Jamestown history lesson
last update: 11/12 @ 12:47

We took a quick trip back in time to learn more about Jamestown and the earliest days of the English arrival and history of the US. It was a very nice way to spend a couple days and surprising to learn how relatively recently Jamestown has been rediscovered.

There are more photos in the vacations section.

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Very specialized
last update: 11/09 @ 23:13

We stopped by the adult book fair (compared to elementary school, Scholastic book fair) today and ran across this very specialized offering :)

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Head clearing
last update: 11/07 @ 18:15

We’re still very much trying to process what just happened in the elections.

Time outside is a great stress relaxer.

And getting away from screens and news and having such a pretty place to focus on and pay attention to really helps reset (or at least temporarily calm) the mind.

Another crazy warm November day (yes, I do worry we’re the frogs in the pot gradually warming up), so we got the boats back out.

I’m glad to be the recipient of Sarah’s excellent photographer’s eye, but clearly my game is slipping.

As we paddled over from the Maryland Chute to the Virginia side, I liked this view of Sarah with the fall leaves behind her.

But when we came back to the Maryland side; and saw the Heron hanging out, she saw this great shot of me under the Heron’s gaze:

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WOW
last update: 11/07 @ 17:53

Not at all the election I hoped for and expected.

I feel bad for my (former) colleagues at PTO (and other executive branch agencies); they will have some chaotic times ahead.

And, in the back of my mind, I had factored working for Trump again in my decision to retire in the summer.

I am saddened, dismayed, angry and feeling at a loss. But I’m not going to crawl into a hole and hide.

And I’m not going to let the election change who I am and what I believe or, really, to shake my faith that generally, we’re mostly all good people. Clearly I disagree with the priorities of many, but I’m going to hope, when things get really dark, they will come around. I hope to recognize those who won’t come around and avoid wasting my time with them.

I hope to be aware of, and able to add my voice of protest against, efforts to subvert or overturn the constitution.

And I’ll continue to look for advice and hope from trusted voices like The Guardian, Heather Cox Richardson and Ken White, among others.

And I’m going to give myself time outside to enjoy where we live and let my head clear and thoughts percolate.

But it will take awhile to get over the shock of this election loss.

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Closing out the month
last update: 10/31 @ 22:17

We took advantage of with warming weather and headed back to Angler’s Inn today.

The river was about 2.8; low but still a fun spot to play in.

And the fall colors are looking pretty good.

It’s been so long since it rained that the river is really clear now. And it’s great to be able to see down to the bottom.

We scared off our heron before we could get a picture.

(That’s the center chute on the right; no boats in that picture — we had the river to ourselves.)

But we saw lot of minnows cruising over and around the rocks.

And the birds really seemed to enjoy the thermal over the river today.

It was a great way to step away from the news and goings on in the world and just enjoy the river in our backyard.

We did neglect our Jack o’lantern carving duties; but it seemed like a more than fair tradeoff.

(That the Maryland chute above and to the right.)

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Fall
last update: 10/30 @ 17:52

A very smart person said something like the best camera is the one you have when you need or want to take a picture.

Sitting on the porch on a beautiful afternoon (perhaps too warm for late October, but I’m not complaining), I thought I’d try to capture some of those fall colors.

And I was too lazy to get out my Pentax. I think my aging Pixel phone did an admirable job. (Even if I really don’t know how to tell it what to focus on.)

It may not be as spectacular as Robert’s views of Mt. Ranier, but it’s not shabby either.

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Hatch Act no more
last update: 10/29 @ 23:49

Probably this would not have been a Hatch Act violation while I was working at PTO; it certainly is not now.

Sarah and I connected with Donna and jumped on the metro to go see Kamala Harris’s “Closing Argument” at the ellipse.

The turnout seemed awesome to us.

We ran into others on the metro headed the same way.

And the weather was perfect.

We even managed to connect with Bridget (Donna and Bridget are POD Squad friends) inside the security perimeter.

The vibe was great.

And the growing crowd was accommodating.

Early reports say about 75,000 folks showed up; we were lucky to be able to go early and find a spot on the ellipse.

The overflow on the grounds of the Washington Monument seemed like an impressively large crowd too.

If you’ve not voted yet, Vote! And, clearly, vote for Kamala!

This really seems like the most important election in my life.

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Home Turf
last update: 10/21 @ 20:56

Blue skies and nary a cloud to be seen!

Another beautiful afternoon on the river.

This time Sarah and I stayed closer to home and enjoyed paddling Angler’s Inn to Lock 10.

We saw herons, buzzards, ducks and some really big catfish.

And Sarah took this great picture of me in the waves at Stubblefield Falls.

Another great weekday trip!

We did see more boaters putting on as we finished our shuttle. We decided those were the after work crowd.

Finally, check out the colors: it really is looking like fall. It may not be a spectacular year for leaf-peeping, but these are looking very nice in the afternoon sun.

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(Short) Road Trip
last update: 10/13 @ 19:54

The weather (beautiful 80 degrees) and water level (4.75) aligned today for trip on the upper James.

It’s been decades since we’ve been on the James.

And we don’t get to Richmond as often as we used to.

Today was truly a perfect day for the trip.

We had a lot of fun.

Easy rapids (except for that one dam — I know there is a better spot to run) and perfect weather made for a very fun day.

We saw ducks, geese, at least one cormorant and, oddly, a rowed raft.

Richmond has become quite the boater haven; there were lots of folks putting on at Reedy Creek as we set shuttle. The lower James through Richmond as more significant rapids.

The Pony Pasture to Reedy Creek run is just pretty and fun rock gardens (less the one dam).

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Classic Bridge
last update: 10/13 @ 19:46

Part of Richmond’s urban boating on the James.

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