Posts under ‘Travels’

Another prolific vine on the property, summer grape, is also a valuable source of wildlife food. From the West Virginia University Extension Service website: “The ripe grapes are a favorite food of raccoon, rabbit, red squirrel, opossum, foxes, ruffed grouse, wild turkey, cardinal, mockingbird, robin, cedar waxwing, woodpeckers, mourning dove and other songbirds. Old dried [...]

While there are more than a few invasive exotics on my property, including Japanese Honeysuckle, a vine pointed out to me by my friend Fred First, of the Fragments from Floyd blog, I also have a few friends. Or, perhaps I should say, the wildlife have a few friends, for poison ivy is not something [...]

Last summer, when I hired John Sutherland and his Bull Hog, I was thankful that the machine didn’t scar the landscape any more than it did. The work he did was immensely helpful, because, for the first time, I could orient myself on the property and not be lost in thickets of briars and multiflora [...]

I returned last week from my latest trip to Floyd, VA, filled with excitement that my plans are jelling and that I am making progress towards my goals. Tropical Storm Ida had posed no threat to Florida several days before I left, so I paid attention to it no longer. Imagine my surprise when I [...]

in 2005, I had a wonderful opportunity to travel to London to stay with a friend for a few days and take in the John Singer Sargent show at the Tate London. While there, I explored London a little bit by traveling on the Tube (the subway) where I saw signs at the entrance to [...]

Last week, I went to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where my parents were from, for the first-ever family reunion of my father’s family. I have one uncle who is still going strong, at the age of 89 – must be that cold weather! This was only my third trip to Fort Wayne, the second within the [...]

I left Floyd on the morning of June 28th, heading for Touchstone, after feasting on a huge biscuit from the Blue Ridge Restaurant. They make the best biscuits I’ve ever eaten! My only complaint about the restaurant is that I think that any restaurant that aspires to serve country “comfort” food should offer corn bread. [...]