It's really hard to summarize oneself for the general public. I mean, really, what does the public want to know about me? Am I married? Yes. Do I have children. Yes, three, and they're all grown thank God. (By that I mean parenting is HARD. I'd do it again in a heartbeat, but I'm really glad our offspring have all reached adulthood.) Do I have pets? Yup. Two dogs. Since the kids are all grown, you'll read more about my dogs than my kids. Because that's what happens when you get old like me. I have three grand kids, too, so you'll read about them as well. But the dogs live with me and, when I am desperate for blog topics, they usually help me out.
I’ve told y’all about Kudzubefore, right? It’s an invasive vine, not native to the United States, that’s slowly, but surely, consuming the South.
During our ride last weekend, Hubby and I traveled one of the roads I’d ridden during my solo adventure in June. I’d remembered seeing some pretty alarming kudzu growth along that route and decided to stop and capture a few pics for you all.
The guard rail is completely covered and the road sign has almost been obliterated.
I’m guessing that’s a stump on the right of the tree that’s in the process of being eaten.
It’s a very dense and fast-growing invasive plant.
Guardrail in the process of being eaten.
Another view of the disappearing guardrail.
See how dense?
Look out, Mike! It’s coming for you.
I wonder how long it would take to start eating my bike?
Those runners are a lot like English Ivy (the climbing type) and Virginia Creeper. They really dig in.
Kudzu does have some interesting uses, as explained in the following short video.
It can grow up to a foot (~30.5 cm) a day!?! Wow. That really is fast.
I came across the next video at the Duke Today Web site. It’s a bit longer, but has a really cool, artsy, time-lapse element in the second half that I enjoyed. You should watch it if you have time.
Click the link if you’d like to read the full article about the making of the video. The article includes this intro:
To make a film showcasing the landscape of his North Carolina upbringing, Josh Gibson turned not to beaches or mountains or towering Longleaf pines.
Kudzu-covered objects can be sort of cool-looking, but it hurt my heart to see the overly aggressive invader choking out a bunch of rhododendron in the Jefferson National Forest.
According to that first video I shared, it’s gotten further geographically than I’d thought it had. Do you have Kudzu in your state?
This past weekend Hubby and I enjoyed a fabulous three-day ride south and west of our home in Virginia. We covered 850 miles on wonderful motorcycle roads in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and even parts of West Virginia.
I’d been wanting to really put those maps to the test. And guess what? They passed with flying colors. Really. We spent three days riding a series of really awesome motorcycle roads. It was tons of fun. We were having so much fun, in fact, that I didn’t even think about taking a picture until late in the day on Friday, after we’d already been on the road for many hours. You know I’m having fun when I don’t think about pictures, right?
Along Indian Valley Road in Floyd County, Virginia.
We ended up staying in Hillsville, Virginia Friday night.
Sunset from Hillsville, VA.
Lucky for us, there was a Bojangle’s about 15 minutes from our hotel, so we both enjoyed a nice breakfast on Saturday.
Hubby and Me
It wasn’t even hard to convince Hubby to pose for a goofy selfie with me.
From there, we rode into downtown Galax, looking for LOVE. (Since it was along the way, I figured we ought to stop.)
Galax, VA LOVEwork
Fortunately, the LOVEwork was right where it was supposed to be.
For the record, I saw the LOVEwork in Christiansburg, but it was hot, there was rush hour traffic, and it was on the opposite side of a busy street, so I opted not to stop for a photo. But I saw it. That counts in my book.
My Real Love
After a brief break, we continued south into North Carolina and then west and north to Mountain City, Tennessee.
Four States in Three Days
Why Mountain City? That’s where The Snake begins. 🙂
Hubby at the NC/TN border.
I missed The Snake on my solo trip earlier this year, so I figured it would be a good destination road that both of us could enjoy.
The Snake totally lives up to all the hype.
And enjoy it we did. Seriously, it’s a FUN road. That road alone was worth the trip.
The Snake
Shady Valley Country Store, about midway on The Snake.
From there, we headed north into Virginia, to Abingdon then East on 58 through the Jefferson National Forest. A repeat road for me that I really, REALLY enjoyed during my solo trip. We then followed 16 into Marion where we stopped for lunch before continuing north on the Back of the Dragon.
Marion, Virginia
My not-so-observant Hubby.
We chose Macados for lunch after discovering that the BBQ place we’d really headed for was closed.
After we were seated, I said to Mike, “Did you see the giant dinosaur head on the wall?”
His response? “What dinosaur?” Sigh…
We continued making our way north and east toward Paint Bank, Virginia, where I’d reserved a room at the quaint Depot Lodge. En route, we stopped at the Wolf Creek Indian Village near Bastian for some more LOVE.
Bastian LOVEwork
Yet another lovely road.
Hubby enjoyed the ride just as much as I did. The weather verged on hot at times, but was very pleasant for the most part.
The Depot Lodge in Paint Bank, Virginia
Lobby at The Depot Lodge
Paint Bank General Store
View of the store from our second floor porch.
Chillaxin’ on the porch.
Our room at The Depot Lodge
Sadly, the caboose was already booked.
Outbuilding at The Depot Lodge
View of the lodge from the rear lawn.
Sunday, we had to hurry home to get the dogs from the kennel and so I could get ready to head off to Rockville, MD for work.
Humpback Bridge near Covington, Virginia.
I’d read about the bridge in a pamphlet at the hotel. A pamphlet which did NOT clue me in on a special bonus we’d also find at that location.
Humback Bridge (notice anything odd?)
We’d accidentally found another LOVEwork. How cool is that?
Covington LOVEwork
Hubby, reflecting inside the bridge.
A bit further north, we stopped at this Falling Springs overlook.
This may be the largest waterfall in Virginia.
That waterfall was easily visible from the overlook along 220 north of Covington, yet another AMAZING stretch of road.
Road south of the overlook.
We continued north on 220, all the way to Franklin, West Virginia. It was a beautiful, scenic ride alternating between mountains and valleys. Spectacular, really.
Feanklin, WV
From there, we headed east on US-33 — one of Hubby’s favorite roads — north and east through the Shenandoah Valley, and then, at New Market, east on US-211 to Warrenton.
It may sound repetitive, but that particular series of roads we covered overed three days was probably the best series of roads we’d ever ridden together. Except for maybe in the Italian/Swiss/Austrian Alps. Really. It’s a route we WILL be revisiting.
Here’s a link to my Spotwalla tracker map with a couple little caveats. I forgot to start the app on my phone, so it looks like we started in Elkton, Virginia. Also, my phone battery died just east of Luray, so it appears that we never made it home.
I hope you enjoyed the recap. Now, I have to get to work.
In case you missed my recent post, a brief stint of unemployment — three short days — sent me scurrying to have some fun before the new job started.
First up was a visit to my Dad’s house in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. I’d bought him a new cell phone, which I needed to deliver so I could activate the thing and switch his old number over.
Dad and Me
I’d planned on taking the car, but the humidity had finally dropped, which meant it would just be silly not to take the bike.
The main reason I’d wanted to take the car was that I’d decided to finally visit the nearby Stoudts Brewing Company, the source of my favorite “cow beer,” a Bavarian-style hefeweizen, which is very hard to find in Virginia.
Cow Beer Source
Luckily, Aunt Bertha rode over to the brewery with me, so I was able to get two cases.
Aunt Bertha
I thought I’d have to leave one of the cases at Dad’s house, but I actually managed to get it all packed into my bike.
The corn along Dad’s road was VERY tall.
My customary visit to the neighbor’s barn.
Horses in the field beside the dairy cows.
Dad’s neighborhood is awesome.
I fed the horses some carrots (it was Dad and Aunt Bertha’s idea).
Sunset over Lancaster County.
Zoomed in on sunset to capture that Great Blue Heron.
I spent the night at Dad’s then left early on Thursday for the ride home. Temps were in the mid 60s when I set out. It was lovely.
Here are some things I saw and captured during the ride home. I thought you all might like to see some of the pretty landscapes and other stuff I enjoyed in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia.
Even the gas stations in Pennsylvania are fun. I couldn’t resist filling up at The Turkey Hill Experience in Columbia.
Me and the giant cow at Turkey Hill.
Moo!
And I just HAD to stop by the Haines’ Shoe House in Hallum, which I needed to drive right past anyway.
Haines Shoe House
I saw quite a few pretty barns along the way, too.
Pretty Barn
Pretty Barn
Pretty Barn
Pretty Barn
Abandoned bus stop.
Pretty Barn
I really like seeing all the old barns in PA, which look a lot different than the barns I usually see in Virginia.
View near the PA/MD border.
A Ural dealer? I HAD to stop.
I’d never actually seen a Ural in person. So, when I came across More Than Motorcycles (official Ural dealer in Maryland), I couldn’t resist stopping to gawk. John, who was working on the older model pictured below, was kind enough to humor me.
Ural Dealer
New Retro Ural
Slightly older, limited edition model.
Painted building in downtown Thurmont, Maryland.
Back in Virginia. I just LOVE those stone walls.
Abandoned silo near Marshall, Virginia.
Lovely road near Marshall, Virginia.
And that ends my quick visit to Dad’s in Pennsylvania. It was nice seeing him and his sisters, Pearl and Bertha. Hopefully, I will get back to PA for another visit soon.
Next up, my incredible long-weekend jaunt with Hubby.
As July is winding down, I’m struggling to keep up with all the news I want to share here.
Who knew July would be so exciting? I knew about the family visit in advance, but there are two pretty cool things I didn’t know about much ahead of time.
First, my town was in the spotlight on Friday, July 20th. In a big way. The FOX affiliate in Washington is doing a series of “Zip Trips” this summer, featuring locales that are close enough to DC for residents to zip out and back in a day.
It was a huge deal for the town. LOTS of free publicity. The Old Town merchants came out in force, opening their shopping, putting on special displays, doing demonstrations, offering samples, etc.
It was like a mini, impromptu street fair, and it was all accomplished with about a week’s noticed. Residents came out in droves to show their support, too. The Fox5 crew said it was the biggest turnout they’d ever seen for a ZipTrip segment. Yes, Warrenton is just as awesome as I have repeatedly proclaimed it to be.
A good number of residents came out to show their support.
Merchants and town officials rolled out the proverbial welcome mat.
Angie and Kelly Ann at the Quilts of Honor East table.
Local artist Palmer Smith painting the scene.
Merchants had special displays and demonstrations to tout their wares.
Decoupage at The Empty Nest
Great Harvest was packed to the gills with people.
A live segment.
We looked pretty darn good in the news, if I do say so myself.
Merchants and residents alike did an amazing job supporting the town. And Fox5 did very well to capture it all and show everyone what a fun place this is to live, work, and play.
I am currently unemployed. My previous job had been wearing on me for quite some time. So, while off on my solo adventure back in late-June, with lots of time to think about stuff like job satisfaction, among other things, I decided it was time for a change.
As it happens, a woman I’d met in 2005 had reached out to me back in May about coming to work for her at her current employer. Initially, I said I wasn’t interested. But she was persistent. So, after my return, I started really exploring the opportunity and ultimately decided it would be a better fit for me.
Tuesday, July 21, was my last day at the old firm (Texas company). I would’ve liked to take some time off between postings, especially since my new company has a policy that you can’t take vacation for the first six months, but they need me pretty badly. I start my new job (Maryland company) on Monday, July 27.
I’m trying to cram as much fun in as possible between now and Monday. Which means I’m behind on blog reading, commenting, and writing again. Sorry, y’all. I love you, I really do. And I truly appreciate the fact that you take time to read my posts AND leave comments.
I’ll try to catch up soon. I’ll actually be in Rockville, Maryland most of next week for training, so should have plenty of down time in the evenings. Until then, I’ve got places to go, things to see, etc.
I am very excited about my new work adventure, but have to squeeze some fun in while I can. Keep your eyes on those Instagram pics. If you’re not on Instagram, you can follow at the bottom of my home page, if you’re so inclined.
I’ve been MIA from the blogosphere again. July has been an eventful month…
Y’all know my family is quite scattered, right? That’s why you don’t see many family photos here.
Shannon (our eldest) is in San Diego. Amy (middle child) lives near Seattle with her husband, TJ, and our grand kids. Eric (youngest) and his wife, Kelsey, are currently in Spain where Eric, a budding culinary artist, is doing a summer internship at a resort in Seville.
On July, 1, Amy and TJ, arrived at our house for a visit. Our family has developed an affinity for silly selfies.
Hubby started it. He took my selfie stick along on his Four Corners Tour, and, upon reaching a different family member’s location, he’d send a group selfie via text to announce his arrival.
L-R, TJ, Amy, and Me
Hubby joined in on the fun, too.
This next pic isn’t a good one, technically, but it makes me laugh.
When not everyone is “into” (or remotely prepared for) a group photo.
We all usually laugh a lot when we’re together. 🙂
If you’re wondering about the grand kids, they were with another set of grandparents. Until Friday, July 17.
Seated L-R, Gaige, Brianna, Mike, and Joey.
They were only here for the weekend. After a whirlwind of activity with that other branch of their family (on TJ’s side), I think they enjoyed the less-active weekend at our place.
Joey and Pop
We all just sorta hung out on Friday afternoon/evening.
This next picture, taken when I came downstairs at the end of my work day, makes me laugh.
Silliness
There’s a floor full of Legos. The kids are watching a movie. Joey is enjoying the “little sofa” (aka dog bed) I made. And K is looking for a place to sit, since her sofa is occupied.
Later, after I had walked the dogs, I suggested we all walk down to the caboose (at the Warrenton Branch Greenway) so I could get a more-recent photo of the kids in that spot.
Kids, smiling nicely.
They’ll usually pose nicely for me, because I always let them follow the “nice pics” with silly ones.
Kids, being goofy.
Hubby thought it would be a good idea to put the dogs in the pic, too. After about 15 takes, this is the only one that came remotely close to having both dogs look toward the camera.
Kids and Dogs
Remember the caboose I mentioned?
Kids on the Caboose
After that, we all walked on the trail for a bit. Joey was “walking” Belle while Gaige was in charge of K.
Enjoying their run.
The girls don’t get to run much, so they were having a blast. Can you see Belle, in front, smiling? I’m pretty sure she was thinking, “I wish I had a little boy!” Meanwhile, Joey was thinking, “I wish I could take Belle home with me.”
Hammock Time
Afterward, we all hung out in our back yard. All that peaceful togetherness lasted about three minutes.
Saturday, which is when the lasted heat wave really kicked into high gear, was quite a bit less eventful.
We did go see the Minions movie in 3D. Everyone was rather underwhelmed. The 3D part was cool, but the movie itself just wasn’t very good.
We walked around town a little bit, but spent most of the remainder of the day in the air-conditioned house. Oh, and Hubby smoked some baby back ribs for dinner. They were his best yet!
Smoked Baby Back Ribs
Here’s a pic of Brianna posing with an outdoor thermometer. See why we chose to stay indoors? And that was during a cooler part of the day.
Brianna
We had to come up with something interesting and indoors to do with the kids on Sunday. Hubby suggested visiting a cave. I immediately thought of Shenandoah Caverns, which is where I saw this cool frog statue (great family photo op!) and the American Celebration on Parade.
Sadly, the frog statue was being renovated. But the cavern was open for business.
Waiting for the cavern tour to start.
Shenandoah Caverns is supposedly the only cavern in VA (there are quite a few) that has an elevator. The temperature is a constant 54 degrees (that’s about 12 Celsius), which I thoroughly enjoyed.
Joey forgot his sweatshirt.
Nearby Luray Caverns is famous for a couple of formations that look like sunny-side-up eggs. Knowing this, I found it amusing that Shenandoah Caverns is famous for its bacon formations.
It really does look like bacon!
Quick photo op.
I’ll save most of the cavern pics for a potential future post, but wanted to share this one. I kept seeing faces and other images in the rocks.
The kids weren’t impressed. All the boys wanted to do was run around and see stuff that made NOISE (some of the floats move, but don’t include music). Brianna just thought it was stupid (and probably childish since she’ll be 15 in December).
They were only pretending to be miserable.
American Celebration on Parade
American Celebration on Parade
The kids know that TJ, their Dad, likes sending me silly pics, which I love receiving. So they were more than happy to find a spot to pose for a pic for me to send their Dad.
Silly Pic for TJ
I think they chose pretty well. Since the kids were less than impressed, and we were all hungry, we decided to skip the final building and head toward home.
Later!
All in all, it was a fun visit. I wish we’d been able to do more outdoors, though, because they’re all very active kids.
Hopefully, we’ll be able to go to Washington State next year for some fun in their neck of the woods.
