Hello from Cabin 152 at the Tryon International equestrian center on the North Carolina/South Carolina border. It’s Monday. Labor Day. And I’ve just spent the last few days attending and covering the annual Earl Scruggs Music Festival. I’m exhausted, but the gratitude remains.  

Each Thursday evening at 8 p.m. through Aug. 7, Lake Junaluska will feature a family-friendly storyteller and music at the fire pit just below Shackleford Hall. Bring a chair or blanket and sit on the hillside. Afterward, enjoy s’mores under the stars. This event is free. 

The second annual “Great American Bash” will feature Americana/rock sensation The Brothers Gillespie and The Borrowed Band (country/western) on Saturday, July 5, in the parking lot of The Scotsman, located at 37 Church Street in downtown Waynesville. 

The full light of the summer solstice arrives and aligns with the vegetative growth period of mid-summer. Spring wildflowers have passed at all but the highest elevations, and only the earliest summer flowers have started to bloom.

The summer heat is here. Labor Commissioner Luke Farley and the N.C. Department of Labor are reminding employers and workers alike to take simple, effective steps to prevent heat-related illnesses on the job. 

I recently found my old CD album, the giant book of plastic sleeves that many of us tediously curated back in the day. Flipping through the pages, one by one, I smiled as I recalled memories — certain albums serving as soundtracks to highlights and lowlights of my teenage and early adult years. 

Sliding Rock, one of the most popular destinations in Pisgah National Forest, will open for the summer season beginning Memorial Day weekend, operating daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Labor Day. During that time, visitors can expect lifeguards on duty, restrooms open and staff on site to help ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all. 

Seasonal billing surprises can leave utility customers sweating summer spikes or shivering in anticipation of winter surges, but a budget billing program being considered by the Town of Waynesville would help keep those bills steady as a spring breeze. 

Anyone interested in enrolling their child in summer camp in Haywood County should take part in the Waynesville Parks & Recreation Department’s survey.

We are coming into peak tomato season in the Southeast and with it comes an abundance of tomatoes in the produce section at your local Ingles Markets as well as backyard gardens.