General Store Cafe in Pittsboro

Surely, you must know the General Store Cafe, right on the circle in downtown Pittsboro across from the County Courthouse?

It was long a Pittsboro favorite for lunch, dinner, eclectic gifts and a good music scene. Sadly, it closed last year.

GSC Reloaded

Greg Lewis is a Pittsboro resident, restaurateur and businessman. He owns Catering by Design in Cary.

Lewis was a fan and frequent patron of General Store Cafe (GSC). In a small town, the loss of a prominent gathering place is deeply felt. Lewis felt he could do something about it.

He bought the business out of bankruptcy for $10,000 according to the Durham Herald-Sun and settled unpaid bills for equipment.

Lewis plans to renovate the interior, re-examine the menu and continue the GSC tradition of good food and live music.

Just a Short Drive from Chapel Hill

I will sleep better knowing that the General Store Cafe will be back, lights blazing, at the other end of 15-501. It’s just a short drive from Chapel Hill, and well worth the trip.

This Mother’s Day, I thought I would treat Mom to a walk in the beautiful dream gardens at the North Carolina Botanical Garden and a hike out at Mason Farm.

Display Gardens Tour

Mom will find that the gardens surrounding the Totten Center and Education Center at the NC Botanical Gardens offer a variety of displays and settings to view native plants and cultivars of native plants. Free tours of the Display Gardens are offered every Saturday morning (March – November).

This is a 60-minute guided walk takes you through the habitat gardens and other displays that showcase the beauty of plants native to North Carolina. You can see flower beds, water gardens, a carnivorous plant display, an herb garden and fern collection. Start inside the Education Center & information building at 10 a.m.

NCBG: Display Gardens Tour
Date: Saturday, May 14
Time: 10 – 11 am
Cost: Free

Mother’s Day Walk at Mason Farm

Take Mom for a beautiful Spring stroll around the Mason Farm Biological Reserves “old farm trail,” which travels through some 260 years of cultural and natural history. Naturalist Ed Harrison will point out wildflowers and discuss how the Garden’s intense management of both field and forest benefits local biological diversity conservation. Meeting place will be confirmed at registration.

Date: Sunday, May 13
Time: 2 – 4 pm
Guide: Ed Harrison, Naturalist
Registration: Please call the Garden’s Education Office (919-962-0522)
Cost: $10 ($5 NCBG members).

About The North Carolina Botanical Garden & Mason Farm

The North Carolina Botanical Garden is part of The University of North Carolina and has been a leader in native plant conservation and education in the southeastern United States for more than 40 years. Mason Farm Biological Reserve is located east and south of the North Carolina Botanical Garden’s display gardens and Education Center.

The Mason Farm land was received by the University in 1894 by bequest of Mary Elizabeth Morgan Mason, one of the last descendants of the Morgan family, who had settled in this southeast corner of Orange County in the 1740s. Largely undisturbed since that time, much of the area has now reverted back to woodlands. Some of its forests are now at least 150 years old, with some trees exceeding 300 years in age.

The Mason Farm Biological Reserve protects natural areas, supports academic research and public education. The Reserves undeveloped areas create approximately 900-acres of natural area.  This area connects with the 41,000-acre New Hope Game Lands to the south.

Mason Farm contains a combination of forests and old fields that support approximately 800 species of plants, 216 species of birds, 29 species of mammals, 28 species of fish, 28 species of reptiles, 23 species of amphibians, and 67 species of butterflies. In fact, more different species of animals have been recorded at the Reserve than in any other comparably-sized area in the entire Piedmont.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mom’s out there.

Best,

Jack

Jack Moody
The Better Sleep Store
Chapel Hill, NC

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Photo by Todd Martin.

Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen, Chapel Hill

My morning reveille is always satisfied by Chapel Hill’s gem, the Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen. You can smell the biscuits from a block away and see the line of cars. For an on-the-go breakfast, this humble little shop cannot be beat.

The Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen has been written-up in many local magazines and food blogs. Those who live here know that this is the best little biscuit kitchen in Chapel Hill. Even the yankees from The New York Times have written about this humble southern establishment.

Honestly, I could eat there every morning on my way to work. The food is really that heavenly and the service is always pleasant.

Drive Through, Y’all

This is not a place to sit down for a leisurely breakfast. Here, there is no dinning room. Service is drive-through only, to take home or eat in your car. On any given day, you can’t miss the line of cars snaking around the building. All that is fine with me, because the biscuits are worth the wait.

Ah, the Joy of a Chicken Biscuit

Sunrise’s biscuits are made from scratch every morning and are extra large, and golden brown on the outside with fluffy buttery insides that taste like heaven. The kitchen splits them into halves and loads them with bacon and eggs, sausage, western steak, pork tenderloin, gravy, country ham and my favorite, the southern fried chicken biscuit. And don’t forget to order a large sweet tea to make this culinary experience perfect.

I will never eat a drive-through breakfast anywhere else. In fact, it is hard to beat the Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen’s home-made biscuits at any establishment in North Carolina.

Pick Me Up Something

So, if your on your way over to the The Better Sleep Store to shop for a new mattress, pick me up a chicken biscuit and a sweet tea and tell them Jack sent you.

Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen

1305 E. Franklin Street
Chapel Hill NC 27514 (map)
919-933-1324

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Photo by Ariel Dovas.

Dear Jack,

My 11 year old son Will is always asking questions. “What’s the point of golf?“, “Why do I have to make my bed if I’m just going to sleep in it later?“,  “Who invented toilet paper?“, and my favorite, “Why do we have to fertilize the grass, if we’re just going to cut it?“.

Recently we purchased a brand new mattress from you at The Better Sleep Store. After bringing it home and laying on the new bed for 15 minutes, Will asked me, “What did people sleep on before the mattress was invented?“.  I told him to ask an expert like you!

So, Will wants to know the history of the mattress. Can you help him out?

Thank You, Will’s Mom

Dear Will and Will’s Mom,

Early beds were little more than piles of straw or some other natural material. Egyptian pharaohs discovered the benefits of raising a pallet off the ground to avoid drafts, dirt and pests. King Tutankahmen had a bed of ebony and gold, while the common people slept on palm bows heaped in the corner of their home.

In many cultures and for many centuries, the bed was considered the most important piece of furniture in the house and a type of status symbol. Beds in ancient Egypt were more than a place for sleeping, beds were used as a place to eat meals and entertain socially. They would literally spend the entire day in bed where business was discussed, visitors would stop by and social gathering would take place.

Beds found in a preserved village in northern Scotland which were raised boxes made of stone and likely topped with comfortable fillers, were dated to between 3200 BC and 2200 BC. According to A Brief History of Beds, “The earliest beds were shallow chests in which the bedding was placed. The first attempt at a soft basis consisted of ropes stretched across a wooden framework.”

Timeline

A typical bed of 1600 was a timber frame with rope or leather supports. The mattress was a ‘bag’ of soft filling which was most commonly straw and sometimes wool that was covered in plain, cheap fabric.

In the mid 18th century, the cover became made of quality linen or cotton, the mattress cane box was shaped or bordered and the fillings available were natural and plenty, including coconut fiber, cotton, wool and horse hair. The mattresses also became tufted or buttoned to hold the fillings and cover together and the edges were stitched.

Iron and steel replaced the past timber frames in the late 19th century. In 1865 the first coil spring construction for bedding was patented. By the 1930’3 innerspring mattresses and upholstered foundations became typical for how we now enjoy sleeping in the U.S. and Canada.

Today, we have so many choices. There is a huge range of innerspring mattress designs, new types of foam mattress cores, such as memory foam and pillow-top mattresses. Choices like airbeds, waterbeds and high-tech adjustable sleep sets are also available. The key to today’s bed is comfort, support and luxury.

I hope this answer gives you a glimpse into the history of beds, mattresses and sleeping. Be thankful we live in the 21st century!

And keep asking those questions, Will.

Jack

Jack Moody
The Better Sleep Store
Chapel Hill, NC

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 Vintage postcard scan (at top) by Cheryl Hicks. Egyptian bed circa 1300 BC from TourEgypt.net. Dutch four-posters, circa 1508, from History of 4 Poster Beds.

About The Run

This Saturday is the 5th Annual Wells Fargo Tar Heel 10 Miler. The run is designed to celebrate and showcase downtown Chapel Hill, the UNC campus, and some of the most beautiful neighborhoods in North Carolina!

The event benefits the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Chapel Hill-Carrboro YMCA’s We Build People Campaign. Endurance Magazine, together with the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership and Fleet Feet Sports are sponsoring this huge running event.

Pre-Race Expo

The Pre-Race Expo will be held just down the road from the Better Sleep Store, at the University Mall. Check out the Expo on Friday, 11:00 am -7:00 pm.

The Pre-Race Expo will offer plenty of information & advice along with demonstrations and running research. Activities include:

• Runners Assessment & Exercises
• Foam Roller devices
• Trigger Point & Muscle Release devices – demonstrations & participation
• “Ask the Expert” Injury Prevention and Running Form advice
• Running Gait Debate – Should I Lean? How Should I Land the Foot? Are Shoes Good or Bad?
• Gait Analysis
• Dynamic Warm Up Advise
• Cool Down & Recovery Stretching,
• Massage

Race Day Information

Late Registration Fees: Wells Fargo Tar Heel 10: $55
Fleet Feet Sports 4+ Mile Run: $40
Fleet Feet Sports 4+ Mile Run Student Rate (non-timed): $25

Late Registration & Changes:
Late registration will be available during packet pick-up hours. Packet pick-up is at the pre-race Expo on Thursday, April 19th: 4:00-7:00 pm & Friday, April 20th: 11:00 am -7:00 pm at University Mall before race day.

Race Day:
Saturday, April 21st: 6:00-7:45 AM  by Gate 6 of Kenan Stadium

Start Times:
Wells Fargo Tar Heel 10 Miler: 7:30 AM
Fleet Feet Sports 4+ Mile Run: 8:00 AM

Rules, Parking, Course Maps & More

Everything you need to know you can find on the Tar Heel 10 Miler website.

Good luck friends!

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Photo from Tar Heel 10 Miler.

At the Better Sleep Store and at home, sustainability is important to me. During Earth Action Day, I have the opportunity to learn more about how my choices affect the environment and have a ton of fun, too.

Earth Action Day

Earth Action Day is a free event for the whole family.

Come to the Southern Community Park in Chapel Hill from noon to 5 pm and see what’s going on. This will be a fun filled afternoon of demonstrations, performances, and activities for all ages.

The Festival begins at noon and offers over 80 environmental Exhibitors, Earth inspired artists, live entertainment, activities, and a food pavilion with great local fare.

Here are some highlights of the activities and exhibitors:

Super Discount Rain Barrel Sale:

The Town of Chapel Hill’s Stormwater Management Division welcomes Epoch Solutions and Rain Water Solutions to this year’s Earth Action Day Festival. Rain barrels will be sold at truckload prices on THIS DAY ONLY! There will be 50, 55 and 60 gallon barrels available, as well as a limited quantity of closeout barrels starting at $50.

Climate LEAP with UNC Environmental Science:

The Climate Leadership and Energy Awareness Program (Climate LEAP) engages rising 9th-12th grade students with hands-on science and mathematics activities. They will have a table with a trivia wheel for giveaways, solar cars that you can race, and will try to make solar s’mores.

Kidzu Children’s Museum:

The Kidzu Museum will help folks create a mosaic tile that will be displayed in their museum. Using river rocks and various craft materials, kids can also make their own pet.

HOPE Gardens:

HOPE Gardens will be providing a free salad made primarily of fresh, organic, and local vegetables picked from their garden. They also will conduct planting demonstrations, allow you to plant your own seeds, and take the seeds home.

Ackland Art Museum:

The Ackland Art Museum will be making multi-media portraits or other compositions using recycled materials.

AND MORE:

Food Pavilion, all day entertainment, digital Scavenger Hunt.

5 K Run

The East Chapel Hill Rotary Club partners with Earth Action Day to present this added 5k Race and 1 Mile Fun Run just before the Festival begins. The 5K and Family Fun Run will coincide with the Town of Chapel Hill’s Earth Action Day.

The funds raised from this event will go to support the Teachers Supply Store to benefit teachers in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School System and other local causes.

Registration Fees:

• Late & Race Day Registration – Individual – $35
• Late & Race Day Registration – Family – two adults and children under 17 – $75
• Use Online registration links above right or Click here if you would prefer to download a paper registration form.

Race Location: Southern Community Park in Chapel Hill

Race Time: Saturday April 14th, 10:00 am

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Photo by Hal Goodtree.

Here’s a run-down of major markets where you can go to go to buy fresh fruit and vegetables in and around Chapel Hill.

Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market

Open Saturdays from 8 am to noon. This Farmers’ Market likes to have entertainment along with the local farm delights. This weekend is an Easter Egg Hunt and beginning April 17th, the Market will also be open on Tuesdays from 3 pm to 6 pm. Here you’ll find many varieties of greens- kale, Swiss chard etc., tomatoes, broccoli, carrots, turnips, green garlic, spring onions, cheese, eggs, breads & baked goods, bacon, chicken, pork, mutton and beef.

Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market – 201 S. Estes Dr, Chapel Hill 27514 in the parking lot of A Southern Season at the University Mall

Carrboro Farmers’ Market

Now in it’s 33rd year, the Saturday Market opens at 7 am till noon this Saturday, April 7th. The Wednesday Market opens Wednesday, April 11th, from 3:30-6:30 pm. Run by the farmer members, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Farmers’ Markets, Inc. oversees the operation of the market. Members farms are visited periodically to assure that all items sold are locally grown by the seller and are of the highest quality.

The Market features a regional variety of seasonal vegetables and fruits, flower arrangements and flowers to arrange, cow and goats milk cheeses, meats, prepared foods such as jams and pickles, baked goods, bedding and landscape plants, herbs, honey, value-added farm products such as soap and mohair weavings, and a limited number of artistic craft items such as metal works, pottery, pressed flowers, baskets, and quilts.

Carrboro Farmers’ Market – Carrboro Town Commons next to Carrboro Town Hall at 301 West Main St. in Carrboro

Hillsborough Farmers’ Market

Opens this weekend, April 7th from 8 am to noon. You’ll find vegetables and greens as well as eggs and a variety of meats including chicken, goat, and beef.  Furniture, crafts, and knitted items are available as are baked goods, flowers, bluebird houses, furniture, photography, seedlings and seasonal produce of all sorts.

Hillsborough Farmers’ Market – Located in the The Home Depot parking lot, Hampton Point Shopping Center, Hillsborough, NC at the intersection of NC-86S and I-85 at exit 165.

Eno River Farmers Market

Located in historic downtown Hillsborough, the market is open Saturdays from 8 am till noon. The vendors are selected with great care based on the quality and diversity of their offerings, and all vendors must be local (within 60 miles of Hillsborough) and the original producers of their products.

Here you’ll find farm fresh vegetables and fruit, cheese, pasture raised meat and eggs, a large variety of baked goods, prepared foods, natural beauty products, and crafts from local growers and producers. . They also have live music, storytelling and stand up comedy, arts and crafts activities, chef demonstrations and more.

Eno River Farmers Market – Located at the Farmers Market Pavilion on W. Margaret Lane in Downtown Hillsborough

Pittsboro Thursday Farmers’ Market

Opened Thursday, April 5th – 3:30 to 6:30 pm and every Thursday after until November. The Pittsboro Farmers’ Market was started in 1997 as a collaborative effort on the part of local farmers, the Chatham County Cooperative Extension Service, the Chatham County Fair and local residents. All venders are withing a 50 mile radius of Pittsboro.

The Pittsboro Farmers’ Market is a “Producer Only” market, which means that the vendors may only sell the items they grow or produce. Not only does this market carry items from local farmers, but also from local crafts people, and businesses as well.  You’ll find all kinds of seasonal fruits and vegetables, eggs, meats, cheeses, wine, gluten free baked goods, jams, jellies, relishes, pickles, and ornamental plants.

Pittsboro Farmers’ Market – Located at The Chatham County Fairgrounds, Pittsboro, NC

Dear Jack,

My husband constantly falls asleep while sitting in his recliner while watching T.V. or reading the newspaper. He says that it is more comfortable to sleep there than in our bed. This got me thinking. We are ready for a new mattress and I was wondering about those adjustable beds? That way, he can fall asleep watching his T.V. and I can fall asleep reading and hopefully be more comfortable too.

Sincerely,

Reclining Rita

Dear Rita,

Adjustable mattresses have been around for a long time. The many improvements made to these beds over the years make them a fantastic choice and here’s why. A regular bed is a flat surface and yet our bodies are made up of curves. A flat surface does not provide the necessary support for these various curves especially the lumbar, neck and leg regions.

The adjustable bases allow you to put your body in a more natural position for sleep. That’s probably why your husband prefers sleeping in his recliner.

In studies conducted on astronauts sleeping in zero gravity environments, it was discovered that they slept with their heads slightly elevated for easier breathing and their knees were naturally bent to take pressure off the lower back which allows for increased circulation. Only an adjustable bed can reproduce this natural position for better sleep. This position also allows for better circulation, easier breathing, increased blood flow to the heart, and an overall reduction of aches and pains.

Some of the many options include bed size, material, wired or wireless controls, massage and more. Let’s pick the one that fits best for both you and your husband.  Come on by and try a few out. Just don’t let your husband fall asleep in the store!

Pleasant dreams,

Jack

Jack Moody
The Better Sleep Store
Chapel Hill, NC

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Photo by Haley J.

But do you ever think about those that struggle to feed their children and go to bed hungry every night? I do. That’s why I am going for a walk with the Interfaith Council CROP Walk this Sunday.

The 26th Annual Chapel Hill/Carrboro CROP Hunger Walk

On Sunday, March 25th, take a stroll through the streets of Chapel Hill and Carrboro and through the UNC campus for a 4 mile walk to support hunger relief.

During last years CROP Hunger Walk, folks in our community raised $47,000 to help relieve hunger locally and internationally.

Sign up or donate for Crop Walk 2012 this Sunday.

Did you know that it only take $75 to feed a family of 5 for a month? Imagine how many people we could feed if, together, we raised $50,000. Put together a group of friends or co-workers and go for a walk to stop hunger.

Entertainment and activities will be provided prior to the walk and snacks will be available afterwards. Also make a bid during the silent auction during registration. You can bid on one of many gift certificates from local restaurants and a pottery class from Good Earth Pottery and Garden.

How does the CROP Hunger Walk work?

Anyone who wants to contribute their time can walk. Many Carrboro and Chapel Hill area religious communities, businesses, schools, non-profit agencies, and other organizations form groups of walkers. Each group has one or more volunteer “recruiters” who help recruit walkers. Participants can walk as part of a group or as individuals. Walkers invite others to sponsor them with donations prior to the walk.

Who benefits?

The Chapel Hill/Carrboro CROP Hunger Walk supports hunger relief efforts globally and locally. Church World Service, established in 1946, distributes 75% of the money to hunger programs, refugees, disaster relief, and self- help projects in more than 80 countries.

The remaining 25% stays in Carrboro and Chapel Hill to support the Inter-Faith Council‘s food programs. During the past 25 years, over $1 million has been raised by the Chapel Hill/Carrboro CROP Hunger Walk to support hunger relief efforts.

The Details

Even if you don’t have time raise donations, sponsor yourself (or someone else) and come out on Sunday.

When: Sunday, March 25th, Registration begins at 1:30 and the CROP Walk begins at 2:30 pm.

Where: Come to the Carrboro Town Commons

For more information: Call the Inter-Faith Council For Social Services at (919) 929-6380.

Help make sure that fewer people go to bed hungry. Go for a walk!

Thanks,

Jack