Tangier Island Day Trip

Last Saturday, a group of us went to Tangier Island for the day. Well, not for the whole day, really, but for a visit. This is a place I've always wanted to visit, and I'm so glad I did!

Here's the day in pictures...

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Tangier Island is literally in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay. The only way to get there is by boat or plane. There are several ferries that go, and that's the way we opted for the day.

We caught the ferry in Reedville. Of course, it took us 2+ hours to get there. But once there, the ferry ride promised to be about 1.5 hours to the island.

This is our friend Larry. He told us he gets motion sickness, and was looking a little green. We hadn't left the dock yet!

On the way out, we passed a lot of ruins in the creek of previous fishing companies. This one had an Osprey nest on top, and we could see the babies sticking their heads up.

You could tell this area was a thriving fishing area. The captain said these boats were full of fish waiting to be unloaded.

One of the many fishing vessels we passed during the day.

This sign is at the mouth of the creek.

From the bay, our first glimpse of Tangier.

This sign is one of the first you see when you get off the ferry and onto the main road.

This is the majority of the group that we were with today.

While on the beach, we saw half a dozen planes landing on the island.

And that half a dozen all landed in the frame of about 15 minutes. Definitely a busy airport!

At one of our stops, a local woman came out and chatted with us about the island. She was so sweet and pleasant, and actually seemed glad that we were visiting. Thanks Ms. Pruitt!

While riding through town, we passed the library. The Muddy Toes Library.

Yes, it was a shed. It wasn't open, so we didn't venture in to see the selection.

Then we had lunch at Hilda Crockett's Chesapeake house. Family style, with all you can eat crabcakes and TONS of side dishes.

We definitely put a hurting on the food. And everything was delicious. Especially the crabcakes AND the corn pudding! Some of the best I've ever had!

We had only a short time to wander around before the ferry left again, but I did see this neat mural on the west side of town. Definitely depicts their way of life here.

Then, the ferry was waiting to take us back.

We figured that we were in the car for 4+ hours, on the ferry for 3+ hours, and only on the island for 2+ hours. May have to go back and visit one of the Inn's or B&B's for an overnight stay.

And what did we learn about the island? There are about 650 permanent residents. Their main way of life is fishing, crabbing, and tourism. They are the soft-shelled crab capitol of the world. They only have a couple of vehicles on the island and the main modes of transportation are golf cart and bikes. They have a bit of an accent that's hard to place, but it's definitely their own.

Their island is sinking AND the bay is rising. So the island is disappearing. How long will it be around???

I'm so glad I finally got out there. Having heard about this place my entire life. It's certainly worth a visit!

AMW

April Fool's Day

What a fun day. I've always liked this day, and I guess it's because I'm such a smart-ass that it just seems like a fitting day.

Today is un-officially my Casey-Dog's birthday. We knew she was born in early April, but the exact date was unknown. So why not make it April 1st???? I could find no good reason not to... This morning before heading to work, she got extra treats! She didn't know why, but she was happy.

As a kid, I remember playing the common April Fool's jokes. "Hey, your shoes untied" followed by "April Fools!"

I even remember one year, I replaced my parent's sugar bowl with salt. So when they had their morning cup of tea, they put salt in it instead. I also remember them not seeing the humor in it. DOH!

But the most memorable April Fool's Joke I remember was one done by local disc jockeys.

Set the scene: Mt. Trashmore!

What is Mt. Trashmore?? Once a landfill, it was converted into a city park in the 70's by compacting the trash and covering it with clean soil, and planting grass. It's a large hill that is 60 feet high and 800 feet long. The park now boasts two mountains, two lakes, and a multitude of trails. If one were to dig beneath the surface they would find that the whole hill is covered in a thick layer of rubber to keep water from running through the trash. In addition, three of the flag poles in the park secretly act as vents for methane gas released by the rotting trash beneath the scenic park.

It was April 1992. On FM-99, the morning guys were Tommy Griffith and the late Henry "The Bull" Del Toro. A roudy duo to say the least.

But on that April Fool's Day, they claimed that Mt. Trashmore had a build up of methane gas and was about to explode.

Local residents flooded 911 with calls. People evacuated their homes. And near panic ensued. The duo tried to give clues by giving phony highways as evacuation routes, but too many folks thought it was real.

The radio station was fined by the FCC and the DJ's were suspended for two weeks without pay.

I know I shouldn't think it funny, but I really did think it was hilarious!

The Museum of Hoaxes even has it listed (along with another incident) as #9 in the "Top 10 Worst April Fool's Day Hoaxes Ever". Is it wrong that I think that's AWESOME???

How do you spend April Fool's? Do you have any that are particularly memorable? What is your favorite April Fool's joke???

AMW

2010 SnowPocolypse

Earlier here I reminisced about a snow storm that happened when I was young. Now, through pictures, I'll tell you all about the big storm of 2010. A much different scene for me. I really enjoyed this storm, and had a lot of fun...

This was about 10:30 in the morning on Saturday. It was still snowing, but this was the earliest measurement. About 5 inches and steadily falling.

This was the back patio, around the same time-frame. See those two bowls on the table?

These two bowls? They are the collection bins for SNOW CREAM!

I remember having snow cream growing up. My grandmother would make it. But I had never tried it... It was REALLY yummy!!

We also picked that day to try to make sushi for the first time. It was really easy with the SUSHEZI! And good. This was avacodo, cream cheese and crab.

Of course, we HAD to go out and play. Casey just watched for bit. She's seen snow before, but not nearly this much...

I almost lost her in it at one point. It was up to her underbelly. Good thing she's so dark!

And I finally got her to sit still enough to take a good picture. She wasn't happy about sitting in it though. What a trooper!

Now some shots from around the yard...

The two suns and crab didn't seem too bothered by it all.

By Sunday morning, the icicles were growing bigger and bigger.

Guess we won't be grilling on these this weekend.

Sunday, we also decided to take a drive by the water. It's only a couple of blocks and I wanted to get some pictures. Of course.

This was one of the first things I saw. Beautiful, huh?

We also saw this guy. Wasn't 100% sure what I was seeing at first, but you'll see below and hopefully you'll be as amused as I was...

Yep. Cross-country skiing in SE VA by the bay.

And a great sport he was. I opened the window, held out the camera, and he just grinned.

And I almost missed this guy, cause I was facing the water. See him? On a snowboard?

That's him again being pulled behind that pick-up truck!

LOVE IT!

Lots of folks were out walking dogs. These two where just enjoying the day and each other!

I loved how the sun was shining so bright, and the snow was overlooking the water.

It was the most snow our area had seen in a long, long time. Nearly shut the entire metro area down. Took a long time to clear it all up, and kids were out of school until Wednesday or Thursday for a storm that happened on Saturday.

But it will be a storm that people will remember for years to come.

I know I will! How about you? What did you do that was memorable?

AMW

Blizzard history time

Here in Southeast VA we don't get many major snow storms. We're getting one right now....

The media is touting it as the biggest snow storm since the "blizzard" of 1980. That storm stranded many people inside the Scope arena that had gone to the circus, and the storm hit while they were inside. When the show was over, the roads were impassable, and most had to spend the night inside...

I was 10. And no, I wasn't inside.

I was at school when it hit. No big deal, right? Let me tell you what happened to me that year......

I guess forecasting wasn't what it was nowadays. They didn't close school for the impending storm.

Also, Norfolk was still practicing their "bussing" policy, where they were trying to integrate the schools better, so while I lived about a mile from an elementary school, I was "bussed" to a school in another part of town. Across the Elizabeth River actually, to South Norfolk.

And, let me add that my bus stop was more than two blocks away from my house. Long blocks.

So we went to school as normal in the morning. Then they decided that they needed to close schools early and get us home. That was about noon.

Most of the kids loaded onto their busses and went about their way. Two busses didn't make it. Mine was one of them.

So along with friends and others from our neighborhood, we waited and waited.

We called home. We begged parents to come get us. But they couldn't make it with the roads in the condition that they were.

We were given crackers.

We waited some more.

Finally about 7:30pm, we were told there was a bus available, but it was at the middle school a few blocks away. We all walked (even though we weren't dressed for snow), and got to the bus.

Do you remember the busses from the 70's and 80's? The didn't have heat......

At about 9:30pm, we were dropped off at our bus stop. Again, it was a couple of long blocks away.

I stopped about 4 houses from the bus stop, and knocked on the door of people I knew. I was exhausted, frozen and wet.

My bestest friend at the time, walked on toward her house.

The kind people in the house called my parents, and told them I was there. They wrapped me in blankets and set me in front of a fireplace. Now I just had to wait for my daddy to come get me.

While walking the block to come get me, he came across my friend who had collapsed in exhaustion on her way to her house. She was face down in the snow when my dad got to her. He didn't even know who it was, but quickly realized it, and scooped her up and ran her home.

Then he had to trek again to come get me.....

He got me home about 10:30 that night. I was hungry and exhausted. I remember eating spaghetti, and my mom has told me many times that I sat there and said that I didn't know if I was more hungry or tired....

I ended up getting real sick from being out in it too long... I had pneumonia and was out of school for a good bit.

You'd think after that fiasco that I'd really hate the snow. But I don't!! I love it! (It's the cold I don't like....).

I'll post about this year's blizzard when it's all done...........

AMW

Voting

So, I went to vote this morning.  My polling place is in a city golf course "club house".  City owned, so not much of a club house, really.  I pulled up about 7:15, to see a line backed out to the street, and then double-backed into the parking lot.  I knew it'd be a wait, but had to do it.  

It was cold and rainy and dreary, but there was a colorful line of umbrellas, from plain black, to rainbow, to university logo'd, to patterned, to clear.  All kinds.  Kind of representative of our nation, if you will.  People from all backgrounds, and all walks of life, turning out to vote in this historical election.  Doesn't matter who you're voting for, it's indeed historical.  There were few grumblings in line about the wait and the weather, but most were excited about being a part of it all.  My polling place is near a university, so I heard a lot of young people talking about this being their first election.  How exciting for them!

It took about 1 hour and 45 minutes to get through the line, with at least 1 hour and 30 minutes of that being outside in the rain.  And then it was over.  I was number 210 in the P-Z line (last name), and my ballot was number 558 into the machine.  At 9:00 am.  

As I walked to my car, a gentleman sitting in his car, apparently waiting for someone else, said to me, "Feels good to have voted, doesn't it?", to which I answered, "Yes, yes it does."

Now we wait....

AMW