August is here! I've been so busy the last few days, I just haven't taken time to write the blog! A friend came to visit and we had lots of fun, laughter, food, and activities. We went to the Highlands Festival in Abingdon, particularly to see the quit show they were having, but ended up traipsing through all the stores too. Abingdon is a pretty town and they always keep it very neat and attractive. 
The quilts are beautiful and I am only including a couple pictures of them (my favs). We also went to the Fields-Penn House and I enjoyed this again. A weaver was there and explained the whole process of creating woven textiles at home including from cotton, sheep's wool, and flax. I learned about some plants that I never heard of before that were used to dye the threads and then looked them up at home. Also at home, while we were trying to identify a tree , I opened (big mistake) an unripe walnut to make sure that was what it was. Yes it can be used for dye - I almost have it off my hand now 4 days later and after much scrubbing.
We went to lunch at the Harvest Table (blue building) in Meadowview, near Abingdon. The restaurant was recommended by someone I recently met and serves food based on what is in season in the area. They grow much of their own vegetables and buy from local farmers. Next door is the Famer's Guild (pink-red building) - a gift shop actually- interesting stuff. It wasn't until I read an article in the ladies room about the opening of this restaurant that I found that it is owned by Barbara Kingsolver's husband. Kingsolver wrote a book in 2007 (which I loved) called "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle." The book chronicles a year that Kingsolver and her family embrace the rural life and vow to buy only food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it. Steven Hopp, her environmental biologist husband now teaches at Emory and Henry and opened this restaurant. It took a while to catch on but now seems to be thriving. I hope it continues; it was wonderful. I was told as I was leaving that he was in the restaurant while we were, but had left and since I don't know what he looks like, not sure if I saw him or not.
Saturday we went to Rural Retreat Heritage Day - this year was the "100th anniversary" of Rural Retreat. The area, originally called Mt Airy is much older than that. The center of the community was moved after the railroad depot became the center of commerce. The area's name was changed to Rural Retreat in 1871 and the town was incorporated in 1911. The two day festival included a parade (some great old cars), a display of old tractors, some vendors, lots of "fair food" like fried bolgna sandwiches, fried fruit pies, snow cones, corn dogs, etc. Saw one of my second cousins and her daughter, an artist who has created two wonderful paintings of Rural Retreat (she was selling prints of them). I also bought the new book published by the RR historical society. From this, I have learned where my great grandfather's store was located and which plots of land in town he bought, sold, and who some of his business partners were. I have much more to read.
And in between, we walked a lot and I cleaned a little, pulled a few weeds, made things with zucchini, made applesauce, canned a few peaches, dryed dill seeds, and now am trying to dry some oregano flowers (we'll see how that works).
Today our grandchildren arrive. We are so excited! Gotta go make some zucchini things and a peach pie!
No comments:
Post a Comment