Life on an Island - Part 3

Many people ask us, “Where do you have to go to get the things you need?  You can’t possibly have everything you need to get by on the island without going to a city to shop.”

Here are the things we really need in the Village of Ocracoke in order to live here all the time:

The Trash Dump.  We do not have trash pickup here or recycling pickup either.  So, we all go to the dump almost every day and take all  of our stuff with us.  You can take:  household garbage, recycling, tree limbs and yard trash, electronics, building debris, anything else you need to get rid of.  There is one place where we put things that we want to get rid of but someone else may want.  When we come back the next day what we have left there is always gone…sometimes it is even claimed while we are in the process of unloading it.  It is a great thing to be able to get rid of refuse any day of the week.  The dump is less than a half-mile from our house.

Getting Ready to Unload Our Trash

The Post Office.  We do not have home mail delivery on the island.  Everyone has a Post Office box and we go each afternoon to get our mail and catch up on all the news around the village.  The mail truck  comes over on the Hatteras Ferry each day and gets over here between eleven and noon.  The mail is all put up by the time the Post Office reopens after lunch at 3:00 pm.  Celeste, Melissa, and Matt take care of all of us. We love going to the Post Office and would miss out on an important community time if we got mail at home rather than gathering it there. The Post Office is beside the dump and makes it easy to go to both on the same trip.

Golf Carts and Bikes at the Post Office

The Variety Store.  The Ocracoke Variety Store building houses the Variety Store, the Hardware Store and the ABC Store.  The Variety Store has everything we need in the way of groceries and various sundries.  The Hardware Store has everything from paint to nails and can even loan you a pipe crimper if you need to do  plumbing repair.  We all  have an account at the Variety/Hardware Store, so everything just goes on your bill there and you pay once each month.  Makes shopping very easy! The Variety Store is located about 1/3 mile from our house on the way to the Post Office.

The Variety Store Has EVERYTHING We Need

Eduardo’s Taco Stand.  Even though we have about fifteen very fine local restaurants on the island, a favorite stop for everyone is Eduardo’s Taco Stand.  Eduardo Chavez cooks with the love of his heart and the memories of his ancestors as he feeds us year round from his location at the end of the Variety Store parking lot.  If you are going to stop at Eduardo’s, there will likely be a long line.  He is open each day for breakfast and lunch (8:00-3:00) and again for dinner (5:00-8:00).

Eduardo's is the Best

The Bank.   First National Bank of Pennsylvania is now the owner of our island bank.  It has been here for years and the name has changed several times through mergers and acquisitions.  We can depend on Judy, Laura, Sandy, Donna, and Karmen, who know us all and take care of us. The Bank is about 500 yards away at the end of our street.

Yes ... It's Our Favorite Bank

Jimmy’s Garage.   Jamie Jackson and his mama, Linda, can get you fixed or maintained and on the way again no matter what you are driving and no matter what is wrong with your car.  Jamie’s dad, Jimmy, started the garage and Jamie grew up in it.  Now Jimmy has retired and Jamie runs the show.  They are only a couple of hundred of yards away on our very street.

Anything else we need comes over by UPS each day from Amazon or other sources of choice.  If we are not home, UPS puts things in a safe place on the screened porch so we don’t have to worry about rain damage.

Even though we do travel a lot on the storytelling circuit, it would easily be possible to live here for years without ever leaving the island.  Yes, we do also have a wonderful physician, Dr. Erin Baker.  So, what else could you need?  Come and rent a house for a  while and give it a try!