Hole In The Donut Travels

Juan Mann is proof positive that one man (Mann?) can make a difference. I just love his video, called “Free Hugs.” It’s short, but carries a powerful message. Take just a couple of minutes to watch it. It will make your day.

It seems everyone wants a share of the gourmet coffee market these days. Dunkin’ Donuts, which has for years dominated the blue-collar coffee market, is planning to open 15,000 new stores by 2016 in an effort to attract the more upscale, white-collar market of Starbucks. Starting this year, all 14,000 of the McDonalds in the [...]

Exploring the back roads of Hatteras Island in search of old homes that have weathered scores of hurricanes and provided shelter for generations of fishermen is one of the many delights of any visit to the Outer Banks. The Old Gray House, tucked into the woods just off the main road in the tiny village [...]

For such a small city, Sarasota has a wealth of culture that never ceases to amaze me. The latest intriguing event celebrates the 50th anniversary of the birth of Bossa Nova music with a concert by Brazilian band O Som Do Jazz. The performance will feature selections from the group’s new CD release “Infinita Bossa,” [...]

I thought I knew everything about the Outer Banks. Every nook, every cranny, every activity that goes on. But this afternoon, I found out differently. There’s something unusual going on right under our noses, and only those who have been initiated into the new craze of geocaching are aware of it. My friend, G.W. Meadows, [...]

Once I made the decision to retire from real estate and leave the Outer Banks of North Carolina, it remained to decide where I would relocate. I made a list of the things that were important to me:

Warm year-round climate
Location on or near the ocean
Access to cultural amenities
Safe environment, low crime rate
A thriving [...]

When most people think of the Outer Banks of North Carolina, what comes to mind are the lighthouses, the first flight of the Wright Brothers in Kitty Hawk, and the miles of beaches. These popular tourist attractions are worth a visit, but there is so much more to the Outer Banks that the average person [...]

Back in the late-80’s, just as the cold war was coming to an end, my Rotary Club participated in a program called “Soviets Meet Middle America,” sponsored by the Center for US-USSR Initiatives and the Soviet Peace Committee. The mission of the program was to bring American and Soviet citizens together “around the kitchen table” [...]

Since this may be the very last time I ever come to the Outer Banks, I have taken a little time off from my business obligations to visit some of the more well-known tourist sites over the past two weeks. My original intention was to provide a photo tour of the Outer Banks on this [...]

Since arriving on the Outer Banks On April 30th I have been enjoying fun-filled days and nights:

I had severe allergic reaction to the pollen dust, resulting in a sore throat that morphed into a full blown sinus infection.
My friends all insisted that the weather was warm so I arrived with only short sleeved shirts and [...]