Cooperative Living July 2014 - 6

MAILBAG
APPRECIATION FOR TWO
REGULARS
I want to share my enjoyment at
receiving your magazine, and in
particular the anticipation of reading
the contributions by two of
your regulars.
As a budding (and still quite
intimidated) writer, I am always in
awe of the poetic prowess of your
executive editor, Richard
Johnstone. He is able to give grace
and flair to any subject he writes
about, including but not limited to
your annual members meetings, of
all things!
The ever-present subtle sense
of humor displayed by Margo
Oxendine in her RURAL LIVING
columns never fails to bring about
a smile, even on the dreariest of
days.
While I enjoy reading most
if not all the contributions to
Cooperative Living magazine, I first
flip to the pages of the aforementioned
regulars and enjoy their latest
creative endeavor.
Ingrid Okoebor
Leesburg
A RECIPE FOR GETTING
RID OF BUGS
This is in reference to
Margo Oxendine's June
RURAL LIVING column,
" Home Invasion: To
Arm, or Be Disarming. "
Try refilling your
NOTE
EMAIL
Windex bottles with onethird
white vinegar, water, and
about three tablespoons
of Dawn dishwashing
soap (use more if you
use a generic brand).
Shake it until the Dawn
mixes.
This will kill just about
any insect you can think of.
The vinegar alone kills ants
by itself, but the Dawn breaks
the surface tension of the
water and prevents the droplets
from rolling off like rain, thus encasing
the bug in water and drowning it.
This will even take wasps, flies and
moths out of the air (but be sure to
soak them good on the ground, just to
be safe).
Trevor Berwick
Bumpass
WRITE US!
ADDRESS
We want to hear from you - comments, opinions, suggestions.
Your letter must be signed and legible. We reserve the
right to edit for grammar, style and length, with a 250word
maximum for acceptance. Write: MAILBAG,
P.O. Box 2340, Glen Allen, VA 23058-2340; or email
mailbag@co-opliving.com. Please include your name
and city/town of residence, with MAILBAG as the subject.
VIRGINIA QUILT MUSEUM
WAS OVERLOOKED
We are always happy
to see Cooperative Living
in the mail. Two favorites
I look forward to are
STORIES FROM THE ROAD
and Margo Oxedine's
RURAL LIVING.
I have to tell you,
WHATZIT?
Each issue, we will
pub lish a photo of a familiar
but unidentified object.
You are invited to make
your best guess and send it
in writing with your name,
address, and phone number
to WHATZIT?, c/o Cooperat -
ive Living, P.O. Box 2340,
Glen Allen, VA 230582340;
or guess online at
www.co-opliving.com
under " Contests. " Dead -
line for entries is July 20.
All correct entries will be
put into a drawing and a
winner announced in the
September 2014 issue.
The winner will re ceive a
check for $25. 
4
however, how disappointed
I was in the June 2014 issue when I
found no mention of the Virginia
Quilt Museum in the article about
downtown Harrisonburg. The museum,
at 301 South Main Street, is as
downtown as you can get. This great
attraction has quietly drawn hundreds
of visitors to Harrisonburg for
about 20 years now. The museum
presents ever-changing exhibits of
amazing quilts and fabric art. The
gift shop is a super place to pick up
unique gifts of hand-crafted items.
My fellow quilters from Orange
County go over the mountains several
times a year to enjoy the latest
show. I don't know how the Virginia
Quilt Museum could have been
overlooked.
Joan Bergstrom
Unionville
 DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS IS?
The May 2014
WHATZIT? (r) was a
kitchen strainer
screen. Reader
Donna Pike (left) of
Amelia was our $25 winner.
Congratu lations, Donna!
THIS MULE CAN BE BOUGHT
I really enjoyed the May issue.
Being in Tom's Brook I am familiar
with Route 11, I work at a vineyard,
and I trail ride in Fort Valley, a popular
endurance-riding area.
The story about the sheik's son in
the article on endurance horsemanship,
" A Hard Day's Night, " was very
amusing to me. But I think if the
sheik's son had wanted to ride my
Cooperative Living/July 2014
STORIES FROM THE ROAD
THIS YEAR COOPERATIVE LIVING IS TAKING A
ROAD TRIP ALONG THE LENGTH OF ROUTE 11 AS
IT CROSSES VIRGINIA FROM NORTH TO SOUTH.
EACH ISSUE, CORRESPONDENT DEBORAH HUSO
WILL RELATE HER EXPERIENCES ALONG THE WAY.
Story and photos by
Deborah Huso,
Contributing Writer
Steak,Wine, and
Stress Relief
Downtown Harrisonburg has its groove back on with fine dining, new retail offerings,
and access to a wealth of Shenandoah Valley attractions that will stir the senses.
D
owntown Harrisonburg has
been on my radar for
almost four decades. When
I was a small child, my mother and
grandmother plied the dress shops
just off Courthouse Square, as I
waited impatiently for them to try
on suits, blouses, and sweaters,
thumbing through New Yorker
magazines, hopeful that if I
behaved, I might earn an ice cream
cone or a box of animal crackers at
the grocery store.
Since then, downtown has
undergone a lot of changes. The
shops my mother patronized eventually
went out of business, and for a
time, downtown was a bit of a wasteland with a lot of empty
storefronts and restaurants patronized by businesspeople only,
travelers on Route 11 flying past to points east and west, taking
very little note of what seemed like another lost Main Street.
Things have changed in recent years, however, and downDowntown
Harrisonburg has been undergoing a revival and
today is home to a variety of vibrant, diverse businesses.
Anna Pelletier is among the
local business owners making all
this happen. She opened her dress
shop, Mint, in the old Wetsel Seed
Company building on Route 11
just a block from the courthouse,
three years ago.
" I grew up in downtown
Harrisonburg, " Pelletier remarks,
" and I've always really liked this
space and the aesthetics of the
building. " After working as a
hairstylist for five years, Pelletier
decided to go out on her own.
" Downtown has always needed
more business, " she says.
Pelletier wasn't new to retail.
She worked in boutiques while in school, and she manages to
keep her shop running with as little overhead as possible by
getting help in the store from her family. She has one parttime
employee.
" The items I carry are different from anything else, " she
town Harrisonburg (perhaps a bit more slowly than some of its
sister Shenandoah Valley cities) has been experiencing a revival.
Today it is home to a number of locally owned restaurants, a
bike shop, boutiques, and even a children's museum.
And the boutiques of my mother's day are returning.
30
says, as she runs her fingers across one-of-a-kind silky dresses
and blouses. " You won't find any of these things at Old Navy
or Target. "
Pelletier says she has developed a loyal clientele base over
the last three years, consisting mostly of 18- to 35-year-old
Cooperative Living/June 2014
http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living July 2014

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