Mary's Rock

After our wonderfully decadent Saturday, we decided to be a tad more virtuous Sunday and go for a hike. We've hiked this before, but the last time our heads felt like they were going to explode from allergies, the flu, or some such malady. So, it was a lot nicer this time, although I'm pretty sure who ever wrote the book and says it's only 1.9miles to the top was smoking an illegal substance cuz it took us nearly an hour each way - going up and coming down - and I don't buy for a second that we need an hour to go up or come down 2 miles. Just sayin.
Distance dysfunction aside, it was a nice hike, and a nice way to burn off some of the calories of the night before.
There were many beautiful spots along the path,
and some sexy ones as well.

The view from the top, was natually, spectacular...

oh, and there was this one as well - also nice.
and just one artistic touch before I close this post.

Good Wine, Spectacular Food

I started blogging to talk about knitting, primarily, and as you've no doubt noticed, my knitting has been mentioned more as an after thought than a main topic in most of my posts. I would feel negligent, except no - and should you wonder why, check out The Rainey Sisters for a true knitting blog. I'm almost embarrassed to post pictures of my projects with knitting like this in the world. And really, read on, and you'll see, it's not like I'm moping around, bemoaning my lack of knitting expertise.

Saturday, we celebrated my birthday. Whoa, you may say - your birthday is in May! Too true, but May was booked. As was January through April. Hence the celebration in June. Trust me, well worth the wait.

We started the day winery hopping. Always fun. My goal was to find a few we'd never been to before, without having to drive too far out of our way. Our first was Phillip Carter.

Nice wine. Nice setting. Odd atmosphere. The young boy pouring our wine never once provided a description. The woman "helping" him was off in her own little world, coming back to reality for the briefest snippets of time. The tasting counter was a tiny corner in a large, echoing room. They had just released a chardonnay that very day and, as I said - the wine was very nice. When I asked for "two", both the man-child and the space-cadet looked stunned and said "two bottles?!" I think maybe the owner of said winery might want to clue them in on the fact that selling wine is, in fact, the point of providing tastings. Just a thought.

So, on we went to the next winery - only open since April 2011 - the Desert Rose. Ah! Home Sweet Home. Bob,

the owner of this winery, is an old cowboy, transplanted here from Oregon. He spent his life traveling the world, first in the service of the United States Navy, and then for the C.I.A. Not a pretentious bone in this man's body, trust me. He refuses to describe his wines as "Refined in its unctuousness" or any other such label. His philosophy is "You taste what you taste." Instead, he tells stories about each wine. For example, he has a semi-sweet white table wine that he calls Old Moo Moo, in honor of his one remaining cow. Such a wonderful story behind that one - Poor Old Moo Moo had her honor besmirched by the local Bull during which time he also broke her hips. Everyone assumed poor Old Moo Moo had gone on to happier pastures, or, to continue the cliché, bought the farm. But no, long after having given her up for dead, she strolls out of the nearby woods with barely a hitch in her giddy-up. So, despite the fact that they had already sold all the other cows, they kept Old Moo Moo, as a pet of sorts. And, just in case there were any doubts at all about her tenacious hold on life, during a recent snow storm, known around here as snow-mageddon, when Old Moo Moo couldn't be found after the snows finally abated, yet again, everyone assumed the worst. Especially when they found a huge snow drift with nothing more showing than a velvety nose. But, no surprise to you, after digging her out and bringing her down to the winery for food, she perked right up and is now the local celebrity. While Old Moo Moo didn't do it for me - me not liking sweet wine - I did like Hitch Hollow Chardonnay, R.E.D., and Starboard. The Chardonnay is named after a piece of the property the winery sits on. R.E.D. is an abbreviation for Retired and Extremely Dangerous. The picture accompanying this wine is of Bob's red truck on the lawn of the C.I.A. - apparently it was his last request on the day he retired and they bent the rules a bit. And, just to put a cap on what a great sense of humor he has, the reason the Starboard is named such is because it's a wine in the style of a Port - but, of course, you can't call it Port, because that's a trademarked name - and, as any retired Navy guy can tell you - if it ain't Port - it must be Starboard. LOL! Loved this guy. And loved, loved, loved his decorating style. I have to wonder if the request on the bathroom door is because of something he would do, given the chance.

The message on the toilet seat is good advice to anyone. Paraphernalia from his life was scattered around, including this saddle, and the car he still obviously drives.

We hung out on his deck - enjoy the gratuitous shot of the SigO's triceps - and had a glass of his Sparky Rosé - named thus in honor of the piece of land commandeered by the VA Electric Company. As we were leaving, his horses picked the lock on their corral and made a break for it. This was, by far, the most entertaining winery I've been to in quite some time.

Finally, we finished our hopping at Rappahannock Cellars - the one and only winery for which we're club members - and if you're going to be one, this is the one. The member lounge (doesn't that sound snooty as all hell?) has nice cush chairs and someone brings the wine to you for tasting. Not to mention, I really like their wine. Duh.

And so, we wrapped it up and headed to the Middletown Inn where we would spend the night. This inn is actually on the cover of a book about American B&B's. Didn't know that when we made the reservations - I just liked that it was within walking distance of our restaurant, and had a nice two story cottage. Our dinner reservations weren't until 9PM, so we had plenty of time to chill and watch the sunset.

And then, finally, dinner.

At the Inn at Little Washington.

There just aren't words to describe the food, so I'll just post the menu.

Black Truffle Dusted Popcorn

A Shot of Chilled Watermelon and Tequila Soup

Our Caviar "Caterpillar" of Avocado and Peekytoe Crab

All Three paired with Boizel, Brut Reserve, Epernay, Champagne (N.V.)

Chilled Maine Lobster with Braised Celery Hearts, Root Vegetables and Citrus Vinaigrette

Paired with i Greco, Filù, Greco Bianco, Ciró, Calabria, Italy (2000)

Miniature Filet of Black Cod Sauté with Lemon Vodka Sauce and lilliputian Shrimp Dumplings

Paired with Ballot Millot, Genevrières, Chardonnay, Meursault 1er Cru, Burgundy, France (2005)

Maine Day Boat Scallop Sautéed with Capers, Brown Butter and Lemon with Tiny Tomato Gnocchi

Paired with DeMorgenzon, Chenin Blanc, Stellenbosch, South Africa (2009)

Potato Wrapped Tuna Wellington with Caponata-Filled Ravioloi and Sauce Béarnaise

Paired with Evening Land, Pinot Noir, Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, Oregon (2009)

Braised Veal Cheek on a Salad of Summer Vegetables from the Inn's Garden of Eatin'

Paired with Condado de Haza, Tempranillo, Ribera del Duero, Spain (2007)

Vanilla Panna Cotta with Black Raspberry Sorbet

A Chocolate Ménage à Trois: A Miniature Black Forest Mousse Bombe, Chocolate Crème Brûlée and Bittersweet Chocolate Soufflé

Paired with Toro Albalá, Don Pedro Ximenez, Gran Reserva, Montilles Morilles, Spain (1982)

Obviously, we were very happy.

Shortly after dessert,

we sat out in the garden. I had the 100 year old Grand Marnier. SigO had the Irish Coffee. All was well with my world.
and we lived happily ever after.

Pampered

Not many pictures to post from this past weekend, but it was quite enjoyable.
We kicked it off with massages for all three of us at Alternative Health Associates in Old Town. And of course, you know there's no chance of us going to Old Town without me going to Fibre Space. This time, I picked up yarn for a specific, if un-named project - just in case the recipient is reading this. Also picked up some yarn called Acadia - yes - I bought it primarily because of the name, given the fact that we go there every year - but it really is very pretty yarn, and I have a gift in mind for it as well. I had a really hard time picking one color, and I might not have picked the one I did had I known the colorway is Bog. Bog? Really?

Anyway, after Old Town, we went to Nordstroms for the Mens Sale where I got to watch my hottie get all decked out in Hugo Boss. The best part was when he was having a black suit fitted. He was wearing a dark purple striped shirt, and hadn't bothered to button it up very far, as he was only wearing it to fit the suit better. The combo of the black suit and shirt buttoned down to the middle of his chest had the awesome effect of making him look like a Columbian Drug Lord. The only missing element was a gold chain. Got some good giggles out of that one. Afterwards, he got his hair cut while H-Boo and I got mani/pedi's. So, a very pampered day, followed by Paella and Sangria for dinner. Very nice.


Sunday was the Manassas Wine and Jazz fest. Very small venue, which is a nice change of pace from the hectic hustle and bustle of larger fests like Vintage Virginia. Very relaxed and easy Sunday. Got lots of knitting done - I'd complain about SigO letting me knit drunk, but really, even when he tries to stop me, my usual response is: "I'm not that drunk." Famous last words - typically succeeded by lots of frogging.

Wrong Fork

So, I'm walking back to work from Whole Foods today and I'm walking past all these people in business clothes:

• suits


• ties


• pumps


• shoulder pads

having their power lunches. And it hits me: What the H*#L am I doing here? How did I get here? Me? And corporate America? That doesn't sound right. Does it?

This is what happens when you get to a fork in the road - one paved with yellow bricks, the other paved with greenbacks and you choose the WRONG FORK!

Dazy Lays

We were supposed to go camping, and bike riding this weekend, but with the storms, and the mosquitoes, and pure out-and-out laziness, we just never left the local area.

Just as well. For one thing, we had all sorts of errands we've been putting off in favor of adventures. So, we did finally get out and get a new dishwasher. In all honesty, I haven't minded washing my dishes the "old fashioned" way, but these days to sell a house, you have to have a dishwasher and I'll be damned if I'm gonna buy it just to sell the house. I'm gonna at least have it around a few years.

It's also a good thing we stayed home as SigO got a 24hr bug or something. While he spent the day puking his guts up, I took the opportunity to empty the closets a little more. I now have all my stuff in my two little closets - not counting the yucky old business suits. I won't miss those when we retire. Getting ever closer to the RV life.

Anyway, the only other thing I did this weekend was finish up Micro's tank

and Natalie's scarf.I cast on for Scott's scarf, but I need to go down a needle size, so, will frog that tonight and start again.

So, a lazy weekend.

Oh, and just an FYI - not a single pound lost after a solid week of "sticking to it". What's it gonna take? I ask you!

Hic'

Well, it was a wine-filled weekend.

Saturday, we started off the day with brunch at Jackson 20 in Old Town, Alexandria. My idea. Really just an excuse to get to go to Fibre Space down the street so I could sample the Techno I talked about in a recent blog. No great surprise I bought some. I bought some of the aquarius

and some of the atomic green,

which I intend to stripe - fat stripes aquarius, skinny stripes atomic green to make the Mango Moon shrug.

I also bought some of the rogue,

which I intend to use on the boho blouse.

As a result of my purchases, I now qualify for a private shopping party at Fibre Space. Here's the problem: None of my knitting friends live here in town. How bad does that suck? So, you all have to come to DC for a weekend so we can throw this party right!

So, obviously, the weekend was already off to a great start, and it just kept getting better. After Fibre Space, we headed to Sperryville for the Spring Fling Festival at Sharp Rock winery. Such a beautiful setting. It took us a while, and SigO a lot of cigarettes, to get away from the gnats, unfortunately, but it was still a nice setting. We bought a case of the Sauvignon Blanc, which, I swear, has a hint of pineapple. The best part of the fest was, as usual whenever H-Boo is around, ganging up on poor SigO.

Here's the scenery from our chairs.

Here he is lecturing his daughter.

And here he is after she saw a good looking guy and said "Yeah, I'd tap that!"

Good times. It doesn't get much better.
Oh, and of course, what weekend is complete without a beautiful barn?Sunday was Vintage Virginia. And boy did we time that right. Hardly any crowds, and nice and overcast so not oppresively hot as in previous years. As usual, we bought plenty of Valhalla wine, but also picked up some Octagon from Barboursville.

Purchases besides wine:

• We found a b-day present for Mom.


• H-Boo found some awesome clothes and a cool bracelet.


• SigO bought me this beautiful jewelry.

A good haul for both of us. Thanks, LOML!

Next weekend: Camping and biking.

Til then...

Almost Forgot

to mention - we're going back to Canaan in September to learn Rock Climbing - and to climb this:

Seneca Rocks.

Hooah.

Last Day

For any Logan's Run fans out there - "Last Day, Capricorn 29's. Year of the City: 2274. Carousel begins."

And I think the SigO would swear he was on a carousel - a really, really fast one - similar to the spin cycle in a washing machine.

It couldn't have begun any more idyllic. The weather was gorgeous. The river was beautiful,

and once again, we got the guide we both wanted: Bruno.

Bruno promised a great ride, and to make it even better, the only people who would be on the river would be our little excursion company. That probably doesn't resonate that strongly for anyone who has never done the New River, or the American River, at the height of season - basically, pick your favorite traffic jam and apply it to white water rafting and you have these rivers. The Cheat River isn't nearly as commercial. The rapids on the Cheat are II - IV (with the IV being closer to a III), but they come one right after the other, as opposed to long stretches of flat water. Don't get me wrong, I still love the New River, but the Cheat is just as fun, and much closer.

To top things off, the SigO and I had Bruno all to ourselves in a small little raft.

Pro: We got along great and laughed all the way down the river.

Con: We rode very high in the water as we were so few. Result:

That's my head and Bruno's head next to the raft. The SigO was in the spin cycle under the raft, trying desperately to get out. When he finally did, he looks around and can't see me anywhere. Naturally, he assumes I'm going thru the same craziness he just survived and immediately begins to fear for the worst. The river guides are probably still poking fun at the guy who kept screaming out "Jo! Jo!! Jo!!!" Poor guy. Little did he know I was floating along on the other side of the raft, enjoying the cold water (felt great on the knee), waiting for Bruno to flip the raft over. Not a care in the world. I knew the SigO was big and strong and would fare fine. I admit to a moment's worry when Bruno got the raft flipped and I was pulled in and still no sign of my honey. Of course, he was hanging out, waiting his turn to be pulled on. So, see, I was right. Big. Strong. Hunky. But I digress.

The rest of the river was still a fun ride,

but nothing as crazy as "Calamity Rock", where we got to go for our little swim.

Another great part of that excursion was one of the ladies in the other group - who was "Very Scared". So scared, she had a few tears in her eyes prior to taking off. You can barely see her in this picture, she's in the back, on the right side of the boat,but trust me, at the end of the trip, she was smiling big.

You'd think we'd be hard pressed to find entertainment to match that incredible morning, but this is Canaan Valley - there's never a shortage of fun and beauty. So, after luch, we went on an adventure, trying to find a trail Bruno recommended for a nice hike. Otter Creek National Forest. In all honesty, the hike was beautiful, what with the suspension bridge,

and winding river,but really, the drive along River Road was beyond compare. The mountains in the background.

The hilltops that look right out of Scotland,

and the water sparkling off the river.

Not to mention the barns!!!

Can't be beat!

Finally, since this blog is supposed to be at least a little bit about knitting - I finished my MaggiKnits jacket.

Love, Love, Love it!! I need to start knitting with wool a LOT more.

Sharp Rock Spring Fest this Saturday.

Vintage Virginia this Sunday.

Oh, and I plan to squeeze in a trip to Fiber Space on Saturday to check out the new "techno" yarn from Blue Sky Alpaca. Baby Alpaca, Merino, and Silk. It looks way yummy. Plus: "baby alpaca is blown into a mesh tube of silk for really fast knitting with virtually no splitting." Doesn't that sound awesome? And I love the neon colors. No idea whatsoever what I'm going to do with it, but that's beyond the point, right?

Spectacular Weekend - Day Two

We woke up with the sun streaming in through our windows. Let's be clear - waking up to the sunrise...not something we would normally elect to do. But the entire front of the cabin consists of windows and faces east - there is no sleeping in when we stay there. Just as well. There's too much to see and do in Canaan to sleep in.

After a nice leisurely breakfast, we hit the road and headed to Spruce Knob Lake. You drive up and up and up to get to this lake which is surrounded by hiking trails and nice wide dirt roads. I still don't like highly technical bike rides - I want to bump around on dirt with the option to ride over rocks and roots, but I don't want to take my life in my hands when I'm on a bicycle. I do that enough in rush hour traffic every day. The ride was billed as "easy" and only 10 miles. We were talking about possibly doing it twice, as it was a loop, but as soon as we headed out, it immediately headed downhill. And we all know, what goes down, must come back up. So, doing it twice lost its appeal from that moment, and instead, we decided to just ride around, where ever - which naturally means we got a little lost - nothing we couldn't back track from and boy was it great that we did. The scenery on this ride was breath taking.

Rivers

Surrounded by mountains

Vistas from on high

and hot boyfriends bumping along beside me (yeah - really behind me - I was being kind).

After lunch, we headed to Blackwater Falls State Park, where we always go play around the smaller falls of Elakala. You may remember seeing us peeking from behind a wall of ice last year. SigO is standing in the same spot where we were peeking thru in that blog.Only one disappointment of the weekend: We were trying to see the forests in bloom with rhododendrons - which are just everywhere. I can only imagine what these trails look like when they're in bloom --- yes --- I can only imagine - as even though it was almost June, they still weren't blooming yet.

dirty rotten bastards.

more tomorrow.