Even on island time, daily activities can keep us on the move.
In fact, occasionally there is barely time for a quick smile and a wave to our neighbors. “From the Porch” is a page to catch up on some interesting news that we would like to share with our neighbors.
Grand Bay Court Cookbook 2022
Looking for a new recipe? This past winter some of our neighbors contributed to a new Grand Bay Court Cookbook. There are recipes for Appetizers, Main Courses, Sides, and Desserts. Check it out with the link to the PDF version. If you click on any of the recipes in the Table of Contents you will immediately go to that page.
Printing a hard copy can be pricey but if you are interested in having it printed, a hard copy that is spiral bound with only a color cover is $10.00 at Staples. The complete color version, pre-tax is about $17.00. You can take the PDF to Staples or let me know if you would like me to place your order.
Signs of the Season
If you haven’t had a chance yet to spend any time at Grand Bay Court you will be happy to know that many of your neighbors have been keeping up the appearance. Fresh coats of paint, refurbished decks, and manicured gardens are just a few of the many improvements that keep Grand Bay Court looking young and appealing. Mary Engle works hard at creating a welcoming garden in front of her home. Below is a link to a short video with recent pictures that are sure to make you proud that you are part of this community.
![IMG_9116[1]](https://grandbaycourt.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/img_91161.jpg?w=390&h=292)
Look up
Last year we noticed several flocks of Ibis flying directly across the pond and Grand Bay Court. Their routine has changed this year and you can usually see these birds early in the morning and generally just before dusk. Here is a link that describes how the White Ibis population exploded in Virginia. The Center for Conservation Biology
Last but not least. . . .
With each update of the website I generally ask for contributions or suggestions for something you might like to add. Currently I am putting together an historical time line of Grand Bay Court. It is an overview of how Grand Bay Court evolved as a community and an acknowledgement of the contributions made to our community by the early homeowners. Interested? Please contact me with any pictures, memories, or any other content that you would like to share.
In the meantime, Karen Duffy suggested a Grand Bay Court Cook Book. For those of you who have read this far down on the page, PLEASE drop me a note and perhaps a recipe or two that you would like to share.
Need a link?
You might enjoy the following link. It is packed with several resources and general information about Chincoteague.
Remembering President George H.W. Bush
There was a wonderful article about former president George H.W. Bush published in the Salisbury Daily Times on December 5, 2018. I am including a link to the article that includes a gallery of pictures, but I thought you might enjoy reading a copy of the article that is pasted below.
President George H.W. Bush and the circus elephant: Eastern Shore local lore
Hayley Harding | Salisbury Daily Times |
George Herbert Walker Bush, former president of the United States who got the country through the end of the cold war, died Friday evening. He was 94.
He is best known for his political career, spanning multiple roles in the White House and across the world, but he started his career as a member of the U.S. Navy during World War II. Commissioned as an ensign on June 9, 1943 at just shy of the age of 19, he was the youngest naval aviator at the time.
Bush was stationed at Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for the first two months and NAS Norfolk, Virginia, from August to September. He was assigned to George Herbert Walker Bush, former president of the United States who got the country through the end of the cold war, died Friday evening. He was 94.
He is best known for his political career, spanning multiple roles in the White House and across the world, but he started his career as a member of the U.S. Navy during World War II. Commissioned as an ensign on June 9, 1943 at just shy of the age of 19, he was the youngest naval aviator at the time. Torpedo Squadron (YT-51) and was briefly stationed at the Chincoteague Naval Auxiliary Air Station on Wallops Main Base from October to December 1943.
“Chincoteague is a very quaint little oyster town — very small and populated by colorful characters,” Bush wrote in a letter home to his family. “It is great sport to go speeding down at about 20′ and scare the fisherman who are out a-digging’ for ersters’ (they really pronounce ’em like that).”
Oysters, the “Chinco” base and bad Navy food
Bush details trips with friends up to Pocomoke, where he ate an “all oyster dinner.” He described Pocomoke and Salisbury as the main liberty towns, although he wrote in the letters he planned “to make every effort to get up to N.Y. some weekend soon.”
The base, which is now the home of NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility where copies of Bush’s letters can be seen, was small, informal and friendly, and he loved it.
“No Ties, caps or salutes,” Bush wrote. “Just fly and sleep. It is a real healthy life except for the miserable food.”
The man who would go on to become the country’s 41st president affectionately referred to the base as “Chinco.” He wrote of sharing a room with the other officers in a room with beds, a stove in the middle and outdoor toilets. There was hot water, however, and Bush wrote that “all in all it is OK.”
It surpassed his time in Norfolk, he wrote. He appreciated the oysters, calling them the best in the world, and he especially liked that “no one cares what you do as long as you appear for flights.” He compared the size of Chincoteague to Kennebunkport, Maine, where his grandfather had an estate.
The downside, however, was the “unbelievably bad” Navy food. He refers to it as “the worst” he’d ever seen and complains only about that over the course of a few letters.
“Cold lima greasy beans,” Bush wrote. “We pay $.20 a week, but it is not even worth that. It’s just terrible and always has been here.”
In one letter, he wrote to his father of hitting a “vicious slipstream” as he came in for a landing, sending him and his plane careening and wrecking the plane. He said he was never scared and wouldn’t be in any trouble, although he was concerned it might cause his mother to “do some unnecessary worrying.”
He signed his letters as “Poppy,” a childhood nickname.
Causing an elephant to run loose in Crisfield over a lady
Bush’s time on Delmarva wasn’t only food and flights. One of his more notable tales came in 1943 when the future president started a circus stampede while trying to impress a young lady with his plane.
An elephant eventually ended up in the backyard of a resident.
Ocean City resident Wayne Cannon recalled the story on Facebook:
“He buzzed in low over her house, on Sackertown Road, in his plane several times. There was a circus playing in town, in a field next to her house, and the plane created panic among the circus animals and a number of them took off around Crisfield. One woman called the Mayor of Crisfield to report an elephant in her backyard.”
Bush was reprimanded by the Navy for the incident, but he was one many serviceman who would come up by the busload for Friday night dances held at Camp Somerset in Westover, according to Elaine Hoffman, who wrote the article.
Landscaping Suggestions – Reposting this great resource
Joyce Giuliani submitted a post for landscaping suggestions with a hyperlink to a great resource. Thank you Joyce!
Suggestion for your Landscaping
Would you like to spruce up your area outside your Grand Bay retreat? Maybe you’re not a gardener and have no idea what to plant. Take a look at the link below to see what plants, shrubs, trees and vines are native to the Eastern Shore. By planting Virginia native plants you will attract birds and butterflies, many of which stop by Chincoteague on their migratory paths. So add a little beauty to enjoy at your home as you enjoy all the summer has to offer in Chincoteague. Plant Virginia Natives: Native Plants for Virginia-Eastern Shore
Grand Bay Court 