That Day I Took a Jar of Pickles to Aunt Bee’s Grave

Last week, I went on another pilgrimage...this time to Mount Airy, North Carolina, which is the birthplace of Andy Griffith and the town on which fictional Mayberry is based.

Down the road from "Mayberry" about an hour or so is Siler City, North Carolina. This is a REAL town that was mentioned once or twice during the run of The Andy Griffith Show on CBS in the 1960s.

It is also where Frances Bavier, the actress who played Aunt Bee, is laid to rest.

We were definitely going down there to pay our respects and were thankful that we mentioned that to some of the Mount Airy locals.

One of residents we met told us that when people visit Ms. Bavier's gravesite, they often leave a jar of pickles to commemorate the episode in which Aunt Bee makes a huge batch of horrifically bad pickles that Barney called "kerosene cucumbers."

I always thought it was ironic that this fictional character--who was a great cook--seemed to be most famous for something she did WRONG in the kitchen.

Anyway, we bought a jar of pickles and paid a visit.

It's just amazing Andy Griffith/North Carolina folklore come to life.