Tamarack Tellebration 2008

The Sat. before Thanksgiving, of each year, is earmarked as "Tellebration". All over the world Storytellers are gathered together to tell stories. The concerts are usually free and open to the public. It is a truly delightful event for the audience and the tellers. This year I was honored to participate in, not one, but two Tellebrations. The first was held at Tamarack in Beckley, WV and the second in Middleport, OH. This is a picture of the gang at Tamarck. That's The Queen of WV Storytelling, Karen Vuranch on your left (40 pounds lighter, I might add), Sara Martin (a brand spankin' new teller who did an excellent job!) my buddy and boot kicker, Danny McMillion(and she's worth every cent of it too), 'course that's me on the end, and that's Jodi French behind us. Jodi is the one who started Tellebration in WV. She and Sara are both Park Rangers. They are both delightful women...plus most of our crowd was their folks!

Middleport Tellebration 2008

Bissie Vunderink of Ashland, OH

Bizzie Vunderink started off the Middleport

Tellebrations with a Native American Spook tale.

She was followed by Mike Neeley, of Little Hocking

Oh, with a big snake tale...that was spooky to me!

Cathy Jo Smith of Grove City, OH(a pot 'o gold, fer sure)

Melanie Pratt was our MC and a storyteller. Good job on both counts, Melanie.

Larry Staats of Sandyville, WV and Columbus, OH...it's hard to pin him down.

Okay, that's me (my grandaughter took the blurry

pictures) This is how I spent my 41st wedding

anniversary.

Middleport Tellebration 2008

Last but not least, Keith Maynard

and Donna Wilson. Meeting people like this are why I love storytelling.

When I was a little girl my granny would take me on trips to visit my Aunt Dollie in Seaford, Delaware. We went every year, mostly in the summer but sometimes in the spring. This is a picture of me and Granny standing on the steps of the ferry we rode across the Chesapeake Bay. It was a wonderful trip each year. First we would board a train in Charleston, at the old Depot, and ride it through the hills and valleys of our beautiful state. The clickety-clack sound of the railroad made me want to curl up against Granny and sleep. The bathrooms were an adventure for me and Granny with their pull down potties and push button sinks. I remember that we always had a stop in White Sulphur and, from the look of their depot, I was sure it was a fairyland little town.

The train would take us to Washington, DC where Granny would "Hail" a taxi to drive us to the Greyhound Bus terminal. Once there we boarded a bus for Seaford. I think the bus trip was about 3 hours so, after the first hour, the bus would make a "rest' stop at a place called "The Windmill" right before the Bay(there were no bathrooms on buses back then so rest stops were necessary). The Windmill was a roadside restaurant that was shaped like a windmill. I thought it was fascinating. Inside the Windmill there were games called Slot machines. You put a nickle in, pulled down the lever and watched as the fruit pictures spun around and finally came to a halt. You hoped that all three of your fruit matched so that you could win some money. Ah, yes, my friends, it was gambling and gambling was illegal in the state of West Virginia, but apparently, not in Virginia. My Granny loved to play those slot machines. She would try 5 times and no more. She almost always won and she would say to me, "Maybe we shouldn't tell anybody that we played these machines" and I never did.

When we got to the Bay, we would unboard the bus and, the bus and us, would board the ferryboat. It took us across the Bay. That was long before the bridge was built. Once across, we reboarded the bus and finally arrived in Seaford. It was a wonderful adventure. Oh, how I loved my Granny.

The children at Alderson Elementary were a delight to perform for. Just look at their cute faces.