His Rules SUCK

This past weekend we spent a lot of time together in a cottage at a B&B in view of the Blue Ridge. It was a spectacularly romantic place. The kind that make your toes curl and creates goosebumps with just a glimpse. Yes, this was one of those "I might never want this to end  and there definitely may be a baby down the road places." 

His rules, suck! Sometimes I get warm and fuzzy can talk about anything, the world is tender and we are in sync as lifelong partners and friends and then sometimes I get I'm cold as that flagpole that you wouldn't want to be triple dog dared into licking on a winter's day. I don't know you. I don't want to know you. Leave me alone.
Most of these rules are so ambiguous that I am not sure how to figure them out, much less follow them so that I stay at a manageable stress level. Then there are those times I say FUCK it as I am breaking them because despite not even knowing what they are, its evident to me that what they are is NOT FAIR and NOT COOL! However, this second option usually causes "only me" grief by the way. He is as stoic as can be in these cases, his battle armor and war maps are formidable. He is very well versed in being unaffected by emotions. I, on the other hand, am an accelerating train with the wreck is just waiting to happen. Our black wolves occasionally battle with each other at this point. I try not to feed this black wolf very often because it just unleashes a fury that is unstoppable. **This is a historical reference, not an indication of what happened this trip. I just felt the need to provide background. 
My wayward and rusty knight has two switches, ON and OFF and they are used at his own discretion. He plays by his rules, and his rules alone,  which are usually made up as he goes along. ON is charming while OFF is boarded up. I am working on this sentiment for my own self preservation: I just wish I would stop falling for the ON, sometimes I think my batteries just need to run out.


July 25, 2014
I am off and traveling again, only this time as a couple to the funeral of our friend's mom. We are headed back to Mark and Joanne's and Nelson County, VA. It will have a much different feel this trip and my hopes are to highlight the things we see and do that are different as well as rementioning the places I've been from the shared perspective. Wish me luck.

We left the house this morning at 6:30, quickly stopping in at Froggy's (FM rating 12++) to get the breakfast order we texted in. I wish I could say I indulged in a Windman, however the pub is my favorite, and if I'm gonna eat something that is technically not healthy, I'm gonna indulge in something I like. So breakfast was egg, pastrami, swiss, I added LT and mustard for good measure, on rye toast. Road snacks have consisted of cherries, dried berries, popcorn (air popped ) , and VA peanuts, plus the 64oz of water (my half of the gallon).
Our first stop was in Carlisle, PA. We drove over to the war college to look at the graveyard, the only remnant left from one of our country's grimmest chapters in the name of equal education for all, the Carlisle Indian School.  After that we headed to the Army Heritage Center (FM rating 7), which was an interesting place, filled with the history of tacticle operation and examples. It ws getting late and we only had half of our day's ride completed.
We drove south, stopped in Harrisonburg at the artful dodger and had lunch. We also stopped at the Midtown Bottle Shop for beers to take home. Then it was on to Skyline Drive before completing the journey. Eventually, we arrived to our wonderful accommodations for the weekend. A cozy cottage on The Fairview Estate(FM rating 9) that we rented through Air BnB, with spectacular views, a few dogs, and a family of peacocks. So very romantic, so very heartbreaking. This was always the kind of place I'd beg to stay at, we would always end up at hotels instead. We ended up here solely because of the proximity to the weekend's events.

After checking in, we headed to Joanne and Mark's, had a bit to eat and then headed out to see some live music and indulge in craft beers at the Wild Wolf Brewing. It was a wonderful evening. I have made it a point since all of this mess has started to look my best when I go out. One, so that I look good for myself, two, so I make him proud to have me on his arm,  and three, so that if he acts like a shit at least other guys might check me out and make me feel better.
Let's just say, I was told that guys were checking me out, though I was mostly oblivious because I was enjoying the company of the group at the table. As for the romance,? No comment. This girl won't bash her husband nor kiss and tell, so let's leave it at that.  More later.

July 26, 2014

This morning dawned hot, and my spirit was a bit wilted. It's hard sometimes to be mindful of my current situation and be happy when we are staying someplace so dreamy. We have a wonderful breakfast with friends and went to the orchard for peaches and other things to
bring home before heading back to the cottage to get ready for Marion's celebration of life.
I don't usually like to comment on something so private, however there were several things that I found inspiring about the service to my own situation. While this may seem very self-serving, being the daughter of a minister, I know that a funeral, or memorial, is for the people left behind. It is a meant to be a reminder that our lives are so precious and should be contemplated. We should spend it wisely so that upon our own deathbed we can be proud of sharing the compassion in which we greeted the world with. Marion was a compassionate person, someone we should all aspire to learn from.

First the minister recited and commented on Linda Ellis's "Dash" and I found myself wondering if the two of us could be proud of our dashes? Right now, that question is heavily weighted.

I also found myself fixated on the 3rd verse of Amazing Grace (John H. Newton, 1725);

Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come; 
'tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, 
and grace will lead me home. 

We have spent almost 30 years getting to know each other, and have come through so much, most of it amazing, most of it based in love. I found myself asking why? I still find myself asking why, every minute of every day. I am still amazed that we can have this much fun together and be in this position. It just doesn't make sense. 

After the celebration, we slipped out, went back and changed and headed out for dinner. We found ourselves at the Devil's Backbone, (FM rating 9) kind of fitting for my feelings just mentioned I guess. We shared a salad and a smokehouse burger, which despite the $18. price tag was amazing. 

THE SMOKEHOUSE BURGER**

A half-pound, all natural beef patty grilled to your temperature, piled with DB house-smoked pulled pork, house-cured bacon, onion rings, Muenster cheese and our house-made Backbone BBQ sauce. Loaded onto corn-dusted jalapeno toast and served with your choice of house side.  

After a very nice dinner and wonderful conversation, we headed back to the Wild Wolf to catch some live music. The band was so terribly unrehearsed in comparison to the one the night before that I actually have to say it made my beer painful. It was like they just met in the parking lot and had instruments in their car and got this harebrained idea to try to play together. It SUCKED! We headed back and met up with Joanne and Mark where we chatted until late into the evening.

July 27, 2014- we are headed home

After packing up, checking out, and a lingering breakfast with Joanne and Mark we start our trip home. This long journey felt like it lasted days. As we cruise up 151 we are trying to remember which BBQ it was that we wanted to try. While passing it we got a good whiff of the smoke. We turned around. The place, Paulie's Pig Out in Afton (FM 10). We really weren't even hungry, we had just gorged ourselves on bacon, eggs and pancakes. Paulie's has BBQ to go by the pound. We picked up a 1/2 pound to snack on later, it came with 2 rolls and slaw. Lets just say it was amazing. We picked at it for a while up the road, then put the rest in the cooler to savor later when we were actually hungry. 

We made several pit stops along the way. One of note was at the Roy Pitz Brewing Company in Chambersburg, PA. (FM rating 10- surprising little find). We sampled several beers, my favorite being their Belgian Style Tripple called P's and Q's, however their sour was also quite good. As always, we struck up a conversation with the guys that were sitting in the bar, which managed to get us a tour and a visit with a baby squirrel that is being nursed back health. This was a wonderful way to split up the trip. 

After leaving here, we made a plan to stop at my cousin Mike's place for dinner. The Lookout House (FM rating 10). Let's just say my cousin Mike knows how to cook a steak! The place is a throwback into the 70's but the food is good and the staff wonderful so it is definitely worth the stop. If you are sitting at the bar, order a filet sandwich medium rare, with L&T and onion rings (ask for them crispy you won't be let down). Make sure to order a Lord Chesterfield Ale to go with it and you will be reliving one of my fondest young adult memories. 

The last 60 miles was the toughest, and my turn to drive. I opened the roof and the windows, blasted this new grass/country mix and found myself longing for summer to never end. There are three short weeks left, and you can be sure, I will be back on the road again, in short order. I leave you with this cover of a Dylan song, it's a taste of my driving music. Shawn Colvin speaks volumes. 

The switch is turned OFF in the driveway. It makes me cry. I spend the rest of my evening pouring my heart out to one of my dear friends, 2AM came fast. I really wish my remote of hope would suffer a sudden loss of power sometimes!