Deer with Fawns and Charlie’s Week

Can you see the baby deer?

 

Hi, it’s Charlie the beagle! I got a new leash and a light vest for summer.

Here’s my friend Tripod. I was out for a walk and heard a meow. Tripod wanted to say hello.

We got our deck painted. The gate is not back up yet, so I have to stay on the lead.

Look what I saw next door! It’s a groundhog, but some people call it a woodchuck or a whistle pig.

One day my sister Lynn came to see me and brought a friend. We all had hamburgers!

Today we went to a history thing and saw some horses. I was not very scared because I was with Mom and Miss Deborah and Mr. Frank.

Some men were dressed as dragoons, which is not the same as dragons. It means soldiers with horses.

I met a nice dog named Tigger.

Those are the highlights of my week. I also went to the vet and got my shots. I was glad to go back home.

Lanterns to Liberty Part Two

Yesterday I shared some portraits of participants in the Lanterns to Liberty celebration in Front Royal. Here are some event pictures starting with a mural by Eliza Dorsey.

Mosaic Monday / Murals

A band was playing and there was more going on than I expected. I got tired walking around on a hot afternoon, but it was an enjoyable event.

Portrait Mode at Lanterns to Liberty

Front Royal, VA

As part of the 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence, a living history event was held yesterday. I did not stay for the evening events which included a ride by “Paul Revere,” but I took plenty of photos during the afternoon. These are pictures that I took using my iPhone’s “Portrait” mode. You need to be fairly close to the subject to use that mode, but people wearing costumes are usually willing to pose. 

I dialed in the solid background because the real background was distracting and clearly not 18th century.

I plan to share regular snapshots of the event later.

Another History Truck

This year is the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, so special events and exhibits are taking place. In late March, I posted pictures of the Freedom Truck that visited Middletown. It turns out that Virginia has its own traveling exhibit, and it was in Woodstock on Saturday. 

Since I grew up in Virginia, I’ve studied Virginia history, yet the exhibits here told many stories that I had not heard before. I was impressed with how interesting it was.

For those who did not grow up here, I should explain that the first permanent English settlement was Jamestown in Virginia, established in 1607. There were already people here, of course, Native Americans. The Jamestown settlers would not have survived without the early cooperation of the Powhatan tribe. 

The exhibit tells stories of Native Americans and enslaved people, along with the expected stories of our founding fathers like George Washington. 

Other events are planned in Virginia in the coming months, and I’ll probably attend a few of them. 

250 Years …

Of No Kings

The Freedom Truck is a mobile museum about the American Revolution. On Friday I saw it parked in Middletown, and even though I didn’t have much time, I made a brief stop to see the exhibits.

Coincidentally, “No Kings” protests took place yesterday throughout the country and even overseas. Huge crowds showed up in large cities, and even my small town’s event drew over 300 participants. 

I drove past, and only got a few pictures through the windshield. Walking over to get better shots would probably have required more effort than I could handle, unless I parked illegally which I did not want to do. 

The focus of the demonstrations has expanded due to the attacks on Iran. Most people don’t want a war. I realize that current readers are aware of this, but future readers may come across this blog and not understand the time frame.

Speaking of war, today is Vietnam War Veterans Day. I happened to glimpse an event at the Veterans Memorial in Middletown, and realized what it was. I stopped and took a few pictures. 

Most of these people are members of the SAR, Sons of the American Revolution. The town’s mayor is in the group shot and I don’t know if he’s a member or simply there in his official role. 

I’m glad that SAR put on this event. Many Vietnam veterans are around my age, and that war was hard on my generation. Not only did people die, but soldiers who came back had a high rate of illnesses and post-traumatic stress. They had to struggle to get recognition that their health problems were due to the war, including to “Agent Orange “ defoliant exposure. 

Thank you for your service. Let’s hope for peace!

Note: I try to keep my posts fairly short, so I often leave out things that I might say in conversation. Also, I took a lot of pictures over the past three days, so I combined quite a few into collages (mosaics). 

No Kings in Shenandoah County

Yesterday was a big day for #NoKings rallies across America and even around the world. Millions of people participated in the United States. I’ve always been a little skeptical of demonstrations, but this one felt different. There was enthusiasm and joy, partly inspired by the fun images of protesters dancing in inflatable animal costumes in Portland. 

In our mostly rural county, there’s a small demonstration every Saturday in Woodstock. Yesterday it was much larger, with over 500 people lining Reservoir Road. I later read that Senator Mark Warner joined the group.

I passed the crowd and drove down to the old courthouse, where a small group was holding signs and waving flags. 

A woman held up a sign that says “No matter where you are from, we’re glad you’re our neighbor.”  I have often seen this sign in Harrisonburg, which calls itself The Friendly City.

She is standing next to a statue of  Peter Muhlenberg, a hero of the American Revolution. He was a clergyman in Woodstock when the war broke out. The legend is that he interrupted a sermon to declare, "there is a time to preach and a time to fight, and now is the time to fight!" He recruited 300 members of his parish to form the 8th Virginia Regiment, made up mostly of German-Americans.

Today’s final image is a collection of signs that I saw on the Internet from various places.

Mosaic Monday

Friedens Church in Mount Crawford

Friedens Church was organized in the mid-1700s. The older section of the current church dates to the early 1800s.

There are Revolutionary War soldiers buried in the cemetery, but I did not locate them.

The church is located on Friedens Church Road east of Mount Crawford, not far from Interstate 81.

Yesterday’s Wintry Walks

When Charlie woke me up yesterday, I looked out the window and saw fluffy new snow. The sun was barely coming up, so we waited a few minutes before going outside for his sunrise walk. Fortunately, we had less than two inches of snow, and the sidewalk and street were not snow-covered. They had held warmth from the sunny day before.

There was a cold wind that continued all day. This made it too cold to go to the dog park, which is open to strong winds. It seemed that the woods would be a better bet, so after a brief stop at the library, I drove to Riverview Park.

We only have a few sites here that are related to George Washington, so this one I have shown here previously for Presidents’ Day. The trail here is named for John (Johann) Effinger, a Woodstock resident who served under General Washington in the American Revolution.

"This trail is dedicated to Captain John Ignatious Von Effinger (1756-1839), a Hessian soldier who deserted from the British in the American Revolution and joined the American forces. He was later put in command of George Washington's bodyguards. Captain Effinger lived in Woodstock for many years and is buried in St. Paul's UCC cemetery on S. Church Street in Woodstock."

Both the trail and the small picnic shelter were constructed by Boy Scouts. They do a number of valuable projects for our parks.

We walked the first loop of the trail, which is 1/3 of a mile. By the time we got to the place where are you can see the Shenandoah River, we both had cold, wet feet. From here you can see the Lupton low-water bridge and Seven Bends State Park.

Charlie was glad to get back in the car. 

I have a few more views to show you, starting with one from French Woods Road.

Since we were close to the state park, I drove down there for a short visit. I only got out of the car to take a picture of the LOVE sign. Charlie remained inside where it was warmer.

Mosaic Monday