Leap Year Random-osity

The Good: Today I took another mile and a half walk. I did not need an app to measure the distance  because this path in Strasburg is marked with a sign every tenth of a mile.

There was a breeze so the air did not feel as warm as yesterday but it was still comfortable. The North Fork of the Shenandoah was bursting with water but it no longer looked muddy as it did a few days ago.

Riverwalk Pictures — Click to Enlarge

The Random: Today is Rare Disease Day.  I have a rare condition that is not a serious disease but rather an odd one. It's called Holmes-Adie's Syndrome and the main symptom is that one eye has a pupil that does not contract in bright light. My other symptom is lack of reflexes in one leg. That doesn't bother me but the tonic pupil can be painful when light is intense.

The Fun: I often enjoy seeing murals but I saw one on Saturday that surprised and delighted me! This mural wraps around the building! It shows mountains in the background, quite appropriate for its location in Elkton, Virginia.

Sharing with Monday Murals
and The Good, the Random, and the Fun

Walking Third Winchester

Today was beautifully warm, almost a shock for February. Naturally I wanted to take a walk but recent rains have left trails muddy. Knowing that there was a paved path at Third Winchester Battlefield, we headed there. The parking lot on Redbud Road was almost full, and we saw many people walking or riding bikes.

The Battlefield was preserved for its Civil War history but it is very much enjoyed as a park and natural area.

We saw many dogs on the trail, enjoying the outdoors with their owners. We only walked as far as Redbud Run. I've walked other portions of the trail on earlier occasions, starting at the school complex on First Woods Drive. (See all my Third Winchester posts.)

My tracking app said we walked 1.52 miles.

Redbud Run

Sharing with Weekend Reflections and Shadow Shot Sunday

and Sundays in My City and My Town Shootout

Berryville Baptist Church

When we were driving through Berryville, I spotted this gleaming steeple and just had to go back and take a picture. I recalled that I had taken a picture of this church before and found one in my picture folders. That's the second picture.

Notice how the spire has been shined up since I took a picture last year. It appears to be covered in copper squares, and they oxidize over time.

Sharing with Inspired Sunday

Sepia Portraits of White Tailed Deer

One reason I keep posting is to share things I love. Recently I read that people will not protect nature until they love it, and they will not love it until they know it!

So again I share these magnificent animals. I hope people will want to protect them, which unfortunately is not simple. Deer are overcrowded in the park and this threatens their health. The park service is studying them to seek solutions. Deer are also threatened by motor vehicles, so please watch for them and slow down at dusk, which is a time that they are active and feeding along the roadside.

Sharing with Sepia Saturday
and Saturday's Critters and Camera Critters

In Shenandoah National Park

Chaos at the Suet Feeder

Sharing with The Bird D'Pot

and The Weekend in Black and White

Skywatching, Late This Afternoon

I am dedicating this post to the memories of two bloggers we have lost over the past months, East Gwillimbury Camera Girl and Birdman. The former was in a tragic accident this week, and Birdman died in October.

Although I never met either of these people, we visited each others' blogs and left comments. Photobloggers often admire each others' work, and there is a sense of community, especially among those who belong to City Daily Photo or share via linkups or social media sites.

The passing of these fine bloggers is a painful reminder of how brief and fragile our lives are. Peace.

Sharing with Skywatch Friday and Through My Lens

Whose Couch is This?

Sharing with Thoughtless Thursday

Shenandoah Valley near Middletown

Sharing with Good Fences

Ducks, Geese, Rain Clouds

Mallards

Geese jumping back in the lake

A heavy rain storm moved in this afternoon. I decided to cancel my plans to go to the library and stayed home. When the storm let up, I went outside and took a few pictures. I even took the camera along when I walked the dog because I was hoping to see a rainbow, but no luck. Still, we fared well compared to a few places in  eastern Virginia which were hit by tornados.

Sharing with Wild Bird Wednesday

and Water World Wednesday
and Watery Songlines
and Outdoor Wednesday

Odd Cloud Looks Like a Mountain

See Charlie Run! See Charlie Jump!

Sharing with Wordless Wednesday and Black and White Wednesday

Night Train and Flag Pole

(Almost Monochrome)

Sharing with Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday and Our World Tuesday

Random Treasures

Combining Tuesday's Treasures with
The Good, The Random, and The Fun

Handley High School, Winchester, VA

The Good: John Handley High School is a public school that's on the National Register of Historic Places. It was founded by a grant from Judge John Handley. This handsome school is in the northern Shenandoah Valley. 

The Random: This bust of George Washington stands in Hagerstown, Maryland. It is the work of Avard T. Fairbanks.

See all my posts that mention George Washington, hero of the American Revolution and our first President.

Since the face in the photo turned out dark, I'm including a Photoshopped version below. 

The Fun: I spotted this car near New Market. It reminds me of how it felt to take a ride just for the fun of it!

Washington's Real Birthday

February 22 is George Washington's Birthday, despite the fact that we celebrated President's Day last week. President Washington was from my home state, so in his honor I'm posting some pictures I took last spring at his office in Winchester, VA.

I was amused to see a model of a hog in the back yard. A sign explains that Washington served as a burgess in Colonial Virginia and in 1761 he sponsored legislation to ban hogs from freely roaming the streets of Winchester, a measure designed to protect clean water.

Click to See Larger Image

Sharing with Mosaic Monday 

Barns Along Hoover Road

Woodstock, Virginia

I took these pictures a couple of weeks apart. Unfortunately the light was not shining on these buildings, but I wanted to capture them for The Barn Collective. And note the flag mural, qualified for sharing with Monday Murals. 

Me and My Shadow

Sharing with Shadow Shot Sunday and Sundays in My City

and Black and White Weekend and Black and White Sunday

Poor Little Critters

This mourning dove was in our yard. It looks fine from this side but from the other side I could see that it was injured. I think it was attacked by a predator.

I called a wildlife rescue for advice and they said if I could bring it to them in a shoe box they would try to help. I put on gloves and got Frank to go out the other door so I could catch it. However, when I approached, it flew up into a tree.

I have not seen it since then. Last year we had an injured goose in our yard. It had a hurt foot and struggled to keep up with it's family members, although it was probably okay when swimming in the lake.

I am not experienced at approaching geese and was afraid to try to pick it up, plus it wouldn't fit in a shoe box!  However, a woman who was braver than I was able to capture it and take it to the wildlife center. I don't know if they were able to help it enough to release it back into the wild.

This squirrel was not injured but he looked pathetic with his wet tail. It was a day when snow had fallen and turned to rain, and squirrel was hungry enough to feed even when the rain was still coming down. I guess you do what you need to do!

Sharing with Saturday's Critters

and The Bird D'Pot