Last week, our good friends Bob & Yvonne invited Brugger and me to accompany them to Villa Appalaccia Winery on Saturday for a day of wining and dining; it goes without saying we were not wont to refuse. Villa Appalaccia, just off the Blue Ridge Parkway in Floyd County, has long been one of our favorite destinations for spirits and good times. Brugger and I typically visit in the fall, just before Halloween, but we've been known to head that way whenever the mood takes us. It sure took us this weekend.
We rode up with Bob & Yvonne early afternoon on Saturday and, once at the
winery, met their friends, David & Mary, who are originally from
Venezuela. Kimberly and I had made their acquaintance at a couple of other
gatherings at Bob & Yvonne's, and we were pleased to see them again.
Nice folks, and during one of the hired musician's breaks, Mary stole the stage, grabbed a guitar, and went to town. Fun. We ordered a few of Villa Appalaccia's excellent paninis for lunch
and accompanied them with a variety of wines. Good, good stuff all around.
We headed back toward Martinsville late in the afternoon and stopped at
Lovers' Leap, probably the most famous and scenic overlook in the state. Over the years,
I have visited there countless times (one year, in fact, Brugger stumbled into some bear shit there), and the view is still incredible;
however, recently, construction to widen US Highway 58 in that
area has utterly destroyed the surrounding scenery. Distressingly, much of the
devastation has nothing to do with the road itself but the horrific greed of
the logging companies, who have deforested countless acres along the highway.
It's an infuriating disgrace, and as far as I'm concerned, the motherfuckers
responsible ought to be flayed alive.
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| Good times at Villa Appalaccia. Old Dude, Ms. B., Bob, Yvonne, David, Mary |
L: Stella Trudel, the contracted performer; R: Mary, rocking out during Stella's break
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| A view from Lovers' Leap |
On cheerier subjects, on Sunday, Kimberly held one of her regular arts &
crafts group gatherings at our place, and friend Terry came along with his
wife, Beth, so that he could accompany me (just for the hell off it) to a
geocaching event at
2 Witches Winery & Brewing Company
in Danville. Some years ago, Brugger and I frequented 2 Witches, but now, it's
been quite a few years since we haunted their halls. Both Terry and I, like
most of our geocaching friends, opted for the beer. It turned out to be a
large and enjoyable event. Several cachers of my acquaintance whom I've
not seen for many years showed up, so in some ways, it felt like
a most welcome reunion.
In the coming week, both Brugger and I have a lot of work to keep us busy,
though not necessarily out of trouble. Whether in or out of it, I'll probably
write about it. So, until then, peace out.
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| Tom (Skyhawk63); Audra (Homestyle, our hostess); Ken & Jennifer (the Alethiometrists) |
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| Tom (Skyhawk63), Audra (Homestyle), Lynn (Spring1), Tom (Night-Hawk), young feller (Hoagland Hunter) |
