Nope. Sorry to disappoint you, but there's not much of a story. Its all just
a facade. I was looking up the meaning of "Bullamanka" in an
Australian-English dictionary, and discovered the connection between that
word and "Black Stump," which is on the horizon and theoretically not quite
as far away as Bullamanka. Given my not-too-far-out stance on many subjects,
I felt that Black Stump was a good place for me to be. It also sounds like a
good place name for somewhere in western NC. Oddly, nothing by that name
exists. We do have Black Ankle, though...and S--t Britches Creek (which had
to be changed to Shinola Creek ;)

Anyway, I am on a mountain (Echo Mountain) and I do have a black stump in my
yard which is all that remains of a 100 year old red oak. Last year I
noticed insects swarming from the stump - termites actually. They flew away
with the wind (away from my house hopefully) and I thought to myself "Now
there's an interesting thing to see." It was less interesting the next day
when they swarmed again, then the next day when they swarmed yet again. This
intimate view of nature had lost its interest, and having an old wood frame
house which is susceptable to such infestations, I decided that it was
either them or my house. So I poured about 5 gallons of gas into the stump
and threw a match.

Now I have a black stump. But no more termites...yet.

John Horton
Sittin' on a black stump pickin' at my ankle...

----- Original Message -----
From: Mike Devonshire <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 1999 5:57 AM
Subject: Re: Black Stump Mountain Diner, Anyone?


> In a message dated 11/29/99 1:44:07 AM Eastern Standard Time,
> [log in to unmask] writes:
>
> << High atop Black Stump Mountain >>
>
> OK, John. Black Stump Mountain? There has got to be a good story there.
Let's
> have it.
>
> Twybil