Happy Cow Creamery

MOO AND MILK WITH A SMILE

By Lynne Brandon

Pelzer, S.C. - Happy cows produce more milk. It’s a fact validated by the Nobel Prize awarded to scientists at Newcastle University. It boils down to bovine psychology and that these hoofed creatures, in order to be productive and enjoy longevity, need care and attention much like humans. Tom Trantham, a denizen of Pelzer, a small community in Anderson County, near the border of South Carolina and Georgia, didn’t need a scientific study to know what motivated his cows at Happy Cow Creamery. Being with them, actually “listening” to his cows led to his success as one of the top producing dairies in the Palmetto State.

At one time, the now successful farmer wasn’t doing so well and business looked bleak. His Holsteins were plodding along, making milk, but day-to-day operations were suffering and Trantham was in danger of losing his business. Suddenly, one of the cows revolted.

“Tarzan the cow opened my gate and called a cow meeting,” said Trantham, who is still boyishly enthusiastic about his black and white cows. “Tarzan told ‘Noisy’ the cow that something had to be done to save Farmer Tom.” “Bang crash boom” was the way Trantham described the mutiny when to the farmer’s dismay all 86 cows crashed into the gated pasture. At the end of the day, the cow’s smelled better and miraculously started producing more milk. Soon there was an increase of 200 pounds and then 500 more pounds of milk than in previous production cycles.

Something was up with Trantham’s cows.

Jean-Michel Cousteau at Guilford College

Oceanographer Continues Family Legacy

By Lynne Brandon

"People protect what they love"

Greensboro, N.C. - “At the age of seven I was pushed overboard into the ocean with a SCUBA tank on my back.” And, so began 90 minutes with Jean-Michel Cousteau, the world famous oceanographer and renowned environmentalist, educator, explorer and producer as he presented the last lecture of the 2011 Bryan Series season at this city’s highly-respected Guilford College.

The Cousteau name is synonymous with the ocean and conservation of all life within its waters. The eloquent Frenchman continues the legacy of his late father, Jacques Cousteau, while following his dream to be an underwater architect.

Like his father, Cousteau has traveled the world promoting the importance of protecting and preserving the earth’s waters. He founded Ocean Futures Society, a non-profit marine conservation and education organization in 1999 to honor his father’s profoundly influential work. The organization acts as a “voice for the ocean” by communicating the critical bond between people and the sea, and the importance of wise environmental policy.

Paula Deen: From Food to Furniture

Culinary Queen Rules at Furniture Market

By Lynne Brandon

High Point, NC - They say when you hit rock bottom, it’s a good place because there ain’t no where else to go but up. I believe this to be true. So do millions of hard working women who have scraped, borrowed and begged to keep the basic necessities of life on the table and on their backs.

No one knows the meaning of hard times better than everyone’s favorite Southern cook, Paula Deen. Life was not always as rosy as it is now for the celebrity culinary queen who is enjoying a successful television show, cookbook royalties, multiple homes and a loving husband. Now, she is enjoying putting her touch on home furnishings with her comfortable and chic line at Universal Furniture.

Paula was recently in High Point, North Carolina, where she was holding court as only she can do, at the International Furniture Market meeting industry professionals and excited fans. This time the product was her furniture line and not food that she put her stamp on.

Good Times Roll in Queen City

"Laissez les bons temps rouler"

By Lynne Brandon and Doc Lawrence

Queen City Dining

CHARLOTTE, NC - It's where initiated locals, some calling themselves foodies use esoteric words like "nosh" to describe the ritual of eating. In other places, the vernacular might be "chowing down." But, this is Charlotte, a city with queen in its tourism promotions, where royalty uses words and phrases as it pleases. Elsewhere, to nosh might be yuppie-speak; here among Charlotte’s elite, this is the language of dining backed by divine right.

Commerce rules in Charlotte’s downtown where much of America’s banking calls home. Restaurants, as numerous and different as bank borrowers, beckon every palate. Carolina-style grits at “Zada Jane’s” are touted by critics, “Dish” serves up Southern deviled egg perched on the plate, “Intermezzo” has a Bruschetta variation, steaks at Sullivan’s give the best in Chicago a run, and great sushi is the star at Ru Sans and Nikko’s. Good drinks blend with the sights and sounds of a Southern city that makes a Herculean effort to satisfy all kinds of sensual desires.