July 2021

Beach Savvy I was afraid I wouldn’t fit in, but I found my place   By Nelda Howell Lockamy In the fall of ’65, I arrived farm fresh on the campus of App State, then called Appalachian State [...]

By Ashley Wahl July spills her secrets to the night. At twilight, as the earth exhales the sun’s hot kiss, the parish of crickets chants glory to the rising moon and a softness spills across the [...]

Newly married, two young architects infuse their historic home with a fresh perspective By Cynthia Adams Photographs by Amy Freeman   For architects Brian and Casey Cheek, there’s no place [...]

As the heat of midsummer descends and blooms fade, these five leafy sanctuaries help their creators keep their cool By Jim Dodson   •   Photographs By Lynn Donovan     Oak Ridge [...]

Seven cooling cocktails crafted by the region’s top mixologists By Jason Oliver Nixon   •   Photographs by Amy Freeman     With the world quickly returning to normal — well, a new [...]

On an Okra Flower   A pollinating wasp sliding from white lip to purple darkness,  the shadow-heart so deep inside, the plant, itself, tall African in the kitchen garden’s last row, speaks [...]

Brunch Every Day Or at least every Sunday   By Billy Eye My weaknesses have always been food and men – in that order. — Dolly Parton   Sunday Brunch is back! Over the last month, the [...]

Taking the Plunge The belted kingfisher dives for prey   By Susan Campbell Often heard before they are seen, belted kingfishers are a year-round fixture here in central North Carolina. [...]

Malcolm and Me The road to Geekdom can be awfully lonely   By Cynthia Adams Malcolm Gladwell is a fearless geek. The bestselling author recently revealed that he is utterly fascinated by the [...]

Taste of July A little bit of this and that   By Shannon Jones You’ll notice that this issue of O.Henry is packed with culinary delights and summer beverages. Since the scuppernong grape is [...]