Yesterday’s Sunset near Belle Grove

Middletown, VA

Wordless Wednesday on Tuesday 

Cold Dawns, Smoky Dusks

Yesterday I mentioned that we've been trying to adapt to the change from daylight savings time to standard time. By "we," I mean my dog hasn't adjusted and I'm trying to train him to sleep until daylight. 

One morning he wanted to go out really early, but I waited until there was a glimmer of light in the sky.

Since then, I’ve managed to wait until a little later. Hopefully he will adjust this way. It’s really cold in the early morning, too. 

We’ve had some pretty skies in the evening.

Yesterday I had an appointment in Harrisonburg, and the air was smoky from wildfires to the south. My eyes felt very irritated. But the smoke particles provide colorful sunsets. I pulled off to take a skywatch picture on the way home. Currently the sun goes down now at 5 PM. (Oh, I miss the long days of summer!) 

The final photo is from this evening.

Morning Angst

Since I was taught to stay informed, I check the world news every morning on Reuters. Sometimes I wonder if this is bad for my mental health. War, natural disasters, climate change, human cruelty, and more war... it's beyond disturbing.

I used AI to try to express how I feel when reading the news.

Well, I try to write something inspiring on Sunday, so I’ll change the subject and show some sunsets. These are collections of images shown in past posts. Over 280 posts here are tagged as Sunsets, but don’t worry. I’m only showing a few.

Mosaic Monday

Hoover Road Sunset

Woodstock, VA

Skywatch

Shortly Before 8 PM

Yesterday

Skywatching with Charlie

Evening Views at the Veterinary

Woodstock, VA

The vet's office has a clear view to the west. I leave Charlie there for daycare about twice a week. This afternoon my appointment was in Northern Virginia, and I didn't get it back until it was almost dark.

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Winter Ends

"Little darlin', it's been a long, cold, lonely winter
Little darlin', it feels like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun, doo-doo-doo-doo
Here comes the sun, and I say
It's alright."

(Lyrics by George Harrison)

The meteorological first day of spring this year is March 20. I tried to create a spring image in an AI app. As usual, the result is surprising.

My app has a mind of its own!

Recent Skies, Early Flowers

An early morning sky shows some rain clouds.

We've had some rain this week, and still no snow. Today the temperature was downright balmy.

I've noticed some flowers blooming, which is unusual for February here. These pansies were probably planted recently. I actually have some daffodils blooming in my yard.

On Tuesday evening, I rolled out the trashcan and was pleased to see a crescent moon with Jupiter and Venus above it. I took the picture with my cell phone and it overexposed a bit, losing the moon‘s crescent appearance in the process.

Yesterday I picked up Charlie from doggy daycare and saw that the sky was turning pink. So instead of coming straight home, I pulled onto a side road where I knew I could get a shot of the sunset.

 

Sky Shots Near Front Royal

The town of Front Royal is in a valley cut long ago by the two forks of the Shenandoah River, which come together nearby. I don't go there as often now as I did when I lived 5 miles from there, but occasionally I go for a dental appointment or shopping, or to visit Skyline Drive.

The first photo is from last month and I took it while waiting for a red light to change at Riverton.

Today I went to Skyline Drive, but first I drove by my old neighborhood to take a look at the home being built on a property that we sold about five years ago. 

The river below the bridge is the South Fork of the Shenandoah. This bridge was recently named for Major General Joseph Warren, killed in the American Revolution.

I entered Skyline Drive at the northern entrance. It was only open for five miles because weather is more severe up there. Many limbs and trees had fallen from the ice storm. I was surprised by how many people were in the park, but government workers had a vacation day today and the weather was nice.

The picnic area at Dickey Ridge was open, with the road blocked just past there. I didn't see any deer this time, just hikers and tourists.

As 2022 Draws to an End.

It wasn’t a bad year yet it wasn’t great either. There was plenty of worrisome news, and while I appreciate that  my life is fairly easy, I fear for the future of the world.

Here I am in a beautiful area, yet I feel mired down by pains and my diminishing abilities. Life is full of challenges yet achingly ordinary.

Yesterday I had a root canal in Manassas. Carbocaine kept the pain away until it wore off, and then oh boy! And now I seem to be reacting to NSAIDS. A month ago I had outpatient surgery for female problems, or are they aging problems? Also, my left hip is very sore, especially when I first get up in the morning. 

And my washing machine stopped running. Today I ordered a new one. It should be here on Monday. I know, first world problems! 

Both Marie and Allison have recently recovered from Covid. I still haven’t gotten it, knock on wood.

Well, the weather was nice today and Charlie enjoyed the dog park. Let’s hope we can make 2023 a good year. 

 

Over the Mountain Art and Scenery

Studio tours are always special because they combine Open Doors tours with art. This weekend there were two separate tours northeast of here, and they were close together although one was in West Virginia and the other was in Virginia. It still seems odd to me that part of West Virginia is northeast of where I live in Virginia, but it is an odd-shaped state, carved out of Virginia during the Civil War. Most of West Virginia is west of here, but not Jefferson County.

The Over the Mountain Studio Tour takes place there. I didn't venture into the western part of Jefferson County this time because I got a late start (as I often do) and decided to stick to Charles Town and Harpers Ferry. The studio near Harpers Ferry was near the small town of Bakerton, which I had never seen before. The road was interesting and the scenery was great. There were dozens of deer grazing near the road so I had to drive cautiously. 

The Methodist Church in Bakerton is interesting architecturally.

I purchased a small collage at a group show at Cool Spring Nature Preserve near Charles Town. The artist is Linda Case, founder of Craftworks and the nature preserve around it. I posted pictures of Craftworks back in November 2015.

I invited Frank to go with me because he likes art tours and is willing to help supervise my dog. Charlie is still suffering from separation anxiety so I can’t leave him alone for more than a few minutes.

Yesterday I attended the West Virginia tour and today I drove to Lovettsville for the Catoctin Holiday Art Tour. I’ve done that tour before also but there’s always something new. Again, the scenery is beautiful.