Labor Day Weekend in the Mountains - Sunday

I am happy to report that one positive side effect of mid-century age is the apparent lack of need for sleep after about 3 am. Other than a 45-minute nap at mid-day, I've been awake since 2:45 am, and up since 3:30. In those dark, pre-dawn hours I puttered around on the computer and worked on the dreaded final paper outline. With some discipline, I might be able to actually get some real work done with these bonus hours.

Last night's dinner at the River House Inn was delightful. I had a delicious cream of tomato soup with goat cheese, roasted chicken on a bed of tiny diced sweet potato and greens in a glaze, and one of those molten chocolate confections (small and exquisite). Due to the occasion of my birthday, our waitress brought out a small scoop of raspberry sherbet with a candle. Well, this is the best raspberry sherbet I've ever had. I asked the waitress about it, and they do make it on site, and it has basil in it. They also happen to feature another dessert with basil ice cream. That will have to be for next time.


One of our waitresses turned out to be the daughter of famed guitar craftsman Wayne Henderson. She told us that she had just completed her first guitar, and if we drove up to Wayne's shop we could see it before she ships it out to its new owner. So today, Alison and Kavita and I took a little road trip up to Mouth of Wilson, Virginia and Wayne Henderson's shop. I recalled that a feature about Wayne had been in an issue of Garden and Gun magazine, so I was able to bring the magazine along and get his autograph. The guitars we saw were beautiful; Wayne played a couple of tunes for us, and now there is only one degree of separation between me and Eric Clapton. Please see Alison's blog for more about our outing.












The drive to Mouth of Wilson was beautiful. We also came across what amounted to the culmination of all yard sales in southwest Virginia from the last twenty-some years, in one two-story building: Pollyworld. Wow. Though it was hard to tear ourselves away from the samurai swords, Christmas mugs, VCR tapes, Niagra Falls salt and pepper shakers, and stuffed lynx, we were strong, bolted for the car, and headed on down Highway 16 towards North Carolina. Our final stop was at the Northwest Trading Post on the Blue Ridge Parkway, where we bought some fudge (chocolate/black walnut, peanut butter, and maple sugar). We came back to the house and ate our fudge on the porch while we watched the late afternoon rain quietly make its way across the far ridges.