Well Wednesday found us once again with overcast skies, some fog and a lite rain at times as we headed off the mountain into our local small town where we did some shopping and had a delicious lunch at a small cafe; more on that later. I had started the day much like every day with a before 6'ish rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor my lord, Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. All seem to be holding with this post.
I headed out to the back porch to do my morning stretches before starting my mile or so walk/hike around the perimeter of the property and my talk with the GOD. Despite it being some what dreary with the overcast skies and the exception of this cabin, everything around me that I see is God's creation and I just love it. The beauty of this place with the trees starting to show some leaf colors and the grass so vibrant green with all the moisture and what few flowers that are still in bloom showing off their awesome colors. The birds are singing and the air so fresh that has never breathed before with no noise except some hammering off in the distance where sounds travels unexpectedly and no automobile noise or sirens. It's no wonder I love this place and the fact I can go outside even on overcast days and love this atmosphere; but on a clear day the blue skies are magnificent as is the ambiance
Well we were getting together with Steve and Sheri around 10:30 for the trip to town and they drove as Steve is learning his way around these hills and mountain roads which takes awhile to learn, but a friend told me that every road leads to US 21 or US 18 eventually, or to the Blue Ridge Parkway. (The parkway is now closed in our immediate area for repairs), but he is learning as we did we over the years. Sometimes when I drive I take on so many turns and backroads he is lost which isn't hard to do especially with no real bearings except maybe for a little white church or some bear statues in a yard or a specific pond or tree that has been hit by a vehicle at the bottom of a hill. There are no road signs here except for a personal sign that show a donkey with the words Slow Your (donkey) Down. LOL
We let the gals off to walk main street and do some shopping as we headed for Alleghany Cares which is a thrift store one much like Steve and Sheri ran for years in Seminole. We have donated there over the years and its a thriving business employing several in the community and the venue is quite nice with some great bargains. We didn't find anything to our liking then headed to a building supply in town to look for an item Steve needed and found it after perusing the store to kill some time before we met up with the gals at a small new cafe. (I did turn in some misfire bullets to the sporting store in the basement of this building on main street.) We all had the PHO except Steve who had a Thai dish and while the portion wasn't huge it was very tasty and comfortable filling. I can eat PHO until it comers out my ears. Sheri and I had the brisket in ours which was chewy but very smokey and Nancy had the veggie once which was entirely different in flavor to ours; she had me finish hers which was very tasty as well. Steve's dish looked great and he cleaned his plate.
After lunch we made a stop at the only grocery in town for some goodies before heading back on the mountain. Steve did well as we drove a road which in reality is faster than the way I usually go that has several stop and turns. They dropped us off and we made plans for another supper together and then games afterwards. The meal was delicious as always around 5:30 and they brought rotisserie chicken, smashed taters(which I and Sheri added fresh right out of the garden a jalapeno pepper) as well as I shucked corn on the cob and a fresh salad most of which, also came right out of the upper garden. After eating Steve and I did the dishes and then we settled into a game(s)of hand, knee and foot. Well the bragging rights for us guys stopped on this rainy evening as the gals won both games; we came back after really slow start in the first event scores, but by the fourth hand in the second game we didn't even score it as they were so far ahead, plus the torrential rain had eased off and they left quickly for their place down the driveway.
It was a busy fun filled day except for the brief 3-4 hours after getting back on the mountain after lunch which found me with the golf cart up in the backwoods area raking up pine needles for the flower beds which I found helps keep the unwanted grasses and weeds from taking over while we are gone for 7 months. At least I got some work in during the day. It was soon shower time after they left and some horizontal lab afterwards and a chapter in a new read before lights out at nearly 11. Its pouring rain here this AM and also over night and the forecast is for a rain out all day, LATER
