Alexandria, Virginia

Posted: January 20, 2012 | Author: deb | Filed under: Virginia | 1 Comment »

Yes….still talking about our visit to Virginia at the end of December!

One of my favorite places in Alexandria is the Torpedo Factory:

After we arrived, Kevin said he felt “duped” into going there….being a history buff, he expected an actual torpedo factory/museum. But in the end, I think Kevin enjoyed this place. Lisa and I didn’t purposely mislead the guys, honest. But the Torpedo Factory is an art community housed in an old torpedo factory. Individual artists have studio space with huge windows that look out to the Potomac River, or into the heart of Alexandria. The individual studio spaces are divided: a work area and a gallery/display area…if an artist was working, his door was open…we could walk in, view her work, engage in conversation, watch her process and purchase art directly from the artist.

The interior of the building was filled with colorful bright murals…..

Artwork was everywhere…

That was a warning sign for these:

Photos of art and individual studios were prohibited, but visit their website, here.

Photo credits: Kevin—thank you for being the official photographer in Alexandria, your photos are great!

My next and last (I think) Virginia post is in the works….have a great weekend!

Front Royal, VA…

Posted: January 14, 2012 | Author: deb | Filed under: Virginia | 4 Comments »

One sunny afternoon, while in Virginia, we toured Front Royal…Cam and Lisa’s home town.

This quaint and quiet little town is teeming with history, particularly Civil War history.

And to walk through old town feels like stepping back in time Front Royal had a ghostly, abandoned feeling…..at least these images were what I was attracted to.

Here is a little photo tour of one of my favorites places in Front Royal, an overgrown boxwood maze garden:

Did you see the beauty of the boxwoods…or did the scent of them send you running? I am not particularly sensitive to their smell…but I know some~~(one)~~ would be overcome ~~(CK).~~

Lisa has some great shots of the boxwood gardens and more, here.

Thanks for going on our mini tour

Have a good Saturday!

Virginia critters

Posted: January 12, 2012 | Author: deb | Filed under: Virginia | 4 Comments »

A visit to Virginia is guaranteed to have lots of critters to admire and love….they are attracted to Lisa, they know her heart and home are open and ready to care for them:

Meet Pudg, the 40 pound, 9 month old beaver…….despite his independent aspirations, he depends on his mom, Lisa, for at least another year:

This is Casey, the kitten that was living on rat poison until Lisa took him in….he is a handsome and sweet boy, full of mischief, teasing and pestering……

And this is Poppet, the kitty with a neurological problem that gives her the “bobbles”. She is my favorite, she is an opportunistic lap sitter…..and was quite happy with all of us visiting:

We walked the trail going through Luray and came across this sweet baby:

And interrupted a game of Duck, Duck, Goose:

Stay tuned for more photos of beautiful Virginia….

Catch up week

Posted: April 9, 2010 | Author: deb | Filed under: Virginia, What I've been doing | 1 Comment »

I’ve been goofing off…..you know, laundry….cooking…..taxes…..cleaning…..all that fun stuff!

Another thing I’ve accomplished is finishing mosaics, getting them ready to hang at Art Is In Market. This always takes more time than I think it should. Edging the mosaics, attaching hangers, inventory taking.

I hope that next week is “the calm before the storm”. With the storm being my parents’ move into their new condo. But, storms serve a purpose and are a good thing, just difficult to handle. During the calm, I would like to finish up a quilt, and a mosaic or two. Sounds like a good plan.

I’m still thinking about our weekend in Virginia……

This is Lis’ and the big, bodacious, bruised and bitten bully boy……Brutus. He loves his Lisa, but not the other neighborhood cats so much. Here is his story.

Cam and Miracle have a daily meet at the fence….Miracle has Cam trained well, he always has carrots:

Wishing you a good Saturday…..

Happy Easter, Virginia!

Posted: April 4, 2010 | Author: deb | Filed under: Virginia | 3 Comments »

Lisa’s marsh marigolds

Baby chicks at a flea market….

Jeff had another fly…..I think he’s hooked.

Hope you have a lovely Easter Sunday!

Check….

Posted: April 3, 2010 | Author: deb | Filed under: Jeff, Virginia | 9 Comments »

…..one item off Jeff’s bucket list!

Don’t mistake that grin for nervousness….he’s excited! He has wanted to fly in a glider forever! And today was the day.

He scoped out a glider club in Virginia before we even left Michigan. I didn’t believe it would happen, but I was wrong! We just happened to see this sight from Lisa’s backyard yesterday……

The plane on the left is towing the glider on the right, up about 3000 feet. Next, the glider releases itself from the towrope and rides the wind!

Jeff, excused himself from shopping with Capri Lis and I, yesterday, and headed on over to the airport. He got himself on the roster list and was set to go today.

He also signed up as a member of the “Skyline Soaring Club”, issued a handbook to memorize overnight, and a received few instructions this morning. I think we may be coming to Virginia quite regular this summer. George (experienced pilot) flew with Jeff….flying solo is not something for the uninitiated.

I’m saying a little prayer right about now…..

He’s off….note the orange yarn taped to the windshield. The object is to keep that piece of yarn perpendicular and centered on the dashboard. That orange yarn is the most important piece of instrumentation…forget all those fancy dials.

Here he is, coming in fast….too fast….for the landing(to my uneducated eye). But all ended well. This glider has no engine….it rides the wind…sometimes for hundreds of miles. When you are soaring up there, Jeff said it is so peaceful, but flying this glider takes total concentration And when it lands, watching it so peacefully set down reminds me of a beautiful bird.

I think Jeff wants to go back to the airport tomorrow.

Where I Stand 10-18-09

Posted: October 18, 2009 | Author: deb | Filed under: Virginia, Where I stand Sunday | 4 Comments »

There is sadness here today. Lisa and Cam’s rescued beaver, Paddy, has passed away.

Virginia…

Posted: August 13, 2009 | Author: deb | Filed under: Virginia | 9 Comments »

Its been a travelling, vacationing sort of month…can’t believe August is almost half over! We spent a long weekend with Capri L in Virginia at the beginning of August, but I’m just catching up on the “blob”( a d’mama word). That weekend was just so much fun, and special because Capri’s Patt, and Kelly and I drove down with our daughters, “the Bermudas”, Steph, Jackie, Abcat and Mouse.

Paddy the rescued beaver weighs in at 40 pounds now, at one year old. She is doing well in her outdoor habitat, keeping busy with all sorts of beavery things like building, chewing and swimming. Every evening she goes for a stroll with Lisa, following her human mom around wherever she wanders. But she is also acting more independent in many ways, less cooperative, more headstrong. Fortunately this is a good thing, and Lisa expects her to become more and more unsettled over the next year leading up to her eventual release.

We sat on L’s front porch during the evenings. The view was awesome, looking out at the Skyline Drive and the mountainside. I’m sure the Bermudas saw a slightly different side of their moms during this porch sitting time,too.

This view of the Skyline was taken last fall, but just wanted to make sure you understood what we saw while sitting on L’s porch…..it is quite awesome!

We did more than our share of shopping, but then that’s what the Capri’s are especially fond of doing. I think we tired the girls out. We tried out a new game, thanks to Jackie. Its called “Apples to Apples” and is a blast with a group of people. Kind of a word association game, but with a twist.

Meet Mr. Kowalski…the polish rooster. He is the proud king of his henhouse and quite a tame guy, at least to Lisa. I’m disappointed that I didn’t get a photo of Poppet, the equal opportunity lap cat. She is something wonderful….and was in her glory with all the laps to choose from.

I do believe we have started an annual Capri/Bermuda Weekend Extravaganza.

Eggs

Posted: April 9, 2009 | Author: deb | Filed under: Home and family, Miscellaneous, Pets, Virginia | 5 Comments »

We were sent home from Virginia with an abundance of fresh eggs! Yesterday, I opened the carton, planning to hard boil them for Easter, but lost my train of thought…. I just had to photograph them:

4-6-09 eggs 032