SUNDAY April 5, 2020
We are full on in April now and the beauty of spring is all around. Trees and grass are such a vibrant green after all the rain we've had and flowers are popping up all around providing a rainbow of color across yards and byways.

Our feature this issue is an article on things to do during the Spring 2020 Pandemic Pause. It includes links to live streaming concerts listed on our calendar. These are so much fun to go to listen to performers you may already know or to meet some new ones. Staying active in the adjoining chat room is a good way to connect with others as you enjoy the concerts together.

We've got some other special music for you and art, as well as numerous online classes and visual tours.

The restaurants continue to provide curbside pick up and some delivery. We encourage you to treat yourself and support this hard-working industry. Wineries too are starting to provide curbside pick up and virtual tastings like Landon Winery in Greenville.

There are endless possibilities for activities for kids and adults alike through video and virtual field trips and we've selected our favorites. This article and the calendar are updated every few days so keep the link handy and be sure to let us know your favorite things to do during this time.

Stay safe and find joy and gratitude daily.
I Can't Believe My Eyes!
"First time seeing the bluebonnets. I loved her reaction." — Barbara Sutton, Kaufman, Texas
FEATURES
Check out this list of fun things to do while we're all staying home. It's an evolving list that includes a calendar that updates almost daily so save the link and check back soon.
LIFESTYLE & ENTERTAINMENT
Brookshire's Indoor/Outdoor Scavenger Hunts
Our friends at Brookshire's share these ideas for activities for customers to do at home.
DESTINATION COUNTY LINE
Retreat in the Pines is a getaway center near Mineola offering women a safe place to connect one-on-one while dining, practicing yoga, and an overall uplifting experience. Owner Theresa Polley has put together online weekend getaways for women with the same goal for peace, healing, and a new perspective in the comforts of their own home through Zoom meetings.
THIS TIME OF YEAR
On April 6, 1883, Marion G. Slaughter was born in Jefferson, Texas. He went on to be one of the most prolific singer-songwriters of so-called hillbilly music, which pre-dated country music. He wrote hundreds of country songs under the pseudonym Vernon Dalhart, made up from the names of two Texas towns in which he had punched cattle as a teenager. He recorded the first country song to sell one million copies.
ARTS & CULTURE
Darrell Lindsey of Nacogdoches often submits thought-provoking poems to County Line Magazine so it caught our attention recently when we saw he’d released a book. A Master of Stick Figures, from Velvet Dusk Publishing, is full of Lindsey’s haiku and tank poems.
SPECKLED CROW
Covering the Arts Across the Upper East Side of Texas
The piney woods of East Texas had a profound impact on the art of Russ Havard, born in Lufkin in 1971, who now creates paintings and collages featuring the trees of East Texas as symbols of our inner and outer lives.
 
FOOD & DRINKS
Sharon Smith and Mary Wilhite with Blue Moon Gardens in Edom offer some great advice on how to grow vegetables easily in pots or troughs. Their garden center is open every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Lots of room for social distancing while shopping. They invite people to get some plants and enjoy gardening at home and your own fresh food for meals. Learn more about this inviting garden center at www.BlueMoonGardens.com.
FEAST TEXAS
Texan Shelley Harris Garrett has collected beloved recipes from family, friends, church ladies, and co-workers for more than 30 years. After years of copying the 100-plus recipes into three-ring binders for friends and newlyweds, Garrett decided to publish the collection, complete with some 60 color photos, and give all the proceeds to the Kaufman County Emergency Children’s Shelter.
Feel free to send story ideas, poems, letters, and beautiful photography from the region to editor@countylinemagazine.com. Let us know what you enjoy most about this area.
HOW TO REACH US
County Line Magazine
PO Box 608
Ben Wheeler, TX 75754
Office: (903) 963-1101
Text: (903) 312-9556
info@countylinemagazine.com
www.countylinemagazine.com