BP8IENT

About 16% of license plates in Virginia carry a personalized message. Personalized plates are inexpensive here, and perhaps we who live in the area around DC also like to express ourselves just a bit too much. Whatever the reason, it makes for interesting reading while sitting in traffic -- another trait for which we are known.

I've always been a fan of personalized plates. When I lived in Michigan, I got a plate that told people behind me to "BP8IENT" when my 1998 Chevy Tracker didn't scoot away as fast as they might like. I kept the plate when I got a car with a bit more pep. Here's a photo of my Matrix parked next to a car with a contradictory message:

BP8IENT vs. IMP8NT (pardon the lights, I know it's a bad picture!)

When I moved to Virginia I got the same license plate.

Don't make me come over there.

I often spot my vanity plate nemesis driving on VA-28 when I'm on my way to work. 

MP8IENT

NOTE: Safe driving is a full-time job. Since this was taken on 28 during rush hour, neither of us were doing much driving.

New Year's Day walk

The high temperature in our neck of the woods was in the mid-50s today, and Rob and I were jonesing to get outside. We always enjoy a good amble on either side of the Potomac so we headed to Great Falls National Park.

We came across the ruins of Matildaville on our walk. Matildaville is a ghost town of sorts that is now within the confines of the national park. It was founded by the father of Robert E. Lee, and he named it after his recently deceased wife Matilda.

When I first moved here almost three years ago, I was giddy at the amount of history that one can run into here without even trying. Now I'm becoming a jaded Washingtonian; George Washington this, Robert E. Lee that, President So-And-So the other thing ... who can keep it all straight?

That's not a chimney that Rob is standing next to. That's a wall! Those were built like they meant it.

We didn't walk past the falls today since we were in a mood for a brisk walk. Below the falls the Potomac was smooth and glassy, reflecting the grey-green rocks on the Maryland side.

I love coming out here when the leaves are off the trees because we can take the "high road" and still have great views of the river without the crowds!

Snowmageddon

People in the DC area were so afraid of the approaching storm, they called in the National Guard to shovel snow even before it got here!

Kidding -- that's just Rob doing some pre-emptive shoveling.

A generous 2 feet of snow fell at my apartment in about 36 hours of blustery weather, with only a few electrical flickers when I thought I might lose electricity. According to the National Weather Service, the total for Chantilly (where I live) was 28 inches. To me, once it gets over about a foot and a half, there's no point counting anymore unless it's up to my ears! We went outside Saturday afternoon once it quit snowing. We walked to the grocery store (yes, it was open!) and I made a snow angel. 

But the dig out was inevitable, because life goes on. My snow shovel grew legs and ran away after the last storm, so we were using Rob's shovel and a kitty litter bucket to clear out. Rob's shovel broke when we were almost done with his car -- not a good thing, since there aren't any shovels to be bought for miles.

While we were digging out, this Mercedes tried to make a run for it and got hung up on a little pile of snow left by the plow. It took 7 of us (including the driver) to get the car moving again because its drive wheels weren't making contact with anything solid. Where is a tractor and a good stout chain when you need one?

Mouse over (below) to see what was under all of that snow!

 My missing snow shovel had a wooden handle and an orange plastic blade that was worn down on the corners. Let me know if you see it!

Dig dig dig...

Das Beetle normally endures inclement weather from the relative comfort of her covered carport. Since I was holding out deluded hope that Kris and Kevin would still come down to visit (they are fellow 'ganders after all), I parked her out in the scary open so that they could have my carport spot if they managed to arrive. I doubt she has ever had this much snow on her slick black roof.

One of the endearing qualities of the New Beetle is that it can be hard to tell which end is which. Snow makes this even more apparent.

The snow was much higher than the bottom of Das Btl's doors!

Rob and I cleared out two spots for our cars because I was still hoping that Kris and Kevin could get out on Sunday, but their streets still had not been plowed. I think our cars make a nice pair.

The tomatoes and bananas were restocked by Sunday though! Armageddon averted, for now. No promises for the next storm though.

THE BLIZZARD THAT ATE DC

Apparently while I was at work yesterday, my friends and neighbors were busy devouring the produce department at the Giant next to my apartment. Where are the bananas? The tomatoes? What surprised me was what was not taken -- the onions were cleaned out, but the broccoli was still looking well-stocked. Asparagus was about half gone. Water? Check. Chips? Try again tomorrow.

But it's pretty!

After I walked to the store, I spent some time in the parking lot helping a couple of people get unstuck armed with my mighty snow shovel and my winter driving skills. I had to try to explain to a guy who spoke little English how to rock himself out of the crater he was in by switching from forward to reverse. One poor guy (the same one who warms up his car if it drops below 40) said he had never seen so much snow in his life. He had summer tires on his Mitsubishi Eclipse and I feel like maybe I should have left him stuck -- it would be safer for him. But my motive was a bit selfish; I wanted his parking spot for Rob if he can make it here.

Happy Michiganders!

We waited for days, hoping that the weather forecasters were right. And they were! About 5 inches of heavy wet snow fell on northern Virginia last weekend, and I got out to Great Falls National Park to enjoy it with Rob and Chris.

Note to Chris's mom: this is totally safe and your son was never in any danger of tumbling into the icy river full of jagged rocks.

This was not -- not -- the only kayaker we saw on Saturday. They appeared to be having fun, but they may have just been delirious with cold.

We have visitors. Tremendous visitors! (part 1)

Last weekend my eldest sister Susan (a.k.a. "1") came to visit me with her husband Mark and their son Keegan. Keegan is three years old, and understands that saying you want something is for amateurs. If you want something, say "I neeeeed it...", because who can argue with what you need?

Saturday morning we visited the Reston Zoo. It's a petting zoo in Reston, about 20 minutes from where I live. It was a great place to visit with kids. Keegan was a bit shy of all of the goats and sheep rushing to the sides of their pens, but he loved the snakes. He did eventually warm up to the baby kangaroo because he was a bit shyer. They also had adorable bunny rabbits of all sizes, who seemed to revel in piling up for photos.

Then we went to Great Falls National Park. As I had hoped, we saw many kayakers playing in the rapids.

... and it gave Keegan a chance to look cute wearing his "pack-pack".

More to come later, where we visit the Udvar-Hazy center and the World War II Memorial.

It's been a very soggy couple of weeks.

Kris, Kevin, and I went for a walk at Great Falls this weekend to see how they look after all of the rain we've been having. The water is translucent brown and moves like it has somewhere to go. We also saw a Park Police helicopter flying super-low through the gorge downstream from the falls, tiny waterfalls cascading everywhere, and many knobby-kneed sharp-eyed herons hoping to grab something from nature's snack bar.

100% Natural (Bridge)

This is the Natural Bridge, a 215-foot high natural stone arch that carries Lee Highway. If you have spent any time in Virginia, you just asked "Uhhh ... which Lee Highway?" Because it seems like every highway here is Lee Highway. To road nerds, and those who lack imagination, this Lee Highway also answers to US-11. Hey! You can't do that! But obviously J. Hey from Philadelphia did, back in 1850-something. Old-time graffiti wasn't for people without significant time to commit. Today was about 8 hours of driving, with the only real break being the hour and a half I spent at the Natural Bridge. After I had been driving for about two hours I stopped at a 7-11 in a small town, and not only did the cashier called me "Darlin'", but people had accents! It is nice to be away from the DC area for a while.

I am spending the night in Asheville, NC before continuing to Atlanta, GA in the morning. Asheville seems to be a run-down yet quirky place. I have seen a lot of former light industrial buildings that have been transformed into spaces for artists. I know, that sounds like what urban planners dream of at night, but it looks like it's happening here. I saw lots of artsy-looking people riding bikes and little scooters.

I had dinner at a really good Thai place (called "Jae") in a deserted-looking strip mall, and next-door was a supermarket that didn't sell any products containing high fructose corn syrup or hydrogenated oils, among other things. It was a handy place to pick up a couple of tasty organic free-range self-actualized pears for the road tomorrow. Bumper sticker seen on a car in the lot: "Keep Asheville Weird."

One more photo for the road, just because it took me so many shots to get this one ... I was so glad I spotted that little icicle.

Lazy Sunday morning hike

One of my co-workers and I headed out to Bull Run Mountain to enjoy the awesome weather, and this amazing view. "Lazy" is somewhat sarcastic, because while this isn't a very difficult hike this is not a view that one can drive to either -- so it's about a half-hour of good uphill walking. It's good to be reminded in the spring of just how out of shape I have become. I could spend hours up here pondering such matters as which house in the valley I would most like, or what species of ungulate is grazing in the distance.

Evidence of recent human activity (still-smoking ashes, empty beer cans). We had to admit that they have not only great taste in a spot to come and have a beer and a bonfire, but also plenty of ambition to accomplish it.

We weren't sure what kind of skull this is, but I'm glad we didn't meet it while it was still attached to a living owner. The mandible had been separated from the rest of it. Look at those fearsome sharp teeth, and they were in a double row! What a great reward for being some of the earliest people to hit the trails this spring.

Thanksgiving in Virginia

I had Thanksgiving dinner in West Point with Kris's family. We ate at his sister Michelle's house, his parents came down from Gaylord, and his sister Merrianne and her husband came from Dayton, OH. We got a virtual tour via Skype of the Vienna apartment of his other sister Laura who recently moved there for work. The house was very full and it was almost like being back in Gaylord, except the weather was sunny and in the 50s. I really would like to see some snow now, though. :(

After dinner we went for a walk to the tiny public park, where I got this shot of the York River with Michelle's daughter Meghan looking for shells. I love the delicately pale pink of the sky.

History Pile-up on Route 33!

I've been telling everyone that you can't throw a rock here without hitting a historical marker of some kind, and this is a perfect example. The markers here tell passers-by that they are in the area where Captain John Smith was captured by a party of natives in 1607 and where General McClellan passed through during the Civil War while marching on Richmond. The road itself is as old as the Williamsburg Settlement and was used by a retreating General Cornwallis in 1781.

I found this neat web site where all of these markers can be searched by marker number!

Washington's Office and a Roadside Turtle

When I still lived in the Detroit area and felt like going for a drive I would go to Toledo to see the art museum. I know DC has more art museums than you can shake a paintbrush at, but that's not the kind of drive I had in mind today. Since Toledo is really far away, I drove to Winchester. It might become my new Toledo.

I didn't see any art museums, but Winchester is a pretty old place on the European-American timeline. This building contains an office that George Washington used in 1755 while he planned and supervised the building of a fort there. The door was only about 5'2" tall. I know people were shorter then, but he himself was about 6'3". I would have taken some pictures inside, but they weren't allowed. :(

The office originally stood all by itself, but as with most historical buildings it had numerous other uses through the years. Two more rooms and wood plank floors were added on and a family of 10 once lived here, and it was used as a small hospital during the Civil War. After that, it was a seamstress's house and office.

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I drove part of the way back with the top down, even though it had been a rainy day and it is October 25. I like not having to worry about sunburn. I encountered this little guy sitting next to the highway, pointed toward the woods. He slowly drew back into his shell as I approached (although I'm sure it was very fast for him!) and I waited for a few minutes to see if he might come back out, but no luck. What a pretty shell though! I feel better knowing that it looked like the dangerous part of his journey was over. While I was waiting I also noticed that VW could just as easily have had a different name for this new version of their iconic car. If I had the hardtop version, I'd be tempted to get a custom paint job.