Not a Real Window

Monday Murals

 This pretty window and scene is painted on a wall in an Italian restaurant. 

Ukrainian Catholic Church, Front Royal

There was a notice in a local newspaper inviting people to services at the Ukrainian Catholic Church. I noted the address and stopped by to take a photo. I was expecting a fancier building.

Inspired Sunday / Shadow Shot Sunday

This church is named for the legendary parents of Mary, mother of Jesus. (I did not recognize the names until I looked up Joachim just now.) 

I wanted to post a picture of this church in honor of the people of Ukraine, who are struggling at this time. 

Church Website

Not far from the church I saw a small lake.

The message in Daily Word for tomorrow is on Peace.

Interesting Creatures

A squirrel studied the suet feeder, climbed up and ate his fill. 

I saw a strange creature in a thrift store. What do you think it is?  

Lynn loves thrift stores, which is why we stopped at one after going to Winchester today to get an item she wanted for her dog Rufus. While in Winchester, I couldn't resist showing her the silo on the grounds of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley. It has undergone extensive remodeling since being acquired by the museum.

Now for a couple of real birds. Did you see the hawk I posted the other day? Here he is flying away.

And for this post's final picture, a male house finch posed so that he was framed by the railing on my deck. 

The Bird D'Pot / Saturday's Critters

Shopping Plants and Pretties

Do you take out your phone in the store and take a picture? If I did this with a camera, security might question me for suspicious behavior, but we all check our phones so often that people rarely notice. 

Today's first picture is a bromeliad in the supermarket. The shadow shot includes a plant. The rest of the photos are from inside the Strasburg Emporium, a large antique store with a variety of decorative items.

Sharing with:

• Friday Bliss
• Black and White Weekend
• Weekend Reflection
• Garden Affair
• Floral Friday.

Snapping Signs and Such

Blog Post #7845

A side-effect of blogging for over 16 years is that I find myself watching for subjects that fit one of my favorite topics. Often I watch for items that will fit into a favorite blog hop, such as Tom's weekly Signs linkup. My regular places for amusing signs include gift shops, thrift stores, and a certain veterinary office. Usually I just take these snapshots with my phone because it is in my purse or pocket.

 As I write this, part of your attention may be on the precarious situation in Ukraine, where Russia has basically started a war. I don't intend to make light of this disaster, but if I can do anything positive. it is probably to keep linkages active and perhaps lighten someone's day. I appreciate you, my readers, and if you are in an uneasy situation right now, I hope you will come through it and find the peace you deserve.

Another great blog hop is Alan's Skywatch. It is very popular and you can see that many people love photos of sunsets.

The Hawk that Got Away

Two days ago I was in the living room and heard a sound outside. I looked out and saw a huge hawk sitting on the deck railing. "Red tailed hawk!" I gasped, although I am not an expert on hawks. I tried to pick up my camera rather cautiously, but apparently he saw me move and took off with a mighty flapping of his wings. 

Disappointed that I had missed a chance for a hawk portrait, I had to be contented with getting a few pictures of ordinary birds. This one is a Carolina wren. 

Wild Bird Wednesday

Well, today was unseasonably warm so I sat on the back deck for a little while, eating lunch and soaking up sunshine. And look who landed in a tree! 

Spangler’s Mill

ON 2/2/22

Strasburg, VA

LINKS: 

• Post from 2009 when this was a restaurant 
• Tuesday Treasures
• Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday
• Travel Tuesday
  
• Strasburg, Fraternal Order of Eagles (current owners)

Mission Mural and Icy Rocks

Monday Mural: This is on the right side of the Winchester Rescue Mission. I did not photograph the front of the building because people were arriving for dinner and I did not want to make them uncomfortable. 

One of the wonders of our area is Shenandoah National Park, and many folks were there today because it was a holiday and the weather was mild. The ice flows at Indian Run Overlook are still frozen. 

Mosaic Monday Blue Monday

A Long Building and an Old Balloon

The First Baptist Church in Woodstock is such a long building that I had to take a panoramic photo to get it all in. It looks like they built a modern addition to the left of the original church building.

Inspired Sunday

This afternoon Lynn came over with her friend Travis with the goal of installing a deadbolt lock on my back door and putting a peep hole in my front door.  (Previously Lynn had gifted me with a doorbell camera that turned out to be faulty, so she is trying to return it, and I felt a peep hole would be adequate instead.) Travis has home improvement skills and was able to drill into both metal-reinforced doors and install the items. 

I posed with a balloon that Lynn gave me in 1984. Travis said that was the year he was born! 

 

Horses, Dogs, Birds

Saturday Critters / Black and White

These fine horses were grazing in partially melted snow near Boyce.

I saw the running dogs in a small dog park at a truck stop in Toms Brook. This was the first time I've seen a fenced area for dogs at a truck stop, but it makes sense. Hundreds of drivers stop there every day and some of them have dogs. 

I'm not sure what kind of bird was in the tree. I thought crow, no, vulture... but the silhouette looks almost like a turkey. 

I met a couple of pretty dogs at the county park. One was sweet and the other was loud, but they were both cute.

Today's last picture shows another bird in a tree, and I have no doubt about what it is. I see mourning doves pretty often around here. 

 

I'd Rather Be Birdin'

Four More Shenandoah County Scenes

 Afternoon Sky

Skywatch Friday

Tobacco Store at Dusk

Weekend Reflection

Along the Valley Pike

The Barn Collective

Shadows on the River

Today in Maurertown

We don't see many phone booths these days, and this one in Maurertown stands as decoration and nostalgia. Can you identify the shirt? The wind was blowing strongly so I did not get a full image of the logo. 

Half a mile away is the Shenandoah County Park. It has athletic fields, trails, a pool, and disc golf, but it is also part of the site of a Civil War battle that swept through here in 1864. 

Sharing with Signs 2

A drawing on the sign shows a lookout on Signal Knob, a peak that I've featured many times. You can see it from this park.

Here's the story on the Civil War Trails Marker. 

Toms Brook

As October 9, 1864, dawned, a line of poorly armed mounted Confederate soldiers shook themselves awake along Jordan Run. A fog, thickened by smoke from multiple fires, greeted their eyes. The haze, however, did not deter the troopers’ desire to exact revenge on the Union horsemen who had spent the last two weeks destroying mills, barns, and crops. From this position, a long column of Union soldiers could be seen moving quickly toward you. Union Gen. Philip Sheridan, watching from Round Hill in front of you, had ordered the attack.
Half of Sheridan’s force moved quickly through the hamlet of Toms Brook toward the Confederates waiting here. Meanwhile, the other half moved off to your left beyond the modern interstate. As the Union soldiers pushed their way along the Valley Pike (U.S. Rte. 11) a ferocious Confederate counterattack drove them back in confusion. But seeing an opportunity, Union reinforcements swept around to the left of the road. The fresh and rapid Union attack, coupled with the action unfolding to the west of here, broke the Confederate line. The Confederate retreat turned into a panic as Sheridan’s troopers chased them toward the town of Woodstock in what became known as the “Woodstock Races.”

Mr. and Mrs. House Finch

Wordless / Wild Bird Wednesday