App St. provided many wonderful memories. By far the best was love found and families united. App St. moved up and our kids grew up, but the good times shared in Boone created memories that burn brightest during Christmas.

When the Panthers came to Charlotte they bumped my beloved Redskins from local televised games. My family roars for the Panthers. I still root for “The Football Team.” With COVID the canned roar of the crowd sounds hollow. Still we check the scores. Do our teams stand a chance this year?

Not every college pick sticks. One year at Elon and Win moved on to State. From the Ashes of Phoenix sprouted an engineer grad.

Christmas is a time for bowling. Most years State gets an invite. Where will they land this season?

When the kids were younger they got a kick out of Christmas. Mason especially.

Once, many years ago, pirates sailed the West Indies in search of stolen treasure. Here is one gem we snagged during our hunt for stolen moments under a tropical sun with fair winds at our back.