LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Breathing in a Small Town

 
 
 
I love living in a small town.  As John Mellencamp sang, "I can breathe in a small town."  I grew up in a small town and now we are retired in a small town.  And I love it.
 
 
After the Memorial Day service, Brevard kicks off our largest street festival.  The White Squirrel Festival includes all you might expect, races, vendors, food and music.  The festival includes a White Squirrel Derby in which children race their cars down jailhouse hill.  A separate race is held for merchants who build some very fancy cars.
 
The crowds begin to gather early.

 
 
 
The coolest little camper you can imagine.  Sets up in minutes and is light enough to be towed by a car.  Called the "Go," it is versatile and fun.  You can read more here

 
 
The Courthouse
 

 
 
 
And the ubiquitous (and scary) white squirrel.

 
 
 
The real white squirrel, a variant of the gray squirrel.  A pair of them were released more than 50 years ago.  They now they make up 40% of the squirrels within the town limits.

 
 
 
White Squirrels, waterfalls, mountains and bikes, that's our small town.


After Memorial Day our small town welcomes the return of the tourists.  And for most of the summer our roads are crowded and downtown is very busy.  The summer camps are filled with young people enjoying the mountains.  We will have festivals all summer, but none capture the excitement of the first and biggest one.  White Squirrel Festival is synonymous with summer fun.

I love living in a small town!

12 comments:

The Bug said...

I like living in a small town too :)

(And yes the giant squirrel is terrifying!)

Ms. A said...

Sure wish I was there! *sigh

Arkansas Patti said...

I have lived in both but love the small towns best.
The real white squirrel was pretty. I saw a spotted one once--big spots.
That camper looks neat. Wouldn't mind that myself.

troutbirder said...

And so do I. We gave up life in the Big City to teach and raise a family of two boys here...:)

Carolina Linthead said...

Love it! You live in a great part of the world, generally speaking, and small-town life is the best. And yes, while I love seeing white and albino squirrels in the wild, THAT squirrel is a bit much :-)

Busy Bee Suz said...

I TOO love your small town. :)
That little camper is so cute. Did you ask if it had a/c and a toilet for me??? LOL
Enjoy your day!
XO

Unknown said...

I love small town. I enjoy all things in those locations.

KB said...

It seems like a perfect small town for you, except for those evil white squirrels :)

The camper is cute... so small!

KGMom said...

I "Googled" your town, to see what constitutes small.
And I think I agree with you about the charm of small towns. We have many such here in central PA, though we do not live in one such.
Curiously, for whatever reasons, PA only has one true town--so incorporated. All the rest are townships or villages.

Jayne said...

I love living in a small town too my friend. Our little town puts up over 1200 flags around town to honor those who gave all in wars past and present. They stay up for two weeks at Memorial Day and Veteren's Day and make me smile. Each one is anchored in a white wooden cross with the name and war of that individual. We just had our 1890's day celebration downtown which kicks off the summer season. Yes, small towns are so very special.

NCmountainwoman said...

Thanks for your comments, everyone.

Bug - You should have seen the squirrel when he/she stuck out human hands from the arms of the costume.

Suz - You are a true outdoorswoman!

Patti and KB - That camper is amazing. You can quickly turn it into a trailer to haul kayaks, canoes, or bikes. And it takes only minutes to set it up for a tent. I loved it.

Jennifer - Thanks for dropping by.

Donna - Yes, fewer than 8,000 people in the 2010 census makes us a small town. In Wisconsin our "small town" was called a village.

Jayne - So many flags must be truly moving.

Mary Lee said...

I forgot to tell you that I looked for a white squirrel on our three trips through Brevard. Nary a one showed himself.