It is critically important to remember that we don’t create demand. We fill demand. I see our segment of the marketplace continuing to grow and prosper because of the overall positive economic environment we find ourse lves in. Developments in other regions of North Carolina als o carry over into our market here. Beyond the tremendous gr owth in Charlotte and the Triangle, the USGA’s commitment t o move its headquarters to Pinehurst is yet another exampl e of expansion. Our state university system and our heal thcare systems also have a positive impact on talent attra ction to our area. These factors have contributed to home bu yer demand as parents are following their adult childre n to North Carolina and boomerang young adults who had moved t o larger cities return to Greensboro.

Do you believe there is a pent up desire for sellers to move?

Life events that influence the sale or purchase of a home are seldom driven by the economy— couples getting marri ed, having children, becoming empty nesters, moving to retirement living— whatever the case may be. These are factors that impact home sales and purchases— and w ith an overall healthy, expanding economy, indeed sellers are in the marketplace. The number of homeowners who have a su b-3% mortgage rate does impact mobility to some degree— some people love their mortgage rate even though they do

not love their home. They are not inclined to move today because of that economic factor— yet, at some point, the life events outweigh the economics.

What is your opinion on where interest rates are today and where they are going?

It is our expectation, along with virtually every informed source, that we will see mortgage interest rates decline during 2024. Our experience teaches u s that even an eighth of a point up or down has an impact on the number of buyers who can afford to purchase the home of their dreams. The supply of homes in our market remains at historic lows, and a s I’ve already stated, the drivers of buyer demand ar e in our favor in North Carolina. As rates come down and more interest rate-sensitive buyers re-enter the marketplace, the home buying environment will become more competitive, likely accelerating price appreciation. Buyers can take advantage of a less competitive playing field now and plan to refinance when it makes sense to do so. For those who desire to move into a new home, there has never been a better time to sell or a better time to buy in Nort h Carolina due to the overall health and well-being o f where we have the good fortune to live and work. Th e future is bright for Greensboro!

We Make Great Neighbors.

“I

volume 14, no. 4

336.617.0090

111 Bain Street, Suite 324, Greensboro, NC 27406 www.ohenrymag.com

PUBLISHER

David Woronoff david@thepilot.com

Andie Rose, Creative Director andiesouthernpines@gmail.com

Cassie Bustamante, Editor cassie@ohenrymag.com

Jim Dodson, Editor at Large jwdauthor@gmail.com

Miranda Glyder, Graphic Designer

Cynthia Adams, David Claude Bailey, Maria Johnson

Lynn Donovan, Amy Freeman, Bert VanderVeen, Mark Wagoner

Harry Blair, Anne Blythe, Susan Campbell, Jasmine Comer, Ross Howell Jr., Billy Ingram, Gerry O’Neill, Liza Roberts, Stephen E. Smith, Zora Stellanova, Ashley Walshe, Amberly Glitz Weber

Lisa Allen

336.210.6921 • lisa@ohenrymag.com

Amy Grove

336.456.0827 • amy@ohenrymag.com

Brad Beard, Graphic Designer

Jennifer Bunting, Advertising Coordinator ohenrymag@ohenrymag.com

Henry Hogan,

Darlene

Jack

Changing health care for the better. Every day.

The McGarrigan Group Has A New Home.

We are thrilled to welcome DJ McGarrigan and his team (The McGarrigan Group) to Tyler Redhead & McAlister Real Estate. Consistently one of the Triad’s top producing teams, the McGarrigan Group’s addition to TR&M reinforces our stronghold as the largest locally owned real estate company in Greensboro.

From helping clients buy and sell their homes to offering investment property advice and property management services, you can rely on DJ and the McGarrigan Group.

Dirty Laundry

It’s all about knowing when to fold and when to hold

by Cassie bustamante

I recently came across a meme that depicted the sign for infinity, a sideways figure eight. Above it read: “The symbol for laundry.” Accurate, I thought. With three kids, it’s never-ending.

But I can’t complain because before we were even married — when we were living in sin in the nation’s seat of sin, New Orleans — my husband, Chris, and I set up a system that has worked well now for over 20 years.

Of course, “set up” is a bit of a stretch. We didn’t exactly thoughtfully lay out a plan. It went more like this:

Freshly laundered clothing strewn on the bed in front of me, I begin folding a pair of Chris’ jeans in half the long way and then into thirds. My hands, well-manicured and soft, no visible signs of aging (Hey, this is my memory, OK?), maneuver while my Sony CD player shuffles through discs. Absentmindedly singing along to Frou Frou’s “Let Go,” I’m in the sort of meditative trance only a tedious task can produce.

Suddenly, Chris’ judging eyes bore into me and pull me right back into my body. I can see him biting his lip, trying to hold in whatever it is he’s thinking. After a beat, he says, “Can you pass me those jeans?” And he proceeds to shake them out and meticulously refold them, seams aligned exactingly.

Frankly, I should have seen this coming. Our relationship began — brace yourself — when Chris was my boss and I was his intern at the Hanes Mall Abercrombie & Fitch kids’ store back

in 1999, just a few years after the most infamous intern scandal of our time. He was the one who taught me how to fold the perfect denim wall. There was a science — an art form, really — to lining those pairs of jeans up just so. When stacked in the wall together, they were the perfect height, filling the space between shelves, each pair a uniform thickness.

“What’s wrong with how I did it?” I ask. Though, honestly, I know I’ve never quite mastered the art of folding clothes with that crisp prêt-à-porter look he’s capable of achieving. (Don’t tell him that. We don’t need any gloating around here.)

“I just like them, um, a certain way,” he says, clearly choosing his critiquing words carefully to maintain unwedded domestic bliss.

“Then why don’t you fold the laundry?” I sputter, not really a question, mind you.

“OK,” he answers and, surprising me, immediately takes over.

Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I stifle any witty retort — a real challenge for me — and simply say, “OK, then. All yours.”

From that moment on, Chris has been designated laundryfolder in our house. It’s a role that fits his very particular Virgo personality to a tee, a perfect use of his skills.

And, in the end, we both win. He gets his denim folded just the way his heart desires. And I get out of untangling and sorting endless piles of laundry. Well, mostly. I do have to refold my T-shirts because I have learned that Marie Kondo’s method really does make it easier to find clothing in a stuffed drawer. But I’ll never whisper a word about it. He can keep his job. OH

Cassie Bustamante is editor of O.Henry magazine.

The Ever-Changing Garden

May the work never be done

GERRY O'NEILL

by Jim dodson

The spring gardening season officially got underway this year with the necessary removal of a 70-year-old red oak tree that threatened to fall on my garage office. Being a confirmed tree hugger and septuagenarian myself, I felt for the old boy having to come down. But I’d probably have felt worse — perhaps permanently — had the old fella decided to fall on my office with me in it.

several big changes in paradise. The first move came on the east side of our house where a trio of formerly well-behaved crape myrtle bushes were suddenly running amok and threatening to blot out the sun. The task of digging them out of the cold January ground proved the wisdom of Robert Frost’s elegant aphorism that the afternoon knows what the morning never suspected — i.e. that some tasks that were easy in the morning of youth prove to be monstrously difficult in the afternoon of age.

Such is the fate of an ever-changing garden, which is a redundant phrase since every garden everywhere is ever changing, if only by a matter of degrees. Any gardener worth his mulch will tell you that the work is never finished. There’s always some new problem to contend with or a fresh inspiration incubated over dark winter days to finally put into motion. We are, as a result, forever incomplete gardeners, revising and learning as we go.

In my case, this year has been all of the above — new problems, fresh inspiration and learning as I go. As the result of the day-long operation to remove “Big Red,” as I called the elderly oak, half a dozen young plants just awakening from their winter nap had to be dug up and set aside so the crane removing the tree could navigate a path across my backyard garden, churning the ground up as it went.

I took this as a sign from on high that it was time to make

Still, I’m nothing if not a committed bugger when it comes to getting my way in a garden. After several hours of intense work with pick and shovel, all under the watchful eye of Boo Radley, the cat who suns himself in that particular part of the estate on winter days, the monstrous shrubs finally came out and I went in for a much-needed lunch break, muddy but triumphant.

“My goodness,” said my wife, stirring soup. “Who won the fight?”

You see, back in the “morning” of my gardening years — that’s five different gardens ago, by my count — Dame Wendy always found it highly amusing that I treated garden work like a fullcontact sport, where blood of some sort was inevitably shed. In those days, I was so into clearing trees and rebuilding the ancient stone walls of a vanished 19th century homestead that once existed where our new post-and-beam house stood, I rarely noticed cuts, bruises or even gashes that needed a stitch or two. In those faraway days, all I needed was a long hot soak in our 6-foot Portuguese clawfoot tub, plus a couple cold Sam Adams beers to

simple life

put things right.

These days, in the metaphorical “afternoon” of life, the cuts and bruises are fewer and the cure for sore muscles comes via a hot shower, a change of clothes and a nice afternoon nap with the dogs — though I have been known to wander outside just before the dinner guests arrive and get myself dirty all over again.

I think my sweet gardening obsession comes from a long and winding line of family farmers and gardeners, abetted by a childhood spent in several small towns of the South where I stayed outside from dawn till dusk, building forts in the woods, climbing trees, damming creeks and digging earthworks under the porch for my toy armies. More than once, I had to be hauled out from under the porch for church with my “good” Sunday pants streaked with red clay.

My mother, poor woman, nicknamed me “Nature Boy” and “Angel with a Filthy Face.” Worse than death was having her spit on a handkerchief to wipe a smudge of soil off my cheek as we entered the sanctuary.

Despite the damage from removing Big Red and heavy winter kill in both my side and backyard gardens this spring, I’m always nicely surprised by the resiliency of my suburban patch. One day, I’m looking at a bare perennial bed and the next, dozens of green shoots are coming up. The daffodils never fail to rise nor the cherry trees bud. The hosta plants miraculously

return. The dogwoods burst into bloom and the azaleas erupt in technicolor glory.

This annual choreography of springtime is a nice reminder that we human beings do the very same thing. Nobody escapes hard winters, actual or metaphorical. The weather of life beats everyone down at some point or another. But slowly and surely, we re-emerge as the days lengthen and the sun grows warmer. Soon the sheer abundance of blossom and green makes a body forget the cold months of unseen struggle to get here.

Though I am an unapologetic fan of winter — my best season for writing, thinking and planning new adventures in the garden — the happiest time for this incomplete gardener comes when I see what managed to survive the winter and has come back with new vigor and surging optimism. Such sights make my old fingers itch to get gloriously dirty.

This spring, there will probably be a new garden shed surrounded by ferns where Big Red once stood, and old Boo Radley will have a new perennial garden full of flowers in which to sun himself on cool summer mornings. I may even finally finish the cobblestone pathway I started last year.

The job in a garden, you see, is never done. And that’s just the way I like it. OH

SAZERAC

"A spirited forum of Gate City food, drink, history, art, events, rumors and eccentrics worthy of our famous namesake"

Monumental

On February 20, an enthusiastic crowd gathered in downtown Greensboro, including most of the City Council members that approved the project, for the unveiling of a statue of Henry and Shirley Frye. Renowned South Carolina sculptor Maria J. Kirby-Smith, known for numerous photorealistic works across our state, was commissioned to create the likeness of the Fryes, which sits just a few yards away from her metallic depiction of writer O. Henry.

Gov. Roy Cooper, Mayor Nancy Vaughan, N.C. A&T Chancellor Harold Martin and former mayor of Greensboro, and president and CEO of the Bryan Foundation (which paid for the statue) Jim Melvin spoke about the monumental contributions this power couple has made to Greensboro and the state at large.

“They have done amazing things that seem impossible,” Gov. Cooper told the assembled. “It’s hard to be the first in anything but [Henry Frye] was the first in many — first Black person admitted to first year of law at UNC Law School; first Black person elected to the General Assembly in the 20th century; first Black Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court. His career paved the way for so many to follow, people who will come and stand at this statue and hopefully think about it and whisper a prayer of gratitude.”

Credited with integrating the YWCA locally, Shirley Frye has been the recipient of a dizzying array of accolades including the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, one of North Carolina’s highest civilian honors.

Following the ceremony, Jim Melvin told O.Henry magazine, “This is a way for the community to let Henry and Shirley live forever. So the young people can come to see that, no

matter what the obstacles, if you have the desire, you can make something happen. And they both did.”

Where to see this: Center City Park, 200 N. Elm St., Greensboro

— Billy Ingram

Sage Gardener

As I was just about to toss some leek tops into the compost can, I heard the clear voice of my dearly departed, wastenot-want-not mother scream, “Stop!” A few days earlier, I’d read about how leek tops were delicious when braised in butter and then slow boiled in chicken broth until tender. So I tossed the tops into a pan, and they were, in fact, quite tasty, especially when added to some rainy-day chicken-and-rice soup.

Down the rabbit hole I went, discovering Tara Duggan’s Rootto-Stalk Cooking — and dozens of self-righteous, save-the-planet foodies on the internet determined to rescue the 52 percent of vegetables we discard on the way to eating the other 48 percent.

So, over the past few weeks, my wife, Anne, and I have been downing stalks, stems and fronds to separate the best from all the rest. For years, we’ve been enjoying broccoli and cauliflower stems thrown into Asian stir fries as if they were water chest-

nuts. And the core of cabbage, unless it’s bitter, is fine in slaw. And don’t toss those cilantro stems. Mince them for added flavor in salsas.

Loving anything fermented, I decided to try a recipe for collard-stem pickles. My dinner guests politely praised them, but I noticed little wads of chewed up stems pushed to the side of their plates when I went to wash the dishes. Not worth it. After a couple of bland batches, we concluded that although beet greens fresh from the garden were pretty good, the ones you cut off beets from the store were too tired to be worth the effort. Ditto radish tops, though a few in a salad are OK. We tried fennel stems and fronds in salads and they were fine, but the pesto I made from them, with a big dollop of cream added, was great over pasta. I admittedly added anchovies to mine, which make anything better, including ice cream.

Turning tomato skins into

Window to the Past

Play ball! Off and on since 1908, Greensboro's been a part of the minor league baseball scene and has seen the likes of Derek Jeter, Don Mattingly and Johnny Mize on its roster. As the season opens on Friday, April 5, we're wishing the Grasshoppers a pitch-perfect season.

powder? Nope. Candying fennel stalks? Not me. Dehydrated corn silk? No thanks. “Better bad belly burst than good food waste,” my Pennsylvania Dutch mother croaked from the grave. Mom, remember the potato-peel soup you once made, assuring us that you’d been taught as a nurse that the little bit of arsenic in potato peels was good for you? It was awful soup. But it sure made great compost.

— David Claude Bailey

PHOTOGRAPH © GREENSBORO HISTORY MUSEUM COLLECTION

Just One Thing

In Harem #18, seen here, Moroccan artist Lalla Essaydi revisits the harem of the Dar al-Basha Palace, where her grandmother was essentially held captive with her young son, Essaydi’s father. The woman in this photograph is dressed to become one with the interior. And yet, she stands out and stares directly back at the viewer. Contrasting bold masculine calligraphy against the feminine grace of henna, Essaydi, who earned her M.F.A. from Tufts’ School of the Museum

of Fine Arts in 2003, seeks to highlight the contradictions experienced in Arab culture. But, also, she says, “I want the viewer to become aware of Orientalism as a projection of the sexual fantasies of Western male artists — in other words as a voyeuristic tradition.” Unlike her Harem series, most of her work is shot to appear in a nonspecific space, one that could be almost anywhere, left to the interpretation and imagination of the viewer. While Essaydi has worked in

Is it breakfast? Is it lunch? Or is it a meal to be had between — and in addition to — breakfast and lunch? Here at we vote for that third option. In honor of National Brunch Month, we’re sharing our top five hosting tips so you can open your doors to friends and help them reach that goal of three square meals a morning. 1.

ers, but eating the rainbow is the healthiest way to eat, according to doctors all over the internet. Red peppers, carrots, leafy greens? Yes, please. And, when all else fails, Skittles.

4. Plan dishes you can make ahead of time and then reheat that day: quiche Florentine, chocolate chip zucchini bread, dainty ham biscuits and creme brûlée French toast, to name a few. But

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tea leaf astrologer

Aries

(March 21 – April 19)

Let’s get right to it: The new moon and total solar eclipse in Aries on April 8 may well clean your fiery little clock. If you’ve been dodging a difficult conversation or wavering on a big decision, ready or not, this cosmic punch will set things in motion for you. On the other hand, if you’ve been showing up for the hard work, trust that the universe is rearranging itself in your favor. But consider adding “patience” to your birthday wish list.

Tea leaf “fortunes” for the rest of you:

Taurus (April 20 – May 20)

Use your context clues.

Gemini (May 21 – June 20)

There is no short straw.

Cancer (June 21 – July 22)

Unsecured objects may be dislodged.

Leo (July 23 – August 22)

You’re rage-cleaning again.

Virgo (August 23 – September 22)

Look under the couch.

Libra (September 23 – October 22)

Ever tried binaural beats? Pink noise? Whale sounds?

Scorpio (October 23 – November 21)

Repeat: Tending to my needs helps everyone.

Sagittarius (November 22 – December 21)

It’s time to flush the system.

Capricorn (December 22 – January 19)

Work from top to bottom.

Aquarius (January 20 – February 18)

Three words: peppermint, sage, ginger.

Pisces (February 19 – March 20)

It is decidedly so. OH

Zora Stellanova has been divining with tea leaves since Game of Thrones’ Starbucks cup mishap of 2019. While she’s not exactly a medium, she’s far from average. She lives in the N.C. foothills with her Sphynx cat, Lyla.

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MiraDry

What’s in a Name?

Ask Dewey. Or Michael.

by m aria Johnson

A new acquaintance suggested that we go to an event together.

“You should bring Dewey,” she said.

I looked at her, puzzled.

“You know, your husband,” she prompted.

“Oh,” I said, laughing. “Yeah, OK, but that’s not his name.”

Now it was her turn to look stumped.

“Don’t you call him Dewey?” she asked.

“Yeah, I do,” I confirmed. “But his real name is Jeff. I call him Dewey. But no one else does. Well, except our sons. It’s kind of a pet name.”

If she thought about rescinding her invitation, she was graceful and did not.

And, by the way, Dewey and I had a great time with her and her husband, who, for some reason, she called by his real first name.

Seriously, I get why people address each other by their given names. That’s what names are for. When parents give their kids a name, they presume that’s what other people will call them.

And most people do.

Which is fine.

Heck, I call most people by their given names — when I can remember them.

But people I’m fond of or I know really well? Mmm, not so much.

That’s why I had to laugh when I read about Nikki Haley’s

husband.

His real first name is William.

Most people call him Bill.

But when Haley met him, she told him he didn’t look like a Bill.

She asked him what his full name was.

He told her William Michael.

She said he looked more like a Michael, and from then on, she called him Michael.

I totally get it.

And for what it’s worth, I think she’s right. Look at his picture. The dude is a complete Michael.

Apparently, everyone else thought so, too, because from then on, other people called him Michael, too.

Which is cool. Other people can use a person’s new name, especially if it’s a new public name.

Which is not the same as a new private name.

Example: Michael, public name.

Dewey, private name.

I mean, you can call Jeff “Dewey” if you want to. But I doubt he’d answer. And if he did, I’d be crushed.

It’s complicated.

One thing I’ve learned: Often, there’s a namer in the family. This is one of the first things that Dewey (that’s Jeff to you) and I realized we had in common. We were the namers in our families. Maybe because we’re both first children, and while being a firstborn comes with a lot of pressure, it also carries some privileges. life's funny

The Artof Living

MEET CARL HEIN AND KARL STAUBER

As highly skilled woodworkers, Carl and Karl love making things—furniture, bowls, jewelry, and more. Now, thanks to their efforts to bring a new fully-equipped and stand-alone woodshop to Arbor Acres, the men have a dedicated place to work and share with other residents. “We have a full collection of high-quality tools,” says Karl. “And safety is a key feature,” Carl adds, referring to detailed training sessions. Arbor Acres is happy to continue fulfilling the visions of our residents, who continue to make this place alive with their creative energy.

Therefore, Dewey/Jeff renamed some of his family members Maude, Lay-Otee, Carico, Sheep Pup and Deo Bahee.

My family included Lil’ Greek, Shrimp and Dossie, aka Dosito Mikhail Yakovich.

Hey, it was the Cold War era. And yes, I said the whole name every time I used it. Much to his chagrin.

That’s the thing about renaming people in your immediate family. They don’t necessarily have to like their new monikers. They just have to tolerate them.

If I were completely honest, I’d admit that renaming is a wee flex, a mini Declaration of Independence that says, “I’m not calling you what the rest of the world calls you.”

But even more important, new names are expressions of fondness, closeness and a unique shared history.

Take the example of a dear friend and her brother, who are very close.

Privately, he addresses her as “Fool,” based on a family story that resembles a fever dream.

She calls him “ hole,” emphasis on the “ .”

In her contact list, he’s listed as “A-hole,” but her cell phone’s voice assistant pronounces his name “A-holey.” So my friend tells her phone to “call A-holey” when she wants to talk her to baby brother.

Is that love or what?

Inside my own family, I call Jeff “Dewey,” which was derived from the boys calling him Dad, which morphed into Doodad, which was shortened — ta-da — to Dewey. Who else would know that?

He calls me Sweetch, a form of Sweetie.

Awww.

We have multiple pet names for our sons, most of which we use in private, partly out of respect, partly because we’ve received withering looks for using them in public.

Take the time I summoned one son, now a New Yorker, by his pet name when he was walking too fast for us down the crowded sidewalks.

“BADOODIE! HOLD UP!” I hollered.

Apparently being hailed as Badoodie

E LEVATE YOUR DINING.

Grandover is more than a resort.

Grandover Resort’s re-imagined southern inspired dining experience where heirloom recipes and locally sourced ingredients come together for an eclectic and savory tasting experience for every palette. With a nod to our North Carolina Furniture heritage, Final represents the best of our State in both our deep-rooted southern dining culture and the famed artisans of our storied Furniture history.

won’t stick, even if you apply it with affection.

I’ve been lucky in that department. I think of some of my earliest pals: Gurr, Beck, Mishur, Limpy, Kince and Polly. None of those were their given names, but if I called them on the phone today, I dare say they’d brighten at the sound of those tags.

Later came Betho, Goof, Conchita, Der Lovely, Lyd, DK, Fash, Little Boy and others.

Today, you might hear me refer to Special K, Peegs, Little Debbie, Weez, Cootie, Rev K or Queenie Bee.

As for me, I’ve answered to many names in my lifetime: Goof, Conchita and Fash (often nicknames are reflexive, applying to both parties), along with Moom, M.J., Mojo, Mo, M, Mahrear and Mish.

While some of them are more attractive than others — “Mahrear” reflects a former colleague’s delight at how our boss’s Virginia accent made my name sound like his backside, as in, “That writer is a pain in Mahrear” — all of them make me smile because they tickle memories of the people, the stories and the closeness we’ve shared.

And ain’t that the name of the game?

OH

Maria Johnson is a contributing editor of O.Henry magazine. Email her at ohenrymaria@gmail.com.

The Color of Music Symphony of Secrets plucks at the heartstrings

By A nne Blythe

Brendan Slocumb, a composer-turned-novelist with deep ties to North Carolina, hopes to one day be “the Stephen King of musical thrillers.” That’s what the author of Symphony of Secrets and The Violin Conspiracy told Katie Buzard, an Illinois Public Media arts writer, in a 2023 interview.

With two books in his repertoire from the past two years and a third due out in 2025, the gifted writer is well on pace to keep up with the “King of Horror,” whose first three books were published in a three-year span. Slocumb’s most recent, Symphony of Secrets, has been chosen as one of the 2024 selections for North Carolina Reads, a statewide book club created by N.C. Humanities, a nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, because of its exploration of “racial, social and gender equity, and the history and culture of North Carolina.”

much of his life. He knows every piece, all the operas and songs to the most minute detail.

The book is set mostly in New York but features visits to Oxford and the Granville County public library. Building on some of the same themes from his first book, Slocumb continues to explore the torment of institutional and everyday racism in his second as he toggles between the present day classical music world and the 1920s and ’30s in New York.

The novel opens with Frederic Delaney, a deflated early 20thcentury composer whose plummet from stardom was almost as rapid as his meteoric rise, going through his pre-concert ritual 16 hours before his death — Champagne poured into two glasses and a toast to a photograph of his as yet unidentified collaborator.

We are quickly introduced to professor Bern Hendricks, a musicologist at the University of Virginia who has been consumed with Delaney (a composer of Slocumb’s invention) for

Bern is deep into one composition, enjoying the layering of the alto and tenor saxes over the French horns — and the “French horns’ epic battle with the trombones, when the horns fought for supremacy, but the trombones would, in just seconds, kick their asses” — when he is summoned by the august and influential Delaney Foundation. It’s the organization that shaped Bern’s life from his early days in Milwaukee as a “poor bologna sandwich-eating kid with a beat-up French horn” to the respected academician he has become.

The foundation has uncovered what is believed to be the original draft of Red, a long-lost Delaney opera and an enigma of modern American music. It doesn’t take much coaxing to lure Bern from the Charlottesville campus to the foundation’s plush New York offices, even with the hush-hush of it all. His task is to authenticate Red, the final piece in Delaney’s Rings Quintet, a series of operas inspired by the yellow, blue, black,

omnivorous reader

green and red rings of the Olympic flag.

What he discovers, though, with the help of Eboni Washington — a brilliant, sassy coding whiz from the Bronx — is a gripping history with the potential to destroy both the reputation of the composer Bern idolizes and the foundation interested in preserving an untarnished image of Delaney.

Central to the plot line is one of the most interesting characters of Slocumb’s Symphony: Josephine Reed, a neurodivergent Black woman from North Carolina with a gift for music. She arrives in New York in 1918 with a small, crumpled piece of paper in her gloved hand. We find out why she has traveled all that distance when she rounds a street corner and hears “a trombone, a clarinet and then a trumpet lifting itself up like a benediction, blessing the air with a run of notes that Josephine breathed in like the smell of the earth after a spring rain.”

She hears the sounds of the city — the subways, elevator doors, automobiles, the wind blowing through tunnels — in musical scales. “The wind whistled in a wavering B-flat up to an F-sharp,” Slocumb writes.

What further sets Josephine apart is how she sees music in colors: pinks, blues, greens, hints of brown, red and more. She has an innate vision and makes distinctive doodles on composition manuscripts that lead to the creation of masterpieces for

which she never was credited — Delaney was. It was a photograph of Josephine that Delaney saluted shortly before his death.

Reed becomes a captive in an industry that devalues her because of her skin color and uniqueness. Though she eventually sheds her fragility and finds the confidence to stand up for herself, Josephine’s life comes to a tragic end. With her death, the story of the true composer of the celebrated Delaney operas remains buried until Bern and Eboni find a shipping trunk in the basement of one of Josephine’s distant relatives, and the real source of the operatic sensation that won global acclaim is unearthed.

Slocumb, who grew up in Fayetteville and got a degree in music education from UNC Greensboro, plucks at the heartstrings of his readers throughout Symphony of Secrets. In this fast-paced and galvanizing musical thriller, he reminds us that what’s past is, indeed, prologue, that white supremacy, cultural appropriation and access barriers that existed in the 1920s persist. OH

Anne Blythe has been a reporter in North Carolina for more than three decades covering city halls, higher education, the courts, crime, hurricanes, ice storms, droughts, floods, college sports, health care and many wonderful characters who make this state such an interesting place.

Gateway to Mysteries

John Beerman deeply sees and paints the natural world

By liz A RoBeRts

Before John Beerman paints a landscape, he studies the place that’s caught his eye and picks a particular day and time. Maybe it’s a low-lit evening in fall, or maybe it’s a morning hour that only exists over a span of days in spring, when the angle and energy of the sun provides a certain glow. And then he goes there, day after day, at that appointed hour, building his painting bit by bit until the moment is over — the hour has passed, the shape

of light has changed, that bit of season is gone.

One spring morning not long ago, he arrived at a field at Chatwood, the Hillsborough estate owned at the time by his close friend, the author Frances Mayes. Beerman arrived well in advance of his chosen hour, because it takes some time to set up his easel. He has a wonky system of clamps and slats to hold boards in place that will serve as a perch for both his canvas and his paint. His paint is of his own making, too: It’s a homemade egg tempera, created with pigment and egg yolk that he keeps in an airtight jar.

To accompany him on one of these plein air excursions is to realize that Beerman doesn’t just look like Monet at Giverny, with his straw hat, wooden easel, linen shirt and

White House From Studio Winter Morning with Figure, 2024. 15.75 x 17.75 in. Oil on canvas

leather shoes, but that he sees like Monet: He views the natural world with the same kind of reverence. Beerman studies the landscape as if it had a soul, character and moods. He learns its nuanced beauty out of a deep respect — and only then does he paint what only he can see.

“I have always found the natural world a gateway to the greater mysteries and meanings of life,” Beerman says. At a time when the world faces so many problems, he says, “it’s important to see the beauty in this world. It is a healing source.”

Beerman has often ventured to notably beautiful places around the world to find this gateway. To Tuscany in springtime, coastal Maine in summer, the glowing shores of Normandy or the estuaries of South Carolina. Recently, he is choosing to stay closer to his Hillsborough home. “Sometimes I feel rebellious against going to those beautiful places and painting those beautiful sights,” he says. “My appreciation and love of the North Carolina landscape continues to grow. I feel we are so fortunate to be here.”

This year, so far, he has been painting the views from his studio windows. “I am struck by the idea that every day the sun moves

across the sky, the seasons change,” says Beerman. “I’m looking at one house in five different versions throughout the day.”

The particular house on his easel now is a millhouse currently under renovation. He has a bird’s-eye view of the millhouse from his second-story studio, but it constantly evolves with the men working on it and the light that suffuses it. What Beerman is painting, though, isn’t “a house portrait,” but an attempt to capture “the luminosity of that particular light.” Also compelling him is the energy of the project at hand: “The guys working on the house are just as interesting to me,” he says, so he has begun to paint them into the scene, even though figures have rarely appeared in his landscapes.

The ability to revisit the subject of his fascination day after day as he completes a painting is a refreshing change, he says. Typically, he’d paint small oil sketches in the field, then bring them back to the studio to inspire and inform his large oil paintings. Here, he can continue to study parts of the house, the men and the project that elude him; he can “get more information” as he goes.

But if his proximity to his subject has changed, Beerman’s

Winter Dusk From Studio Window 2024 11.75 x 11.75 in. Oil on linen.

Rooftop and Trees From Studio, Winter Sunny Morning, 2024 11.75 x 11.75 in. Oil on linen.

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essential practice has not.

“I’ve always felt a little bit apart from the trend,” he says. “I love history. And one also needs to be in the world of this moment, I understand that. I’m inspired by other artists all the time, old ones and contemporary ones . . . Piero Della Francesca, he’s part of my community. Beverly McIver, she’s part of my community. One of the things I love about my job is that I get to have that conversation with these folks in my studio, and that feeds me.” Beerman’s work keeps company with some of “these folks” and other greats in the permanent collections of some of the nation’s most prestigious museums as well, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the North Carolina Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art and governor’s mansions in New York and North Carolina.

The paintings that have made his name include celebrated landscapes of New York’s Hudson River early in his career (he is a direct descendant of Henry Hudson, something he learned only after 25 years painting the river), of North Carolina in later years and of Tuscany, where he has spent stretches of time. They all share a sense of the sublime, a hyperreal unreality, a fascination with shape and volume, space and light, a restrained emphasis on color and an abiding spirituality.

“Edward Hopper said all he ever wanted to do was paint the sunlight on the side of a house,” Beerman says. “And I so concur with that. It’s as much about the light as it is about the subject.” A painting of the lighthouse at Nags Head includes only a looming fragment of that famous black-and-white tower, but it’s the glow of coastal sun Beerman has depicted on its surface that make it unmistakably what and where it is.

“With some paintings, I know what I want, and I try to achieve that. And other paintings start speaking back to me,” he says. Beerman’s talking about another painting, of a wide rolling ocean and a fisherman on a pier. As he painted it,

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Just the Beans

Upping our daily grind

By Cynthi A A dA ms

Our kitchen counter is dominated by a coffee machine large enough to be in a Starbucks.

It grinds, perks, foams and noisily squirts. It is shiny and intimidating.

If this machine were a Hollywood star, as I am pretty sure it thinks it is, it would be Sofía Vergara.

The fully loaded, foreign-made espresso maker came from Williams-Sonoma. When Don came home with it, he stared at the enormous box before uncrating the behemoth, breathing shallowly. He sank down onto a stool. It was a moment. Finally, he gently eased it out of the packaging, barely exhaling, before carrying it to its place on the counter.

He handled it with the care and caution of an acolyte bearing incense or an offering to the altar. I murmured something about the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffet, contentedly drinking McDonald’s coffee each morning. Don’s dumbfounded expression shut me up.

ematical whiz to calculate exactly how long it would take to make it worth it.

The machine claimed a huge section of counter space; a kitchen squatter, as large as the microwave and nearly as heavy.

The lengthy instruction manual and its detailed warranty were scrutinized, analyzed, memorized. It was actually some months before Don left town and I attempted to use the shiny beast myself, safe from his watchful eye. He was the barista in charge of all coffee making — and I remained too intimidated by the thing.

This Australian-engineered coffee machine had more doohickeys and programmed features than my car. Well, close.

I dialed, adjusted, waited as it did its work. But the machine instantly loathed me, producing an espresso so intense and unpalatable I shouted “Mio Dio, quell caffe e forte!” And I don’t even speak Italian.

The Australian machine only likes Don, presumably because he has relatives living near Sydney. Mine live near Hell’s Half Acre. I gave up and drove to McDonald’s for a latte as soon as I regained my ability to speak English.

Ostensibly, we had invested in this finicky contraption to end the high cost of daily “designer coffees.” It would take a math-

Realistically, we have not saved one thin dime but are instead dipping into our retirement fund. The cost of the machine was only the beginning.

Because the machine deserved — no, demanded — specialty unroasted beans. “You do not put regular gas into a Ferrari,” Don spluttered.

How could I think of using ordinary roasted beans from the local market? Whose antioxidant value was already diminished?

My ignorance launched Don into mansplaining.

He explained free radical damage. And polyphenols. The benefits from green beans might be preventatives against all the worst illnesses: cancer, heart disease, diabetes. He took a deep breath.

So, if we didn’t buy roasted beans, I asked, did this mean we needed unroasted beans?

Of course, he replied. “They’re called green beans.” I believe he briefly closed his eyes, collecting. Then what? I asked, shooting a dirty look at the Australian which seemed to be smirking at my ignorance.

This led to the next phase of our coffee journey. Don first

home grown

experimented by roasting green beans in a popcorn popper, something YouTube had suggested. That was soon deemed too difficult to control . . . beans went from lightly roasted to charred in seconds.

Did I mention the green beans were not inexpensive, especially factoring in the cost of shipping? Coffee is a commodity folks. Globally traded.

We swiftly replaced the hot air popcorn popper with a bona fide roaster, which also must be carefully attended despite all the fancy gee jaws and settings. It’s Australian, too, and nearly as cheeky as the coffee machine.

The roaster was installed in the basement near bags of green coffee beans specially ordered from Sweet Maria’s in California. (Until the first invoice from the Californians, he roasted coffee for nearly anyone who mentioned a love of java.)

The roaster required a contraption Barista Don built to divert the smoke, snaked across the basement ceiling to the chimney flue and overwhelming the basement.

But I do not murmur complaint, for therein lies the true payoff of coffee roasting. The dazzlingly aromatic smell, redolent of various coffee types, sometimes infused with the round notes of fine chocolate, rises through the floors of our very old house, suffusing the air.

I inhale deeply. This is the exact smell I hope carries me off to the afterlife when I die.

Back upstairs, the Australian is soon fed its favorite beans. It will grind, perk, foam and noisily squirt. And it will produce a perfect cup, often what caffeine lovers call a “God cup.” I wait obediently, grateful, actually.

Barista Don and I have reached a kitchen accord.

For just a sip of the freshly roasted goodness in my cup, you’d do the same. The machine — that Australian diva that took over our kitchen — has rightfully earned her seat at the table. OH

Annie McLennon, DDS, Graham E. Farless, DDS, Bill Blaylock, DDS

Harbingers of Spring Return of the red-winged blackbirds

By susA n CA mpBell

For some, the sound of spring is the song of the American robin, our melodious and most familiar songster. But for me it has always been the sounds of red-winged blackbirds. As a beginning birdwatcher in New York State, migration begins a lot later than here in North Carolina. And some of the first returnees riding the warmer winds back north are red-wingeds. The “chuck”-ing coming from the ribbons of birds as they passed overhead was the very first sign that winter was losing its grip. Not long after, I would be greeted by the first males giving their loud “konk-a-ree!” songs from the tallest of the cattails in the nearby marsh.

Red-wingeds get their name from the bright red epaulets on the wings of the adult males. These patches are actually set off on the black wing by a patch of yellow feathers just below. Otherwise the birds are completely dark. Females, not surprisingly, are quite drab. Their brownish, streaky appearance is superb camouflage against the tall grasses in the wet habitat that they tend to inhabit. Young birds are also entirely streaked, which makes them harder to spot as they learn their way in the world, well into their first winter.

These blackbirds can be found inland in our state year round. However, in the winter months, they gather in large flocks so

they are not widespread. Aggregations of thousands of birds can be found closer to the coast from late fall into early spring. But by now, they are returning to local bottomlands, lakes and ponds to breed. Red-wingeds are unusual in that they are a species that is polygynous. Males may have a harem of mates within the territory that they defend. Experienced males will pair with two or more females as early as mid-March. Females will create substantial nests in low vegetation by weaving wet leaves and shoots together to form a dense cup. They will add mud to the inside and then finally line it with fine grasses before laying two to four pale eggs with dark streaks.

Although blackbirds are generally known to feed on seeds, of both native and agricultural origins, in the summer they hunt mainly insects. They are known to probe at the base of aquatic plants with their slender bills and are very capable of prying insects from the stems. Young red-wingeds, like so many species, require lots of protein. It is the mother birds that forage for the family. Males spend most of their time defending their territories from high perches, singing throughout the day and fiercely chasing interlopers that venture too close.

As abundant as these birds may seem to be, their numbers have been declining for several decades. It is likely due to the continuing loss of wetland habitat throughout their range. Additionally, terrestrial predators are on the rise in areas where they breed — including cats. If you have red-wingeds in your neighborhood this spring, consider yourself lucky, and be sure to get out and enjoy their antics as well as that unmistakable song. OH

Susan Campbell would love to hear from you. Feel free to send questions or wildlife observations to susan@ncaves.com.

wandering billy

The Organ Pipes Are Calling

Nothing could be fina than to play the Carolina

By Billy ingRA m

“Movies are a fad. Audiences really want to see live actors on a stage.” — Charlie Chaplin

The Carolina Theatre

will once again be giving us the silent treatment at 7 p.m., April 30, when Mark Andersen — one eye focused on the screen — performs his original score for Charlie Chaplin’s highly acclaimed, bathtub-gin-era rom-com, The Circus. First projected on the Carolina’s big screen in March 1928, this was the last motion picture Chaplin made during the pre-talkie era, winning the Little Tramp his first Academy Award for “versatility and genius in writing, acting, directing and producing.”

Brody Bett & Mark Andersen

Carolina Theatre in favor of a municipal parking lot. “It’s taken a lot of work with a lot of help over the years,” Abernethy says of maintaining that Art Deco-inspired, three-manual console pipe organ. “In 1968, we had to come here after the last movie at 11 o’clock to do any work. We’d be up here until 2, 3, 4 in the morning.” The area around the theater in those days was a veritable urban hellscape. “When we went to leave, you didn’t know what you were going to run into.”

Rapidly approaching its 100th anniversary, the GrecianRevival-inspired Carolina Theatre boasts an unusual but valuable component installed before opening night: a Robert Morton Pipe Organ designed and constructed specifically to accompany silent pictures. It’s become a rarity; mere months before this opulent movie palace (locally designed by James M. Workman) first welcomed moviegoers in 1927, sound had arrived for motion pictures, leading to the company that made those instruments going belly-up in 1931. As a result, the Carolina Theatre possesses the only remaining Robert Morton Pipe Organ in North Carolina.

This magnificent wind-and-keyboard instrument is in pristine condition, thanks to Mac Abernethy, who, beginning back in 1968, assembled a team of volunteers determined to restore this long-neglected music maker to its full-throated glory — while, at the same time, city leaders were finalizing plans to raze the

For last February’s screening of a rarely seen silent race film, Body and Soul, which was produced, written and directed by Oscar Micheaux, the Carolina Theatre invited world-renowned composer and musician Mark Andersen to provide accompaniment. “You name it, I’ve played it,” Andersen says of the illustrious pipe organs he’s performed with across the globe. “Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall in London. I was associate organist at Notre Dame in Paris and went to school at the Paris Conservatory there.” Having played over 400 concerts across America on just about every large organ that exists, Andersen served as organist for the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops under Arthur Fiedler and as head staff music arranger for NBC in New York.

Andersen’s love for pipe organs began in first grade, when he won the North Carolina State Piano Teacher’s competition. “I’m the youngest artist that has ever played with the North Carolina Symphony,” he notes. At that time, the church he was attending

wandering billy

was installing a brand-new pipe organ. “The company that put that organ in was kind of amazed that this little guy was interested in learning to play it.” Having grown up in Lumberton, Andersen recalls that “the first time I played [the Carolina Theatre’s] organ I was 8 years old. I was with a group of musicians that were coming here because we could not imagine a pipe organ in a movie theater. I met Paul Abernethy, who was Mac’s dad, and he showed us the organ that sat down in the orchestra pit then.”

Sixty years later, bringing an added excitement and authenticity to its Silent Series, Mark Andersen returns to the Carolina.

I got to roll my grapes over that Robert Morton Pipe Organ when I was introduced to the maestro recently. Also in attendance was musical theater star Brody Bett. He, too, had an organic epiphany at a very young age. “I’m homeschooled,” the 14-year-old triple-threat performer tells me. He recalls going on a field trip with fellow homeschooled students to Greensboro’s Christ United Methodist Church. “I saw this ginormous pipe organ. I was like, wow, you have all these sounds and it’s so massive and it’s so powerful. My 5-year-old mind, seeing that organ, I’m like, ‘Dude, I think this is what I’m going to do for the rest of my life!’”

If the name Brody Bett sounds familiar, I hipped you to his amazing career in my January 2023 column. He was 6 years old when he first got up on the boards in Greensboro theatrical productions. Then, at 8 years old, he landed the juvenile lead in the multimillion-dollar Broadway touring production of Finding Neverland and spent the next season crisscrossing the country as Charlie in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Off-ramped due to

pandemic, the lad’s career undertook an unexpected but welcome pivot when he began securing roles as a voice-over artist for animated shows on Nickelodeon,

wandering billy

of the hit anime series Kotaro Lives Alone.

Brody remembers like it was yesterday (I mean, it practically was) when he sang and danced across the stage with the Community Theatre of Greensboro at the Carolina. “The first silent movie I ever saw here was when I was 9 years old,” Brody says. “Michael Britt, who unfortunately passed away last year, accompanied The Phantom of the Opera.”

All of the scores that accompany the silent films Andersen performs were written by him. But still, he says, “You have to closely watch the movie while you’re playing.” He remarks that, when composing a soundtrack for silents, it’s just like scoring a live movement. “Like the soundtrack of a talkie movie, it’s meant to be played at a certain time. Is the projectionist running it too fast, running too slow, where your scenes change, and so forth?”

Brody has sent fingers flying across the keys in an impressive number of venues. “I’ve played the Wanamaker Grand Court Organ in Philadelphia,” the largest, fully-functioning pipe organ in the world, he says. “I’ve played the Bedient Organ at First Congregational Church in Sioux Falls and the Walt Disney Concert Hall Organ in LA, the one Manuel Rosales designed.” He can list so many others, including arguably the most famous such instrument in America, the Salt Lake City Tabernacle (formerly Mormon Tabernacle) Organ, festooned with over 11,000 harmonic pipes.

Closer to home, he says, “I’ve been playing for church Sundays at Irving Park United Methodist — it’s a great space.” Brody Bett’s first funky single, “Times Square,” can be found on Spotify and sampled on YouTube.

I wonder if one day I’ll be attending a silent at the Carolina and Brody will be in front of the keyboard. OH

Born and raised in Greensboro, for a 10-year period in the 1980s and ’90s, Billy Ingram was part of the Hollywood design team the ad world enshrined as “The New York Yankees of motion picture advertising.”

QW HAPPENINGS & NEWS

• O.Henry LIVE JAZZ! Every Thursday from 6-9 PM and Select Saturdays from 7-10 PM in the Social Lobby. See the schedule at ohenryhotel.com

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• LUCKY 32: LUNCH & DINNER 6 DAYS (Closed Mon.) (BRUNCH Sat. & Sun.)

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Maybe you’ll get together to discuss a good book

At Twin Lakes Community, it’s all about how you want to live life. Join a book club, take an exercise class, volunteer in town or tend your patio garden. You’ll find people from all walks of life and neighbors who suddenly seem like old friends. And, because Twin Lakes is a Continuing Care Retirement Community, you’ll experience the peace of mind that comes with knowing you’re at a good place in life.

Penumbra

My father taught me a civil trick. If you get caught during a rainstorm at a downtown restaurant, just ask the bartender if someone left a black umbrella. They will present you with a cardboard box chock full of them.

It is not a lie: Someone really has left behind each one. You have left many. Part of the loophole is to make sure to give that umbrella to someone who needs it, or at the very least, leave it in a shady vestibule, on the coat rack next to that sad windbreaker. Otherwise it doesn’t count. Now they could call this all a life hack, but I consider that lacking. The process of inheritance is about so much more than getting what you need.

— Maura Way

Maura Way’s second collection of poetry, Mummery, was published in November 2023 by Press 53.

The Remix

Who ever said you needed a matching set?

Photogra Phs by a my Freeman styling by a my Freeman and Cassie bustamante

With the season of brunches, showers and casual backyard gatherings upon us, we wanted to take a moment to remind you that some of the prettiest tables are set with a cohesive yet random mix of dishes, florals and produce. Just pick a color story, choose a theme and then? Let your imagination run wild. We scoured High Point’s Boxwood Antique Market and Greensboro’s Twin Brothers Antiques for an eclectic array of dishes, platters and inspired accessories. Then we hit the grocery store for fresh flowers and vegetation. The result? A feast for the eyes.

Putting the “gold” in goldfish, this collection of mismatched whiteand-gilded dishes allows a quirky plate to draw the eye. Hints of blush and tangerine play off the fish’s colorful scales.

Tea time! Classic blue-and-white blends seamlessly as long as the tones are similar. Set the mood by placing themed books on the table — open to certain pages or stacked in a collection as a centerpiece.

What’s black and white and red all over? This eye-catching table with a fashionable French and equestrian mix featuring hints of gold — classy and casual at the same time.

Green represents new beginnings. Invite someone you’ve just met over and share a spread in mixed greens, featuring simple details and botanicals, plus hints of blush. Gold butterflies add a touch of whimsy, but birds would fly just as well.

Snacks on the beach? Yes, we shell. Sometimes all you need is a charcuterie board, woven baskets, oceanic-inspired serveware and a smattering of seashells and starfish to create a casual picnic that feels just like a day at the beach.

We did say to let your imagination run wild! Take your guests on a safari at this table, where zebra and leopard motifs stand out against simple black-and-white dishes. Bring in color by playing purr-fectly off of the feline’s orange-hued pattern.

Fooled Ya Foods? Imposter-ble!

These devilish dishes are not what they seem

by Cassie bustamante

Food, styling & Photogra Phy by Jasmine Comer

As both serious foodies and suckers for cooking shows, the team at O.Henry is smitten with Kids Baking Championship, a Food Network competition that features youngsters whipping up confections in the kitchen. Our fav episodes? Hands down, the “Dessert Imposters” theme, which features sweet treats that resemble savory entrees. A hearty meal of meatloaf, catsup and mashed taters? Think again — it’s chocolate cake dressed with strawberry coulis and a dollop of buttercream. Inspired, we asked our own “In Good Taste” contributor, Jasmine Comer, to plate up some of her own deceptive dishes that’ll leave your taste buds pleasantly bewildered.

Sushi Sweets

Hmmmm, something looks fishy here. Think again! If you go coconuts for sushi, you’ll gobble up this sweet spin on a savory, tangy Asian bite, where fruit takes center stage, standing in for sushi-grade fish. Sweet chunks of mango, kiwi and strawberry are wrapped in — is that rice? — sweet sticky coconut rice! For a touch of added crunch that screams “tempura,” toss toasted coconut flakes on top. And no matter how you roll, sake’s always a great complement.

Golden Nuggets

Every kid’s favorite meal or the Golden Girls round table discussion treat? Though these crisped-to-perfection nuggets appear to be chicken, they’re actually made from cheesecake. To make, use refrigerated, homemade no-bake cheesecake, and — with clean hands, of course — dig in and grab a chunk. Mold into nugget-like shapes and roll in graham cracker crumbs. Even though there’s no baking, there’s pretty much zero risk of Salmonella. Pair with “ketchup,” aka cherry dipping sauce.

Savory Sundae

Hot temps are just around the corner here in North Carolina. Nothing cools you off like a scoop or two of chilled, hand-dipped — mashed potatoes? That’s right, this “ice cream sundae” is nothing more than tubers. To make, mash potatoes with milk and butter for an extra smooth and creamy finish. Stir in brown food coloring to give it a chocolatey appearance. Refrigerate before scooping. You can even experiment with other root veggies. Beets would give you the look of a berry sorbet. Top it off with chocolate sauce — oops, gravy — and what any sundae needs, a cherry (tomato) on top. OH

Kicking It at the Curb

For 150 years, Greensboro’s farmers market has cultivated community

by ross howell Jr. • PhotograPhs by lynn donovan

The best description of what the Greensboro Farmers Curb Market feels like was written back in 1994 by Dorothy Mason — now retired professor emerita of geography at N.C. A&T State University. She was a loyal market customer then and still is today.

“On any Saturday morning in July, the old National Guard Armory building is the busiest place in the city,” Mason writes.

“Before 6 a.m., shoppers have gathered outside the entrances, while vendors unload their trucks and carry in boxes of green beans, tomatoes, corn, cut flowers and potted plants, baked goods, jams and soap,” she continues.

“By 7 a.m., the scene can best be described as ‘a rump-bumping crowd.’ There is a festival atmosphere as shoppers select produce and vendors weigh it, talking together like old friends.

Shoppers block the aisles, their bodies enlarged by bags and flower containers, as they stop to chat with friends.”

But, she notes, the market is about more than just the fresh veggies and homemade cakes. Mason adds. “It is a social event which brings people of a range of socioeconomic backgrounds together.”

Prof. Mason’s description was written for a study she presented at an annual meeting of the Association of American Geographers. Her interests were the market community, the human relationships it nurtures and the ways the market helps preserve regional cooking traditions.

Ever the academic, Mason brought the receipts to support her observations. She had administered questionnaires to 384 shoppers and conducted interviews with the market manager

and many vendors and shoppers. She found that 74 percent of those polled had shopped the market for five years or more and 32 percent for 20 years or more. She discovered that more than 20 of her subjects had been coming to the market for 40 years, and three had been coming for an astounding 50 years.

In interviews, Mason had subjects who recalled being brought to the market as children, and one who identified herself as a fourth-generation shopper.

Mason also asked people open-ended questions about why they came to the market. Respondents commented on the freshness and quality of produce, supporting local farmers, nostalgia for a simpler time and — interestingly — the crowd.

“Crowd! This is the greatest reason,” wrote one respondent.

I like to peek into the nooks and crannies of history. And history helps us understand that the farmers curb market is much more like a tree than a building, more like a marriage than a location. It’s a living community within our city, benefiting us all.

To give you an idea of how long ago the Greensboro Farmers Curb Market was founded — when it first opened in 1874, our O. Henry magazine namesake, William Sydney Porter, was still enrolled in his aunt Evelina Henry Porter’s elementary school.

The most comprehensive account of the origins of the market is found — strangely enough — in a two-segment radio address delivered in 1951 by the Honorable Robert Haines Frazier, mayor, to WCOG listeners.

Mayor Frazier’s Greensboro roots ran deep. His father, Cyrus Pickett Frazier, had been a professor and long-time trustee at Guilford College, a superintendent of Greensboro city schools, and a successful real estate entrepreneur.

Mayor Frazier was born in Greensboro, raised in a Quaker household and became a Greensboro attorney. When he was elected to office, he succeeded textile industrialist and philanthropist Benjamin Cone, an individual well-known for his commitment to the local community.

The mayor notes that on May 13, 1874, a committee was ap-

pointed to look into establishing a market. Subsequently, the city purchased a lot and constructed a building accommodating 20 vendor stalls on the east side of the business district.

Frazier adds in painstaking detail how the stalls were rented at auction, the financial terms of stall rental, the requirements for stall cleanliness and maintenance, the market official who decided where vendors would hitch their horses and wagons, and the city ordinance written to prohibit random street vending of the “fresh meats, fresh fish, butter, eggs, poultry, vegetables, melons and fruits” to be sold during the hours the market was open.

In 1875, a special market house for fish mongers was added. A review of revenues revealed that the costs to create the market had been a good investment for the city. But the market’s success was blemished by its very popularity.

According to the mayor, “loungers” and “gossip” were problems.

“So great did the nuisance become that many of our ladies refused to go there,” Mayor Frazier told his radio audience. But the market clerk was given police powers and the city passed an ordinance “against idleness and loafing,” granting the mayor’s office with the power of enforcement. The problems soon diminished.

Then, misfortune struck on the morning of May 27, 1888, when the market house and all records, maps and furniture were destroyed by fire.

A year later, the decision was made to rebuild, using the walls that had survived the fire, and plans were made to put water in the market house and a drinking fountain in the public square.

By December 1901, the board of aldermen detailed new rules and regulations for the market, which operated until 1906 and then closed,

evidently due to management problems.

When the farmers market reopened in 1922, it was in the open air on Commerce Place. Vendors parked their trucks or wagons on the curb selling items from the tailgates or running boards of their vehicles.

The location changed a couple of times in subsequent years, but, according to Mayor Frazier, the market returned to its Commerce Place location in the 1930s.

And, as happened after its original opening in 1874, the market’s success created problems. Business grew and spread into an alley extending all the way from Commerce Place to Eugene Street. With no central market building, the growing congestion and confusion were unmanageable.

Remarkably, in some of the most challenging days of World War II, the Greensboro Council of Garden Clubs “expressed the need for an adequately housed farm produce market,” the mayor tells us.

At a city council meeting in February 1943, a group of citizens presented a petition signed by 12,000 individuals “asking for the establishment of the market in the old Tobacco Market Warehouse on Commerce Place.” A commission was charged with studying the issue, and in January 1944, the city authorized “$65,000 in Market House bonds” to raise funds for “remodeling and equipping” a building.

On its opening day, June 24, 1944 — just days after the D-Day invasion — the new farmers curb market saw a crowd of 2,000, possibly the largest to gather at a single market up until that point. Greensboro’s mayor at the time “dedicated the market to the community as an influence for closer urban-rural relationship and greater production and consumption of native products.”

A look at the newspaper clippings on file in the Greensboro History Museum reveals even more about the synergy between the market community and the city community.

An article from the Greensboro Record, Feb. 7, 1962, carries the headline, “City Takes Over Armory Monday for Market Use.” In 1963, the curb market was moved from its Commerce Place location to its current one — the old National Guard Armory building on Yanceyville Street.

In the history museum’s files I also came across an October 1995 article in a newspaper section designated, “Irving Park Magazine.” The piece was written by Betty Taylor, who gives an overview of the history of the market and includes a photograph of “Margaret Rumley and Shirley Rumley Broom.”

Many curb market customers — myself included — remember the late Margaret Rumley simply as “Mom.” She sat on a kitchen stool at her stall greeting generations of flower buyers alongside her daughter, Shirley, who was first photographed by a newspaperman at the market selling a pie to a customer when

she was 9 years old.

With all that history and the Greensboro Farmers Curb Market’s 2024 sesquicentennial celebration in mind, I set out on a cold Saturday morning in February for Yanceyville Street.

Theresa Mattiello, the new market manager, was just months into her new position when the market sesquicentennial launched. She’s not new to the market, though. For four years she worked a stall with Tea Hugger, selling a variety of hand-blended teas. Trained in graphic design, Mattiello also did social media work for the previous farmers market manager.

Mattiello lives in Glenwood and practices micro farming, growing plants in raised beds and utilizing vertical space to increase production. She’s representative of a new generation of urban gardeners who encourage others to think of their grass lawns as potential “yardens,” where fresh food can be grown within more traditional landscaping.

Standing alongside Mattiello in the “Info Hub” stall are two market employees. Shane Henderson is a student at N.C. A&T State, majoring in civil engineering and public health, and Abigail Miller-Warren is taking classes in sustainability at GTCC.

All three are young and enthusiastic — and their smiles are infectious. They’re handing out flyers announcing sesquicentennial events. This month, look for the annual plant sale and an Earth Day Fair.

Special events will continue monthly throughout 2024.

“It’s very exciting,” Mattiello tells me. “We managed to stay open during COVID with our mobile market, kind of a drivethrough — but we did lose some vendors.”

Mattiello networks with current vendors, customers and the greater community to recruit new vendors.

“We’re always reaching out to farmers younger than 40 and farmers who grow more exotic vegetables to broaden the selection of produce available,” Mattiello says.

After accepting a flyer from Miller-Warren, I decide to browse.

First, I meet Garland McCollum, who’s at a stall right by the market entrance. His big hands are wrapped around a pair of long-handled pruning shears that he’s sharpening.

McCollum is there with Massey Creeks Farm, an operation specializing in sustainably-grown, grass-fed meats and eggs. He tells me the Rockingham County farm has been in his family since 1749.

“All I ever wanted to do was farm,” McCollum says.

After graduating from N.C. State with a degree in animal husbandry, he returned to the farm, where tobacco was still the main crop. But he wanted to raise livestock. Over time, he moved into growing hogs under contract and eventually discovered the possibility of selling his pork and lamb direct to consumers at the farmers market.

“I started sharpening implements here to pass the time when

business was slow,” McCollum says. “Then I found out people really needed the service.”

Next I move to the Chéngers stall, occupied by Jo Ann and Bob Smith, whose daughter, Trina Pratt, owns the business and is also an adjunct professor in kinesiology at N.C. A&T State.

Jo Ann tells me that Prof. Pratt’s business name honors her son, Ché, who was born when she was still in graduate school.

“When he was a baby, he would not eat baby food,” Jo Ann says. “So Trina started making applesauce for him at home.”

“Are these soups?” a customer asks.

“Yes,” Bob answers. “Asian vegetable, butternut squash, chickpeas and tomato bisque. Vegan, all-natural, no preservatives, no additives.”

The customer ponders a selection, and Jo Ann processes the purchase.

She tells me many customers are older.

“Our bodies go through changes,” Jo Ann says. “That’s the other idea behind the name of the business. Regardless of age or health, people can eat my daughter’s food.”

A chef now helps develop recipes and the business sells soups, smoothies, juices and baby foods.

Dr. Pratt’s foods must do the job. Her son, Ché, steps up to the stall, now a handsome young man a good 6 feet tall.

Near a corner of the market building I spy a stall with some beautiful cold-weather vegetables. Lukas Hoey of The Hoey Farm introduces himself. He’s a bearded, genial young man, a first-generation, urban farmer who began his career as a chef.

When health issues precluded him from continuing in the

restaurant business, he started farming.

“My kids help, my wife helps; we’re a family farm, but I’m the one primarily doing it,” says Hoey, who’s been a vendor for two years. “I love it.”

He explains that he has a greenhouse located by the coliseum. After starting plants there, he moves them to High Point, where a friend has a half-acre of land that she allows him to farm.

In his stall, he points out Chinese cabbage, kohlrabi, Swiss chard, curly kale and collards.

“We also do some micro greens, which are very healthy, like a super food,” he says. “We focus on things that grow really fast, things that are quick to harvest. Things that are a little niche.”

The market has proven to be a good pivot for Hoey. “I see familiar faces, customers from my restaurant days, but this is a much healthier setting for me. I’ve never looked back.”

Next, at a crafts stall, I’m eyeing elegant, hand-painted stones and wooden pieces, brightened with precise beads of color, and then, I’m gazing upon a face familiar from years ago when I worked at Replacements, Ltd. — where she still has her day job.

Viktoriya Saltzman.

A native Ukrainian, Saltzman is the owner of Dew Drop Rocks. She grew up in the town of Mariupol, on the sea of Azov, now famous for its ferocious resistance to Vladimir Putin’s invasion.

After a hug, she asks, “You see those eggs?” She points to them.

“Those two eggs, the wooden part, they came from Mariupol,” Saltzman says.

“My mom sent me from Ukraine,” she continues. “I receive

the package like a week before the war.”

Saltzman admired their shape and painted them. “But I’m not going to sell them ever because they’re just part of my home. I keep them for someday . . . ” and her voice trails off.

She shows me selections of her work — jewelry boxes, ornaments, painted stone whimsies. She tells me the baby girl I remember from pictures is now a 17-year-old.

Next I stop by a stall with a man selling local honey. Turns out, he’s something of a market legend.

Bill Mullins is a 93-year-old retiree from the insurance business and the owner of Quaker Acre Apiaries. He’s been coming to the farmers market as a vendor for 55 years.

“Seems like when I started coming, we were outside at Commerce Place,” he chuckles.

Mullins tells me he got interested in bees as a boy in Alabama.

“My father was a general insurance agent, and he had a good friend in the mountains of Kentucky,” Mullins says. “He’d take me with him when he’d go up there to visit. And the friend kept honeybees.” Mullins recalls watching the honeybees while the men talked.

“And that’s what got me interested in bees.”

I ask Mullins how he feels about the farmers curb market after 55 years selling his honey here?

He muses for a moment.

“I’ve been here so long, nearly everybody here is a friend of mine,” he adds. “It’s just a very friendly place.”

Finally, I decide to join a short queue of customers waiting to purchase fresh shrimp and fish from George Smith of Smith

Century Farm & NC Fresh Seafood in Gibsonville. Since no one’s behind me, we have a moment to chat.

“What Bill Mullins was telling you about is what we vendors call competitive camaraderie,” Smith says.

He tells me the 250-acre farm has been in his family since the late 1700s.

“I’ve got pencil drawings from the 1800s and a picture of the old home place around 1850 with everyone standing in front of the old log house dressed in their Sunday best,” Smith says.

His grandparents started coming to the market 91 years ago.

“I started coming in 1973,” Smith says. “I was 13 years old and came to help my grandmother. I got the bug and I’ve pretty much been here ever since.”

Another customer appears and I let Smith tend to business.

So I’ll close with the same advice that Mayor Frazier gave his WCOG radio listeners back in 1951.

“Today the Greensboro Curb Market, which has been termed the ‘largest producers’ curb market in the State,’ is a popular place for both our country and city folk,” the mayor said. “You’d be surprised how many shoppers are on hand at 6 o’clock on Saturday mornings.”

Early is best for top selection. And where else can you go in Greensboro to become part of a unique community that’s been around for 150 years? OH

For more information on the Greensboro Farmers Curb Market, go to www.gsofarmersmarket.org or search Facebook for the handle Greensboro Farmers Curb Market.

A Few Questions for Greensboro’s donald moore’s extra inning

Mr. Baseball

by jim dodson

PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF THE GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS

Moore & Willie Mae Mays

After 22 years at the helm of the Greensboro Grasshoppers as both president and general manager, Donald Moore opens the 2024 season in his new position as President Emeritus of the organization he helped create. A longtime figure in the Gate City’s sporting scene, Moore was a three-sport star at Page High in the early 1970s, playing baseball, football and basketball. He was lucky to play under two North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame coaches — Marion Kirby and Mac Morris. In the 1990s, Moore was involved with the Greensboro Sports Council and chaired the city’s high school basketball tournament for many years. Then along came the Hoppers. With a new season on the horizon, we caught up with Greensboro’s genial son — the man with a plan to bring baseball back to the Gate City — and asked him to reflect on his own journey around the bases.

Since the ballpark opened in the spring of 2005, how many fans have passed through your turnstiles?

It’s rather amazing. Somewhere close to 7 million fans have visited the ballpark. That’s a high compliment to the baseball fans of Triad.

Tell us how it all started.

It all started with a phone call from Jim Melvin in July of 2001. I was working in real estate development at Uwharrie Point and commuting 53 miles a day, six days a week. The development was winding down and I was trying to think of what I would do next. That’s when Jim called out of the blue wondering if I had interest in joining the baseball team as part of an investment team that bought the team and wanted to build a new stadium downtown.

What were the early days of the organization like?

To begin with, we were based over at Memorial Stadium in an office that was like a dungeon that had no windows. It was a pretty grim place. We had three seasons over there. The team nickname at that time was the Bats, and they had God-awful colors — black and purple. So, we changed the name to the Grasshoppers in the fall of 2004 to open the new stadium in the spring of 2005 with our affiliate, the Marlins. I’d always thought the colors of the University of Miami were so cool — green and orange. The Marlins came up and played an exhibition game.

Willie Mae Mays

Do you remember opening day?

Sure do. We opened with an exhibition game. Every seat in the stadium was taken. Our attendance was almost 8,000. It was a beautiful, sunny and cool spring day. The fans were ecstatic and couldn’t believe what an incredible ballpark they had. The credit goes to Jim Melvin, Len White, Cooper Brantley and the rest of the private investment group. Things really took off from there and have never stopped.

It’s been pointed out that the stadium was a key component in the redevelopment of downtown Greensboro. How do you feel about that?

I’m proud of the economic impact that the ballpark has had on downtown and in Greensboro at large. In the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s, downtown was a ghost town. I think the stadium was just part of that rebirth. So much has changed since then. We have a new $100-million plus development rumored to be coming. I’m glad we could be part of that.

Best memories?

Oh, gosh. So many in 22 years. A lot of games and a lot of weekends. But it’s been fantastic. We won the league championship in 2011, a storybook finish. We won 17 of the last 20 games and got into the playoffs on the very last day of the season. Then we went to Savannah and won the title down there. The first championship since 1982. We also held the ACC tournament here three times — 2010, 2012 and 2014 — and packed the house. In 2012, we hosted the State-Carolina game here on a Saturday night and set a record for the state of North Carolina collegiate baseball — more than 10,000 fans. The Marlins also came two more times in 2010 and 2015. Those were all special days.

What sort of things did you learn along the way?

I learned early that we are in the entertainment business. Baseball at this level is family entertainment. Probably half our fan base has a family pet. I remember thinking, wouldn’t it be cool if we could get a dog into the mix?

Termarr Johnson Wyatt Hendrie

Then along came Miss Babe Ruth.

That’s right. She was born November 5, 2005. I found her at a local breeder, and we had a press conference to say she was going off to spring training in March of ’06. She made her debut carrying baseballs in a bucket out to the umpires in August that year. The fans went crazy. She loved it, too. We retired her in 2015 after 649 straight games. I wrote a letter to the National Baseball Hall of Fame to offer them Babe’s original ball bucket. They were delighted to accept it. Today, it’s the only nonhuman artifact in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

How about the other four-legged baseball fans?

We had Master Yogi Berra, our only male in five dogs. He was a real cutup, always carrying a ball in his mouth. I would shoot a ball into the outfield, and he’d run and get it, and then race back through the tunnel. One time in ’09, Yogi stopped and left his business on the field. The fans loved it but the umpire tossed him out of the game. I wrote and sent out a press release pointing out that Yogi was the first dog ever to be ejected from a professional baseball game. It went crazy. Within a week, Yogi was in Sports Illustrated, and he and I were on Fox & Friends.

Lou Lou Gehrig joined us in 2012 and worked up until her passing in 2020. She became our office dog. She was followed by Little Jackie Robinson, who never got into the routine and became our office administrator. Willie May Mays joined us in 2022. Willie’s great, loves the whole thing, and the fans love her.

So how do you feel stepping back from all of that?

It’s bittersweet. I tell you, though, if you surround yourself with good people it makes it easier to go. I hired everyone on our staff and know what talented and committed people they are. Sure, I’ll miss it. But I’ll be around, checking in from time to time. It’s a good feeling to know you’ve made a difference in someone’s life. I run into fans all the time who have great memories of this place. Not long ago a father came up to tell me that I gave his son a baseball 15 years ago. It’s a small thing like that that you remember most.

So how are the Hoppers looking in 2024?

You never quite know. But it’ll be lots of fun. So, come on out. OH

All in the Family A 1970s time capsule in New Irving Park

by Cassie bustamante

Above: Current owners Andrew Jordan & Alejandra Thompson de Jordan

Left: Len, Jill, Mary, Jack & Jackie Worsham on the back patio in 1979

“It was like a little time capsule,” Alejandra Thompson de Jordan says, recalling the first moment she and husband Andrew Jordan stepped foot in what would become their home. While many big-city dwellers looking to relocate to a quieter, idyllic location would see a mountain of renovation work to be done, these former Manhattanites saw a home with history worth saving.

Nestled on a rare 2-acre lot in New Irving Park, the “Worsham House” amenities and decor are reminiscent of what you might see on television’s Mad Men. Tan grasscloth wallpaper, an intercom system, a tangerine-colored, midcentury freestanding fireplace, and even a built-inthe-wall turntable are just a few of the intact relics that remain 50 years after its construction. Originally drafted by architect G. Donald Dudley, the 1972 home was designed to be, according to its original plans, “a residence for Mr. & Mrs. Jack W. Worsham.” And it stayed as such until Jack, founder of several companies including Southern Plastics Engineering Company, passed away in 2019 at the age of 93, 11 years after his wife, Mary.

“It was his dream house,” says the Worshams’ only son, Len, who recalls moving to the house at the age of 15 after growing up in “a little tiny house” on Newlyn. Not only was it his father’s dream, but it was his design. “Don [Dudley] drew up the actual architectural plans, but it was dad’s brainchild.”

With four children (Len and his three sisters), Jack seemingly designed the home with entertaining in mind. “Mom was a great cook,” Len recalls of his mother, who was known for her coconut custard pie.

When Jack and Mary first bought the property and were in the process of building, one small building existed: “the little house” as the Worsham kids came to call it, as compared to the one Jack designed, “the big house.” Before their new, approximately 6,000-square-foot house was complete, Jack and Mary often entertained on the property. It “was a party house before the main house was ever built,” says Len.

The Worshams even started what became a yearly tradition until about the time of Jack’s death — a neighborhood block party. And

while they were often surrounded by friends and family, what Len and his siblings remember as one of their fondest memories of their parents is, in contrast, a quiet moment from their twilight years. “As they got older, in their 70s and 80s, they just loved to sit on that back patio and listen to the birds chirping and watching the sunset.”

With Jack and Mary now gone, the vacant home, listed by the Worshams’ children, sought a new family, one that would breathe life into it as the Worshams once had. While Alejandra and Andrew were “not even flirting with the idea of living in Greensboro,” her older brother, Clifford, co-founder and president of Thompson (formerly Thompson Traders, a local company that creates artisan-made metal sinks and fixtures imported from Mexico), had another notion. He would often send her house listing links. His hope? That she’d leave her role as Chanel’s director of marketing for a job as vice president of sales and marketing with his company. And Andrew is no stranger to moving. Born

in Colombia, he relocated often — living in Argentina, Atlanta, Brazil and even Hong Kong — throughout his young life due to his father’s executive position at Coca-Cola. Plus, on sabbatical from his role as Compass real estate’s general manager of agent growth, he could live anywhere.

The seed was planted. Then in March 2020, the world shut down due to COVID, and Andrew, a very pregnant Alejandra and their then 2-year-old daughter, Ale, left their 1,300-square-foot Manhattan apartment temporarily to stay with her parents at the Sedgefield house she grew up in. Clifford, meanwhile, stayed hot on his pursuit, but, Alejandra says, their home was in New York.

When Clifford sent her the listing for the Worsham house, however, she and Andrew contacted the Zillow agent and booked a tour — “for fun.”

The property itself wowed them. “After living in a box in Manhattan, we were like, what is this? Farmland?” Alejandra says with a laugh. Indeed, according to Len, the property was origi-

nally named “Worsham Farm” and the family once had ponies, cows and chickens.

In New York, Alejandra and Andrew were thrilled to have a single tree they lovingly named Greta outside of a window of their fourth floor apartment. “Here we can’t even count the trees, let alone name them!”

For Alejandra, it was love at first sight. Meanwhile Andrew loved the main floor, but felt the basement level was strange. “Maybe if the downstairs didn’t exist, it would be great,” Alejandra recalls him saying. Her answer? A playful “Just don’t go down there, problem solved!”

Even though Alejandra was head-over-heels and Andrew could picture himself living in this house, the couple were not ready to commit to the idea of leaving New York. But after the baby of the family, Rafa, was born in September 2020, they realized they were here to stay, close to her family and closer to his parents, who are retired and living in Atlanta.

In February 2021, just after leaving Chanel, Alejandra accepted the position with the family business and, at the same time, co-founded ESTAS, a beauty brand that focuses on scar care, something Alejandra knows about after undergoing C-sections. Everything was set in motion, but the Worsham house was under contract by then.

They put in an offer on another house — “a fine house for now.” And then, fate intervened. While visiting Andrew’s parents, they got word that the Worsham house was back on the market. “The stars aligned,” quips Alejandra. With the Greensboro real estate market on fire at the time, she and Andrew jumped.

Since moving in, the couple have worked to make the home theirs while preserving its heritage, even purchasing some of the existing furnishings with the sale of the house. Their New York belongings could fit in the living and dining room of their new home, Alejandra notes, so having some furniture in place was helpful.

“I love things with history. That means so much more to me than a brand-new, polished, pretty, perfect thing,” says Alejandra. “I want the story, so I think that’s probably part of the reason I fell in love with this house.”

While maintaining original characteristics was crucial, Alejandra and Andrew did make a couple of major changes. The carpeting on the main level was all pulled up and replaced with hardwood floors because of Alejandra’s allergies. Even the entry’s spiral staircase was carpeted, hiding usable wood underneath. “My dad, my glorious dad,” says Alejandra, “he sanded and stained all this wood and put it back on the stairs for us.”

Now, the staircase is a thing of beauty sitting just in front of a large entry wall that features original grasscloth paper. The rest of the entrance has been decorated to complement the home’s existing details. A cowhide rug rests on a warm toned parquet floor. Against an earthy gray stone wall, a gold-andblack mirror hangs above a sleek cabinet in the same colors. Large brass figures of the “Three Wise Monkeys,” a gift from Alejandra’s mom, represent “hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.” And the statement lighting? A gold-and-cut-glass sputnik chandelier the couple brought from their entry in New York.

The other staircase sits at the end of a long hallway and was also carpeted and walled in, with a single door at the top, making it feel like the entrance to a dark cave — “like the scary basements from Stranger Things.” To make it feel more welcoming, they removed the carpeting and opened up the wall, adding a railing and a new-to-them modern blackand-gold chandelier purchased at Red Collection.

In fact, walking around the house, Alejandra points out several pieces that are vintage and second hand, many purchased and many given to her. In the dining room, a pair of glass-doored cabinets house vintage tableware passed down from close family friend “Aunt” Sharon: vintage Lenox dishes that had been Sharon’s mother’s treasured wedding china and Gorham silver.

In the living room, two petite white sofas brought from New York face each other. A third sofa — a long, striped piece with 1970s-style lines — creates a conversation area centered on a stone fireplace. And, as it turns out, that one was scored for about $100 from Red Collection’s sale room. Alejandra had it reupholstered with inexpensive deadstock fabric. It’s flanked by two Asian style mother-of-pearl inlaid stools, also from Red Collection. And it all works seamlessly together, each couch featuring a mix of black, white and metallic-toned pillows.

Alejandra credits her “designers, with air quotes”

— her mother, sister Samantha and Clifford’s wife, sister-in-law Martha — for helping her create a cohesive look that integrates the home’s inherent features. Martha, in particular, helped put together the living room.

While Alejandra sits on the board of GreenHill Center for NC Art and has quite the eye, she notes that “beauty is subjective.” And when it comes to art, she feels the same as she does about houses and furnishings. Echoing her earlier words, she says, “For me, it’s always the story.” She prefers to know the artist personally or to have learned something about the artist that pulls her into their narrative. Much of the art around the house, such as a vibrant Linda Spitsen painting and pieces created by sculptor Marta Tornero (whom she calls “Tia” Marta) has been made by family and friends.

In the family room, Alejandra points out a large gold-leaf and painted plywood piece over the fireplace. It was a gift from Martha, who, as it turns out, is an artist. Although she created it with their New York apartment in mind, it appears as if it were made for this home.

The wall of bookcases features several smaller pieces of art,

including another Martha original. Looking at a large, colorful framed painting, she says it was a wedding gift from her “Aunt” Ingrid Cassuto, an “art aficionado” who once sat on the Weatherspoon’s board. The wall also features special pieces that Martha has brought back from Mexico, a nod to Alejandra’s heritage. Her mother, Alejandra Thompson, founder and creative director of Thompson, was born and raised in Mexico, just 10 miles from where the Purépecha artisans work in copper and metals.

The bookcase cabinets have a unique feature that is likely thanks to Jack Worsham’s trade. “These are plastic doors and they look like wood,” says Alejandra, pointing out the same is true for the home’s bathroom cabinets. Alejandra wonders, did they come from Southern Plastics?

“We’re not sure,” says Len, adding, “It was within his capabilities with the equipment he had.”

With its natural grasscloth paper, warm woods and collection of textiles in oranges and reds, the room has an organic, collected and global feel. Alejandra says she was never before keen on this color scheme. Their old apartment featured a lot of white and gold. But, she says, “This house has made me an orange lover.”

And she’s not the only one. In the main bedroom’s closet, Andrew’s traditional button-down shirts hang side by side, with a small section dedicated to funkier vintage patterns and bolder colors inspired by the home. Prior to living here, Andrew “would never wear anything that wasn’t navy blue.” But now? “The house has changed him,” says his wife. And while it took him a little longer to get there, he’s absolutely fallen in love with the house, too.

This house, it turns out, has become a labor of love for Andrew. “It’s his third child,” Alejandra says. Did he have DIY skills before moving here? Nope, but he’s watched a lot of YouTube videos. Plus, she adds, “He’s smart, likes learning and figuring things out.” In fact, the barn that once housed the Worshams’ ponies has become Andrew’s mancave. “It’s covered in tools. It’s his happy place!”

Downstairs in the finished basement the theme of entertainment flows. “If these walls could talk,” muses Alejandra. She imagines the Worshams were “the ultimate host and hostess.” And these basement walls do tell a story.

On one side, there’s a huge recreational space, complete with green turf, putting holes for practice and, tucked into the corner,

a tiki bar. While the golf theme was original, Len notes that the tiki bar was added much later, in the early 2000s, he believes.

At the same time, a very large — Alejandra approximates 40foot — hand-painted tropical ocean-scape mural was added to the wall opposite the tiki bar. And the artist, Greensboro’s Barbara Richardson, added clever, personal details. A sailboat at sea features the name “Worsham,” and on the far end a painted tiki bar mimics their own.

The other end of the basement steps back in time and welcomes guests to a 1970s lounge area. “The Butterfly Bar,” as Alejandra calls it. Why? Because of its original black, orange and gold butterfly wallpaper. Most of the furniture came with the house — the orange, black and white swivel bar stools, the loungestyle curved gray-and-black sofa, piped in, wait for it, orange. There’s one exception, though: In front of the sofa sits a gold-andblack glass circular coffee table made by Thompson, of course. “Everyone in my family has one.”

On the wall behind the, you guessed it, 1970s burnt-orange formica bar, there’s a handy feature not seen so much these days: A dumbwaiter leads up to the kitchen, where original wooden cabinets create an “L” around a tiered original island. A table-

height counter was once surrounded by barrel chairs, but Alejandra prefers to keep it open and use it for serving.

Instead, Alejandra’s added a hand-me-down blonde midcentury set, passed down from her father’s parents. “It was in complete disrepair.” She adds proudly, “My husband brought it back to life.”

For now, most projects are maintenance since the couple admires the designs of the home’s original owners. However, Alejandra has a project in mind to bring in a little of her own family’s history. Standing inside the guest bathroom, she says, “Let me show you what my dream for the bathroom is.” She holds up a unique brass sink, featuring a metalwork lizard, made by Thompson. “I want to change this countertop and I want to put this sink in there.”

There’s one project the couple happily passed along to Andrew’s parents. That “little house,” as the Worsham kids called it? It needed a lot of love to once again be a usable space. “You know the big car bows?” asks Alejandra. She put one of those on the front door and they gifted it to Andrew’s parents, who are thrilled to have a space of their own when they visit their now-closer family.

“When Andrew was little,” says Alejandra, “he told his dad that when he grew up, he was going to build a treehouse next to his house and that his dad could live there as an old man.” Now, it looks like that childhood dream has come true. With carte blanche, Andrew’s parents turned the guest house into a more modern and cozy place where they can stay for days at a time without ever feeling like they’ve overstayed.

And, as an added bonus, Alejandra says, she and Andrew will sometimes get a sitter and go hang out in the guest house to relax with an “at-home” date night. While the “big house” was made to host loads of people, it’s nice to have a literal backyard getaway that offers serenity, with a nice buffer of trees between the two.

Just as the Worshams once did, Alejandra and Andrew entertain often. Her parents, her siblings and their children frequently come over. “Our house is the family country club,” quips Alejandra. And in the summers, the backyard is full of life, its pool full of kids. “It’s the best — my family are my favorite people,” says Alejandra.

A year-and-a-half after purchasing the home, Alejandra and Andrew invited the Worsham children over for a celebration that included Alejandra’s extended family as well. Len recalls the joy he and his siblings felt in seeing a new family in the home their parents dreamed up and built. “We saw that they loved the architecture, were interested in the history of it, and they had small children. And her brother lived around the corner,” he says. “We just knew.”

Knew what? That they were the right family for their parents’ house. “Jackie, she had tears in her eyes,” recalls Alejandra, her own eyes watering, “and she said, ‘I think Papa picked you guys for this house.’”

"That’s possible,” Len pauses and laughs. “Yeah, that’s really possible.” OH

ALMANAC

April

by a shley walshe

April is a tapestry of sound, rich and delicate.

Listen.

Coral honeysuckle sings in color, sultry and seductive, calling out to ruby-throated suitors.

Can you hear the whir of tiny wings?

The beating heart of hummingbird?

The melodious supping of nectar?

Lean in.

Chrysalis whispers of metamorphosis. Wet and crumpled wings. Grueling and glorious expansion.

The rustling of budding trees tells of new life.

Fuzzy squirrel kits with just-opened eyes. A clutch of blue eggs, days from hatching.

Chorus frogs swell with rhythmic longing. A swallowtail sails through warm air like a bow across a brightly toned string. Wild violets titter.

One hundred songbirds, yet none are so loud as a single dandelion. The soil? Boisterous.

Don’t you see? Each green leaf is the note of an ever-swelling symphony. When the rat snake sheds his winter skin, a rapturous movement begins.

Whippoorwill is drunk on the splendor of its own name. Bullfrog bellows jug-o-rum! Dogwoods tremor in a cool flash of rain. As cardinal crafts her cup-shaped nest — a wonder of twigs lined with leaves, grasses, roots and pine needles — she stops to drink in the soundscape.

Each thread has a home in this living anthem, this resonant fabric of spring.

Spring has returned. The earth is like a child that knows poems.

— Rainer Maria Rilke

Wild Bloomers

April showers bring mayapple flowers.

Not to be confused with apple blossoms (although the flowers do look similar), Podophyllum peltatum is a native perennial wildflower that thrives in deciduous woodlands. Most commonly called the mayapple or the American mandrake, other nicknames for this April bloomer include Indian apple root, racoonberry, hog apple, ground lemon, duck’s foot, umbrella leaf and devil’s apple.

Rising over a foot above the forest floor, mayapples grow in dense colonies, their distinctive leaves making them relatively easy to spot. Two deeply lobed, umbrellashaped leaves radiate from the top of the plant’s single stem; a white flower hides beneath the canopy.

While most of the plant is considered toxic (foliage, roots, unripe fruit and seeds), the ripe mayapple fruit is considered a forager’s delight and a favorite summer snack of the Eastern box turtle.

What does the golden fruit taste like? Wild foods bloggers have described it as exotic, sweet-and-tart, citrusy, or, as Adam Haritan of Learn Your Land wrote, “like a mix between pineapple and Starburst candy.” That said, since even the ripe fruit can have a laxative effect, best not to gorge.

Sow the Love

Earth Day is celebrated on Monday, April 22. Make it a garden party. Or, better yet, a garden-planting party.

The last frost is nigh. Sow your green beans, sweet corn, squash and zucchini. Wait until month’s end to plant cukes, peas and tomatoes. Longer, still, for the frost-sensitives (melons, peppers and eggplant, to name a few). Invite the pollinators to join you by weaving native plants and wildflowers into the mix. From asters to elderberry and bee balm to dogwood, consider what thrives in your region and start there. The wild ones will thank you. OH

Seabolt Upholstery

Thomas Seabolt always knew he wanted to work with his hands for a living. A former hockey player, he’d hoped it would be on the ice with gloves and a stick. Instead, he put his dexterity to use in an upholstery shop, where he began with removal and prep work before mastering fine furniture restoration and the craft of upholstery.

In 2008, Seabolt began his business in a backyard shed after an apprenticeship at Murphy’s Upholstery. The company has grown to include 10 employees, whose focus is customer satisfaction. “I have to mention the team at Seabolt Upholstery,” Thomas says. “In reality, without them this business isn’t possible. Plus they are all a joy to work with.”

With a desire to be a good steward for what God has blessed him with — wife, kids and a business he loves — Seabolt provides his customers with thousands of fabrics to choose from as well as leathers, vinyls and specialized treatments to protect their investment. With client satisfaction its top priority, Seabolt Upholstery has the ability to custom-make upholstered sofas, beds, chairs, outdoor cushions and furnishings — you name it.

Daily

PAUL J. CIENER BOTANICAL GARDEN

Please verify times, costs, status and location before attending an event. Although conscientious efforts are made to provide accurate and up-to-date information, the world is subject to change and errors can occur!

To submit an event for consideration, email us at ohenrymagcalendar@gmail.com by 5 p.m. the first of the month one month prior to the event.

Weekly Events

SUNDAYS

BARRE CLASS. 10 a.m. Strengthen, tone and stretch your way into the week. Tickets: $10. Grandover Resort & Spa, 1000 Club Road, Greensboro. Info: grandoverresort.com.

HEALTHY KIDS RUNNING SERIES. 3 p.m. Kids ages 2–14 are invited to partake in a 5-part race series every Sunday in April, plus May 5. All participants receive a T-shirt and trophy. Group division winners will receive trophies. Registration: $50, or $20 for single race. Summerfield Elementary School 7501 Summerfield Rd, Summerfield. Info: healthykidsrunningseries.org/race-locations/ summerfield-nc.

PETTY TALK. 4:30–5:15 p.m. Megan Blake, The Pet Lifestyle Coach, provides great tips and real time practice as you learn to connect more deeply with your four-legged best friend. Free. LeBauer Park, 208 N. Davie St., Greensboro. Info: greensborodowntownparks.org/calendar.

KARAOKE & LINE DANCING. 4–7 p.m.

Two of your fav activities merge for one evening of fun with DJ Energizer. Free. Center City Park, 200 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: greensborodowntownparks.org/calendar.

TUESDAYS

PELVIC HEALTH YOGA. 8:30–9:30 a.m.

This Vinyasa-style flow class works toward lengthening and strengthening the pelvic floor and surrounding muscles. Free, registration required and donations accepted. Triad Pelvic Health, 5574 Garden Village Way, Greensboro. Info: triadpelvichealth.com/classes.

YOGA IN THE PARK. 8 a.m. Start your day with a power flow led by Greensboro Power Yoga. Free. LeBauer Park, 208 N. Davie St, Greensboro. Info: greensborodowntownparks.org/calendar.

SPRING INTO FITNESS. 6–7 p.m. Throughout the month, sweat and flow to a variety of YMCA-led fitness classes, spaced out along various spots of the Downtown Greenway. Free. Info: downtowngreenway.org/event/ spring-into-motion-free-fitness-classes-5.

April 2024

Museum Open House

04.04.2024

WEDNESDAYS

STRONG 30. 5:30–6 p.m. Kickstart your evening with a 30-minute high-intensity interval training workout led by fitness veteran Velmy Liz Trinidad. LeBauer Park, 208 N. Davie St, Greensboro. Info: greensborodowntownparks.org/calendar.

LIVE MUSIC. 6–9 p.m. Evan Olson and Jessica Mashburn of AM rOdeO play covers and original music. Free. Print Works Bistro. 702 Green Valley Road, Greensboro. Info: printworksbistro.com/gallery/music.

FAMILY NIGHT. 5–7 p.m. Enjoy an artdriven evening with family and friends in the studios. Free. GreenHill Center for NC Art, 200 N. Davie St., Greensboro. Info: greenhillnc.org/events.

MUSIC IN THE PARK. 6–8 p.m. Sip and snack at LeBauer Park while grooving to local and regional artists. Free. Lawn Service, 208 N. Davie St, Greensboro. Info: greensborodowntownparks.org/calendar.

CHECK MATE. 7–9 p.m. The Greensboro Chess Club gathers weekly to play and study “The Royal Game” on both a social and competitive level. Free. Lewis Recreation Center, 3110 Forest Lawn Drive, Greensboro. Info: greensboro-nc.gov/ government/city-news/city-calendar.

THURSDAYS

JAZZ AT THE O.HENRY. 6–9 p.m. Sip vintage craft cocktails and snack on tapas while the O.Henry Trio performs with a different jazz

María Berrío, Aminata Linnaea, 2013. Mixed media on canvas, 80 x 96 in. Weatherspoon Art Museum, UNC Greensboro. Purchased with funds from the Weatherspoon Art Museum Acquisition Endowment for the Dillard Collection; 2017.16.

vocalist each week. Free. O.Henry Hotel Social Lobby, 624 Green Valley Road, Greensboro. Info: ohenryhotel.com/o-henry-jazz.

WALK THIS WAY. 6 p.m. Put on your sneakers for a 2–4 mile social stroll or jog with the Downtown Greenway Run & Walk Club, which is open to all ages and abilities. Free. LoFi Park, 500 N. Eugene St., Greensboro. Info: downtowngreenway.org/events.

EASY RIDERS. 6–8:30 p.m. All levels of cyclists are welcome to ride along on a guided 4-mile cruise around downtown. Free. Lawn Service, 208 N. Davie St, Greensboro. Info: greensborodowntownparks.org/calendar.

THURSDAYS & SATURDAYS

KARAOKE & COCKTAILS. 8 p.m. until midnight, Thursdays; 9 p.m. until midnight, Saturdays. Courtney Chandler hosts a night of sipping and singing. Free. 19 & Timber Bar at Grandover Resort & Spa, 1000 Club Road, Greensboro. Info: grandoverresort.com.

FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS

LIVE MUSIC. 7–10 p.m. Enjoy drinks in the 1808 Lobby Bar while soaking up live music provided by local artists. Free. Grandover Resort & Spa, 1000 Club Road, Greensboro. Info: grandoverresort.com.

SATURDAYS

YOGA. 9:30 a.m. Don’t stay in bed when you could namaste in the spa studio. Tickets: $10. Grandover Resort & Spa, 1000 Club Road, Greensboro. Info: grandoverresort.com.

WATER AEROBICS. 10:30 a.m. Make a splash while getting a heart-pumping workout at an indoor pool. Tickets: $10. Grandover Resort & Spa, 1000 Club Road, Greensboro. Info: grandoverresort.com.

BLACKSMITH DEMONSTRATION. 10 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Watch a costumed blacksmith in action as he crafts various iron pieces. Free. Historical Park at High Point Museum, 1859 E. Lexington Ave., High Point. Info: highpointmuseum.org.

April Events

April 01–30

DETROIT ARTISTS. Contemporary artists of note who were born, raised or living in Detroit, Mich., spend the month engaging in Elsewhere’s “Collection” and the community, culminating in an artists’ talk at noon on April 28. Free. Elsewhere Museum, 606 S. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: elsewheremuseum.org/calendar.

SPACE ART. GreenHill Center for NC. Art’s latest exhibit, LEAP: Artists Imagine

Outer Space, will be visible in the gallery through June 29. Free. GreenHill Center for NC Art, 200 N. Davie St., Greensboro. Info: greenhillnc.org/events.

April 01–19

LOCAL ARTIST EXHIBIT. Winston-Salem painter Jessica Simmerman displays her paintings in an installation that includes sound, sculpture and video. Free. The Art Gallery at Congdon Yards,400 W. English Road, Suite 151, High Point. Info: tagart.org/exhibits/jessica-singerman.

April 02–03

ROOTED: THE STORY OF DREAMS. 7 p.m. Combining dance, circus-style moves, music and theater, Activate Entertainment takes you on a captivating journey inspired by the history and resilience of the American South through a modern lens. Tickets: $19+. Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/events.

April 02

ONE HALLELUJAH. 6:30 p.m. Enjoy an evening of contemporary gospel music, featuring Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Israel Houghton, Erica Campbell, Jonathan McReynolds and

Jekalyn Carr. Tickets: $25+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: tangercenter.com/events.

April 03–05

LEANNE MORGAN. 7 p.m. Known for her breakout Netflix special, I’m Every Woman, the comedian and actress takes the stage for three nights of laughs. Tickets: $35.75+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: tangercenter.com/events.

April 03

AUTHOR SERIES. 4–6 p.m. O.Henry magazine invites you to spend the afternoon sipping and snacking while hearing from New York Times -bestselling author Patti Callahan Henry about her latest book, The Secret Book of Flora Lea. Tickets: $45; with book, $63. Grandover Resort & Spa, 1000 Club Road, Greensboro. Info: ticketmetriad. com/events/ohenry-magazine-author-seriespatti-callahan-henry-4-3-2024.

READING THE WORLD. 7–8 p.m. Discover contemporary authors’ works in translation, such as this month’s selection, Lemon by Kwon Yeo-sun. Free. Online. Info: scuppernongbooks.com/event.

april calendar

April 04–07

SHORT PLAYS. Times vary. Creative Greensboro presents the Greensboro Playwrights Forum’s Evening of Short Plays No. 42, written by its members. Tickets: suggested $10 donation at door. Stephen D. Hyers Theatre, 200 N. Davie St.,Greensboro. Info: greensboro-nc.gov/government/city-news/ city-calendar.

April 04

LALLA ESSAYDI. 4:30 p.m. The Moroccanborn visual artist, whose work explores the experiences of modern Arab women, gives a talk around her current exhibit. Free. Weatherspoon Art Museum, 500 Tate St., Greensboro. Info: weatherspoonart.org/calendar.

MUSEUM OPEN HOUSE. 5:30–7 p.m. Celebrate the closing of two exhibits, Art on Paper 2023: The 47th Exhibition, plus Making Room: Familiar Art, New Stories. Free. Weatherspoon Art Museum, 500 Tate St., Greensboro. Info: weatherspoonart.org/calendar.

April 05–14

[WHERE-ELSE]. Times vary. The UNCG School of Theatre presents its first community-

based theater project, featuring storytelling, multiple disciplines, interviews and lived experiences. Elsewhere Museum, 606 S. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: vpa.uncg.edu/theatre/ performances-and-event.

April 05

SAM HUNT. 7:30 p.m. The multiplatinum country star credited for merging his genre with hip hop performs with special guests Brett Young and Lily Rose. Tickets: $38.75+. Greensboro Coliseum, 1921 W. Gate City Blvd., Greensboro. Info: greensborocoliseum.com/events.

FIRST FRIDAY. 6–9 p.m. Head downtown for a night of live music and happenings stretching all the way from LeBauer Park and the Greensboro Cultural Center to the South End. Free. Downtown Greensboro. Info: downtowngreensboro.org/first-friday.

FUN RAISER. 8 p.m. Comedian Steve Lesser makes you laugh with his Make-AWish Foundation Fundraiser Show. Tickets: $15. The Idiot Box, 503 N. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: idiotboxers.com.

GARTH FAGAN DANCE. 8 p.m. Founded by the man known for Broadway’s The Lion King choreography, this company delivers a

performance rooted in African traditions and Caribbean stories. Tickets: $7.50+. UNCG Auditorium, 408 Tate St., Greensboro. Info: vpa.uncg.edu/home/ucls-23-24.

April 06

SYMPHONY DIRECTOR CANDIDATE. 8 p.m. Accompanied by soprano Katherine Whyte, Rei Hotoda throws down her baton as contender for Greensboro Symphony director. Tickets: $35+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: greensborosymphony.org/events/list.

JAZZED ABOUT OPERA. 6–8:30 p.m. When the Piedmont opera and the Camel City Jazz Orchestra come together for a concert, it’s an evening of musical magic. Free. Paul J. Ciener Botanical Garden, 215 S. Main St., Kernersville. Info: piedmontopera.org/calendar.

KOREAN FESTIVAL. 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Celebrate Korean culture with food, dances and K-pop. Tickets: $5; under 12, free. Center City Park, 200 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: instagram.com/nckoreanfestival.

SAM FRIBUSH ORGAN TRIO. 4 p.m. & 9 p.m. Charlie Hunter and Calvin Napper join the trio to celebrate their latest album, People

WES STANLEY, CPFA™, AIF® Principal

DREW SAIA, CFP®, CPA VP -

Please. Tickets: $20+. Flat Iron, 221 Summit Ave., Greensboro. Info: flatirongso.com/events.

April 07 & 21

BLUEGRASS & BRUNCH. 11 a.m.–1 p.m. Enjoy live bluegrass and folk music while munching tasty treats from vendors. Free. LeBauer Park, 200 N. Davie St., Greensboro. Info: greensborodowntownparks.org/calendar.

April 08

INTRO TO PERMACULTURE. 5:30–6:30 p.m. The Greensboro Permaculture Guild will help you turn your outdoor space into an edible landscape that imitates and intensifies nature’s way while providing food for your family and the city’s pollinators. Free, registration required. Meeting Place at Tradition Cornerstone, 801 W. Smith St., Greensboro. Info: downtowngreenway.org/events.

April 09

JUDY WOODRUFF. 7:30 p.m. The Duke grad and trailblazing journalist, who has covered every presidential election since 1976, discusses “Decision 2024: America at a Crossroads.” Tickets: $60+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: tangercenter.com/events.

DISNEY PRINCESS SONGS. 7 p.m.

Broadway stars who portrayed Jasmine and Nala bring the iconic tunes of Disney princesses to life on stage. Tickets: $20.50+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: tangercenter.com/events.

A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE. 7 p.m. Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando bring the classic Tennessee Williams play to the silver screen in this 1952 film. Tickets: $8. Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/events.

April 10

TONY LA RUSSA. 6:30 p.m. Learn some “Lessons on Leadership from the Big Leagues” when this MLB manager speaks as part of Elon University School of Law’s Distinguished Leadership Lecture Series. Free, RSVP recommended. Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/events.

April 11

DRAWN TO DANCE. 6:30–7:30 p.m.

Students from the UNCG School of Dance and the School of Art present a live collaborative performance. Free. Weatherspoon Art

Museum, 500 Tate St., Greensboro. Info: weatherspoonart.org/calendar.

WRITING DIALOGUE. 6–7:30 p.m.

Author Spencer K. M. Brown leads an online workshop for fiction writers that will explore the basic elements of dialogue as it relates to story and character. Registration: $30. Online. Info: ticketmetriad.com

LUMBEE HISTORY. 6 p.m. Award-winning Lumbee historian, author, filmmaker and Emory University professor Malinda Maynor Lowery presents the 2024 Wicker Lecture. Free. Greensboro History Museum, 130 Summit Ave., Greensboro. Info: greensborohistory.org/events.

April 12–21

THE COLOR PURPLE. Times vary. A Community Theatre of Greensboro production, the musical adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel tells the story of a Black woman triumphing over adversity. Tickets: $15+. Starr Theatre, 520 S. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: ctgso.org.

THE LIGHTNING THIEF. Times vary. For audiences of all ages, this musical tells the story of Percy Jackson. Tickets: $25. Pam

april calendar

and David Sprinkle Theatre, 402 Tate St., Greensboro. Info: vpa.uncg.edu/all-events/ category/cvpa.

April 12

AMERICAN ELO. 8 p.m. Evil Woman’s 12 musicians play songs you know in a multimedia concert that mixes the sounds of guitar strings with violins and rock with pop. Tickets: $35+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: tangercenter.com/events.

UNCG JAZZ. 7:30 p.m. Directed by Chad Eby, UNCG Jazz Ensemble II performs music composed by some of the greatest in jazz history. Tickets: $9+. In the Crown at the Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/ events.

FOXYMORONS. 8 p.m. The comedy sketch group deliver a mix of low- and high-brow humor. Tickets: $15. The Idiot Box, 503 N. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: idiotboxers.com.

April 13

DUN DUN DUH-DUN. 8 p.m. Dress as your favorite Star Wars character and let the Greensboro Symphony take you through space and back in time to a galaxy far, far

away. Tickets: $35+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: greensborosymphony.org/events/list.

STRANGE FRUIT FESTIVAL. 1–7 p.m. Celebrate Black cultural music with a variety of artists and genres, plus vendors and food trucks. Free, donations accepted. LeBauer Park, 208 N. Davie St., Greensboro. Info: strangefruitfoundation.org/ strange-fruit-festival.

GUIDED GREENWAY TOUR. 9 a.m.–noon. Step into Greensboro’s history, take in public art installations, plus learn about environmental stewardship and economic impact during a walking tour of the 4-mile Downtown Greenway. Free; registration required. LoFi Park, 500 N. Eugene St., Greensboro. Info: downtowngreenway.org/events.

WALK & RUN FOR RECOVERY. 9 a.m. Fellowship Hall invites you to walk 1.5 miles or run a 5K to celebrate recovery, build awareness and raise funds to help those without financial access to treatment. Registration: $15+. Country Park, 3805 Jaycee Park Drive, Greensboro. Info: fellowshiphall.com/walk-run.

POETRY CAFE. 8–10 p.m. Celebrate National Poetry Month at the The Poetry

Cafe’s 15th anniversary party, featuring an open mic, live music and vendors. Tickets: $15+. Van Dyke Performance Space, 200 N. Davie St. Greensboro. Info: thepoetrycafe.org.

GREENSBORO CONCERT BAND.

7:30–9:30 p.m. As part of the City Ensemble Concerts, the Greensboro Concert Band performs its first concert of 2024. Free, donations accepted. Dana Auditorium, 710 Levi Coffin Drive, Greensboro. Info: greensboro-nc.gov/ government/city-news/city-calendar.

SCIENCE EVERYWHERE. Noon–4 p.m. Enjoy hands-on activities while roving the UNCG campus through science and technology exhibits, music, art and the Minerva Mobile Health Unit. Free. Weatherspoon Art Museum and UNCG campus, 500 Tate St., Greensboro. Info: weatherspoonart.org/calendar.

April 14

R.O.C.K. IN THE G.S.O. 8 p.m. John Mellencamp brings down the house with his repertoire of favorite American rock songs, including “Small Town” and “Jack and Diane.” Tickets: $75.50+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: tangercenter.com/events.

April 15

FRUIT TREES 101. 5:3-–6:30 p.m. The Greensboro Permaculture Guild teaches you how to select, plant and maintain dwarf fruit trees and bushes for sweet results. Free, registration required. Meeting Place at Tradition Cornerstone, 801 W. Smith St., Greensboro. Info: downtowngreenway.org/events.

April 16–28

MOULIN ROUGE! Times vary. This musical celebration of truth, beauty, freedom and love mashes up iconic hit songs to create a lively world where bohemians and aristocrats revel in electrifying enchantment. Tickets: $33+. Steven Tanger Center, 300 N. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: tangercenter.com/events.

April 16

WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. 7 p.m. In this colorful 1971 film adaptation of the beloved Roald Dahl book, Gene Wilder plays the title character. Tickets: $8+. Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/events.

April 17–19, 24–26

NEAPOLATIN MOVIE SERIES. 7:30 p.m. Get the scoop with three flavors of movies, three nights a week, including iconic films such as Labyrinth, Trainspotting, plus Dazed and Confused. Tickets: $8. In the Crown at the Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/events.

April 17

FURNITURE HISTORY. 10 a.m. Author, historian and instructor Richard Eller discusses his new book on western North Carolina furniture manufacturing. Free. High Point Museum, 1859 E. Lexington Ave., High Point. Info: highpointmuseum.org.

YAPPY HOUR. 5:30–7:30 p.m. Bring your four-legged-and-leashed bestie to an evening of splashing, treats, prize drawings and mingling with community organizations and canine-centric companies. Free. LoFi Park, 500 N. Eugene St., Greensboro. Info: downtowngreenway.org/events.

April 18

OPEN MIC. 6–7:30 p.m. Writers of all genres are invited to read from their original works for five minutes at “a very cool monthly open mic” held on the third Thursday of each month. Free. Scuppernong Books, 304 S. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: scuppernongbooks.com/event.

April 19–21

POTTERY TOUR. 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Enjoy the Seagrove Potters’ “Celebration of Spring”

while studio-hopping. Seagrove. Info: discoverseagrove.com/events.

April 19

PARKER MCCOLLUM. 7:30 p.m. The Americana and country singer-songwriter who earned the 2022 American Country Music Award for Best New Male Artist performs with guests Corey Kent and Catie Offerman. Tickets: $32.50+. White Oak Ampitheatre, 2407 W. Gate City Blvd., Greensboro. Info: greensborocoliseum.com/events.

TIM WARFIELD. 7:30 p.m. The renowned saxophonist, who took home third place at the Smithsoian’s Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition, performs a lively set. $6+. UNCG Auditorium, 408 Tate St., Greensboro. Info: vpa.uncg.edu/home/ucls-23-24.

N.C. CHAMBER ORCHESTRA. 7:30–9:30 p.m. French Horn Virtuoso Maria Serkin performs with the chamber orchestra. Tickets: $20+. The Virginia Somerville Sutton Theatre at Well·Spring, 4100 Well Spring Drive, Greensboro. Info: ticketmetriad.com.

LOS TIGRES DEL NORTE. 8 p.m.

Originally founded in Mexico over 50 years ago, this norteño band takes the stage with songs that tell of blue-collar hardships, love and loss. Tickets: $49+. Greensboro Coliseum, 1921 W. Gate City Blvd., Greensboro. Info: greensborocoliseum.com/events.

April 20 & 21

GODSPELL . 7:30 & 2 p.m. UNCG students perform the first major musical offering from Stephen Schwartz, known for Wicked and Pippin. Free. The Virginia Somerville Sutton Theatre at Well·Spring, 4100 Well Spring Drive, Greensboro. Info: vpa.uncg.edu/ all-events/category/cvpa.

April 20

BEER PAST & PRESENT. Noon–3 p.m. Paddled South Brewery pops up at the Historical Park with a special “1859” beer available for purchase. Head inside the museum at 1 p.m. for a talk by High Point University history professor Dr. Amanda Allen on the topic of medieval brewing. Free. High Point Museum, 1859 E. Lexington Ave., High Point. Info: highpointmuseum.org.

HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS. 2 p.m. Watch as the twirling tricksters of basketball take on the Washington Generals in a match full of dribbles, dunks and slams like nothing you’ve seen before. Tickets: $30+. Greensboro Coliseum, 1921 W. Gate City Blvd., Greensboro. Info: greensborocoliseum.com/events.

Spring Exhibitions

Crafted Modern: The Collection of Rob Williams Through April 20

Lee Hall: Immediate Landscapes Through May 5

Pulp & Bind: Paper & Book in Southern Appalachia Through June 2

The Reading Room: From Seuss to Geisel & Back Again Through June 9

Free Admission · Closed Mondays

N.C. POET LAUREATE JOSEPH

BATHANTI. 5–8 p.m. The former N.C. Poet Laureate reads excerpts from his work and signs books. Free. Greensboro History Museum, 130 Summit Ave., Greensboro. Info: greensboro-nc. gov/government/city-news/city-calendar.

WRITING CONFERENCE. 8 a.m.–6:30 p.m. Attend classes and workshops and hear from keynote speaker Jill McCorkle, North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame inductee, at the North Carolina Writers’ Network Spring Conference. Registration: $100+. UNCG’s Moore Humanities and Research Building, 1111 Spring Garden Street, Greensboro. Info: ncwriters.org/programs/conferences.

EARTH DAY. 1–4 p.m. Celebrate Earth Day with a wide range of activities and educational opportunities from tutorials of environmentally-friendly lawn care practices to demos of renewable energy technology and animal interactions. Free. Keeley Park, 4100 Keeley Road, McCleansville. Info: greensboro-nc.gov/departments/ office-of-sustainability-and-resilience/ sustainability-programs/earth-day.

JEFF KLEIN. 8 p.m. The Florida comedian who debuted the show Beige Glitter: But not

good at it at the Tampa International Fringe Festival takes the stage for a night of laughs. Tickets: $15. The Idiot Box, 503 N. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: idiotboxers.com.

April 22–23

UNCG POPTECH. 7:30 p.m. This showcase concert will feature original work and covers in a super wide array of settings, from bands to soloists, from playback beats to videos. Tickets: $9+. In the Crown at the Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/events.

April 23–30

DNA TO BEER. Through June 1, enjoy a traveling exhibition dedicated to the science and medicinal technologies used to improve foods and beverages — including beer — in partnership with the National Library of Medicine. Free. High Point Museum, 1859 E. Lexington Ave., High Point. Info: highpointmuseum.org.

April 24

CEDRIC BURNSIDE. 8 p.m. The Mississippi Hill Country blues guitarist and singer/ songwriter delivers a night of soulful tunes. Tickets: $17+. Flat Iron, 221 Summit Ave., Greensboro. Info: flatirongso.com/events.

April 25–27

UNCSA DANCE. Times vary. UNCSA’s School of Dance and School of Music collaborate on a performance featuring ballet and contemporary dance students moving to the music of orchestra students. Tickets: $20+. High Point Theatre, 220 E. Commerce Ave., High Point. Info: highpointtheatre.com/events.

April 25

SCI-FI BOOK CLUB. 6:30 p.m. Partake in a lively discussion of Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. Free. Scuppernong Books, 304 S. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: scuppernongbooks.com/event.

GROCERY BUDGETING. 6–7 p.m. Learn the art of stretching your grocery dollars without sacrificing taste or quality. Free, registration required. Deep Roots Market, 600 N. Eugene St., Greensboro. Info: downtowngreenway.org/events.

April 26

OLIVER ANTHONY. 8 p.m. Enjoy an evening of tunes from the country singersongwriter whose music reflects his journey, from overcoming addiction and depression to living off the grid in a camper. Tickets:

$25+. Greensboro Coliseum, 1921 W. Gate City Blvd., Greensboro. Info: greensborocoliseum.com/events.

ROYAL BINGO. 7 p.m. Brenda the Drag Queen hosts an evening of Green Queen Bingo for ages 15 and up. Tickets: $25. Piedmont Hall, 1921 W. Gate City Blvd., Greensboro. Info: greensborocoliseum.com/events.

MARK BRADY. 8 p.m. Enjoy a night of comedy that benefits Held, a Greensboro nonprofit that provides guaranteed income directly to those in need. Tickets: $30. Flat Iron, 221 Summit Ave., Greensboro. Info: flatirongso.com/events.

PAT MONAGHAM. 8 p.m. This comedian brings his set from New York City to the Gate City. Tickets: $15. The Idiot Box, 503 N. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: idiotboxers.com.

April 27

SAVASA-MAAA. 10–11 a.m., 11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Unite Us Yoga hits the greenway for an all-levels yoga class during which goats mix and mingle among maaaats. Tickets: $30. 501 E. Bragg St., Greensboro. Info: downtowngreenway.org/events.

MERCYME. 7 p.m. The Grammy-nominated contemporary Christian musical group brings its Always Only Jesus Tour to the Gate City. Tickets: $23+. Greensboro Coliseum, 1921 W. Gate City Blvd., Greensboro. Info: greensborocoliseum.com/events.

MARITZAIDA. 8:30 p.m. Celebrating her third album release, the traditional bolero singer takes the stage. Tickets: $20+. In the Crown at the Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/events.

DRAG QUEEN STORYTIME. 11 a.m.–noon. Enjoy an hour of “fun for everyone,” filled with stories, queens and crafts. Free. Scuppernong Books, 304 S. Elm St., Greensboro. Info: scuppernongbooks.com/event.

AAPI FILM FEST. NOON. Get a headstart on May’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with a short film festival featuring screenings and a panel discussion with four local Asian American Pacific Island filmmakers. Free. Greensboro History Museum, 130 Summit Ave., Greensboro. Info: greensborohistory.org/events.

CHILDREN’S DAY. 1–4:30 p.m. Also known as El Día de los Niños/El Día de los Libros, a bilingual street festival along Church Street features storytimes, music, dancing, art activities and food. Free. Central Library, 219 N. Church St., Greensboro. Info: greensboro-nc. gov/government/city-news/city-calendar.

April 30

SIGHTINGS. In accompaniment with its LEAP exhibit, GreenHill Center for NC Art displays photographs and artworks relating to sightings of extraterrestrial life forms submitted by the local community. Open through June 7 and culminating with a firstprize winner selected by popular vote. Free. GreenHill Center for NC Art, 200 N. Davie St., Greensboro. Info: greenhillnc.org/events.

THE CIRCUS. 7 p.m. The iconic Charlie Chaplin silent film plays on the big screen accompanied by acclaimed organist Mark Andersen on the only remaining Robert Morton Pipe Organ in the state. Tickets: $9+. Carolina Theatre, 310 S. Greene St., Greensboro. Info: carolinatheatre.com/ events. OH

LADIES CLOTHING, GIFTS, BABY, JEWELRY, GIFTS FOR THE HOME, TABLEWARE, DELICIOUS FOOD

GreenScene

Greensboro Symphony Orchestra Masterworks Concert: Season of the Seven

Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts Saturday, February 24, 2024

Photographs by Lynn Donovan

Alexandria Gerald, Olivia Gerald

Doris Lopez, Sara Lopez

Marjorie Bagley, Bill Morris, Wally West

Terrance Wilson, Chris Eaton

Lane Ridenhour, Nancy & Steve Fogarty

Jackie Green, Michael Hayes

Stephanie Chandler, Richard & Anette Schmidt

Diego Waegeli, Silvina Piotti

Jennifer Schenker, Sonya Williams

Vito Ciccone, Jeff Neubauer

Murali Ramaswamy, Beverly & Pat Wright

Governor Roy Cooper

Jim Melvin

NC

Shirley & Henry Frye

GreenScene

JDRF Hope Glows Gala

Koury Convention Center

Saturday, February 17, 2024

Photographs by Lynn Donovan

Sheena Lee, Paperhand Puppet

Vanessa Carroll, Alejandra Thompson de Jordan Brad & Melinda Morton, Roxy Moule, Zack Matheny Ann & Chris Cox

Sallie & Hank Cunningham, Sarah Cunningham, Doug Jackson

Jenny Newkirk, Trevor Snyder, Ryan Newkirk, Madison Carroll Snyder, Roy & Vanessa Carroll, Eleanor Schaffner-Mosh, Rob Mothershed, Brittany Carroll, Rider, Hayleigh R. Carroll, Gregory Hopkins Jr.

Art Bloom, Laura Way

Jessica Mashburn

Jennifer & Jim Himes, Katie Nordeen & Reece Craven

David Hodges Jr., Lucia Bonitz, Henry Bonitz, Paperhand Puppet

By Cynthia a dams

Early life on a farm taught me this: Never get caught swimming with the hogs.

Especially wearing a brand-new swimsuit.

Hearing titters in a children’s shop, my folks pivoted from a rack of Easter dresses to discover me in the display window wearing a blue-and-white “swimming soup” taken straight off the mannequin. My father conceded. “Look, if she wants it that badly, I say we buy it.”

At age 4, that would be the last time I found a new bikini joyful.

Mind you, we had no swimming pool. My grandmother had a pond replete with water moccasins. Where snapping turtles tangled fishing lines. The best I could hope for was a sprinkler.

It was wonderful being a child on a small farm with goats, milk cow, horses and hogs. Our father raised Landrace hogs, which prolifically produced white piglets. Whenever a new litter was born, which was often, Daddy would take me to the barn to admire them, wriggling and pink beneath red heat lamps. I adored them long before discovering Charlotte’s Web

With the first fine spring day, inspiration struck. Donning the new swimsuit and a tiny, cherished diamond birthstone ring, I headed straight for the hog pond. And sank right in.

The muck pleasantly sucked at my bare feet like a welcoming, living thing. My ponytail floated behind me as I joyously heaved handfuls of mud from the pliable pond, exultant.

As for the hogs? I knew them since birth as gentle, intelligent creatures, much like E. B. White’s Wilbur. They watched on as if to say, “See? See why we like it so much?”

At some point, my older sister, six years my senior, appeared at the pond’s edge wearing her cowgirl boots. “ARE YOU CRAZY?” she screamed. Seldom a tattletale, mine was a crime demanding to be reported. She shot away, black pigtails flying behind her, hollering, “MAMA!”

Before I could extract myself from the muck and broker a deal,

Hog Wild

…and happy as a pig in mud

Mama came running faster than I had ever witnessed. She was at the pond before I could fully balance, hair streaming, streaks of red mud dribbling down my chin.

Staining my brand-new swimsuit.

Confronting the spectacle before her, Mama shuddered, then glowered.

“Cynthia Anne! Get. Out. Of. The. Hog. Pond. NOW.”

As any child knows, Mama Justice requires no reading of rights; no legal representation, no cooling off period before judgement is rendered.

There are only two possibilities: Guilty as charged, or asleep.

I was marched to the spigot for a vigorous hosing down after stripping off my beloved swimsuit. (“Well, I hope you’re happy,” Mama seethed. “That’s ruined.”)

I remember being plunked into the white porcelain bath. She declared war on my skin and nails, doggedly persisting even after the muddied bath water ran clear.

Suddenly, with a sad shiver, I sneaked my right hand behind me: The suit wasn’t all that was lost.

Of course, Mama saw. “Cynthia Anne. Where’s your ring? ” Gone.

Her lips stretched into a disapproving line. “This is what happens when your Daddy spoils you.”

Afterward, an imposed bedroom confinement, meant for contemplating of crimes.

Later, the trooping before my father for a full confession. (A sympathetic smile flickered, but, once charged, even Daddy couldn’t overrule Mama Justice.)

There were my sister’s snickers to endure.

During my exile, springtime rains began, forming beguiling puddles in the graveled driveway. As if custom-made just for me.

I thought of my barnyard friends, free to abandon themselves to the embracing muck! How I longed to do the same.

Helpless against all that pleasure, a 4-year-old with the perfect outfit snuck out into the rain to claim the perfect puddle. OH