Stephen Mark Rainey's Blog, page 128

Lost Places

One of the buildings at the old Dan River Mills facility, Danville, VA, now falling to ruinThere are many such locations in southern Virginia: once-thriving farms and factories, formerly affluent neighborhoods, opulent southern colonial mansions now fallen to ruin. A geocaching run through Danville and surrounding Pittsylvania County took me to quite a few of them today. Last night, I rode up to Martinsville and spent a very pleasant, very relaxing evening with Mum, reminiscing on our many good times over the years, particularly down in Georgia at her parents'. This morning, I headed over to Danville to hunt yet more caches that have popped up in the vicinity in the past month or so. I found a handful of entertaining hides, had a fabulous (and half-price) lunch at Tokyo Grill (which, for sushi, has become quite a favorite of mine — see some of my blogs about Danville), and then met my friend Audra and her son, Zachary, for a caching expedition through northern Pittsylvania County. After 80-degree weather yesterday, it was back to winter today, with cold, biting winds and occasional rain, but this deterred us none at all; fortunately, the rain tapered off and remained scarce for most of the afternoon.


Our hunt led us to a few truly forgotten, lost places that make one wonder just what might have transpired over the years. One of the sites we found had, at one time, apparently been a thriving neighborhood, with a scenic lake, a tennis court, and lord knows what other amenities; now it's an overgrown wilderness, home only to the local wildlife. The most intriguing of our stops was a once-expansive homestead, now completely overtaken by the forest. The main house is a collapsed ruin, the barn and outbuildings barely peeking out through dense barriers of trees. Inside one of the old structures, we came upon the decomposing head of an old doll nailed to the wall, which gave poor Audra a bit of a start — at least, that's what I gathered from her nervous, near-hysterical laughter upon her discovery of the thing. Our target was an old well, some fifty feet deep; a potentially treacherous place to hide a cache, yes, but we were smart — we let Zachary do the dirty work. (Audra wasn't too worried; if she lost him, she's still got another young 'un back home.)

An added bonus was stopping off to chat briefly with the owner of several of the coolest caches in Danville, Mr. Klaussinator his own self, as well as his daughter, who, in geocaching circles, goes by the name Sunpoppy. At the end of the day, we had added another ten or so caches to our respective totals; today was more about quality than quantity, and I'd say we certainly got it.

Till the next outing....

Audra (a.k.a. Homestyle) heading out to the tennis court of the dead The old railroad bridge over the Dan River, now a part of the Riverwalk Trail Geese double-parked on the Riverwalk; and they had the nerve to honk at me. Old farmhouse overtaken by the woods. I'm pretty sure I heard unearthly voices whispering
horrible nothings somewhere in the darkness. Looking down the old well. Yep, there's a cache in there. Old dude in the front yard of the even older ruins A much-needed rest stop. I said REST stop, not pit stop. Yes, gracious. Young Zachary does have his ways of dealing with an unruly mum.

Of Caches and Unpaid Electric Bills

It's been a good week for first-to-finds. Got 20 last Sunday ("Cache au Vin," March 10), one on Wednesday (My First Cache Challenge, GC47FM4), and one yesterday (366 Days, GC47GX9). No first-to-finds today, but after work I did get out to Hagan Stone Park, down near Pleasant Garden, for a little caching and hiking. Not a big hike, but a pleasant one along the Ridge Trail, which is probably my favorite of the many out there. Near its beginning, the trail takes you through a tunnel of pines that extends as far as the eye can see — beautiful in any season, as you can see in the pic with the old dude to the left. And, as you may deduce from the photo above, someone in the great outdoors must have forgotten to pay their electric bill. I couldn't get that blasted bulb to turn on no matter what I did. At least I managed to sign the log. (That there is one of many fun geocaches in the park.)

Maybe it's because it's the Ides of March, but I have to wonder whether someone up and broke the internet today. The work computer, my phone, my home computer, all slower than corn-starched crap — when they're working at all. My phone wound down to a dead halt two or three times today, necessitating resets. I half-suspect Droolie, or perhaps even Frazier, since both of them are known to type unwholesome things on my computer when I'm not looking. Undoing their work can surely be a chore. Above and beyond that, technology just sucks bilge water sometimes, and I so despise that everything we do has become so dependent on it. I have embraced it almost too enthusiastically; too many changes too damned fast, too many evil minds throwing monkey wrenches into the works. Lord, sometimes I long for the days of a good ol' monkey wrench. The better to chuck it at someone, my dear.

I am done.

Cache au Vin

Cranky old reptile — not looking too cranky — and very nice ladyCouldn't have paid for a nicer weekend for outdoor activities, so outdoor activities it was. Yesterday, the right lovely Ms. Brugger and I headed westward toward the Yadkin Valley, bound for Laurel Gray and Raffaldini Vineyards. Brugger and I both prefer dry reds, and Laurel Gray currently offers only two — Windsor, a Meritage-style blend of four estate-grown French vinifera grapes; and Scarlet Mountain, an off-dry blend of four Bordeaux grapes — but they're both so frippin' excellent that anything else would likely be superfluous. The winery itself is set in a scenic corner of Yadkin County, and the building features a large veranda from which one can sit comfortably and view the vineyards, a picturesque pond, and a bunch of rocks wherein lurks the geocache ("Grape City," GC1B8DX, which I found on an earlier expedition out this way). Was there additional caching on our way out west? Hell yes, there was caching on our way out west; what kind of question is that?
The view from the veranda at Laurel Gray VineyardsAfter a couple of delicious glasses of wine at Laurel Gray, we moved on to Raffaldini, only five miles to the northwest, which is a much larger and more ambitious establishment. The winery is patterned after a Tuscan villa, and, as Ms. B. aptly observed, if you squint just right, you might get the feeling you're actually in western Italy. From the elevated terrace, you can see for countless miles, the crests of the Blue Ridge Mountains extending from horizon to horizon. Raffaldini's current list features about a dozen wines, including several dry reds that are uniformly excellent. Their Bello Misto — a blend of Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache, and Petit Verdot — is a long-time favorite of mine, and their Sangiovese Riserva proved to be superb. They also make a delicious Montepulciano, but it's currently sold out.
The Villa at Raffaldini Vineyards (photo from their website) Cupdaisy and Robgso signing the
log at one of many caches found
today. Why do suppose Cupdaisy
is holding that milk jug?
After an enjoyable afternoon at Raffaldini, we returned to the Piedmont Triad and met our friends, Terry and Beth Nelson, for a spot of dinner at Bill's Pizza Pub in Oak Ridge. Killer good pizza, this place has. Before retiring last night, I noticed that 26 new geocaches had been published down in the Grandover/Guilford Tech area, not too far away....

This morning, it was up early — way too early, since we lost a freaking hour to Daylight Saving Time — and a day on the caching trail with Rob Isenhour (a.k.a. Robgso) and Debbie Shoffner (a.k.a. Cupdaisy). We targeted those 26 new ones, and dang if we didn't get first to find on 20 of them. Most were none too difficult, but there were a couple that offered enjoyable physical challenges (tree climbing — woo hoo!). Afterward, a tolerable Mexican lunch at San Luis on High Point Road, and then a bit of maintenance on one of Cupdaisy's older caches. At the end of it all, we spent nearly an hour out in my driveway shooting the shit and swapping caching stories... which, you might be shocked to learn, geocachers are wont to do.

And that, I expect, will be the extent of our winery visitations... until we go visit more wineries. There are plenty of good ones in the area to choose from.

'Tis all.

Binding Time Book Signing

That's right, a dingy-dang book signing, on Friday, March 22, 2013, 3:00–5:00 PM, at Binding Time Cafe & Bookstore, 1115 Spruce Street, Martinsville, Virginia 24112. Stop in, meet the old man, and check out his latest novel, The Monarchs , among others. Binding Time is a cozy cafe that specializes in delicious food — and a fine selection of books. If you're in the area, do come round for a pleasant... and very likely frightening... afternoon in Martinsville! And for you geocachers out there.... Martinsville has a crapload of caches just waiting for you. I should know — I put a fair mess of them out there.

Hope to see you.

It Is NOT the "Lesbo" Coven

Author/retired college professor Anthony Servante gives The Lebo Coven the critical treatment in the latest installment of his blog, Servante of Darkness . Here's a little teaser:

"As I’ve eagerly awaited the paperback version of Blue Devil Island to arrive in the mail, I got to reading The Lebo Coven — 'a traditional, family-centered supernatural tale,' as Rainey calls it. So, even though I had (and still do) planned to review the historically based horror novel, Blue Devil Island , I jumped the gun a bit to review the latter work, and I'm glad I did...."

See why by heading over here: Servante on The Lebo Coven.

Also on the horror writing front, I'm planning to have a book signing in Martinsville (VA) at Binding Time cafe and bookstore, tentatively planned for Friday, March 22, from 3:00–5:00 PM. Binding Time is a fabulous little place — a cafe-slash-bookstore with excellent food and an intimate atmosphere. Check 'em out on Facebook too: www.facebook.com/BindingTime. If you're in the vicinity and can make it in, please do. I'll have copies of The Monarchs , Blue Devil Island , Other Gods , and The Gaki . I'll post an update when things are set in stone.

Read.

Just a Travelin', Cachin' Con Man

Where the most memorable moments of most horror/fantasy/science fiction conventions actually take place.Stellarcon 37 is over and done — a reasonably successful weekend for me, with a couple of entertaining panels, a few books devalued with my signature, and a bunch of geocaches logged. (Alas, I neglected to take any photographs this year, candid, incriminating, horrifying, or otherwise.) On Friday evening, Ms B and I headed over to the Greensboro-High Point Airport Marriott Hotel, checked in at the con, and then headed straight back out to procure a first-class, grade-A, truly fabulous Japanese dinner at Little Tokyo in High Point (their bulgogi roll made my eyes roll back in my head, and I've not been able to see straight since). A couple of panels at the con followed, along with some pleasant, relaxing time with Ms Kimberly at the hotel bar. Saturday, I returned, sans girlfriend, for another panel and a book signing, and then I headed out for what really makes a convention a convention — a geocaching run. Since I've pretty well cleaned up the airport area, I headed into High Point proper and successfully hunted several, including one that has eluded me on several previous occasions.

A definite highlight of the con was getting to hang out with fellow writers/geocachers Andi Newton and Chad Bowser. We met for the first time at Stellarcon last year, and this time around we found several moments to swap caching and tale-telling tales. They live over in Kernersville, which Kimberly and I fairly regularly infiltrate (Bistro B in K'ville is one of our favorite places in the world), so we're hoping to get together to scheme, plot, bamboozle, commiserate, and cache in the near future.
A right nice picture of my
right nice Mum
It was nothing if not a well-traveled weekend. Today, I needed to head up to Martinsville to help Mum with some pressing financial matters, so I rousted myself at the crack of dawn and, hoping to grab several new caches, made the trip in very roundabout fashion: first, up through Madison, NC; then up to Stuart, VA; over to Fairystone Park, VA; and finally into Martinsville. I did manage first-to-find on a couple of them, and, quite by chance, I ran into my friend Ed Kuykendall (a.k.a. Kuykenew) on the caching trail (we had shared first-to-find honors on a new night cache in Martinsville last weekend). Before heading home, I detoured through Eden to grab a new puzzle cache. That done, it was back to Greensboro to see how much of my house Droolie had left me.

It wasn't completely in shambles. Not completely. But the team from Designs by Droolie® had definitely given the place a thorough once-over.

That is all.

It Is Happening Again... Stellarcon 37

Stellarcon 37 is taking place this weekend at the Greensboro-High Point Marriott Airport hotel. I’ll be on a few panels, signing books, and raising a general ruckus. Panel schedule as follows:

Friday, March 1
“Historical Horror Through the Ages”
8:00 PM – 9:00 PM

“Blood, Love, and Vampires: A Retrospective”
11:00 PM – 12:00 AM

Saturday, March 2
“Editors — How Do They Work?”
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Ms. B. and I will be skulking around the premises at various times, so watch your back. Seriously.

Geocaching Mecca

Cloven hoof prints. Deer path or Devil's
Tramping Ground?
If you visit this blog, like, ever, you'll know I am a fairly rabid geocacher. I've been at this little activity for just over five years and have claimed about 5,600 caches to date. As you might imagine, most of the cache logs within a reasonable distance of home already bear my signature, so when new caches pop up, I'm pretty much chomping at the bit to go after them. When I started in 2008, only a scant few caches had been hidden in Danville, VA, and I had claimed the lot of them in just a couple of visits. However, over the years, as more geocachers have become active in the area, Danville has become a veritable geocaching Mecca, full of clever, ingenious, and memorable hides, placed by individuals bearing such intriguing aliases as Klaussinator, Allofdem, JJ&MJ, Spring1, Esddan, Djnpd, Oneeyedwillie79, keithandlaura, and many more. I keep cleaning out Danville, and they keep putting out new ones, bringing me back time and time again... and I love every minute of it. Danville's not a terribly big town, but it's a picturesque place with a rich history, much of which you naturally discover as you go about hunting the hides around the community. With miles upon miles of trails in Angler's Park, Dan Daniel Park, Ballou Park, and the Riverwalk, there's no shortage of hiking and/or biking, and the plentiful hides in the town proper — as well as out in Pittsylvania County — have led me to discover some fun little restaurants and wine bars, such as The Corner Cafe, Tokyo Grill, and Jake's on Main.

Today started out cold and rainy as all get-out, but as I had to head up to Mum's in Martinsville, I detoured through Danville to pick up yet more caches I needed (and left myself enough for another trip or two). I snagged several — in town and at Dan Daniel Park — but the highlight of the outing was surely lunch at Tokyo Grill. I've eaten there a number of times, but today I tried their chirashi for the first time, and, oh lordy, it was so good I friggin' hollered. I like sushi almost as much as caching, and while Tokyo Grill generally does it right, the chirashi they did all kinds of right.

Whether or not you're a geocacher (if not, you have my sympathies), hie thee on over to Danville to sample the wares of all varieties. Tell 'em Damned Rodan sent you.
Riverwalk Rest Area. No overnight parking allowed. Lunch at Tokyo Grill. All kinds of hollering is definitely allowed.

THE MONARCHS... Intelligently Written, Character Driven, and Bloody

Hey, looky looky what reviewer TT Zuma at Horrorworld.org said about my latest:

"I would recommend The Monarchs to anyone who enjoys their horror intelligently written, character driven, and bloody. Without giving too much away, I can say that The Monarchs has one of the most exciting endings to a novel that I’ve read in the last year. You really shouldn’t pass this one by."

I'll buy that for a dollar! (You can actually get The Monarchs on your Kindle or Nook for little more than that, and the trade paperback is currently only twelve bucks at both Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.)

Read the entire review at Horrorworld.org, and then hasten yourself over to one vendor or another to check out the novel. It'll do the most terrible things to your innards, for god's sake, and that don't sell you, I don't know what will.

The Caching Dead

Today turned out to be chilly and blustery but sunny, so what better idea than to go out to the wilds of Caswell County to hunt "The Caching Dead" (GC44TRM) with some fellow geocachers? In the early afternoon, I met up with Homestyle (a.k.a. Audra); her son, Homekid (a.k.a. Zachary); Ithink314 (a.k.a. Bob); and Geocachere (a.k.a. Karen) to brave the frigid winds and hordes of living dead. First order of business was to claim first-to-find honors on a brand new cache in the area; then it was off to explore the county's darkest corners where the deer and the undead play. Some of the settings we encountered were a creepy, abandoned hatchery; a creepy, abandoned prison; a creepy, abandoned community center; and some creepy, perhaps not-quite-abandoned woods. Sights of interest included several skulls nailed to walls and hanging in trees, a spent teargas canister, and a severed hand (also dangling from a tree). Certain of our party seemed to be overcome by the zombie fever, for — depending on whom you asked — they could be described as ordinary-looking people, misshapen monsters, people who look like they're in a trance, and creatures that look like people but behave like animals (see accompanying photographic proof). We signed our logs as "Team Deathrealm," after the title of the magazine that you-know-who edited all those many years ago (it seemed apt enough). "The Caching Dead" itself is the brainchild of my semi-regular caching partner Rtmlee (a.k.a. Robbin), and it earns an easy favorite point from the old man.

At the end of it all, we hied ourselves to a quaint little community called Milton, just this side of the Virginia state line, and an equally quaint establishment called Aunt Millie's, where we took respite from the coming night and downed some tasty beer and vittles. Afterward, we went our separate ways, and I can only hope the surviving members of our party actually survived.

At some future time, I'll let you know whether I did.
The abandoned hatchery, where we first got the sense that something might be a bit off. And speaking of a bit off.... [image error] Clearly, nothing to see here... or is there? Yeah, they're dead, they're all messed up. People who acted as if they were in a kind of trance were killing and eating their victims....