Virginia Winery Tours '12

 We also spent a day touring a few of the local wineries. (There are a couple hundred wineries in the area) I especially like the small family run wineries on the back roads where you could talk with the wine-maker and taste some really good small production  vintages that you wouldn't find in your local market.

Stone Mountain Winery

 It's not just the countryside that is colorful. I kid you not some of the native Virginians we met have a really thick accent. We commented to one of the winemakers about the abundance of wildlife we'd seen in the area. He relied, "Yah. Thar's always a bar, coon, gobbler, or dare out there in that field" ( read phonetically.. this is the way he pronounced bear and deer) . And sure enough, on the road out, we saw a black " bar" cross the road.

Ethiopian Food

Ethiopian Sampler Plate

The receptionist at the Massenutten spa recommended we try "the Blue Nile" Ethiopian restaurant in Harrisonburg VA . This was our first experience with Ethiopian food. We tried the sampler plate and loved it. It is now be our new favorite food. To make sure it was authentic, we also had the Honey bread and Masala tea with our meal. The tea was another delightful first. I made a immediate point of purchasing some Masala tea and have been drinking this delicious spicy brew ever since.

Luray Caverns '12

Luray Caverns formations

While the Massenutten Resort offered enough on-site activities to keep one busy for a lifetime, we also wanted to see some of the local scenery beyond the boundaries of the resort, like the nearby Luray Caverns... The caverns themselves are beautiful as the pictures show. Once you and your tour group are at the bottom of the stairs you  find yourself on a winding well lighted path . The two photos I've posted are a small representation of what you see for the entire hour tour  - 1 1/4 mile walk which takes you some 200 feet into the earth. There is  something totally new and different at every bend. It's almost magical in a Harry Potter-ish kind of way.

Luray  Caverns reflecting pool

The tour guide's script is trite, but the formations themselves are magnificent and more than makes up for the script's lack of  substance . There is something deeply moving about standing next to a 15' long stalactite and reflecting on the fact that, in one person's lifetime, it grows less than one inch.  Viewing a breathtaking rock formation and realizing that it existed, in essentially the same form, for 70 million years before the Pyramids were even dream of truly gives one  a different perspective on one's place in history.

Resort Life in The Shenandoah Valley Sept 16-22, 2012

Bruce on the Meadows Course at Massenutten

The Massenutten Resort where we were staying offers nearly every amenity known to man.. From the almost endless list of options,  BJ  chose to spend much of his vacation time attacking poor defenseless little white balls.  For my part, I preferred getting a aroma therapy massages at the spa.

Visiting with Desiree Sept 14-15, 2012

CC and Desiree

Before beginning our  week long adventure in the Shenandoah Valley, we spent the weekend  visiting with my niece, Desiree Campbell.

BJ and Desiree at Great Falls Nat. Park VA

The weather was great so we all took a short hike in nearby Great Falls  National Park

Isaac 2012

These photos were taken in downtown Charleston yesterday after one of the outer bands of Isaac drenched the SC coast.... and this is 5 states away from the eye of the storm... Can you imagine what it was like in Louisiana?

These Charleston commuters had the right idea... a little hurricane won't slow them down ( Taken at Church and Market Street, Charleston SC)

Taken inside the main tourist center building on Market Street Charleston SC after the area received 8" of water in a day. 

Charleston College students trying to get to class during Isaac's deluge. 

Apache Pier in North Myrtle Beach '12

Apache Pier is the Longest wooden fishing pier on the East Coast of the USA. It is 1206 feet long. To improve fishing, concrete blocks were placed under the pier effectively creating a man made reef

The winged gazebos atop the pier are well equipped with stages and sound systems for concerts that entertain visitors to the area.

Known as the blue collar Riviera, the beaches of Horry County SC (AKA Myrtle Beach area) are lined with high rise hotels and condos. This photo looks north from the Apache Pier toward the South Carolina/North Carolina border which is only 25 miles away.

This view looks South,

Visiting with the neighbors : Corn Snake '12

Corn Snake

Found this little (3') guy in the road while we were on our morning bike ride. At first we thought it had been run over, but it was only playing possum... BJ moved it safely into the grass. Its called a corn snake... a harmless constrictor that eats other critters that are less benign.Corn snakes are very popular in the pet trade. I had a hard time convincing Bruce not to bring this one home.

Congratulations to Mary Paul LeClerc 8 '12

Our friend and neighbor, Mary Paul LeClerc was sworn in as a US citizen last Tuesday.

Friend and family gathered together at her house this evening for a celebration

Husband Robert, and Mary Pauls family  led the toast

And was joined by neighbors and friends who are all very proud of her accomplishment.

 For emphasis, the house was decorated with a red white and blue theme

And there was even a cake with the US flag on it

 Guese whose granddaughter couldn't wait to get the first piece?

Mmmmm! So good!

AC's on the Fritz '12

AC unit upstairs wasn't working this morning. Not good news... its in the upper 90s and very humid. Soon the upstairs would be intolerable. Given the relative youth of the unit we suspected it was not the AC itself. It took BJ less than 10 minutes to trouble shoot the problem down to a faulty wall thermostatic control unit. He ordered a new one from the internet ( which will arrive tomorrow), and moved the working one from downstairs to the upstairs unit so I can continue preparing for next weeks exhibition . What a sweetie!

A clever way to reduce the garage temperature

Bruce lined the inside of our metal garage door with a light-weight insulating foam core sheeting he found at Home Depot. Absolute Genius! It dropped the daytime temperature in the garage by close to 40 degrees. ( from120 to 80). We may actually be able to use the garage as a craft room in both the summer and the winter.

Three Dog Night Concert '12

We went to a Three Dog Night Concert this evening.

Orchestra Seating

They  were playing to a packed house at Boons's Farm Plantation.  In addition to the  Orchestra seating you can see in these photos, the  gallery audience actually extended for a quarter mile on the grass behind where I was standing to take the pictures.

It was a beautiful summer evening for a concert.

 BJ was really excited. He says they were the first group he ever saw in concert. 

BJ

  He was 18 yrs old and playing with the Navy band in Memphis.  Of course he and the band were a lot younger then.  Here's what they both look like today

Three Dog Night Today

A few years and a few gray hairs didn't stop everyone  in the audience from turning into a teen again and  singing along with popular favorites like "Joy to the World", and "Old Fashioned Love Song " at the top of their lungs.  It was a lot of fun.  So glad we went

It is hot hot hot! '12

Whoooo eeeee! 96 degrees at 7:30 pm with 70 % humidity and not a hint of a breeze. Bruce looked like he was going to have a stroke he as so red. .We stayed at the concert until intermission, then headed back to our Air conditioned home.

Visiting wth the neighbors on PI 6 '12

Look who Bruce met on the beach this morning.

Waccatee Zoological Farm 6'12

Waccatee Zoological Farm Is a small family run enterprise  that is run  entirely on private donations. 

 

  The zoo houses thousands of animals and over 100 species.
The first to greet you are the Peafowl (aka peacock).

 

 They are both beautiful to look at and good security.  At the least small disturbance these lovely creatures  begin  screaming ear piercing alarm calls, alerting  the staff and everyone else that mischief is afoot.

 From the road you see herds of buffalo and zebra roaming the open sunny grassland, but most of the zoo is located within 500 acres of private, carefully preserved, wooded property.

Some of the larger herd animals like the ( North African sheep above) are given  large tree sheltered enclosures These are the lucky ones.

Many of the animals are located in relatively small enclosures

Many of the animals are located in relatively small enclosures

While clean and well fed, it did not seem entirely fair to keep such large animals in such small spaces

I was especially uncomfortable with the  cats and other predators

 The zoo's website brags that  "big cats like the leopard, lion, cougar and tiger eye you up close".  It is true that one can get close.  I could get within a foot of this  little serval cat, but  it  wouldn't meet my eyes.  A  large lioness paced endlessly back and forth  between the cinder block walls of her  rooms.    It left me feeling guilty and sad to see these beautiful animals caged like this.

One are that I did find enjoyable was the raised wooden walkway that winds through the  wetlands .   A raised wooden walkway winds through  the

Located where the Waccamaw River, Intracoastal Waterway and Socastee Creek  join, Waccatee Zoo is a natural wildlife sancuary and breeding ground for many species of migratory birds.  At several times of the year it's not uncommon to see thousands of beautiful native egrets or heron in one small spot.  

The birds were everywhere, posing like photographers models

 The egret above had built its nest right over the walkway,

while the heron below was posing on a branch beside the walk. The difference between the birds and the other creatures in the zoo is that the birds are free to come and go as they like.  If the zoo area does  not please them, they could simply fly on down the river to another site.

There's a lot more animals than I have shown, so if you like small private zoos or are looking for a good site t to do some bird photography, at  check it out at 

 8500 Enterprise Rd

Myrtle Beach, SC  29588

843-650-8500

Brookgreen Gardens Cool Summer Evenings '12

Once again, Brookgreen Gardens  has created the ultimate stage for Cool Summer Evenings 2012. This season, the curtain rises on a series of exciting and varied musical offerings.  Our favorite was the  Thistledown Tinkers, the powerful music duo featuring Trip Rogers and Tom Eure, weave traditional Scottish and Irish music with original creations that sets the stage on fire. With an impressive arsenal of instruments including guitar, fiddle, mandolin, banjo, dulcimer, and concertina, their stage presence creates a rebel rousing party that not only draws fans in, but makes them feel like a part of the show.

Visiting the family : The Browns 6 '12

Bruce decided he wanted  spend some quality time with our two grand-daughters Delaney and Macie Brown this summer.  CC was totally preoccupied with preparation for her  August featured artist exhibition  in Charleston, so Bruce went without CC to visit the girls, and his daughter, Laura in New Jersey.

 He timed his visit so that he could be at Macie's  dance school recital.  Delaney had been in dance class last  year, but felt she had other interests she wanted  pursue this year.

Macie on the other hand was totally involved, and spent her every waking moment practicing her movements and looking cute.

She looked even cuter when she was on stage performing in a chorus line  with the other girls of her age group.

The recital involved the complete  range of ages, and was very professionally staged.

But as far as Bruce was concerned,

Macie was the star of the show

Congratulations,  Miss Macie Brown.