A Quiet Walk in W. O. Riley Park

Woodstock, VA

Wordless

Spaces and Places of Harrisonburg

Mural by Addison Green

This mural is at the entrance of the Walmart that’s west of Harrisonburg. Walmart has a community mural program.

It depicts well-known sites in Harrisonburg and Dayton. I have photos of the mill in Dayton, the museum there, and the Rockingham County courthouse in Harrisonburg.

Mosaic Monday / Murals

#walmartmurals @nowart_la

Belated Octoberfest Post

October was such a photogenic month that I didn’t get to share all the highlights. These pictures are from October 11.

Bryce Resort held an Octoberfest. I was there with Deborah and Frank and our dogs. We didn’t stay long, but I did grab a photo of these folks.

There was music indoors, but it was way too loud for me. The scene outside seemed a bit surreal, with dancers and even dogs (!) wearing lederhosen, children playing, people drinking beer, and cyclists speeding down the hill as they reached the end of the mountain bike trail. Oh, and bicycles overhead moving  up the mountain on a ski lift!

One thing I like to do is vary my route by taking a back road. I decided to take Crooked Run Road to Jerome, and found myself next to Deauville Farm. I was explaining to Deborah that Gail Rose used to raise fellow deer there, when I noticed that people were outside and OMG, there’s Gail! I hadn’t seen her in over 10 years, so I pulled into the parking lot and got out. She greeted us warmly, as always. 

There was an independent film made about Gail and her farm, and I remember going to see it some years ago, and at that time, Gail was recovering from cancer treatment. It was good to see her looking well.

Charlie and a Snowy Day

 Hi, it’s Charlie the Beagle! I have a complaint about yesterday. When I went outside in the morning, the ground was wet and very cold. I could hardly wait to go back inside.

Mom had put out extra seed for the birds and they came and ate it.

It was not a good day to go to the park, and by afternoon I was very bored. So we went to Sadie’s house and played. We had fun, but I got tired of her trying to kiss me.

Filtered in Photo Editor

Today Mom took me to Tractor Supply to see Santa. When I saw him last year, I was really scared, but I was braver today because I am grown up.

Some ladies from the Humane Society were there and they had little kittens that people can adopt. Mom bought something from them, but it wasn't a kitten.

Then we went to Sadie’s house and picked up Miss Deborah. We went to Front Royal because Mom wanted to go to a holiday market and Deborah wanted to go to the bookstore. People said I was cute in my new vest.

I have one other thing to tell you. I got tummy ache last weekend and so Mom took me to the vet on Tuesday. Dr. Jim said I have bacteria and give us some medicine. I feel a lot better now.

Students at Lunch

 Yesterday in Harrisonburg 

Actually, they were waiting for their order to be ready. I assume they’re James Madison University students because one was wearing a JMU sweatshirt.

Cloudy Skies and Christmas Stockings

Today I had an appointment in Harrisonburg at 2 PM. I thought about eating lunch in a restaurant, but realized I would've felt rushed, so I ate a protein bar in the car on the way. I parked so that the sun came in the window because I don't get much sunlight during these short days. The sun went behind the clouds part of the time, but I had a nice view.

The first two pictures are from my parking spot. The third one shows nearby Bushong Farm.

The medical office was already decorated for Christmas. I was there for my annual Medicare wellness visit, which some people think is a waste of time, but I usually get a prescription for lab work and a referral to a specialist if I need one.

By the time I picked up Charlie at day boarding, the sun was going down. This view is looking at the office next door.

I had noticed the full moon on the way home, but I could not stop on the interstate to take a photo. Later when I was walking Charlie after dark, I steadied the phone on a mailbox to snap a picture.

Brave Little Birds

Finally, a bird posed for me on the railing of my deck. They seem to be shy when I first start feeding them. Now that the weather has turned cold, they are willing to take a chance of being seen just to get some birdseed

I believe this is a white-throated sparrow.

The feeder cam is still getting pictures of birds.

I recognize this one as a junco, but I decided to doublecheck by asking Siri what does a junco look like? She misunderstood.

Blog Post #9300 — Old Pictures

When I was young, I was tentative. I knew I had a good smile. I did not know if I was pretty or had power. I knew disappointment. Sometimes I took pictures when I was lonely.

You can probably see some of those things from the self portraits. Only the third picture was taken by someone else, a photographer who got me to grin.

Linkup: Image-in-ing

Student Murals and Displays

Blog Post #9299

These pictures are from an art show on November 1st, one month ago. Professional art was featured, but there was also artwork on the walls that was done by local students. Let’s take a look.

Sharing with Mosaic Monday / Murals

There was a lot to see so I won’t try to explain it all. You can read the typed papers that explain the objectives.

Hearthstone students also featured a tree, but used a collage to tell stories about their environment and local history. 

Their school is near the Thornton Gap entrance to Shenandoah National Park, so they chose to tell the story of Franklin Roosevelt and the CCC, which played a huge role in building the park. 

They also focused on the Native American tribes that lived in the area. 

Looking South from Riley Park

Woodstock, VA

Shadow Shot Sunday

I had to look at the map to see which direction I was facing when I took this. The reason is that the mountains here don’t run north/south or east/west but my mind tells me that they should. Indeed, the Massanutten Range is said to have a northern section and southern section, but it runs northwest, or specifically NNW. Our other mountain ranges here run the same way, yet writers usually refer to them using the four main points of the compass, so I often struggle when I try to be accurate yet clear.

Anyway, I took this picture yesterday while walking Charlie. He likes to go to various parks and smell all the different smells. 

Our weather has turned cold. There was a little bit of snow on the ground this morning. I wish the warm weather had lasted longer.