Basecamp Dispatch: On Boiled Peanuts

This week, we’re smack-dab in the middle of a heat advisory. The UV index is high. The temperatures are, too. The heat index pushes the “feels like” temps into the triple digits.

But my favorite roadside stand is selling boiled peanuts.

Chester’s is a local icon, and once you’ve had a taste of his nuts (get your mind out of the gutter), all others will seem subpar. It’s the first little hint that fall is coming, and coming fast, even though the weather still stubbornly says it’s summer.

The birds were quiet on Penny’s walk this morning. The heat already felt like a wet wool blanket, even though it was only 8:00.

It’s odd for the birds not to be singing at that hour. Maybe the heat is too much for them, too.

But the cicadas were screaming, their cries rolling like waves from tree to tree through the neighborhood.

I made another big batch of pickles this week. Hopefully, this is the last one. Emotionally, I’m done. I think the cucumber vines are, too.

I honestly believe that if someone offers you a jar of homemade pickles, that person must really love you. According to my extremely questionable accounting skills, once I factor in ingredients, supplies, and my professional hourly rate, each jar of bread-and-butter pickles costs approximately $73.

My writing life takes me into the kitchen this week. I’m working on an article for BLADE magazine about Santoku knives, which means I have a very good excuse to put some knives through their paces.

They are sweet knives. So far, they’ve helped with pickle processing and meal prep. There really is something about using a top-quality knife that you don’t fully appreciate until you’ve used one.

And considering how much time I spend in the kitchen, I’m starting to think my knife drawer needs a few upgrades.

I went to my county’s meeting on Chronic Wasting Disease this week. Someone asked about the money North Carolina spends on CWD testing each year.

The Wildlife Commission biologist at the meeting gave a figure of $4.6 million. When I went looking for the number afterward, I found a 2024-25 report showing $1.64 million in CWD surveillance costs. I still don’t know what accounts for the difference.

What I do know is that the response to the question was essentially, “Don’t worry. It’s hunter dollars.”

I’m a hunter. That’s why I’m worried.

I want to know where the money is going, what we’re getting for it, and whether it’s the best use of our conservation dollars.

The fall garden is underway. Sort of.

I started the broccoli and cabbage indoors over the weekend. Carrots and kohlrabi seeds will go directly into the old squash beds sometime this week.

The cucumber vines are giving up, which means it’s time to clear the wreckage and make way for kale and cauliflower.

Meanwhile, the okra is still going strong. It’s like it thrives on the heat and humidity while the rest of the world withers. It’s just out there laughing as the rest of the garden fights a losing battle to stay green.

I’ll see y’all back here next Tuesday. Until then, stay cool and drink lots of water, especially when you venture outside.