Escape from DC!

Finally, after months of being cooped up in our cave (aka basement), we were able to escape to a nearby adventure.

The adventure begins at Petersburg National Battlefield.

For those of you who read the book or watched the movie Cold Mountain, the opening scene of the book/movie is the horror of Petersburg. The Union army had a division of men from the Pennsylvania Mining Company who came up with the great idea to dig  a tunnel under enemy lines.

Once deep into enemy territory, they then filled the tunnel with explosives and ka-boom!!! Very clever idea, right? And, it would have been except that once the air had cleared, the blues then proceeded to run right into the crater created from the explosion. Why?! I'm not sure anyone knows to this day, but needless to say, it was pretty easy pickings for the greys once the blues had jumped into a hole with no way out. The other horror of this particular Civil War battlefield is unlike similar battles that were over in days or weeks, this one lasted for months. Nine long months. I think the Park Ranger summed up the feelings of the veterans the best when he pointed out that unlike many of the other civil war battlefields, this one has very few monuments.

None of the veterans wanted to remember this tragedy. None from either side. I know. Sounds like a bleak start to our adventure, but if we don't learn our history, how will we move forward, instead of back?

To continue our historical weekend, we then traveled to Colonial Williamsburg. By this time, it was getting late and we had dinner reservations at our hotel, so we went straight there and checked in. Now, I had done copious research to find just the right place for our first night out in months. I looked at the websites for pretty much every hotel, resort, and B&B in Williamsburg and finally settled on The Wedmore Place, which, conveniently is also a winery. Believe it or not, that is not the reason I chose the place. I chose it because it looks like this:

And the room I chose looks like this:

Enchanting, right? Yeah. I'm pretty sure that room was cursed. The absolute first thing that happened was I caught my brand new, just finished knitting, shrug on this door and ripped a hole in the sleeve.

Shortly thereafter, the SigO whacked me upside the head while pulling his shirt off.

The fire wouldn't catch.

The hot water ran out before the tub was full.

A series of incidents continued through the night, but by far the kicker was early the next morning when the birds began attacking their reflection in the window. We tried everything. Opening the curtains to reduce the reflection. Banging on the window to scare them off. Finally, we took my lipstick and drew giant faces on the window. I'm not sure if that actually did the trick, or if the angle of the sun finally changed enough that they no longer saw their reflection.

Let's just say this was one of those things that's funny in retrospect, but not so much at the crack of dawn on your day off.
Dinner cetainly wasn't cursed, by the way. I had Foie Gras (I know - I'm a horrible, horrible, barbaric person) and the SigO had Lobster ravioli for the appetizer. We both had venison (again with the barbarism - now I'm eating Bambi's Mother!) for our main course and I had Lemon Panne Cotta while the SigO enjoyed a decadent brownie with ice cream.

Saturday in Colonial Williamsburg was a gorgeous day.

The period actors were entertaining.

and we found this really cool tree - no idea what it is -

but check out the bark.

Also, speaking of bark - wouldn't this be more fun than just putting the SigO into the doghouse?

Look at that furrowed brow.
Oh - and just for giggles - here I am - being me.

Yeah. I'm groping Thomas Jefferson. What can I say - I told you I'm a barbarian.

Honey's BDay Celebration

Well, today is the SigO's birthday. He claims he's like to just forget these annual events, but he knows that won't fly with me - I believe in celebrating your birthday, no matter how old you get. Some would say celebrating your birthday beats the alternative. I wouldn't know, having never experienced the alternative, but still, I say Carpe Diem - let's party.
So, we went to The Grille at Morrison House Saturday night. They offered us the choice to dine in the bar (pictured on the site) or in the dining room. I am so glad we chose the bar - it was open mike night. Now, I've been to some pretty sketchy open mikes. In one instance, I was actually serenaded. Sounds romantic, I'm sure - and it might have been - if it hadn't been our first date!! Then, it's just awkward. But, I digress. Open mike night at the Morrison House was mostly professional singers who seemed to just want to do it for fun.
The pianist was quite talented - as was his accompaning trumpet player, who, in this video, is actually singing.

That's me coming in at the end - I know - I'll keep my day job.
And speaking of day jobs - this man's day job was for the Washington Opera.

And, this couple was engaged to be married, so one of their table-mates sang a song for them - he was the only non-professional singer, but he roped one of the others to sing with him to keep it on key.

It was very entertaining. One older man with a very deep voice seemed to enjoy singing show tunes from plays such as Oklahoma and Paint Your Wagon - his voice was perfectly suited for the songs he chose.
All of this was our entertainment through a lovely meal, which included:

1. Artichoke pate with black truffle oil paired with a sparkling wine
2. Cauliflower Bisque (I know - sounds bland - but it was quite good) paired with a Chablis
3. Pumpkin Ravioli with Duck Confit paired with a Pinot Noir (our favorite dish for the night)
4. Salmon paired with a Chardonnay
5. Lamb paired with a Meritage
6. a small Cheese course paired with port
7. Dark Chocolate cake paired with a dessert wine

We really enjoyed the evening and stayed til around 11:30 - I haven't stayed out that long since...well, OK - since my birthday - but still.

We weren't ready to call it a night, so when we got home, we opened a nice bottle of Two Hands 2009 Lily's Garden Shiraz and stayed up chatting til 3:00 AM.

Now that's the way to celebrate another year of life!

Ketchup!

A family of tomatoes were out walking one day and the little boy tomato kept falling behind. After admonishing him over and over, his father finally just got fed up, walked back to where the boy was lagging behind, stomped on him and shouted: "Ketchup!"

yeah - lame - I know, but there it is, and that's what today's post is about - catching up.

First, we haven't been anywhere or done anything in a while, so no exciting trips to report. Finances are a bit tight right now so we're keeping a low profile. But, that does give me an opportunity to knit and sew more than I usually would - oh, and improve my crochet skills.

So, first, I made this messenger bag that I love so much I can't figure out what to use it for:

As you can see, I used a log cabin pattern to make the flap

I used my indigo's to create the outer portion of the bag - even the browns are indigos - well, except that little pocket on top of the larger pocket - that's batik.

And, I used batik's to line the bag and create the inner pockets. I love all the pockets on this thing. You can see there's an outer zippered pocket in the front - well, there's another in the back. Then, there's an inner zippered pocket (the yellow one), not to mention all the pockets on the front, right inside the flap. There are also two side pockets that you can barely make out in the second picture. This is what I spent my New Years weekend making, and seriously - I love it...now what to do with it?

The whole thing was created because of one of my favorite Ravelry groups, called Tiny Owl Knits (TOK). We're on a year long "quest" and this is my quest bag. But, of course - it's all virtual, so having made the bag for this notion, I now want to use it for something real.

I was originally thinking of using it for all my knitting notions - needles, etc. But that seems like a waste - it would hardly ever leave the house. It's definitely big enough for a laptop, but I associate my laptop with work, and I don't want to use this for anything work related. So, right now, I'm still mulling it over. Open for suggestions.

Speaking of my TOK group, I've also been doing a few swaps, which has helped me increase my skill set. One of my swap partners had this little gem in her queue, and I thought it would be fun to try. In the end, I had to meet up with someone who teaches crochet and have her help me, but I'm fine with that. I remember when the only patterns available for crochet were those hideous afghan's. Now, there are lots of really cute things out there, and let's face it, crochet eats up a lot more of my stash than knitting does, so that's a good thing, right?

Finally, the winter weather has been SO boring this year - in fact it's over 60 degrees outside right now - you'd think I lived in TX again. However, we did get a dusting of snow this one day, and I got this picture - I wish someone could dye yarn to look like these colors together - it's just incredible!

So, that's it. Not much to report, especially considering how long it's been, but what can I say. Times are tough.

You've Got to be Effin' Kidding Me!!

Yes! We really did go White Water Rafting on the Gauley!
And Yes!! It really was snowing!
And yes. We had a great time.
I have to admit, what with 40 degree temps, rain mixed with snow and our  "pep talk" on the way down to the river, the SigO and I seriously considered bailing for the weekend. It was more of "well, we're here now" and "we'd just kick ourselves if we bailed out" that kept us from staying on the bus. I'm not sure either one of us was very gung ho about the trip until we saw who our guide was going to be.
Thank all that is holy for John! He's been a guide on the Gauley for 34 years now and I think he knows every single rock in the river. When one of our crew asked about the experience level of another guide, John said "Yeah, he's pretty new. He's only been doing this for 8 years." Ha! That's my kind of river guide. John had been our guide on a previous trip, so as soon as I saw him, all my fears evaporated and I was ready for a fun day.
I've placed YouTube links on each of the biggies. None of them are our video, but they'll give you an idea of what we did. I have to say though, the river was a little bigger than average due to all the rain we've had this year. According to the guides, the average is 2500 cfs (cubic feet per second) and we were at 3200 cfs. So, some of these videos aren't accurate representations of what we rafted.
So, with that intro...
As soon as you put in on the river, you shoot a Class III rapid. Nothing huge, but still, the fact that you haven't been in the boat for a full minute and you're already really paddling should give you an idea of what's in store.
Most of the rapids on the Upper Gauley are Class IV - V. Of course, there's not a rating for anything bigger than a V, but still, what do you do when you say "This is a Class V" and then, a little way down the river, there's something bigger? Well, I'll tell you. You call it a "Class V+"
However, to quote Wikipedia: There are dozens of rapids on the Upper Gauley; the most notable are the "Big Five":
The first Class V rapid encountered is called Insignificant. According to the story John told, the first person to shoot these rapids after the first ever dam release was a kayaker who reported there was nothing significant before Pillow Rock. Apparently, he forgot all about the first Class V that was well worth some notation. But, because he forgot about it, guides today call this set of rapids "Insignificant". It's not. And you hit it really soon after launching your boat.
Mostly what I remember about this, and every other Class V (or V+ rapid) is John screaming "Go Go Go!" Honestly. I don't remember him raising his voice a single time when we rode the New River with him. I don't have any pictures of Insignificant (or really, any other Class V, other than Pillow Rock and Sweet's Falls), but I do have Video. I can't embed it here, so you'll just have to come to my house and watch it.
That said, here's Pillow Rock. This is the first Class V+ rapid encountered on the Upper Gauley.
I love the guy almost falling out. His name is Mike. The guy opposite him is Dan. Note the look of terror on his face.

Check out the look on SigO's face here. "Grrrr!!! Argh! I will not let us flip! I am Man! Hear me Roar!!"

None of us fell out on this, or any other Class IVor higher rapid. That's the irony. The only time anyone fell out at all was on a Class III. We hit a rock, and that tossed the two in front of me. (I'm in the back, right in front of John, our guide. He's the one with the gold helmet and green PFD [Personal Flotation Device]). The girl in front of the SigO (who's across from me) completely freaked out when her brother and friend fell out of the boat and abadoned paddling altogether. No big surprise, she ended up in the drink shortly after them. That was the only time anyone fell out during our trip. And really, if you're gonna fall out, I'd much rather do it during a Class III than a Class V or V+. I'm just sayin'.

There are some III's, and IV's after Pillow Rock, but the next biggie is "Lost Paddle". This class V is 0.25 miles long and has five drops. Just about the time you think you're safe, wham, there's another drop. I rather enjoyed it to be honest with you as most of the other Class V's or higher were over so fast, you didn't even know what happened.

After more III's and IV's, comes Iron Ring. Another Class V+. Scary. To me, more scary than Pillow Rock, although I guess Pillow Rock is more notorious. Iron Ring is so named because it used to be a set of falls. However, when trying to float logs down the river (for coal mining, etc, back in the day), the logs kept breaking up over the falls, so they put iron rings in the rocks on either side of the river, lowered a bosun's chair, and then placed some dynamite in the rock of the river and blew out the falls. The iron rings were there for a long time (hence the name) until some bone head stole them. People. They're the worst!

More III's and IV's ensue, and then, Sweet's Falls.

There are a few funny things about these pictures. First, look at the look on my face here. It's "OH HOLY HELL!" Meanwhile, look at the look on John's face. It's "Yo. Hey. What's up? Oh, me? Not much. Just kinda chillin'. Hangin' Out. Cold out here though, huh?"

Then, check out the SigO in this shot. Other than John, he's the only one with a paddle in the water. Yeah, I'm pretty sure we would've all been screwed without him along. And NO, I am NOT biased. I don't know what you're talking about.  

After Sweet's Falls comes lunch. Which, I swear is just a way to extend the day, because before lunch, I'm pretty sure my heart rate never dropped below 200 bpm, but after lunch, until the very end, I don't think it ever got higher than 60 bpm. After lunch, you're no longer on the Upper Gauley. Now you're on the Middle Gauley, and it's pretty calm until the very end when there is one last rapid right before you pull out for the day.

It's not a Class V, but it does have this big a$$ rock right at the end that will clear your sinuses if you hit it, and I was pretty sure we were going to until the very last second when we got clear of it.

It's called Woods Ferry. Julie's Juicer is what they call the hole behind the rock and I'm glad John kept us out of that as well.

So that was the trip. Check that one off the list. No more big adventures planned for 2011 other than climbing Old Rag in a few weeks. Don't worry though. I'm sure we'll ad lib something.

For anyone who needs some calming after this blog, check out the cool swag I got on the way down to the river:

Yummy squishy Malabrigo.

Some fun sock yarn - you knit the leg and foot in the blue and gold and the heel and toe in the black. Kewl, huh?

Some yarn for my Secret Santa Recipient's present. I'm making her Fairy Castle's to store her Double Pointed Needles (DPN's) and Crochet Hooks.

Here's what the Fairy Castles look like. What you can't see is you can store needles and hooks in them. They're way cool.

and, last, but never least, some loverly stitch markers. I can never have too many. Hint Hint.  

And for those of you who have gone too long without a shot of a hot man...

Until next time.

Steeler Nation

Well, SigO and I went to see the Steelers play at their first home game this year. The Steelers shut out the Seahawks 24-0. Our seats were outstanding. The weather was perfect. The city was lovely. The food was...well, memorable.
We arrived around 3PM Saturday. I got plenty of knitting done on the way as SigO did all the driving - as usual. Ain't he great? The hotel recommended we try out Pirmanti Bros for lunch.

I've had sandwiches served with coleslaw on top, but that's the first time I've ever had one with both cole slaw and french fries. Even though we picked our fries out of the sandwich, the grease was already well entrenched. Definitely a new experience. And the SigO let me fall for the waiter's recommendation for beer: Iron City Light. Blech. Pure Swill. I'm glad we got to try out this Pittsburgh staple, but I think I'll pick somewhere else next time.

After lunch, we walked around the city for a while, heading over to see the stadium from the water's edge.

The stadium may not be good at keeping in noise due to the construction, but it really is a beautiful stadium. I'm doing my part, helping out the Steelers with what I'm sure would have been a stellar pass had I had a football.

After that, we went to Carnegie Science Museum and played on all the exhibits. The second floor is the best as it has this incredible train set as well as a Robot Hall of Fame. We took our own pictures with our favorite robots,

and then had them taken for us as well.

We went over to the sports center section, but it was still pretty crowded, and I wasn't really dressed for climbing the wall. LOML and I did race, but he's a complete cheater and started before the bell. On our walk back to the hotel, we were treated to this spectacular sunset.

The sky got more and more beautiful as we stood and watched.

Dinner was much nicer than lunch - at Lidia's. We split an Insalate Caprese salad that had four different types of tomatoes, all tasting as if they'd been grown in someone's personal garden. Then we had ravioli stuffed with boars meat that had been prepared with oranges. The ravioli had a rosemary butter sauce drizzled on top. Very yummy, especially paired with a Sauvignon Blanc. Our waiter's suggestion. I would have never thought to pair a white wine with boars meat, but it was a really nice pick and overall a great dinner.

And then, the next day, on to the game with our fabulous seats.

I really enjoyed getting to watch the entire game from my own perspective instead of being forced to watch it from the camera-man's perspective. For example, what on earth is Emmanuel Sanders doing here?

Also the game seems to fly by much faster in person. I was somewhat surprised when it was already over before 4PM. I even got a terrible towel while I was there.

SigO had such a fun time, we may make a tradition of this. My only disappointment? We didn't have time to visit a yarn shop.
Oh well, I bet I get it next time.

Postscript

Forgot to mention that after our harrowing climb, we went for a swim in this great little swimming hole.

Then we went home and soaked in the jacuzzi while the rain poured down on us. A perfect ending to a great weekend.

Seneca Rocks

Not a place for the faint of heart.
Need I say more?
Yes?
Fine.
Here's where we climbed up.
Here's where our guide thought he was going to take us next.
I don't think so.
Here's where we went right back down.And here's where we went the rest of the way down.Nuff said?
Good.