Bill Leslie's Carolina Conversations

Image of Hope

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 07:30:42 -0400

Hello friends! On this the 11th anniversary of of one of America's darkest hours I wanted to share with you an image of hope.

Charming Southport

Tue, 14 Aug 2012 09:08:10 -0400

The cat sleeps in the piano here. The ghost sleeps in the basement but likes to bump around on the third floor at night. Welcome to the Brunswick Inn, a charming bed & breakfast down by the water in Southport.

My trip to Charlotte

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 08:51:54 -0400

How did your weekend go? Any grand adventures? Please share.

Great pizza experience

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 10:34:42 -0400

Any restaurant plans you would recommend for this weekend?

Postcards from Blowing Rock

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 09:06:28 -0400

Blowing Rock was one of the top vote getters in our blog on North Carolina’s prettiest towns. It’s no wonder. I joked in a recent Facebook entry that Blowing Rock leads the country in flowers per capita. Have you been there lately? Well, let’s just say Blowing Rock is in full bloom this summer.

NC's Prettiest Towns

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 09:58:00 -0400

What are the five prettiest towns in North Carolina? What towns are easy on the eyes due to the lay of the land, beautiful trees, pleasing architecture and other factors?

Mountain crab cakes

Mon, 09 Jul 2012 10:33:58 -0400

Who says you have to go to Maryland to get great crab cakes? All you have to do is go to the mountains of North Carolina!

Mount Pilot Fun Girls

Thu, 05 Jul 2012 11:54:16 -0400

Next week on our Hometown Hello segment on the morning news we will be featuring NC communities mentioned in The Andy Griffith Show. One of those towns is Pilot Mountain north of Winston-Salem. It was referred to in the show as Mount Pilot.

Andy at Cameron Village

Wed, 04 Jul 2012 09:52:24 -0400

I never had the pleasure of meeting Andy Griffith. I tried to land a television interview with him back in the 1990's but things never worked out. I am always interested in hearing stories from people who actually had a brush with the famous actor. John Santa is a good friend and talented bluegrass musician and author in Chapel Hill. John sent me this account on how he met Andy Griffith in Raleigh many years ago. I thought you would enjoy it.

Remembering Andy

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 13:49:58 -0400

It’s a sad day in Mayberry. That’s what my former news boss John Harris wrote this morning in an email from Wisconsin where he works as a television station manager. John and I are both big fans of The Andy Griffith Show. We’re both hurting like a lot of you as a result of Andy Griffith’s death at age 86.

Visiting Yellowstone and the Tetons

Wed, 27 Jun 2012 08:21:42 -0400

If you visit the wildly diverse and massive Yellowstone National Park, it only makes sense to visit Grand Teton National Park just to the south.

Candy from Mars

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 07:54:15 -0400

With Mars in the news today I told a personal story on air that prompted the following email and my response. I thought this would make a fun Friday segment. Feel free to share your own childhood fables and fairytales.

Spring Break

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 09:07:25 -0400

How was your spring break? Did you go anywhere interesting? What were the highlights?

Embarrassing Moments

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 13:12:33 -0500

Would you be willing to share your most embarrassing moment? I am sure it would make an interesting blog topic.

Tasty Town

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:11:46 -0500

Have you seen Southern Living’s latest survey? The popular magazine is trying to find the tastiest town in the South. Raleigh was picked among ten Southern cities for outstanding cuisine. However, at last check Raleigh ranked 10th in the voting. Even Baltimore beats us. We only have a week to push Raleigh up in the poll. Can you believe the frontrunner – Lafayette, LA?

State Parks - Winter Getaways

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 11:50:19 -0500

What is your favorite state park? What about your favorite state park in the winter? The state came out this week with a report on some dramatic visitation increases at our state parks in 2011. I am not surprised considering the health of the economy. Many folks stayed close to home and saved money.

Mysterious Gift

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 11:38:38 -0500

Gift Recommendations

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 11:40:48 -0500

What is your favorite gift recommendation this year? Please share your ideas as we try to tie up our shopping for another holiday season.

Holly Springs

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 10:49:24 -0500

I’ll be heading down the road for a concert tomorrow evening. It’ll be a special Bill Leslie & Lorica Christmas concert at the Holly Springs Cultural Center at 7:30PM. Our band will be playing a blend of holiday and other tunes from my eight CDs including my newest A Midnight Clear – Christmas in Mitford. Even Dulcimer Dan Gilvary will join us for a couple of tunes along with the regular five members of our band. Please join us for special evening in Holly Springs at the lovely and intimate Cultural Center.

Gift of kind words

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 10:56:38 -0500

We have two winners in the Special Gift contest – moppie for the heartwarming tale of a father’s sensitive love during his daughter’s first Christmas as an awkward teenager and brian5beth for the story of a thoughtful daughter’s gift of stone, history and love. I will send copies of my new CD A Midnight Clear – Christmas in Mitford to the winners. I loved all of the stories. Thank you for sharing.

Special Gifts

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:49:13 -0500

What is the most meaningful gift you have ever received? I will give a gift to the person with the most interesting answer – a copy of my new CD “A Midnight Clear – Christmas in Mitford.” It includes a special cover designed by best-selling author Jan Karon who also chose the title for the album.

Where to Pop the Question?

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 11:46:59 -0500

Special thanks to Michael Perdue for today's blog topic. Michael is the Senate Page Coordinator at the General Assembly. One of his co-workers is looking for the perfect romantic place in NC to propose marriage.

Turkey Talk

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 11:53:06 -0500

I can laugh about it now. I was working at KULF Radio in Houston back in the late 1970’s. I was working as a newsman for the struggling AM station trying to rise above the surge of FM radio.

Holiday Heartwarmer

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 11:42:02 -0500

As we approach the holidays I would like to share a heartwarming story from my good friend Jim Crissman. Jim goes out of his way to show members of the military how much he appreciates their service. Sometimes the tables get turned as you are about to read. I would love to hear your comments on this story and feel free to share similar stories.

Parade romance

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 10:07:30 -0500

What is your favorite parade story? Please share. This story from Melody Adams may be hard to top. Parades can be fun, festive, nostalgic and in this case - romantic!

Most beautiful college

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 11:37:26 -0500

The WRAL Morning News team got into an interesting debate this morning on the most beautiful college campuses in America. Kelcey Carlson’s alma mater was ranked this year as the 17th most beautiful campus. The buildings at Indiana University were constructed out of native limestone. Kelcey pointed out the same material that makes IU so beautiful is also part of the charm and majesty of the Biltmore House in Asheville.

Did you know?

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 10:17:20 -0500

A fun blog topic today: DID YOU KNOW THAT…….. ?

NC Pronunciation Guide

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:07:41 -0500

Hello! As promised my NC Pronunciation Guide. I've been studying NC towns and places since I was a young lad growing up in Morganton. I hope this helps and that I don't attract too many rotten tomatoes.

Pronunciation Problems

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 11:44:04 -0400

Should there be an official commission that decides thorny pronunciation questions about North Carolina places and names? You know – towns such as Clinton, Kure Beach, Chalybeate Springs and counties such as Chowan, Forsyth and Tyrrell.

Visiting Glade Valley

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 12:10:20 -0400

It's an autumn ritual for my family - traveling to the NC mountains to enjoy the flaming foliage. Cindy, my son Will and his girlfriend Jessica Struby spent a recent weekend off the Blue Ridge Parkway in Alleghany County. We all got up early for the sunrise and the sleep deprivation was worth it. We hiked Bluff Mountain Trail in Doughton Park despite an annoying detour on the parkway.

Winners & Weekend

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:24:21 -0400

A blue ribbon goes to maadkowz for winning the Best Food at the Fair Contest. His detailed and descriptive culinary roadmap had my mouth watering. A big pat on the back to outlawtaxi and mmbrannan for their excellent lists of recommendations. You certainly deserve honorable mentioned. If maadkowz will send me his address I will send him a copy of my brand new CD A Midnight Clear – Christmas in Mitford. By the way, Kelcey opted for one of those hotdogs made of candy and I grabbed the traditional cotton candy and candied apple during our Tuesday visit.

State Fair food question

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 10:03:37 -0400

I’ll meet you at the State Fair today! Kelcey Carlson and I will be out there between 2:00 and 5:00 PM in the WRAL booth. You can pick up a copy of my new CD while I’m at the fair. A Midnight Clear – Christmas in Mitford was released on Monday. I will be signing copies at the WRAL booth today and Sunday.

Fall Colors

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 08:58:41 -0400

How many of you are traveling to the mountains this month to observe the turning of the leaves? Where will you go to see the spectacular colors? I would like to leave this blog open to comments on the best places to go.

Dinner Guests Winner

Wed, 05 Oct 2011 10:17:27 -0400

We loved all of your stories about five dinner guests. You made us laugh, think and cry. Thank you for sharing.

More Scotty tickets!

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 11:29:05 -0400

We’ve received lots of great stories about interesting people you’ve met recently. Thank you for sharing. The winning entry was armada08 for the touching stories that come out of meetings at the Rex Cancer Center. Armada08, please email me at bleslie@wral.com so we can get those Scott McCreery concert tickets to you. Congratulations!

Win Scotty Tickets!

Mon, 03 Oct 2011 08:28:44 -0400

We have some Scotty McCreery concert tickets to give away this week. We have some four packs to Scotty's Raleigh concert on Saturday.

Boot Camp Bill

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:48:52 -0400

What is your favorite exercise routine? What really works for you in terms of satisfaction and fitness? Feel free to share your stories.

Contest winner & mountains

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 10:49:31 -0400

Barbara Williams wins the Cellphone Photo Contest with her image of Mabry Milll on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Congratulations Barbara! I will send her a CD of her choice. If Barbara wants to wait a few weeks I have a new album coming out – "A Midnight Clear – Christmas in Mitford." I recently learned that Barbara is a good friend of Bob Inskeep. Bob is my radio buddy from WRAL FM. He now works as a Presbyterian minister in Raleigh.

Cellphone Photo Contest

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 10:03:37 -0400

We received more than a dozen cell phone photographs our blogging buddies have taken in various places from the mountains to the sea. Thank you for sharing these pictures.

Cellphone sunrise

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:24:55 -0400

I could have kicked myself last week. It was a half hour into our Labor Day weekend drive to Florida. Where was my camera? I checked the back seat. Rufus was there looking cute in his cage. The bag of snacks Cindy packed was in place. Plus, the CD lectures on American presidents I checked out from the library was there. But no camera.