The County Podcast and Blog

A Night at the Mustang Drive-in

Been to a drive-in movie theatre lately?  If not -- surprise, surprise -- some are reopening, others are expanding, and a handful are better and more popular than they ever were in their earlier years. That certainly applies to Prince Edward County's Mustang Drive-in. Picton-based illustrator extraordinaire, Carl Wiens, recently took his family for an evening of movies under the stars at the Mustang on County Road 1. Naturally, he brought his sketchbook along and scribbled down some notes about the experience. From Carl's blog, here's the end result: 

   

New County Economic Development Website Targets Investors

Prince Edward County's Economic Development office has launched a new multimedia website, BuildANewLife.ca, aiming to attract potential investors by allowing them to experience what it's like to work and live in the County. Featured content includes videos and podcasts, along with links to the County's own YouTube channel, Facebook and Flickr photography sites. You can visit the new website here.   

Celebrating French Canadian Music and Cuisine in the County

Rehearsals are in full swing for Les Chansons de Chez Nous, a French Canadian concert and luncheon scheduled for Sunday afternoon, June 8th, at the Waring House Restaurant & Inn in Picton. The event's co-producer and performer is well-known County entertainer Jeanette Arsenault (centre). Vocalists also include Jeanette's new business partner and co-producer, Micheline Lortie (right), and Monique Michaud (left). The threesome will be accompanied musically by County favourites Zeke Mazurek and Tom Leighton. For ticket information, call the Waring House at 613-476-7492. More details about Les Chansons de Chez are available by calling Les Productions Mija at 613-476-7945 or 613-399-3514.

To listen to Janet Davies interview Jeanette Arsenault and Micheline Lortie, and also to hear a song by Jeanette and Micheline, please click here:

or download the MP3 file here

Other County Websites or Blogs You Should Visit -- #3

Bill Stearman is a teacher and shepherd who operates the Willow Garden Shetland Sheep Farm on Salem Road in Consecon. Bill's primary focus is to breed the best Shetlands possible, and both his photo blog and website deliver everything you'd ever want to know about his Shetland flock. These spring days, Bill has his hands full tending to all the new-born lambs. The variety of colours and distinctive markings is a remarkable sight.

Other County Websites or Blogs You Should Visit -- #2

After a couple of intensive years of planning and construction, the Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company expects to begin producing hand-made goat and sheep milk cheeses by the end of March at its innovative 20-acre facility on the eastern ridge of Prince Edward County. A grand opening to the public is planned for early May. Designed as an advanced sustainable enterprise, Fifth Town aims to be platinum-accredited under the LEED Canada Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Program.

Petra Cooper is founder and CEO of Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company. We first interviewed Petra for the County Podcast in January, 2006 during her early days of planning. We hope to record an update interview with Petra in April.

UPDATE: The Fifth Town retail store is now scheduled to open June 6th.

To listen to the archive interview click here:

or download the MP3 file here

Other County Blogs You Should Visit --#1

One of the many "escape artists" in Prince Edward County is Carl Wiens, a freelance illustrator who happily moved from Toronto to Picton with his wife and young family. Instead of losing contact with his big city clients, computer technology and a high-speed Internet connection have allowed him to grow his national and international business, while picking up a healthy amount of local design work as well.

Some of Carl's major clients include The New York Times, Esquire, The Wall Street Journal, Time, Forbes, Fast Company, BusinessWeek, Macleans, Cottage Life and Today's Parent.

You can view Carl's blog here. A great example of his humorous and whimsical illustration style is The Man's Underwear Repair Kit, to be published in late April by Running Press. And don't miss his illustrated representation of Birdhouse City, a colourful collection of over 100 birdhouses located at the base of Macaulay Mountain, a conservation area on the outskirts of Picton. 

 

Waiting to Welcome You

I'm certainly not the only one who believes that Jeanette Arsenault's singing and songwriting abilities continue to improve and impress with the passage of time. Here's Jeanette's new slide show version of her lovely song about Prince Edward County, Waiting to Welcome You. Enjoy.

The 100-mile County diet

The July/August issue of Christine Renaud's terrific upfront magazine is now available for you to pick up (free!) at many locations around the County. You can also access it online here. The lineup in this issue includes a timely story about the accelerating public interest in sourcing and eating locally grown food. As Christine says in her introduction:

Little did Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon know that their adventure in local eating would prompt a near cult of followers to take up the same crazy plan. The two writers from British Columbia decided to conduct an experiment: eat only foods obtainable within 100 miles of their home for one year. They wrote a book and since then - actually even before the book, as many were reading the couple's online blog - people all over the country and beyond are trying their own similar experiments. If you're wondering why? Or how? Or want to try it but don't know where to start? We've got a few answers. They may or may not persuade you, but they may well alter how you think about food.

You'll enjoy reading about Christine's quest to begin eating only foods grown and obtainable within 100 miles of Prince Edward County. You may also enjoy listening to a podcast interview with Alisa Smith and J. B. MacKinnon which is available on their publisher's website.

Full disclosure: I produce all of the author interview podcasts for Random House of Canada. You can find all of the author podcasts listed here.

The County's artists want to meet you

High on the list of the most popular events in Prince Edward County is the annual Studio & Gallery Tour, held in late September. But there's no need to wait till then to visit some of the artist studios. Check out the updated tour website and you'll find details on all of this year's featured artists and galleries. While you're doing that, you can listen to an audio tour preview including comments from the tour organizers and some of the artists. The audio is introduced by renowned Bloomfield potter and porcelain artist Peta Hall, one of the original founders of the Studio & Gallery Tour.

Click here to listen 

Enjoying the Bounty of the County

Were you one of the lucky ones able to tickle your tastebuds at the first annual  Harvestin' the County Lunch in Bloomfield on August 22? With the road closed to traffic, tables set up along the street and exhibitor stalls lining the curbs, close to 400 people gathered for a three-hour lunch featuring delicious 100% County fare. M-m-m-m, that was good eatin'.

Harvestin' the County is a new program designed to promote the many benefits of buying and eating locally grown food, and to show appreciation to the County's farmers and agricultural community.

With introductions by Economic Development Officer Dan Taylor and Taste the County's Rebecca LeHeup-Bucknell, here's an audio snapshot from this year's Harvestin' the County Lunch.

Click here to listen to the podcast: