Pomegranate Me a Wish

So the color of the week is pomegranate, another jewel tone. Love it. I'm getting a little better at applying the polish without making a total mess of my fingers, but I still have a ways to go.

Not sleeping well again. I'm not ready for summer to be over! I'm not ready for another semester and this class to begin! And I'm a little intimidated by Digital Commons, Year 2. It's funny, year one was a challenge and fun, but ever since we hit the 1000th document mark I've fretted about how I will be able to live up to it for year two.

I need a vacation....

The Biltmore

The Biltmore is so amazing that we spent 2 days there, and of course, didn't scratch the surface of what could be experienced. The house was built in 1889-1895, by George Vanderbilt II, and is still owned and run by the Vanderbilt descendants. They opened it to the public in 1930, but family continued to live there until 1956, when it became a public museum. Photos were not allowed within the mansion itself, but here are a few from outside.

This is looking out from the balcony of the Biltmore to the western landscape. Here is a view from those hills looking back at the mansion.

One of the activities you can participate in is a carriage ride ($30/adult), which is a one hour ride in this carriage through the hills of the estate. If we go back again, I would take a different tour, but there was another set of grandparents with their 2 grandchildren (6 & 4 - the girl was named Peyton), who apparently had done it before. The kids were delightful.

The guide, a young lady in her early 20s, told us that the Biltmore employs between 1800-1900 people, and some have houses on the estate. John thinks when we retire, if we come to this area, perhaps we could both get jobs here, or at least volunteer.

And here is a picture of John with one of the Belgium-Percheron cross horses (Starsky).

Day one was primarily partially touring the house, eating lunch in the courtyard, and taking the carriage ride before heading into Asheville and doing a bus tour of the historic downtown area.

More to come...

Things to do and see in Hendersonville, NC

Outside of Kilren's Ice Cream store (not sure if that is the correct name).

Sunday we went into Hendersonville to get groceries, and look around. We ate at a roadhouse called Binions, and the food was quite good. I had pulled pork sliders and John had a burger. They give you hot, homemade rolls with honey butter that are mouth watering. It was interesting to see that the churches had police outside of them directing traffic. We wondered around downtown, stopping at Masts General Store, and picked up little gifts for the boys. We went to an antique shop, and I got 5 double mats for $10, and then went to the ice cream shop for a salted caramel ice cream. End of day 2.

On Monday, we went to the North Carolina Arboretum. The people we have met down here are so friendly. As I waited for John to finish talking to the Bonsai person, I sat in the lobby. The receptionist there engaged me in conversation, and asked where we were from. When I told her western ny, she mentioned her daughter lived outside of Rochester. I inquired where, and she said Hamlin. I told her it was quite close to where we lived, and asked how she came to be there. She said she went to NTID, and now works at Lowe's. Small world. More to come.

Vacation 2012

I sit at the table in our VRBO in Henderson, NC on a beautiful summer evening. Our vacation is half over, and so far, it has been wonderful. I took off last Thursday, and we spent the time preparing for vacation and left at 6:30am on Friday morning. We had lunch at the Eat & Park in McCandless, PA. It was a diner, with fabulous burgers and fruit salad as a side. From there we traveled to Fairmont, WV, where we spent the night at a Comfort Inn. We ate at CJ Maggies (see photo above), and once again the food was great! Saturday morning we hit the road around 8AM, and arrived in Hendersonville (lunch at Ruby Tuesday), around 4PM.

The VRBO is called the Butler, supposedly because it was Buddy Ebsen's butler's residence. Up the hill from us is another residence called the Ebsen, maybe that was the family house. The house is quaint, and the decor isn't bad. It has some downfalls, though. I was not happy when I discovered, after paying the deposit, that they are no longer listed with the VRBO website. I hesitated to send the remainder of the money, without having the VRBO to back me if there were problems with the place. The bad parts are the road noise (you really can't sit out and enjoy the nice porch), the constant dripping of every faucet, the lack of basic pantry provisions (this is the first of several VRBOs we've stayed at that didn't provide salt, pepper, condiments, sugar, coffee, tea, etc.) There was a bottle of wine, and a basket of snacks when we arrived, which was nice, though. It's also not as clean as it could be, we keep finding popcorn kernels in the living room and the rugs all need vacuumed. And there is an ant problem. Tiny water ants in the sink area and the bathroom. And the mattress is as hard as a rock. John doesn't seem to mind it, but I am having a hard time sleeping on it, and am up many times during the night. And then the mystery of the missing washer/dryer.  Since the VRBO listing is no longer active, I have to go to View Page Source to see what the original listing said. It says there is a washer and dryer on the lower level. So, John and I went to the game room tonight (the only lower level I can find), but no washer or dryer or indication they ever existed. Still, the location is great, and we are having a wonderful time. So much to see and do in this area. More to come...