Dear Pamela’s Girls:
We had such a good time spending Aunt Callie’s birthday with her in her little mountain town in Virginia. I was sorry to find when we got back that the SC Pamela’s Girls had been through some pretty hair-raising weather because it was beautiful up in the Appalachian Mountains. Dogwoods and redbuds were blooming, the air was clear and freshly cool and lazy clouds flecked the sky for most of our visit. Uncle R and I sat outside on Aunt Callie’s front steps sipping coffee on Thursday evening and listened to the tree frogs, wind in the treetops and trains far in the distance.
We did make a side trip to the little town of Big Stone Gap on Friday and had a wonderful time. Aunt Callie had a hair appointment noon on Friday to get gussied up for her Saturday birthday party and a group of us (including Aunt Callie) went out to lunch in little Weber City, VA, then went by the family cemetery just off the Daniel Boone Trail between Kingsport and Gate City to check on "everyone" there, and finally took the windy, mountainous road to Big Stone Gap, VA to visit a used bookstore that I had read about on-line. The Scottish owner of the bookstore was thoroughly tickled that our 97-year-old aunt was with us and as she made her way carefully up the ramp into the old, clapboard white house that housed Tales Of The Lonesome Pine Bookstore, he ran into the kitchen and made her a cup of restorative decaf coffee to sip while we all delved into the shelves. I found a copy of the novel, Big Stone Gap, by local best-selling author, Adriana Trigiani, which I bought and YooDee nabbed several of the other books in the same series. Uncle R found some suspense thrillers by Harlan Coben and Cousin SJ found several novels to her interest also. It was really a fun place to browse with a silky black cat keeping watch over the activity and a long-haired grey that followed me to each shelf and nuzzled me when I bent down to examine the lowest level of books.
We had such a good time spending Aunt Callie’s birthday with her in her little mountain town in Virginia. I was sorry to find when we got back that the SC Pamela’s Girls had been through some pretty hair-raising weather because it was beautiful up in the Appalachian Mountains. Dogwoods and redbuds were blooming, the air was clear and freshly cool and lazy clouds flecked the sky for most of our visit. Uncle R and I sat outside on Aunt Callie’s front steps sipping coffee on Thursday evening and listened to the tree frogs, wind in the treetops and trains far in the distance.
We did make a side trip to the little town of Big Stone Gap on Friday and had a wonderful time. Aunt Callie had a hair appointment noon on Friday to get gussied up for her Saturday birthday party and a group of us (including Aunt Callie) went out to lunch in little Weber City, VA, then went by the family cemetery just off the Daniel Boone Trail between Kingsport and Gate City to check on "everyone" there, and finally took the windy, mountainous road to Big Stone Gap, VA to visit a used bookstore that I had read about on-line. The Scottish owner of the bookstore was thoroughly tickled that our 97-year-old aunt was with us and as she made her way carefully up the ramp into the old, clapboard white house that housed Tales Of The Lonesome Pine Bookstore, he ran into the kitchen and made her a cup of restorative decaf coffee to sip while we all delved into the shelves. I found a copy of the novel, Big Stone Gap, by local best-selling author, Adriana Trigiani, which I bought and YooDee nabbed several of the other books in the same series. Uncle R found some suspense thrillers by Harlan Coben and Cousin SJ found several novels to her interest also. It was really a fun place to browse with a silky black cat keeping watch over the activity and a long-haired grey that followed me to each shelf and nuzzled me when I bent down to examine the lowest level of books.
We also fulfilled a hope in walking up to the nearby train tracks and having the exciting moment of seeing train headlights coming up the mountain grade down from us and happily snapping photos as it roared past, engines at full throttle to make the steep incline. It was a moment – and I know that CiCi will know what I mean – that I am none too sure whether Pamela would have been allowed to view what was happening on earth from her happy place in Heaven. Uncle R and me standing within a few feet of a coal-filled, rattling, rocking train as it thundered past us is not a sight that I think that Pamela could watch with any semblance of peace. (:-D It was very thrilling, though, in a bizarre and intriguing mix of joy and fear.
I am posting my weekly entry a bit early this week, because the office “admin staff” is being taken to St. George Island, FLA for a work retreat from this Wednesday to Sunday! We are all very happy and excited, although the thought of emerging into the outside world in my swimsuit in front of my work cohorts is an extremely disturbing one. (The thought of a scuba wet suit has some appeal for me.) We have heard that we will have a sunset pontoon boat cruise, will kayak in the St. George Sound and hopefully have some wonderful beach time with umbrellas positioned to provide optimum reading shade.
Love to the Pamela’s Girls!
Auntie J.
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