Good things do come in small packages and Sylva, NC is just like that. Leslie caught an announcement in our local weekly newspaper, The Sylva Herald, the other day about a poetry reading being hosted by Sylva's thriving independent bookstore, City Lights. We felt like having a little culture shock so we decided to have a night on the town in Sylva, NC.
After closing up the MoonDancer Realty office in Dillsboro, NC for the day, I stopped off to see my friend Eric Hendrix and pick up fresh salmon from Eric's Fresh Fish Market on the back street of Sylva. The name of the street is actually Mill Street but everyone knows it as Back Street. I lived here for probably five years before I knew its real name. Anyway, lucky for me Eric was in a chatty mood. I rarely get a chance to visit with him and this was a real pleasant way to start the evening. Eric is also a fine guitarist and musician. Currently his cd, "Would You Dance With Me?" is a constant companion in my car's cd player. We talked about the inspiration for some of his songs on the cd and where he would be playing in the next week, which turns out to be the same place we were going last night...City Lights Cafe. He asked me to listen to a Van Morrison song which is the inspiration for some of his other music, so I will share that on my next Monday Melodies blog next week. Thanks, Eric!
We went home, fed the dogs and got "gussied up" to Sylva standards (lol) and headed out to Sylva. The first stop was City Lights Cafe for a light dinner before going upstairs to the City Lights Bookstore for the poetry reading. All of Western North Carolina is a hotbed of talent of all kinds; musicians, authors, poets, artists, artisans and craftspeople and there is often a venue of some sort in these mountain towns to show off these talents. On tap for last night were two of three finalists for the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance 2013 Book Awards in Poetry. Both are local residents in this area.
Kathryn Stripling Byer is a former NC poet laureate. While she read from many of her books, it is her book Descent which is up for the award. We've known Kathryn for more than 20 years. She was a welcome and familiar face when we had our camping and backpacking store, Venture Out. This was the first time however that we had the privilege to hear her read.
George Ellison is a very familiar name in this area. He is a reknowned naturalist and journalist, with articles often found in all of the local newspapers. George and his artist wife Elizabeth live in Bryson City. His book, Permanent Camp, is a finalist for the award.
Kathryn and George are good friends and the warmth and regard they hold for each other was felt throughout the room. A small reception was hosted by City Lights afterward and Leslie got to do what she likes best...buy books. Both Kathryn and George autographed their books for her and we left the bookstore feeling pretty darned good about life.
Sylva, NC is a great town to walk around in on a summer evening. As we headed down the 
street from the cafe, we passed an alleyway behind Massey's furniture store and I recall thinking that it was the cleanest and least scary alleyway I'd ever seen. I posted the photograph to Facebook and a friend (former real estate client) commented that it was the former parking lot for the local drugstore of her youth, some ahem thirty mumble maybe forty years ago. She and her best friend used to play there all the time.
street from the cafe, we passed an alleyway behind Massey's furniture store and I recall thinking that it was the cleanest and least scary alleyway I'd ever seen. I posted the photograph to Facebook and a friend (former real estate client) commented that it was the former parking lot for the local drugstore of her youth, some ahem thirty mumble maybe forty years ago. She and her best friend used to play there all the time. I love that kind of stuff.
We sat in the parking lot of the newly restored First Citizens Bank on Main Street and I caught two quick photos of Sylva at dusk.
The streets were very busy with people dining out, enjoying the incredibly beautiful weather and listening to the live music a block away at the annual "Concerts on the Creek" event which runs from last night to August 31 and is sponsored by the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce. The Rye Holler Boys from Bryson City were playing for a huge crowd and we listened for a bit from the car as we headed back to Balsam.
In my opinion, the small towns in the mountains of Western North Carolina are a great place to call home. I feel fortunate every day that I get to live, work and play here. For anyone considering a move from their big city areas and are afraid they might suffer culture shock in the transition, not to worry. You'll get culture shock all right but it will be in the good sense. It's a different sort of culture, but culture it is and there is something really lovely about nights out on the town in Sylva, NC.
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