Funky Connections to History: George's House

George Washington had dinner with the Fairfax family, on the hill top that we live on - in view of our windows, about a week before he died. For those not familiar with United States history, he was a General in the American Revolutionary War, and first President of the United States.  Mount Vernon, his home is about 8 miles south of us, overlooking the Potomac River. He was often in Alexandria, he built a small home there to stay in, when meetings in the city kept him late. He built rental property in the city. The founding fathers regularly met at Gadsby's Tavern (we hosted our wedding reception at Gadsby's) and other taverns nearby. His townhouse was closer to the taverns than it was to Christ Church Episcopal, where the family box still holds bears name. He most likely bought slaves at the markets in Alexandria. 

There is something almost spooky at times, in knowing that we walk the streets, well known to George and his colleagues, the people who drafted, debated, and approved the foundational documents of the country. 

A dozen or so times a year, I walk the grounds and gardens at Mount Vernon. Once or twice a year, I take the "mansion" tour. Standing in the places that he lived, worked, received guests, and the room that he died in. Martha, his widow, never slept in that room again after his death. 

Mount Vernon is a spectacular story of preservation. After Martha's death the estate passed through several owners and fell into disrepair. It was bought by the Mount Vernon Ladies Association just before the Civil War, with representatives from each of the states, it is owned and managed by the Association today. It is privately owned, and receives no government funding.  The house is completing a massive restoration and stabilization project that included major repairs to the foundations. All privately funded.  

Come by for a visit, feel the funky connections to history.  I have guest passes for Mount Vernon. 

The Thursday Ramble: Community Arts

This week will be dominated by the local arts group. I was recruited or voluntold to co-chair the arts council for the condo for 2026. We change shows every 6 or 7 weeks. This is a change out week. Wednesday the prior show was removed. The painters and decorators who are on staff of the condo, will repair and repaint the walls, and on Friday morning we will hang the next show. 

Two weeks ago, I was worried. At that time, I only had about 25 pieces and I really need about 45 to fill the gallery spaces. 

We generally fill the shows by asking anyone who lives here to submit their work around a theme for the show. In this case the theme is New Works, and First Works. New Works are anything created in the last year, First Works can be your oldest piece, your first in a new media, or your first time showing here at the condo.  

The numbers slowly creeped up, and I extended the deadline a week. And then the floodgates opened, I went from about 40 pieces to over 60, with late entries coming in after the extended deadline. We have works from 24 artists, half a dozen of those being first timers (first time showing here.) My cup runneth over with great art. 

Friday morning, I need to sort out what goes where, how to get all of them on the walls, and then work with Kevin to get them all hung. It is the largest collection since I have been involved in the arts group, it may be the largest ever. 

Are they all great works of art? I think so. They are something that the person who created them, is willing to share with their neighbors. Would an art professor give them all top grades, heavens no. But this is not a class, it is not a professional gallery, it is not a juried show, it is not a show that an art critic will write about. 

It is a show that will brighten the walls of the community center for a few weeks. It will encourage our neighbors to be creative, and fearless, and willing to share.  And that is what this is all about. 

Saturday afternoon, we will gather in the Lounge in the community center, the bar opens 15 minutes before the program starts if people want to buy themselves a drink, and we will introduce all 24 artists, and invite them to speak for a minute or two about the work they are sharing with the community.  Based on past experience, most of them will speak, some with nerves, some with passion about their work, and about being an artist. I have the pleasure of hosting the opening reception, it is my show and I do enjoy it. 

I have two recent paintings, and a photograph from 49 years ago in the show. 

My World of Wonders March 25, 2026

Where have I been this week? I started off with my annual visit to my doctor, then the pharmacy. I drove down to Woodbridge to see a camera buyer, and a long walk in the outlet Mall. The Farmers Market in Alexandria early on Saturday. The pool, the treadmill. A long walk around the Wilkes Street tunnel area in Old Town Alexandria. Balducci's a local high end supermarket. National Harbor across the bridge into Maryland for a long walk. Along the River in Old Town for lunch and a nice walk. The bank, and a nice walk in the north end. 

What have I been up to in the kitchen? Cheeseburgers, coleslaw and potato salad, poached eggs on toast, a risotto with chicken and shrimp, a ham and cheese omelet.  Roast pork, spinach, and French bread. 

Who have I talked with this week? David the new morning lifeguard, Warren, Paul, Renee, Mike, Veronica, Marcel, my Doctor, the vampire at the doctor's office - she has a wonderful sense of humor as she sticks needles in my hand, Jonathan the weekend housekeeping staff here in the building, Christine who is new in the community, Lynn who is always smiling. Rebecca, Linda, Paul, David, and of course my sweet bear. 

What is coming up this week? A change out in the art gallery and the showcase.  The incoming gallery show is the largest we have ever hosted, I get to figure out how to hang it all.

What made me sad this week? A couple of dear neighbors who are unwell. One has a kidney stone the size of a golf ball - that is good news at first glance it looked like a tumor - but still treatment will not be a walk in the park. And a neighbor who has diagnosed with a terminal cancer. Both are men in their 70's with adoring spouses. 

What is happening over on YouTube? Billy Petherick finally posted an update. After a couple of years of posting five or more times a week, he suddenly stopped posting in late December. He is the one that was restoring a convent in a small town in France. His disappearance drew of lots of speculation, and dredged up some skeletons from his past. Bottom line, he has split up from the mother of his two sons, and is moving on. He is a brilliant content producer. I do hope that he gets his feet back under him and returns to YouTube. 

What is on the easel this week? A 12 by 12, primed in a metallic melon color. I don't know what will happen next. I need to figure out what to paint for our 250th Anniversary of the USA show. 

What blog post moved me this week? House Dust and Wanderlust.

What did my Doctor say? I am still alive, my lab work was much the same as last year. I am fat - I should lose 25 pounds - I knew that. Nothing new. 

Travel Tuesday: New Near Home

The Wilkes Street Tunnel, originally build for trains to and from the water front. 

I loved the colors in these. 

About a mile from Home on Washington Street 

The Panda Agrees 

It snowed, and melted off all in the same afternoon, it was 84 two days before. 

First Blooms of the Season 

Along the back fence 

Huntley Meadows 

Dyke Marsh, looking north to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, we live directly west of this, on the second ridge. 

 

Monday Moods: Pass it on

I sold three camera lenses and a digital camera last week. I have been buying cameras and lenses since the mid 1970's, this is one of the few times I have ever sold anything. 

What did I part with? One lens I had two of, I sold the less desirable of the two, the other two were for a camera system I no longer use. One of them has a great story, I bought it in a moment of desperation in Paris, to replace the only lens I have ever broken. I dropped a lens on a stone floor in the Louvre.  Before breakfast the next morning I went to a camera store across from the hotel, and he miraculously he had a lens that would work, a slightly better lens than the one I broke. I was shocked to find one that would work. The other lens I sold was given to me, and I never used it. It didn't sync with the cameras I currently use. The camera I sold was a nice quality Nikon compact, that neither of us use any longer. Our phones take better photos and are easier to use. I took it out last week and used it for a couple of hours, came home and thought, I will never use that again. 

The equipment didn't sell for much, $104 total. Not really worth the drive and the time. So why did I sell it? It was sitting in a drawer, useable, but unused by me. Loved, but not being enjoyed. Someone will use it, two of the lenses are for film cameras that have become popular again. Selling them to someone who will sell them on, was passing them onto the next user. I hope that they are enjoyed, loved, and create stories for the next user. Maybe someone will drop a lens on a stone floor and desperately need a replacement, and KEH will suddenly have two in stock. 

There were a few items that I didn't sell. A film camera body, that was in the wrong color, and has little demand - no offer. 

Another no sale was a nice digital that is just one generation too old, the offer was less than $5 with a recommendation to "find someone who will use it, and give it to them." I will. This triggered a story, a confession. A couple of years ago I gave away a 16mm Bolex movie camera, a really good one with three lenses. I had owned for 40+ years and never used it. I bought it from the original owner in the early 1980s. I traded emails with someone who was borrowing cameras like this to make movies the old fashioned way on film. He didn't own one, they are hard to find and expensive when you do. I sent it to him as a gift to the next generation. 

What do we have in our lives that we don't use, that someone else might love and enjoy. These are opportunities to make difference in someone's life. Remember in the end, you can't take it with you. 

The Sunday Five: Shopping

1: How far away is your nearest grocery store? 

2: How often do you go grocery shopping? 

3: How do you get to the store and back? 

4: Could you shop without driving a car? 

5: If you could have one store within easy walking distance, what would it be? 

My answers: 

1: How far away is your nearest grocery store? There is a latin specialty market about half-a-mile away, for a general supermarket about 2 miles as the streets wind around. 

2: How often do you go grocery shopping? About once a week, I would like to buy less and go more often. 

3: How do you get to the store and back? We drive, though the condo does provide bus service a couple of days a week. 

4: Could you shop without driving a car? Limited shopping yes, there are three stores that are options, two of them are near metro stations.  

5: If you could have one store within easy walking distance, what would it be? I know they are expensive, but Whole Foods, if they would build a store in place of the falling down parking garage at the metro station life would be easy. 

Please share your answers in the comments. 

The Saturday Morning Post: Leave a Creative Legacy

 

Back in January, Neil over at Yorkshire Pudding posted an image of a drawing he had completed of one of his granddaughter's favorite toys. His plan is to have it framed for her fifth birthday. At five I imagine she will find it sweet, 75 years from now, when she turns 80, if she has hung onto it, it will be a precious reminder of a grandfather she has but memories of. 

Our challenge is to create and share, to create a legacy, that will trigger memories long after our time. Most of us hide away our creations, afraid that our work is not worthy, not good enough. Your work is  precious, it is your legacy. Legacy is not about the riches you leave behind, it is about how you are remembered, how you want to be remembered.  To be remembered for your creative endeavours, create and share your work. Create work that has meaning for others, for others to have and to hold onto.  I have crochet throw my maternal grandmother made for me, in colors I selected. I have another my one and only Aunt made for my great grandmother. These are tangible connections from those two members of my family, to me today. They are the legacy of those two loved one's.  

Funky Friday: The Time I Made an Interior Designer Cry

A comment on a Saturday post a couple of weeks ago, reminded me of the time I unintentionally made an interior designed break down in tears. 

It was in the summer of 1985 or 1986.  I was working for now long gone Laurel Homes* in Orlando Florida. We were opening a new community called Arbor Woods North out near the University of Central Florida. In a rare step for that company, at that time, we hired an interior designer to decorate and furnish a model home.  It was a 2-bedroom, 2 bath, about 1,000 square feet (a little less than 100 sq. meters.) Our target was young, recent graduates, first time home buyers.  And we hit the market right, we sold half of the community in just a couple of months. 

The designer came up with the idea of doing the model to attract female buyers. The color scheme was light and bright, with celery green paint, and pink carpet. The pink carpet was a bold choice, but it worked. It felt very comfortable for single women, and very old Florida. The designer reasoned that if young single men, thought young single women were buying there, they would also. (That part didn't work, there were very few women buyers, and those that did buy were not interested in men.) 

The living room in the model had a light tropical print sofa, and glass topped tables.  On the tables at each end of the sofa, was a lamp, that combined a coil of brass as a base, perched on that was a pale green grecian amphora, topped with a shade. The young designer was finishing up the installation and she asked me what I thought. 

Then for some reason she asked specifically about the lamps. I honestly answered that the lamps looked much better turned on, than they did turned off. 

That triggered a breakdown, tears and shaking. She kept repeating, "I knew no one would understand what I was doing, I knew everyone would hate it!" I didn't hate it, in fact I it worked as a model showing what could be done with a relatively small space.** I swear I meant no harm. And the lamps stayed for the duration of the project. *** 

*The company was named after the founder's favorite cow. 

** One exception, the glass topped table in the tiny kitchen was to large, I begged them to put in a drop leaf table, and was told "I didn't understand design." 

*** I was onsite as we were setting up and moving in. The desk for my office arrived, and wouldn't fit in through the door.  We lifted it in through the window. I was not there when it came time to move out of that office, the guy couldn't figure out how to get it out, and took a power saw and cut it in half. The next day he asked me how did you get the desk in there? Sometimes you really should ask the person who helped put it there. 

The Thursday Ramble: I've been there.

Photo From https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=122233334282262582&set=pcb.122233334540262582

There is generally a special pleasure in seeing photos of places I have been, and I have traveled a lot in north America and Europe, so it happens often.  There are places we have traveled to, to see things that we have seen and read about on blogs.  Inspired by Angus we spent a few hours in St. Andrews last spring and I am often thrilled to see his photos of places we visited, and wishing he would post a travel guide so we could have found a few places he frequents that we didn't stumble across (there is a great bookstore there - someplace.) 

Glasgow was not on the original agenda for our visit to Scotland last May, it was added when I found a good price on really nice airline seats from there to fly home.  We were so glad we added Glasgow, we really enjoyed the city and the people.  It is post industrial city with amazing architecture. We arrived in Glasgow by train from Edinburgh, the train station is a masterpiece. We were so enchanted by the area around the station, that we walked back there one day to explore. 

I was shocked a week ago on Sunday to see news reports of a tragic fire, the building that was destroyed (see first image) was just beyond the glass roof on this side of the station. The station and the hotel in the station are closed, there is smoke damage and ongoing engineering assessments. It has been determined that the remains of the building that burned are unstable and must be taken down before the front part of the station can be safely reopened. (Platforms on the other end of the station are providing limited train service.)  This was a strange sense, of "oh I have been there" "how terrible."   

My World of Wonders: March 18, 2026

What is happening today? Happy Birthday to Karen, my dear sister. I hope you are 29 again, that would make me 27. 

Where have I been this week? The gym, the pool, Whole Foods, the Farmers Market, Mt Vernon, Old Town for a walk, Harris Teeter (local supermarket.) 

What have I been up to in the kitchen?  Fried Shrimp, coccus, and salad. Pork Tenderloin, and focaccia. Butter fried chicken, cauliflower au gratin, and cornbread. Beef and Guinness pies. 

What made me smile this week? I was in my local independent bookstore on Saturday afternoon, and it was packed with people browsing and buying books. It is nice to see people reading, and especially nice to see them doing business with a local merchant. 

Who have I talked with this week? Ruth, Lynn, Amy, Michelle, my sweet bear, Marcel, Warren, David, Linda, Paul, and Tom. 

What random thought came from a comment this week? I posted last week about Huntley Meadows. Two things notable about the place. It was a military test zone for decades. It was converted to a wildlife preserve about 40 years ago, it is amazing how nature heals. Beavers. For several years there was a shallow pond with trees around the banks. The Beavers were taking the bark off of the trees, so the rangers ringed the trees with fences. The Beavers responded by by removing the dam and draining the shallow pond. 

 

Travel Tuesday: Grandma Moses

A couple of weeks ago I took the subway into the city, to wander a couple of museums.  At the National Portrait Gallery there is a show of the work of Grandma Moses. I was blown away, I have heard of her, but I had no idea what her work looked like.  

 

Monday Moods: A Little Something

Somedays all it takes to make someone's mood better is a little something, a kind word - just the right thing at the right time.  Last week I went out to Huntley Meadows park, for a walk in the woods and boardwalks over the the wetlands.  I was too late for the morning birds, the 500-plus millimeter lens crowd was leaving as I was coming in. Photographers with lenses that cost more than my car. They know when the birding is at it's best.  It was one of the first warm days of spring, the landscape is that shade of wet-brown that happens post hard freeze winter, with only the earliest sprigs of green.  The biggest sign of life was what you can hear, it is frog mating season, look back at last Tuesday's extra blog for a listen. It was a good walk, but nothing special. Nothing that would lift my spirits.    

Near the back, as I was turning the corner to return to my car, I noticed this painted rock, a simple message, left there intentionally to remind random strangers that we are all rockstars in our own way. It made me smile. It reminded me of my painting rocks in 2020, to cheer people up, to encourage them to vote, leaving them carefully placed along the trails here on Mt. Eagle and in Dyke Marsh - my daily walks in the year of covid isolation. I hope that one of those rocks did for someone, what this one did for me, a little something that reminded me every day, is a good day in some way.  

The Sunday Five: Water-Water Everywhere

1: Did you grow up drinking from a garden hose when outside? 

2: Do you leave home without a massive water bottle? 

3: Do you often buy bottled water? 

4: When you were growing up, did your home have a well, or a "city water" supply? 

5: Do you drink enough water each day? 

My answers? 

1: Did you grow up drinking from a garden hose when outside?  Yes, the water from the hose was fresh and cold from the well. 

2: Do you leave home without a massive water bottle? I don't own a water bottle.  

3: Do you often buy bottled water?  Seldom. 

4: When you were growing up, did your home have a well, or where you on a "city water" supply? The house on the farm had a deep well. 

5: Do you drink enough water each day? I think so, I am seldom without a large glass of water nearby. 

Please share your answers in the comments. 

The Saturday Morning Post: Get Involved, Remain Engaged

Volunteering sounds like making a commitment, to being there, to doing things that have to be done, creating obligations at a time in my life when I want fewer obligations and more time to explore creativity. At the same time, I don't want to spend all of my time in relative isolation. Now I am seldom truly alone, my Sweet Bear is nearly always here, this is a desire for social contact with more than just home. 

There was a story on Public Radio about an epidemic of loneliness. A mass shortage of social interaction. Research shows that social media has made this worse, rather than better.  Especially the big platforms that use algorithms to feed us paid content and advertising, rather than the updates from family and in-person friends. I miss getting the daily posting of what Jackie is having for dinner each day. 

That being said, how do we build social contact? The last three years that I worked, social contact in the office fell apart. We worked remotely for 18 months, and when we returned to the office, only about 10% of the people were there any given day. It was good to see those people, but I missed the random walking around talking with people. Management by Walking Around, someone wrote a book on that back in the 1980s. We did it because it fed our creative thinking.  People unrelated to our division, would be doing something we could model, or have suggestions we could not think of without their help. 

When I retired that contact largely ended.  I stay in touch with the person who took over when I left, we meet for lunch 10 or 12 times a year. I hope that my input helps her with being creative. 

What other options are there? Get involved in your community. Go to gallery openings, artist talks, author talks, book parties, take a class, lead a class. When you go, silence your phone and leave it in your pocket. Go to concerts. I can't remember the last time I heard a high school band concert, or the local Gay Mens Choir (in Orlando so it was before 1995.) There are musicians playing tonight in a church or, a bar, restaurant, nightclub, or civic organization near you. Engaging with creative people, will inspire your creativity. 

Volunteering with our community arts group started innocently enough. I entered a couple of paintings in one of the shows, and on the drop off day, hung around and handed the hammer to Kevin, helping him hang the show. I was invited back to help hang the next show. Then I was asked to help with some organizing, then asked if I would serve as co-chair. This has fed my creativity in unexpected ways, that I will write about later this year. 

The goal is to remain engaged, to regularly see people you don't regularly see. To talk to strangers, to become acquainted, maybe to make some new friends. Doing this pushes back against isolation, and feeds your creativity. Try it. What do you have to lose? 

Freestyle Friday: Flaneur

I walk a lot, an hour of more almost everyday.  Probably half of the time this is walking and going nowhere, plodding on the treadmill, 2.3 miles an hour, with between a 5 and 6 degree incline. I watch YouTube videos on my Ipad to fill the time. It is movement, just to keep moving even if I am going no place. But then most walks finish where I started, this one just covers less ground in between.  

For years I had a Nike running poster framed on my bedroom wall, showing a man running a scenic street in San Francisco. The caption read, "There is a fat man, he was born on your birthday, he is wearing you clothes, and he looks a lot like you, and if you ever stop running he will catch up with you." I shouldn't have parted with that one when we sold the other house. 

Other times I walk because I have someplace to go. Sadly many parts of our neighborhood are not pedestrian friendly. But I can walk to the subway station, or Aldi.  

Other times I flaneur, I walk aimlessly. I walk to walk, to explore whatever I happen to see. The photo above was a recent flaneur along the River in old town Alexandria.  I found a parking spot along Founders Park, and walked, with no plan, no goal, just to move along. I went south along the waterfront, out onto a couple of piers to see what boats where in, then further south finding that they are replacing some of the pavers at Robinson Landing, an area that was finished just a couple of years ago, in the place of the old Washington Post newspaper dock and warehouse. Then a block over the Union Street and back north, wandering through the Torpedo Factory Arts Center, and eventually back to the car. It was a delightful walk, with no aim or goal, a classic French flaneur. 

Tell us about your latest flaneur. 

The Thursday Ramble:Thoughts

I have read a couple of great books recently. 

Tribe by Sebastian Junger, a short book about human behaviour. He researched behaviours during war, Bosnia, London during the blitz, and Dresden during World War II. Behaviour changes in times of stress, people work together against a common enemy. The Blitz didn't break the spirit of the people of London, it galvanized their resolve, and deepened their hatred of the enemy. I wish we had leader who read. 

The Most Beautiful Walk In The World, by John Baxter describes the joys of walking, mostly as a pedestrian in Paris.  He weaves the history of the place, with the simple joys of walking about and telling stories. A joy to read. The world needs to read more. 

I am on a bit of a reading binge, at this rate I would surpass 100 books this year. I know there will be a slower time, I have four books loaded on my Kindle for this year's grand adventure, when I will slow to maybe one book a week for a month.  

The weather here is starting to lean towards spring, warm for a couple of days, the cold, then undecided.  Bone chilling and foggy, then sunshine and warm.  We have had longer periods of cold this winter than we do on average. The prediction is that the cherry blossoms will be later than the last few years, but a week in the 70s could change that in the blink of an eye. 

The first of the early spring flowers are out, snowdrops, and crocuses. I am looking forward to daffodils.  I have started painting spring flowers, from memory. 

My World of Wonders: March 11, 2026 Spring Flowers

What have I been up to in the kitchen? Pork schnitzel, blueberry coffee cake and fresh bread. Roast beef and mashed potatoes, red wine-mushroom - onion sauce. Beef stew. Sauteed cabbage and Italian Sausage 

What is on the easel? Spring flowers, the cold weather has delayed the spring bloom, so here are some bright yellows. I am on my second spring flowers painting. 

Who have I talked with this week? Ruth, Warren, Paul, Amy, Brad, Marcel, Mary, my Sweet Bear, Zack, Jon, Giuseppe, Ana, Susan, Larry, Rafael,  

Where have I been this week? IKEA, Aldi, filled the car with gasoline, Safeway, the gym, the community center, the Troll Park and a nice walk along the river. Huntley Meadows. 

What good has happened this week? Despite TurboTax crashing and having to start over - the taxes are done. It warmed up, the daffodils are budding, the forsythia is starting to show color. 

 

Tuesday Special Edition: A Warm Morning in Huntley Meadows, TURN UP THE VOLUME

Travel Tuesday: More from the Briscoe Museum of Western Art