Seasons

Seasons can refer to time of year, climate, or spices.  It is fall, hurricane season, and generally, I use an all purpose seasoning (with just about every dish regardless of type of meat) because I really am not a seasoned chef... but this makes everything I cook start to take on a similar flavor.  I have heard, "keep the chicken, change the seasoning."  We all need a change from time to time... in season, routine, job, responsibilities, hobbies, hangouts, groups of friends, types of books we read, movies we watch, games we play, etc.  We need to embrace variety with people as well.  Accept every race, religion, creed, ethnicity, political party, etc.  This doesn't mean we have to agree with all their beliefs, but we all need to unite around peace, love, safety, respect, and justice. 

Seasoning is the spice of life just as the change of seasons gives us new flavor in colors, temperatures, smells, and feelings.  So, as much as I hate to see summer end, I welcome October and a change in seasons.  






Often we are discontent with our 'season in life,' waiting and anticipating better things with the next phase of life.  I can't get back the time in life I was teaching.  Granted, I loved the work I did, but I really neglected my family much too often.  Luckily, I am very happily retired and enjoying just about every day to its fullest.  I realize I may not always have the health (ability) to ride my horse, hike, dance, workout, or do yard work... so I am enjoying as much of that as possible now.  Then, hopefully I can be content in my next season of life, when and if it occurs.

Saturday I made a fruit salad (no seasons required) and headed to the pool for my 9:00 shift.  I had no patrons all morning, but at 12:30, folks started wandering in for our last day pot luck party.  Shirley and Joe even came to help me celebrate the end of our pool season and my last day of work. 







I clocked off work at 1:00 and joined the party group.  They are so much fun to talk with and listen too.  We had a total of 23 people.  Only Joe and one other man got in the pool though.  It was just too cold, but the sun was nice and warm.  Then, as the party was winding down, I helped Mike with year end pool furniture clean-up.

Getting home at 5:15, I had no need for dinner because of our large, late lunch.  The cats were big time wrestling...

Again another photo flipped.  Ugh

I took Maggie on a 30 minute walk (who you can see in this last photo, was staying clear of the cats).  Once home and sweet and clean, and in my snugly PJ's, Joe and I watched the 2017 movie - Our Souls At Night, with Jane Fonda and Robert Redford.  It was good.

Sunday morning Monita actually sat in my lap (a rare occasion) almost making me late for Church because I didn't want to get up and disturb her.










After Church, Joe met Maggie and I at Patty's new house to work in her yard.  While Joe mowed, I weeded, picked up sticks, and raked the areas of heavy leaf deposits.

Maggie thought stick detail was her job, but she didn't understand the concept of leaving them on the leaf blanket.










Joe got done much earlier than I, and left.  I spoke with both of Patty's next door neighbors, one a widow and the other a single lady.  They both seem very nice.

I brought Maggie home and then went to the barn.  It was a beautiful day for a ride.  While tacking up, I got the bad news that one of the boarders at the barn got badly hurt, earlier in the day, when her saddle slipped and she fell off onto her back.  She broke her collar bone, several ribs and cracked her pelvis.  All of us are praying for her.







I chose to use the snaffle bit again, and Amiga did better with it.  After a total ride of 90 minutes, she didn't have any additional rubbing on the side of her cheek.








I had ridden Amiga to Terry's and had a nice chat with her and said hi to all the horses.  Seen here, Smurf and Zip ran up to the fence to investigate us.  Then (below) Cash came over to greet Amiga.


When starting my ride, I had noticed a toad going in circles, on the trail in the dry sand.  Amiga hadn't stepped on it, but maybe another horse did.  Anyway, it was still there when I was returning to the barn, so I tried saving it.  It's leg wasn't injured as I had suspected, so I am thinking it had neurological damage.  I moved it to a safer spot where there was some damp mud.  It was covered by grass and seemed to at least be able to rest and stop spinning around anyway.  But I am betting it didn't survive.

Once Amiga was in her stall for the night, I got Zorro and brushed him before turning him back out for the night.

Shirley dropped by the house for kitten care instructions while I was eating leftovers. 
Next Maggie and I headed to Jan's house.  We walked first because the sun was setting.  Then Maggie was happy to rest in the car while I did cat care at Jan's.
I sent this photo of Maggie to Britney because the dog looks so much like her family's dog.

Pat on Rocky

Monday, I did Ballroom Aerobics, my weight workout, worked in the yard, and then met Pat at the barn to help escort her and Rocky to Terry's.  She was moving him there, where she will now be boarding him.

Arriving at Terry's  - The ride went well, without mishap, and Pat's husband Art checked our progress midway, when we were coming up the power lines.

Cash again came over to see Amiga.  After chatting with Art, Terry, and Billy for a few minutes, I rode Amiga back to Wildwood. 
Shirley and Judy were at the barn so I sat and chatted with them for awhile too.

We decided to open a gate so Zorro could come up closer to the barn, because with Rocky gone, he will now be out by himself overnight.  Sometimes I think he would rather be with people than horses anyway.

My evening was primarily spent packing for our three day get-away.

I was up at my usual time Tuesday, but there was a certain urgency to my morning routine, since Joe and I were leaving fairly early.  For the most part I was on schedule.  I finished packing up my computer and other last minute things while Joe took Maggie to the kennel.  We were two minutes behind departure time as we backed out of the dive.  But our garage door would NOT stay down.  Nearly ten minutes later, and probably 25 attempts, the door finally went down all the way and didn't go back up.  And we were finally off.



The three and a half hour drive went well for us.  Unfortunately though, there was an accident just outside of Damascus, Va.  We arrived on the scene shortly after it had happened and were stopped dead (that doesn't sound right) in our tracks. 














It was only a ten minute wait before traffic was moving again, but we were able to watch the first responders arrive, and as they used the 'jaws of life' to remove the door for the trapped driver, the firetruck came.

Having lost an hour because of time zone, we arrived at the Damascus bike rental and shuttle shop at 12:00.  We each got fitted for our bike and then had to wait for the next shuttle.


So we snacked and looked around the shop for 30 minutes.








Once loaded onto the shuttle, it was a 45 minute drive up the winding mountain road.



This is up in the Blue Ridge mountain, an area that is Christmas tree country (and I am already getting excited about this next season to come).



Finally, we were on our bikes and headed down the Virginia Creeper Trail at 1:30 (video)









We were riding the 17 mile section from Whitetop to Damascus.  The trail was primarily crushed limestone and cinders, left over from the train days, and very easy riding most of the way (video).

Our shuttle driver said there were 25 bridges on this section of the trail (video).  They were all numbered (this was #39).  We would be getting off at #16 in Damascus.










The trail was almost all downhill and we were in a gorge, in the middle of the forest most of the time.

The Whitetop elevation is about 3500 feet and Damascus is about 1910 feet.  So it was almost a 1600 foot drop over the 17 miles.  We got off our bikes several times to take photos of the scenery.  Seen above, a Christmas tree farm on the hillside.

Since it was a weekday, there was not a lot of bike or pedestrian traffic on the trail.











We passed through three little towns stopping at an old depot, now little museum in Green Cove.

The railroad closed in 1977 and everything on the shelves was just left here.  Look at all the seasonings (spices).  

















After a short break, including water, we were soon back on the trail.

The Appalachian Trail follows the Holston River and kind of chris-crossed the Creeper Trail a couple of times.  














This bridge was above both the river and the Appalachian trail.  Seen right, our view from the bridge (Appalachian trail in the bottom right of the photo).


We stopped for a late lunch, early super, at 3:30 in Taylors Valley at the Creeper Trail Cafe.  The food was very tasty and really hit the spot (I was hungry since lunch had only been a snack).




Kudzu (not the same thing as Virginia Creeper) was taking over in several places.  According to this sign, it had been intentionally planted on the step hillsides during railroad construction to prevent erosion.

We had to pedal the last 3 miles because the trail flattened out a bit, coming back into Damascus.  After my big burger for lunch I felt like I needed to work a little.

It was a fun afternoon, a great ride, and perfect weather.














After turning our bikes in we drove a half hour to Abington where we checked in at a Red Roof Inn.





We rested briefly and then headed back out, this time to hike the western end of the Virginia Creeper Trail.







This section of trail through town was wider and very popular as it went past homes and even a golf course.






There were more bridges we crossed, this actually being #1, and the beginning (or end) of the trail.


We had eaten a large, late lunch, so opted for DQ ice cream for supper.


Back at our hotel, I had to go to the front desk to get help connecting my lap-top to the internet.  In our room, Joe caught up with the news of the Las Vegas shooting and I tried to catch up on this blog post.  But I was way too distracted.

Wednesday morning we drove almost two hours, leaving Virginia and entering North Carolina, where we went to the Biltmore estate, owned by George Vanderbilt.


We took a shuttle from the parking lot and first did a tour of the house.  Seen left, the Winter Garden entry.

In the banquet hall, the massive limestone mantel above the three fireplaces displayed the detailed carving entitled “The Return from the Hunt.”  This room was 72 feet long and had a seven-story high ceiling. 



The house had 250 rooms including 80 bedrooms and 43 bathrooms.  There were 65 fireplaces.  This was George Vanderbilt's personal library, over two stories tall.








This is the view of Biltmore's 250 acre Deer Park, with the Blue Ridge Mountains beyond.


And of course, there was an indoor heated pool, 70,000 gallon to be exact.  With no chemicals or filtration system, it was drained after a week of use, and only filled for parties and other special occasions.


After the house tour, we hit a few shops (Christmas, my kind of season) on our way to lunch.



Eating at 1 pm, we tried to keep lunch light because we had 6pm dinner reservations.  I asked an old man (sitting across from us with his wife) to take our photo.  He held the photo button down (off and on) and ended up getting 35 photos.  These capture the moment well.  Joe was screwing around and got reprimanded by me, making us all laugh.

After lunch we toured the outdoor gardens, conservatory, and walking trails, totaling three miles.  This was the Wisteria roofed patio off one end of the house.










I thought this spider web in a Hemlock tree, trapping dead needles, was kind of cool.





The gardens by the conservatory were beautiful  There was a total of 75 acres of landscaped gardens.














This is the season for mums, so lots were being used.





The walking trails were ground granite, gravel or wood chips.  Deluxe hiking trails actually. 
This was an interesting creek crossing.








We made a few wrong turns and probably walked closer to four miles before ending at the Italian Garden with its three cement ponds.  They contained water lily and other aquatic plants along with many koi and goldfish of all shapes, colors, and sizes.

We drove the five mile scenic road through the Biltmore estate but did not have time to stop at the Antler Hill village.  It was then a 30 minute drive to our AirB&B (seen left).  This was NOT the Biltmore by any means, but it was clean and served it's purpose.












We showered and dressed for the night out and then headed into downtown Ashville (NC).  We had over an hour before our 6:00 dinner reservation, so walked around town and then had drinks out on the patio.

Dinner (which was absolutely fantastic) and then concert were at the Isis Theater Restaurant.  Not ISIS, but Isis, named after the Egyptian patroness of marriage, fertility, and motherhood who was also worshiped as the goddess of the sky, nature, magic, and medicine.

Vance shakes hands with Joe

Vance Gilbert was the main show.  He came around to chat with folks at several tables.  When he talked with us, we reminded him of days long ago (about 19 years) when we took the three kids to see (and hear) him at Wesleyan University.

His show was great as usual.  He can be so funny and then so serious, as are the songs he writes.  He also plays a mean guitar and has a great voice including many interesting noises.




Thursday we were on the road by 8:00 (7 am central time).  I am not sure if these are the Smokey mountains, or if the Blue Ridge Mountains get the same 'smoke' from the morning fog.






After over an hour of driving, we stopped at a Perkins for breakfast. (All the big, heavy, greasy meals I had been consuming were starting to take their toll on me, but I still dug in.)  At least I had made a point to drink plenty of water = lots of restroom breaks.

Another hour of driving, we stopped at Frozen Head State Park (30 minutes out of our way) and we hiked three miles there.


Do you see the cairn lower left corner of this photo?  It looks like a person.  Here it is on the right, up close.





Our hike was to a water fall that ended up being a disappointment because there was just not enough water in the creek (video).

It was another 90 minutes on the road to get home.  

We were on back country roads, hilly and curvy, and it put me over the edge.  I was so tired of riding in the car, and feeling dizzy and queasy.  I was done with (had had enough) auto transportation for awhile.

After getting everything unpacked and put away, I took Monita to the vet.  She had a temperature, so he couldn't start her on her kitten shots.  He felt she still had an URI and not allergies, which was what I thought might be the problem.  So he put her on a new set of antibiotics.  He also said she now as her adult teeth so has to be at least four months old.  So we changed her birth date again.  She weighed 3.6 pounds which is still on the skinny side.  She certainly had a lot of fight in her when he and his assistant tried to give her a pill though.  He sent me home with nine more pills (Doxycycline) this time.

Joe had gotten Maggie from the kennel, so when I got back from the vet I took her on a nice long walk.  She acts like she doesn't trust me (every time now) when she comes home from the kennel.  But she was glad to be back home, keeping an eye out on the place.



After dinner Joe and I watched both of the survivor shows he had recorded.

I woke up an hour too early (4:30) Friday morning, but got up so I could make a good dent in this blog post.  Monita will sometimes sit near by, when she isn't busy playing or pestering the cat and dog.  She seemed to like the warmth coming from my computer this particular morning.  I was busy sorting through all my photos.







Late morning, I had tired of this computer and went to the barn to ride.  I took Amiga (in the snaffle again) out on the long trail.  We made a short detour to go look at the winter pasture.  As you can see, it really needs rain.



Then I rode to the water hole.  I walked Amiga down the steep sandy bank to the edge of Daddy's creek.  Chester was enjoying cooling off in it.  See him in the right photo, which is looking upstream. 







Seen left is looking down stream.  There is over a foot drop off down into the water here, from this large rock, and it was over Chester's head as he swam to me.  I was standing on the rock platform to keep my boots dry and Amiga away from the edge but I let her walk on the section (seen above) where there was shallower water.

Seen left, and on this (video), Amiga really enjoyed splashing in the water.  Above is a before and after shot.  You can see how wet she got herself.

We had a nice ride back to the barn.  Amiga had been kind of tripsy on the rocky trail, (three of the hills are really bad).  At least she seemed fine on the smooth footing.  I worry about her twisting an ankle, bruising her feet, or something.  Makes me think twice about going on the long trail very often.  She's just not as well built for this as the livery horses are.

Once home (3:00) I was too tired to be productive or go work out, so I laid on the floor and read my book.  And fell asleep.  When I woke up, Monita was napping by my head.  I woke her up trying to get this photo.  Look at her long legs.


Joe was soon home from golfing and then we went to Good Samaritan for their open house and Bay Brooks (from the Voice) concert. 





We bought dinner from a food truck and enjoyed the new fountain feature and music.  The complementary cupcake was also very good.

We took a self guided tour of the new facility, including movie theater, game room with pool table, library, workout room, new rehab center, one of the new apartments and a new villa.  We were quite impressed.  I loved all the art work on the walls.

We listened to a little more music and then finished our tour of the grounds, taking the long way around on the sidewalk to our car.
I didn't last long at my computer or in bed with my book.  It is getting to be hibernating season, with the shorter days, which may also explain my increased appetite.