Mackey's 1st campout - March 29-30, 2008

First, Ivory, Mackey and me, just outside the shelter. Sarah took our picture; she was there with a friend of hers who hiked the AT to Connecticut last year before getting Lyme disease - he'll finish it this year - and their three year old dog Jody. Who spent a great deal of time running around with Mackey. I should have gotten a picture of Jody too. She was a very pretty girl.

Second, a picture another guy took of Ivory and Mackey and me outside the tent; you can see the little dusting of snow that had just fallen. You can see it better in this picture:

Then we hiked back out and drove to Charlottesville. Mackey and Ivory slept in Dr. Leslie's apartment while Dr. Shane treated Dr. Leslie and me to lunch! What a way to spend a weekend!

Highland Maple Festival - March 8, 2008

Us, at the Highland Inn

Pride of the Mountains since 1904

68 W Main St.

Monterey, VA 24465

On the first weekend of the 2008 Highland Maple Festival - the Fiftieth Annual - we saw, with the exception of hazy hot and humid, every weather Virginia has to offer. So during a great day outdoors, the only picture we took was indoors! We saw pouring rain, a huge flash of lightning, a roar of thunder, 45 minutes of crisp, clear, sunlight, a thirty minute long raging blizzard, and 60 mph winds - all in twelve hours, all in the same small town in the mountains of western Virginia. And we had buckwheat pancakes and fresh maple syrup!