But I’ve been here at least a half-hour!
Squirrel-proof, you say?
Fringe tree blossom
April 24th in the woods just behind the house, almost our only fringe tree, aka old man’s beard. (Only sometimes attacked by the Emerald Ash Borer. See https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/chionanthus-virginicus/.) We do have one other. They’re hard to identify without the blooms. A long shot six days later:
Heppe Chiropractic 15k
This race raised some money for Empowerhouse, whose website I help with. The director Kathy Anderson invited me to join her in a picture, but so were we caught drinking beer at 10 o’clock on a Sunday morning. Waters End Brewery was a race sponsor.
Choral concert
I sang with Fredericksburg Singers combined with two other choirs at University of Mary Washington. The main piece is Bob Chilcott’s setting of Native American poetry, accompanied by two pianos and percussion, about 40 minutes. Hear five minutes of another group’s recording below.
Erin, half-marathoner
“Juuuuuust caught her” at Coastal Delaware Half-Marathon, 13.1 miles. Chip 1:52:28.6, pace a very consistent 8:35, 13th of 106 in her age-group, and 57th of the 617 women finishing the race. The course featured a knee-deep flood, not pictured.
Sandy’s Azaleas
Reflection(s)
Redbud and cherry and woods turning green, via the bathroom mirror, April 2nd.
Almost same direction, via the glass-top patio table, a week later, April 6th.
The Innis House
The Innis House, Sunken Road, Fredericksburg, Virginia, having been restored in 1987 to its 1862 appearance by the National Park Service. The house and the (restored) dry stone wall were used by Confederate sharpshooters in December, 1862, during the Battle of Fredericksburg. Snapped 3/18/2023 on one of my Saturday morning Fredericksburg runs.
Docents Field Trip
On Feb 7th, 2023, the staff of Belmont, the James Monroe Museum, and the Papers of James Monroe were treated to a field trip for a special tour of the White House and the Decatur House, followed by a visit to the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery (next door to the Smithsonian Castle) to see the Gari Melchers portrait of Teddy Roosevelt. We did not see the Bidens’ dog Major but we did see his dog run. From the bus on the way home, I snapped a few more pics: the new African American Museum near the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, the Potomac River, and the Air Force Memorial.
Men in Trees
The 80-foot white oak near the northwest corner of the house has a fork we don’t want to split. The Bartlett Tree Experts installed a 7-foot quarter-inch steel cable intended to reduce the risk.
