A Lot of Biz...

I want to apologize for not having been very good about posting comments on your blogs. It's been a full and sometimes difficult week. I'll be going around the blogs tomorrow to say hey to my buds! Mom just not only posted her first video, but it's the first one she's ever taken, so she's come a long way. This is for Mason's wiggle walk gig - I was as motivated as I could get for my first movie.

I have received some awards and belatedly thank those of you who bestowed these lovely gifts upon me. To Chase ( http://chasethepuggle.blogspot.com/) for this super nice stamp that means "Proven. This blog has sweetness." I would like to pass this on to the Rocky Creek Scotties, Mango, Mason Dixie and Tucker and Daisy and Leo.

Secondly, I want to thank Honey the Great Dane (http://bighoneydog.com/honeys-blog) and Diego (http://diegodog.blogspot.com/) for Neno's award, which is a wonderful gift.
As a dedication for those who love blogging activity and love to encourage friendships through blogging. To seek the reason why we all love blogging. Put the award in one post as soon as you receive it. Don’t forget to mention the person who gives you the award. Answer the Award’s question by writing the reason why you love blogging. Tag and distribute the Award to as many people as you like.
This is not difficult to answer. I have received so much information and support that has helped
my peeps understand me better! We all love seeing what you do everyday and it's interesting and fun to exchange what we do in our lives all around the globe. My humans learn about better food, about doggies who need our help, about medicines even! We watch videos of you and study the pictures of all the different things you do - and you are all such individuals! We see puppies who have just been born and... read stories of how you help your sick and older doggies cross the rainbow bridge. DWB is a pawsome resource and even though I haven't been blogging for long here, I love having the connection to all my new buds and learning the live life to the fullest. Thanks to all my wonderful friends!
I want to pass this award on to the 3 Happy Heelers, Chester, Pipa, Charlie the Golden Retriever, Byte and Pu.
Finally, I have been sitting on this award for a while and have been meaning to pass it on for a ridiculous amount of time.

I'd like to pass this on to Chase, Eduardo, the OP Pack, The Bumpass Hounds, Nibbles... Treats and the Army of Four.

I send every pup a ton of licks and love,

xo Sammie

Chapman’s Mill

This is not a Phaeton Journey, but somehow it seemed appropriate that I post about today’s outing in this blog. After all, had it not been for a recent Phaeton getaway to Winchester, we probably would never have ventured out to explore today’s site.

Taking advantage of glorious blue skies, brilliant sunshine, and comfortably warm temps, we packed a picnic lunch and headed west on I-66 this morning. Our destination: ruins that we’d glimpsed where the interstate edged up to trees and bushes.

Reminiscent of the bombed-out shells of buildings one might see in war movies, our curiosity was piqued by the stone walls that stood forlornly by the roadside. We had no idea what they were, how we would get to them, what we would find once we got there — or if we would be able to even get near, let alone get inside. Well, we got lucky — the October 2 edition of the Washington Post Magazine ran a short article that answered all of our questions.

Corn and wheat. War and peace. Each pair played a significant part in the formation and disintegration of Chapman’s Mill, the hollow stone structure along Interstate 66 West near Haymarket.

Those opening words of the article whetted our appetite to learn more about the mill, which was built between 1737 and 1742 by a family named Chapman. And so we took off around 7:30a to go exploring. The morning was quiet, there was little traffic to contend with, and the day was perfect for an hour-long drive. Well, it would have been an hour or so, except that we didn’t trust the directions we’d written down from the website of the organization dedicated to turning the site into a historical park. Word to the wise — follow the directions; if you don’t take the right exit, it will be a while before you find another one to turn back!

Anyway, we finally arrived at the mill site to a tiny bit of disappointment. No, it wasn’t crowded; far from it. We were the only ones there — except for the men dismantling tents and folding tables and chairs. Obviously we were there on the morning after a special event.

Neither the tents nor the honeybuckets add to the ambiance of the mill.

Darn! What to do? Well, patience usually wins the day, so we decided to explore the inside of the hollow mill building in the hopes that enough of the work would be done so that I could photograph the exterior without any detractions later. I won’t keep you in suspense. The picture above was taken about an hour after we arrived on site, and as you can see there was still plenty of work to do. But we got lucky, the van next to the small house had to move briefly and that was my cue to grab a couple of nice shots of the mill. It’s all in how you work the angles, you know :-)

Chapman’s Mill and the Mill Store (foreground)

The Turn the Mill Around Campaign website has done a good job of providing a brief summary about the area and the mill, so I’m including their words here with the photos I took — I see no reason to recreate the wheel, so to speak :-)

Thoroughfare Gap is a narrow gap between Bull Run and Pond Mountains, through which Broad Run flows as it descends 87 feet. The Gap was used by migrating buffalo and traveling Indians long before it became a transportation corridor for grain and goods between the Valley and the Atlantic. Mention of the Gap was first recorded in 1697, by a group of Marylanders passing through in search of a band of Piscataway Indians. Later Tidewater planters used the Gap as a route to the rich Shenandoah Valley.

Mui’s playing the role of the storekeeper today.

During wartime its use became even more strategic: it was an escape route during the French and Indian War, during the Revolutionary War it was the route east to join the army, and during the Civil War, it was a strategic passageway for both armies. At the time of the Spanish-American War in 1898, 10,000 American troops were stationed at the Gap to avoid a typhoid epidemic in Alexandria.

Built in 1937, the mill store was where flour and cornmeal were sold.
Later, it was used as a post office and a gas station.

Chapman's Mill was built in 1742 by Jonathan and Nathaniel Chapman, a father/son partnership from an enterprising, well-connected colonial family. Enlarged in 1758, the mill became a prosperous gristmill that fostered the development of the Shenandoah Valley as a wheat and corn producing region for the next one hundred years. Due to the mill's location between the Valley and the city of Alexandria, corn and wheat could be transported efficiently by wagon to the mill, ground into cornmeal and wheat, and then shipped from Alexandria to ever-expanding markets in Europe and South America.

Chapman’s Mill is also known as Beverley mill after the family that restored the mill in 1876.

In 1759 Fauquier County was created from old Prince William County, and the related documents noted that the boundary between the two counties passed through the mill, as it does today. The prosperity of the mill was enhanced when, in 1852, the Manassas Gap Railroad was completed, passing beside the mill and reducing the travel time to Alexandria. In 1858 the Chapmans enlarged the mill, raising it to a total of seven stories and making it a model of agricultural technology. Chapman's Mill has ground cornmeal and flour for American troops during seven wars: The French and Indian, the Revolutionary, the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, and World War I and World War II.

Clicking the shutter once and checking the picture twice.

The Civil War: By July of 1861 the Confederates had turned Chapman's Mill into a meat curing warehouse and distribution center. Herds of cattle and pigs were enclosed in large pens, and more than two million pounds of Confederate meat were stored on the site. Confederates, leaving after the First Battle of Manassas, burned the meat and the mill to keep them from the advancing troops.

Efforts are underway to stabilize and restore the mill.

What Mui’s doing is called “bench exploring!”

On August 28, 1862 Union General Ricketts was ordered to occupy Thoroughfare Gap to prevent Generals Lee and Longstreet from marching through the Gap and joining Confederate troops gathering for the Second Battle of Manassas. Historians say that if Ricketts had prevailed at the Battle of Thoroughfare Gap, which took place in and around the mill, the Second Battle of Manassas would never have taken place.

I'm going to take a stab at guessing that these gears were important to the mill operation.
[above and below]

During much of the Civil War, Col. John S. Mosby and his Raiders traversed Thoroughfare Gap as they sought to disrupt the movement of Union provisions to their armies in the South.

By 1876 the Beverley family had restored the ruins to a very successful milling operation and the mill took on their name.

A treasure-trove of rusty equipment is hidden in the trees on the far side of the mill property.
Don’t you think that piece on the lower right looks like porky pig?

The mill continued to operate under various owners until 1951. In 1998, the building fell victim to arson — which explains the reason why there are ruins for us to visit today. For most people, the site is perhaps a 15-minute stop; we spent about two hours. Yes, we’re slowpokes when it comes to exploring, but we had reason to dally as we waited for the work crew to clear out so I could get the photo I’d come to take. It was worth it!

The top center photo was taken on 19 October 1998, just three days before the fire.

We’d planned to have our picnic lunch at the mill, but it was still early when we finished exploring the site. Using the GPS, we searched for nearby parks and came up with what we hoped would be a gem — Waterfall Park. Hah!!! After a long drive on a winding road that took us through rural areas fragrant with eau de cow and residential neighborhoods trimmed with white picket fences, we were skunked. It turns out, this was not a park, but a subdivision yet to be built!!! That’s OK, had we not been lost on the back roads of Haymarket, we would not have come across another park that served nicely for our simple al fresco meal.

Not gourmet; but certainly healthy.

What’s so funny, you ask? We forgot that the camera was set to burst mode when we put the timer on; this is about the 6th picture it took of us when we really only needed one.

OK, so we had a few mishaps along the way, but we had a fun and interesting day nonetheless. I bet the mill site is really beautiful with fall foliage, but that will have to wait for another year. We’ll be overseas visiting family when the colors turn this year.

Missouri Rising

Yesterday, as I took my bike ride, I dropped off the Lake Manawa bicycle trail to check the water level at the mountain bike trails. From water near the trail, I could see that the river was higher. Sure enough, it is. (See photo).
On the news, I heard that the Corp of Engineers will have to release more water from flood control dams because of the fast snow melt in Montana. This is the 3rd year in a row that the singletrack at Manawa has been flooded.
An article in the Omaha World-Herald confirmed what I heard. Basically, we can expect that the river level will continue to rise in the Council Bluffs/Omaha area.
After that disappointing scene at the river, I headed on over to the Western Historic Trails Center. They were having their Thursday "Jam and Bread" so just stopped in to sign the guest register and using the bathroom.
On over to Xtreme Wheels. Visiting a bit and talked about printing note cards. Watch for news about sale of note cards with scenes of the Wabash Trace.
After my ride, it was time to start up the lawn mower and begin harvesting the hay crop that is my lawn. Had to stop to refill gas - and the mower now will not start. Have to find out the problem.

Thanks Blaine & Xtreme Wheels

I have a mail box again!
When I stopped by Xtreme Wheels yesterday, Blaine said the shop has a spare mail box and post (already mounted). They offered to me and Blaine told me he would come out and make temporary installation.
This afternoon Blaine was out to the house. The post cut and secured to the original post (what was left of it). Its more stable that the old box and post!
Thanks Blaine and Xtreme Wheels.

Mann’s Wildlife

Maxwell AFB FamCamp — Montgomery, Alabama
Temps: Lo 32F / Hi 53F (0C / 12C)

The temperature see-saw continues.

Though it was a sunny day, and the temp reached its forecasted high, the feels-like temp was closer to 40F (4C). No problemo. This was our pack-up for departure day, so it wasn’t like we had anywhere exciting to be. A bit more cooking; a couple more loads of laundry; a couple of dipstick checks to make sure the Phaeton’s essential fluid levels were good. That pretty much took care of the day.

Arizona Coyote: the Indian name for the coyote means "The last Living Creature."
This is the ultimate compliment that a native American can pay an animal on earth.

Seeing as how there’s nothing exciting to report for today, I’m going to backtrack to our zoo outing on Monday (March 4).

The Montgomery Zoo is a fairly large facility located about 8½ miles (13½ km) from Maxwell AFB.

I’ve said this before; and I’ll say it again. There’s no doubt that Mui and I would much rather see animals where they belong … in the wild. But, “good” zoos have an important role to play in conservation efforts. They introduce people of all ages to animals that they would otherwise not know about or encounter in the wild. If such encounters instill in even a small percentage of those people a desire to protect these animals … and if even a smaller percentage go on to do something about it. Well, that’s how strides are made in the conservation and protection of the species … one small step at a time.

On a photo safari in Botswana, we were surprised to see how wary the lions we were
watching were of a badger that crossed their path. No wonder; just look at those claws.
Their elongated claws are an adaptation for digging out safety holes and food.

So, we went to the Montgomery Zoo. But that’s not what I am going to post about … at least not directly.

Now that I’ve prepared you for seeing pictures of captive animals, I’m going to take the next step and tell you that I am going to share with you our visit to the Mann Wildlife Learning Museum (MWLM), which is adjacent to the zoo. This will entail showing you animals that were once alive, but which have since been killed, stuffed, and mounted in educational displays ... just like the two foregoing animal pictures; and the ones that follow. (Except for Mui; he’s still very much alive and kicking!)

The brochure describes the MWLM as a place where visitors can “Take a hands-on approach
to learning about wildlife conservation and preservation.” In all honesty, we didn’t know exactly what that meant when we showed our wristbands to the attendant just inside the door to the exhibit rooms.

Would we have skipped the place if we had anticipated that we were about to come face to face with rooms full of dead animals? Probably not since the MWLM turned out to be not that different from natural history museums we have visited in the past. The difference is that the Mann Museum focuses strictly on North American animal species.

At one of the “touch” exhibits, Mui feels the soft fur covering a piece of elk hide.

I still have quite a bit of reading to do about the MWLM, but from what I understand, the original facility was located in Opelika, Alabama. It was purchased by the Montgomery Zoo in 2003 and relocated here. The animals on display were taken by bow and arrow by the founder, George P. Mann, an outdoorsman and apparent authority on North American animals. He is also a hunting guide … something I have a hard time reconciling with his dedication to “wildlife conservation through education.” But his ‘hunting’ is not the story of this post, except in a roundabout way.

Many of the display cases are designed to show “live activity scenes.” The detail is amazing; the taxidermy professionally done. Mural backdrops help to visualize the animals in the proper setting.

“What's for Lunch in the Arctic" exhibit.
two Arctic wolves are shown in full stride as they chase down a caribou for a winter meal.
The paws of the Arctic wolf are covered in hair for better traction, warmth, and mobility.

There isn’t much in the way of signage, but after reading the placards in a couple of the display cases, I was impressed. In a short paragraph, quite a bit of information is conveyed … not just about the featured animal, but also about its environment, behavior, and interaction with other animals or humans. Some of the words explained details that might otherwise go unnoticed — like the meaning of the “scrape” left by a buck … and the answer is: it’s how he marks his spot.

The words used are simple, leading me to believe the intended audience is children, but I think it works for adults as well. We can (and have been) overwhelmed by too much information in some museums, thus losing our focus on the subject at hand.

Left: The Alabama Flicker (or Yellow Hummer) is the state bird; it eats any type of insect
that is found under tree bark or larvae that is mainly found in dead wood.

Right: “Smart As a Fox” … an Arctic fox will eat anything from berries to
birds such as the willow ptarmigan, the state bird of Alaska.

I have to admit that with the great weather waiting for us outside, we didn’t do the museum justice. Still, we managed to spend a couple of hours checking out the over 270 displays on site … much of the time studying exhibits associated with some of the mega fauna we’ve been privileged to see in the wild … the polar bear; the brown, grizzly and Kodiak brown bears; the muskox; and the lynx (although the latter would not be considered mega fauna).

Mui tries to reach up and give the polar bear a hug … to no avail!

On our first visit to Alaska, we went up the Dalton Highway to the Arctic.
En route, we saw not one, not two, but three lynx stalking a hare near the road.
the scene we witnessed was nothing like this, but this display did bring back great memories.

The “Momma Didn't Tell Me” exhibit.
bobcats and porcupines are common to most areas of the US. Not all of nature's
lessons are instinctively known to each animal. Here, momma has just let her baby
learn that porcupines are not always a friend, playmate, or food.

I took a lot of photos — as might be expected. If you’d like to see more pictures from the museum, and read some of the extensive captions I copied from the signage at the museum, visit my online gallery here.

The Mann Wildlife Learning Museum turned out to be an unexpected gem; I’m glad we didn’t take a pass on going inside. Definitely worth the admission fee ($6/adult; a dollar off for those with military ID cards.

Next up … the zoo.

Winter-greens

Several members of my wildflower group are already itching to get out in the wild. They're dying to dig.
Unless it's a rescue, I'm more of a looker than a digger. My thrill is in the hunt. I do enjoy garden tours, but to me, there's nothing like finding the flowers in their natural environment. (And then leaving them there!)
Anyway, I wouldn't recommend digging in January or February. But this Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium reptans) is one of the plants you can scout early - it's probably easier to spot the green now.
The plant's a lot taller in the spring, but some of the lower leaves stay green throughout the winter here. I'm not sure if that's the case in the north or not - maybe someone will comment and let me know.
There are several different types of Jacob's ladder, in almost every state and several Canadian provinces. But reptans is the only one in the south.

Enjoying the Unexpected

This post, "Enjoying the Unexpected", was written for my blogspot blog called The Transplantable Rose by Annie in Austin.
Sometimes the things you plant surprise you in good ways - that's what happened here a few times this week. The temperatures are now in the high 80's, even the late iris are almost done and the phlox foliage is about 8" tall, so the season should be early summer in this part of the long fence bed. Look who just showed up-
This is a 'Pink Pride' daffodil, one of a dozen bulbs planted last fall. The bulbs made foliage but I'd given up hope of seeing a bloom.



My daughter and son-in-law had a mini-rose sent to me last year for Mothers Day - they didn't get a choice of color but knew it would be pretty. The shipment had a rough ride from the organic grower in California but the rose recovered enough to make a couple of buds, in a pale peach color.

Because of last summers flooding rain I kept the mini-rose in a container so it wouldn't drown. It didn't bloom again but branched out and then when cold weather came it lost all its leaves. I kept it in the pot, bringing it in the garage whenever we dipped below freezing.


The rose leafed out early this spring and I planted it near the blue scabiosa and the coppery orange ranunculus. Here's the first rose - not a pale peach, but a color like the inside of a melon, which blends perfectly in this border!
I wonder if the more intense color is a response to more heat and sunlight? I don't see any other buds but the whole plant seems to have more substance and vigor since it left the container. Maybe it will take a little longer for this little rose to settle in and display its true color.
You've already seen the true color of the Schlumbergera/Thanksgiving cactuses - they all bloomed in the breakfast window last winter. Once the chance of frost was low, I moved three of them out to the veranda for the summer. All three plants made another set of buds which are now opening. Very unexpected!

Larkspur is one of my favorite annuals - one reason I love the meadow at Zanthan Gardens. I bought double lilac larkspur seeds in fall .. after we had the long fence bed started, and threw them around. For three springs they've sprouted and grown, and usually bloomed, but the flowers in Central Austin usually bloom a few weeks earlier than mine here in NW Austin. Larkspur like air and sun so last year's wet spring made their flowering season very short. The double lilac larkspur are blooming now and have reached new heights - I'm 5'6" on a good day and my larkspur are taller than I am. Having larkspur the size of delphiniums was a good surprise for me!
The next unexpected thing was what I ate for lunch today...a radish sandwich. I pulled a few radishes and washed them, then cut them up. I tasted a couple of slices and found them crisp with a good bite.
Next I buttered whole wheat toast, adding layers of thinly sliced radish and a little romaine lettuce. The sandwich was delicious, crunchy but mellow - not hot. The unexpected part isn't that the sandwich tasted good. The unexpected part is that I might never have tried this if another garden blogger, Yolanda Elizabet in Holland, hadn't described her lunch a few weeks ago. Thank you, Yolanda!

Have you ever planted a seed from an apple or orange or the pit from a cherry or peach? Garden experts will tell you not to bother doing this when starting the home orchard - to always buy a named tree instead.
But my nephew and his parents weren't planning a home orchard a few years ago - they just wanted to find out if something special could happen. Grandma had ordered a box of luscious Harry & David peaches for the whole family and after enjoying the fruit Jake and his mom & dad ceremoniously planted the peach pit in the back yard. The peach seed sprouted and grew and was watched over. Last year it was swaddled in net to protect it from the Seventeen Year cicadas.
Now in its 3rd Spring, the peach is taller than Jake's Dad, and it has chosen to bless my sister's family with a cloud of pink blossoms.
My nephew is justly proud of starting the tree and I'm impressed that my family believed in the power of a seed. Thanks for letting me use your photos, Jake! Whether or not this particular family tree ever bears edible peaches, it's a fine thing to see after a long hard Chicago winter.
This post, "Enjoying the Unexpected", was written for my blogspot blog called The Transplantable Rose by Annie in Austin.

Awesome Ice!

Let the sun shine! Today was such a nice day, that I went for a walk on the ice for about 2 miles down the shore from my house. The ice is about 2 feet thick now, which means its plenty safe to walk on and what an interesting way to explore the shore! Not to mention easier. Most places along the lakeshore its difficult to walk because of all the rocks and boulders. The ice makes it much easier, because right next to shore its very smooth. About 30 to 50 feet from shore, there are ice piles here and there. Today I just wandered with the camera and when something caught my eye I snapped a picture of it.

(Above: Ice cave ceiling)

Absence

I have been in Brisbane the last few days doing the whole Christmas thing. It's now over for another year -- even if I did point-blank refuse to make one particular phone call. I also had the pleasure of suffering from a throat-infection over the course of a couple of days. That was probably prolonged by the fact that I made the mistake of trying to rest when I really should have just got on the bike and blasted it out.
Fortunately, yesterday morning I did just that, with three early laps of Mt Coot-tha in Brisbane. The hillclimb felt like crap, but on the second and third laps I started to feel better. 993 metres of climbing seemed to be just what the doctor ordered. It hasn't bothered me since.
This morning saw a nice, neat ride home from Brisbane to the Gold Coast in the rain (albeit lighter rain than I was hoping for). It was surprisingly enjoyable, given that 70km of the ride passes through rather uninspiring suburbia. Maybe I was just glad to be on the bike again. That really seems to be where I belong these days.

Service Bay 19: Gel-Coating the Roof … and the Spindle Project

Camp Tiffin — Red Bay, Alabama
Temps: Lo 40F / Hi 46F (4C / 8C)

Having waded through everything on our list, we are nearing the end of our time here in Red Bay.

One more thing to do tomorrow — fingers crossed — and we’ll be ready to blow this popsicle stand and move on to the non-Tiffin work we want to have done before we leave Red Bay.

Today was another early day for us. Shortly before 7:00a we were in front of Bay 19, waiting for the door to roll open. Before long, Thomas was waving us in to do the gel coating of the roof.

This was a two step process that included the application of a fiberglass resin mixture, which was subsequently sanded down before a gel-coat was applied to seal the work that was done on the roof.

You can see where the new work has been sealed.

While this work was going on up top, Greg from the carpentry shop was working on the “spindle project” inside the coach. This mod got added to our “list” after an innocent query about why the passenger-side cabinet doors were out of alignment.

Note how the left-side of each of the first two pairs of doors is higher than the right-side.

It turns out that the wood used to make these cabinets has a tendency to sag just about where the third set of doors ends. No visible sagging, but just enough to throw the doors out of alignment. The solution — a spindle, stained to match the cabinets, snug-fitted under the cabinets to provide added support. (By the way, the wood used in the more recent coaches doesn’t have this problem.)

Greg had made such a spindle for us a few days ago, but it had “mysteriously” disappeared. Could it be someone else had a similar problem? Anyway, he was quick to build another spindle and after the stain dried, he came over to Bay 19 to do the installation.

While the craftswoman in the background stains a couple of the spindles,
the two that are already stained are hung to dry.

The spindle project completed.
Can’t say that I am enamored with the design, but it gets the job done.

With the spindle project completed, Thomas declared the gel-coat dry enough for us to return to our site for the day. No sooner were we in place that we got a call to go over to Bay 8 for a small adjustment on the slide rollers. This is one of the “Express” bays where coaches that come here without an appointment are serviced on a first come, first serve basis. While there, they were going to pull out the washing machine as well so that the Whirlpool tech could replace a button. Good thing we called him before they pulled the machine out of the cabinet — the tech was tied up elsewhere. He has promised to stop by tomorrow morning at 8:00a, so looks like we’ll be going back to Bay 8 then.

We took the rest of the afternoon easy, walking over to the Tiffin “second-hand store” to check out the inventory. From what I understand, this is where they put slightly used things that have been pulled out from various coaches. We didn’t find anything we couldn’t live without, but we did confirm something we had heard before coming to Red Bay. Namely that …

… the windshields for Tiffin coaches are manufactured in Turkey!

We don’t have a bay assignment yet for the one last remaining item. But we’ve been assured it’s just a matter of determining whether they’re going to send us to the factory or whether they’re going to take care of it here at the service center. What is it that we want to have done? Well, you’ll just have to wait to read about it in the next installment.