Retrospective

A Memorial Day Weekend in photos

As we pondered how best to while away our long, hot weekend, it became clear that there was no more fitting commemoration than a pilgrimage to Mount Vernon, home of America's first celebrated soldier, George Washington.

We took in the Potomac views (better from a distance!), we did not photograph GW's dentures (on display! --And my first thought was to note the dentist who made them in Philadelphia to add as a merchant to the Montpelier database!), and we stood in lots of long lines with middle school tour groups.

I have lots of thoughts about Mount Vernon that are mostly suited for an architectural essay or a meeting with my colleagues. Suffice it to say: visiting this time near non-historians, who seemed amazed and overjoyed and not troubled by contextualization, was enjoyable, if sweaty.

[While a competent military leader and bizarrely enthusiastic farmer, it remains clear that, in contrast to his contemporaries, GW had little flair for the architectural and philosophic -Ed.]

We drove through Civil War battlefields at dusk last night, too, and stopped beside a historical marker noting defensive earthworks.

Of course, themed sprinkles on devil's food cupcakes never hurt the May mood.

Among other weekendly activities, like glorious shopping in Richmond and DC, we also made time for a Keswick deck extravaganza featuring short skewers and oversized marshmallows.

First s'mores of the season for some, first s'mores ever for another (and hey, Mikey, she likes it!).


Nothin' says summer holiday to the veggies like potato salad and grilled portobello burgers.

And the burgers even featured lettuce from our "pots and pans garden." (Sue, this photo is for you -- note the tomato plants on the right for comparison)



Hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday!

Cones 'n Critters

Nothing quite says Summer's Here! like a sticky evening ice cream trip

spent laughing and swatting away bugs.

(And nothing really says You live far from home! like a bumper sticker warning, "Somewhere there's a village in Kenya missing an idiot" with an Obama image)

I mean, we were eating ice cream in the parking lot of a tractor supply shop, but still...

At least the ice cream and the company were top notch! Welcome, Summer!

Operation: Victorian Gathering

What's a better way to celebrate spring than a themed dinner and movie evening with friends and fellow historians? Other than eating strawberries in the sunshine, no other options seem to rank.

Friday, some Pony Barn ladies joined me for a Victorian dinner in celebration of The Young Victoria. We had salads, both modern and period appropriate, veggies, ample bread and (Irish) butter, colonial fruits, lemonade, a Victoria sponge cake with homemade strawberry jam and lime curd, and ice cream pie with fudge sauce.

Aside from the lightning and rain, I'd call it a remarkable success. I even managed to get the movie playing without B's tech support!

There was ample oohhhing and aawwwing over the costumes, the set design, the 19th century objects (work-related hazard), and, of course, the love story.

Now that we know our apartment complex has a small movie theater, though, our options are mounting. What next? Science fiction? Comedy? What foods really say Iron Man I to you? ;-)

To Culpeper (and beyond!)

It's the end of Ben's spring semester, and that means one very important thing for our weekends: the return of local fun-ventures! (And, actually, we decided they're more like "Finn-ventures" in the new ride)

Today, we traveled north to one of America's "Best Small Towns," Culpeper.

Famous as the site for 1967 protests by the American Nazi party and Christopher Reeve's horse-riding accident, Culpeper was a logical stopping point for our weekend jaunt. Why? Well, because that's where the server farms for the usa.gov domain are held.

Seriously. You can't make stuff like that up. Ben read about it in Wired a few months ago and has been itching to go ever since. Unfortunately, from behind the gates, there's not a whole lot to see.

To convince me of the trip, Ben worked a soft spot by telling me the Library of Congress, my beloved DLC, also has audio visual storage facilities in the area. Turns out, it's much neater to look at their buildings, which at first appear to be eco earth-berms oddly reminiscent of our time with Tina on Pine Street. Upon further research, we've learned that the facility is radiation hardened, fitted with lead shutters, and once housed enough pallets of $2 bills to replenish currency east of the Mississippi in case of a crisis. Good information to have handy when the time comes... (Also, has to make you wonder what Tina's really up to over there on Pine Street...)

Onward we continued through a maze of Confederate flags and dirt bikes by some dilapidating church, where we stopped briefly until we saw a half-naked lady crouched in the bushes and decided to carry on. No comment.

On, of course, toward the moonshine distillery. A couple of weeks ago when we visited a state-run liquor store for vanilla-extract supplies, we happened into a conversation with the manager about the isopropylic properties of corn whiskey, noted for it's exceptionally high alcohol content coupled with little competitive flavoring. And that's when we walked out of the store carrying moonshine. Hey, we're part of the local eating movement! Why not take it a notch farther? Anyway, we thought people like Matt would be very pleased to learn we went to a moonshine distillery on a dirt road in the middle of dirt-farm country. Unfortunately, it seems like the proprietors are godly people who rest on the seventh day, but wacky hijinks still ensued and photos were arranged.

Finally, on our way home via Whole Foods (just the way all good bathtub-whiskey ventures end, right?), we passed by my illustrious place of employment and stopped so Ben could see his second train depot of the day, as well as the Gilmore farm across the street.

Ben eloquently summarizes, "It seems that we have covered much historical ground, from the Revolution, emancipation, and Jim Crow through Prohibition and the Cold War. Cyberspace looms now as a final frontier, though it remains to be seen (and heard!) to what extent it will serve as an Omega point for the human race. One world, one dream...one Finn-venture."

Amen.

Happy Mother's Day!

Hope our moms and all moms out there have happy, happy days!

:-)

Poor Neglected Blog!

We've had a few too many undocumented adventures and celebrations these past few weeks. Apologies, blogosphere!

Since we last spoke, there have been final papers, a dinner-dance and trip to NJ, traversing in Short Pump, dinners with friends, lots of hours of boring and some less-boring work, craft projects, enjoying the season's first strawberries, Don's birthday, Doogie's birthday, early Mother's Day celebrations, etc., etc.

Here's a brief visual rundown of the few moments the camera captured:

While we were in town, I got to visit Plainsboro's awesome new library, which opened with a ceremonious walking-about-Plainsboro book ferrying event. It's the third Plainsboro library in my 'boro-knowin' lifetime, and it's definitely the best yet.

We were there on a Saturday morning, when the place was full of characteristic central NJ tweens lounging, laughing, and reading -- basically embodying the best in my memories of life in the 'boro.

Jealous...

~ ~ ~


My photos from the annual Mercer County Community College scholarship fundraiser gala came out terribly. The lighting was tough on my less-than-trusty camera, and most of the images are blurry, dark, or catch people with very awkward facial expressions. Luckily, the in- and out-laws were as up to the photogenic challenge.

KarenCultivates put on quite the successful event. We really liked the Dow Jones speech and the honored recipient, and the dinner was better than ever. Old friends and family were missed, though! It's always better with a crowd of familiar faces.


J was single-handedly putting on the Ritz, I think we'd all agree. Maybe not too obvious in this photo: his glamorous top hat. It was a real throwback to last year's sailor hat incident.

Here's a clunky photo of Ashley's submission to the silent auction, which was heavily bid upon. We took home some competitor jewelery this year because, let's face it, who has the wall space for all that art?

Not pictured from our P'boro visit: shopping, bagels, pizza, awesome French toast, a rainy Gentry walk, cocoon bed, familiar furniture rearranged, Puetro Rican street mutt shenanigans, and a long ride home through the country (after a long ride up through the cities).

~ ~ ~


Weather in the Shenandoah Valley has been ... erratic these days. Here's a post-drench sunstorm. Right now, the temperature and humidity are dropping as strong winds carry through a threatening front. Mostly, it's seems unseasonably sweltering. But we all know: it's always like this in Charlottesville!

Speaking of, Happy Birthday Don!! Hope you're having a great visit to NJ! ;-) May the weather be stable, the food be delicious, and the work easy.