Sunday, November 25, 2012

If My Eyes Could be Cameras

It's really neat to say, "I think I'll go to Petersburg today." Back in Washington I could have said that about Ellensburg... but that's just not the same.

I had got 10 hours of sleep the night before, so I woke up Saturday ready to do whatever. I made breakfast, somehow lost a few hours online figuring out what I felt like doing that day. It ranged from Chincoteague to Richmond to just Norfolk. I decided on Petersburg just before 10 and left right around then. Packed sandwich stuff and cameras and CDs... deviated from the GPS route so I could cross the James River Bridge... and picked up coffee, turkey, mustard, bananas and a carrot to supplement my own supplies.

  The countryside was so pretty! I wish I could have stopped to take pictures of everything I saw... the bales of cotton stacked in a cotton field... County Road 666 to a meat packing plant... Colonial Vehicle Repair... the cute courthouse in Surry with a Confederate statue out front... but mostly the gorgeous fall color everywhere!

The park itself was very neat, and very worth visiting. This is what I did get off. They had a short video in the Visitor's Center, a little museum set up around it, and good things in the bookstore. I got General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain's war memoirs: "Bayonet! Forward." My Civil War Reminiscences. Can't wait to read it! Also on the way back I saw Grant's Headquarters at City Point in Hopewell. Just a gorgeous day!

On the way back through Williamsburg, I stopped at B&N and picked up a copy of Dorthy Sayers Complete Stories, which includes the short Peter Wimsey ones. On getting home, I ate my Panera Bread broccoli cheddar soup and finished my homemade pumpkin pie. Hung up my Christmas lights outside, then flew off to pick up one of my friends from the ship for the Martina McBride Christmas concert she invited me to at Old Dominion University.


This was a lot of fun... besides singing a couple of her own: Anyway, My Daughter's Eyes, and I'm Gonna Love You Through It. She started off with snow songs, added in great ones like Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and I'll Be Home for Christmas. There was a little Grinch performance, then they played a video of her and Elvis doing Blue Christmas live. She finished out with Christian stuff... especially loved her acapella version of O Holy Night to finish. So glad I got invited!

Here's something random: ever since seeing this on VH1 on TV on the mess decks in the morning, I've been mesmorized by it. Pretty sure it's all those ohs, the background and the uniforms too. Some Nights by Fun. Here are the lyrics. I needed help in a couple places. Maybe it was their haircuts while in Civil War uniforms.

Chatted when I got back home... stayed up way too late, but it wasn't the end of the world...

Today's very fine lunch! I discovered the upside-down cheeseburger tastes better (by accident)... and then there's the apple pie-in-jar I got from Kristin on Thanksgiving.





Slept in this morning! And just bummed around the house finishing off breakfast eggs, sausage, toast and coffee. Straightened up the place, bought my flight for next month, checked on all my bills, warmed up my leftover frozen hamburger for a very fine burger for lunch. Going out tonight I think.

Outside my window this morning
Jw

Pie and Tweeties

A few things at home... here are my pie creations:











The one on the bottom used up the leftover pie mix.








And also the bird feeder I bought at the NEX just last week.


Thursday, November 22, 2012

Happy Thanksgiving!








I was able to spend Wednesday night (watching John Adams) and all of Thanksgiving with my friends Kristin and Dan. I got to help get the fabulous dinner together... that's turkey and ham, as well as cheese dip and cranberry honey butter for the roll! Got to meet lots of their family and have good conversation.

We watched another episode of John Adams while we stood at the sinks peeling potatoes and sweet potatoes... and after everyone left, we watched another while I sewed on the tabs for my uniforms on her sewing machine! So good to get done!

Jw

Sunday, November 11, 2012

A Week with My Darling: Norfolk Homecomming

Before we knew I'd be underway for most of November, Mike and I had the thought that this would be the time to try out living together for a while. But the day we pulled into Mayport (back in August) I found out we'd have an underway right in the middle of the month, with more later. So over time we decided on just spending a little time together, right when I got back.

But Hurricane Sandy came along... We were scheduled to be back in Norfolk on the 1st of November, but we were delayed and didn't get back until Monday the 5th. It's a good thing he decided to come in on Sunday night, instead of Saturday. So we only missed half a day together.

That first night was wonderful! He picked me up on base, and when we got home together (for the first time) I sat down on the couch with him, and I cried, as I had imagined so often how wonderful that very scene would be, even before we left for Mayport. He had already set up his laptop from the school and worked that day. Just as the sun was going down, we took a walk across the complex to the tiny beachfront and watched the lights brighten on the ships at the Naval Station as the sun slipped away. Soon we bundled in the car and headed over to Hampton for a welcome dinner at Red Lobster and a quick stop at Walmart nearby for the next day's dinner.

Tuesday (election day), I had to work... and he did as well. He had mentioned the night before about trying to find a Best Buy for a keyboard and mouse for the laptop. Thankfully (maybe miraculously), I had bought a wireless keyboard and mouse along with small speakers back in August, and was able to set them out for him before I left. That evening, before coming back, I picked up some things in the commissary. We had homemade burgers on the George Foreman grill (that Mike got me for our kitchen) when I got back. Worked out really well... they were delicious! We had to return Mike's rental car that night... so we stayed up pretty late. I fell asleep on the couch afterwords as Mike followed the election news and did a bit more work. I think it was around 2 that we went to bed. :)

Wednesday was my day off, and we enjoyed it thoroughly. After sleeping in and having a leisurely breakfast (sometime around noon, I think - I called home for a pie crust recipe, so I remember laughing about that), we went to the free Chrysler Art Museum downtown. The river across the street had flooded from the hurricane... and there was a bit of road construction (as always). I loved being able to show this fantastic museum to my darling! We had take-home Chinese for a little snack for lunch at home, then watched the 1947 William Powell film, The Senator was Indiscreet. It was a good election movie, even if it was the day afterwords. We picked up some Mike's Pizza (no relation) for dinner as we watched Pimpernel Smith (1941) with Leslie Howard. I particularly enjoyed it... wanted to cheer at the end... "Captain of Murderers", indeed! "We'll all be back"... rousing, to say the least.

Thursday I had to work again: it was so hard to spend any time away while I knew Mike was at home. Especially dinner... in port, usually only the duty section eats on-board, so it's really easy to do with just a couple people. I didn't get off early at all... but I did receive a letter and a package from Mike (that he sent a month beforehand!) via the ship's mail. This time for dinner at home we had Russel Stover lasagna (so I abstained from lasagna on the ship for lunch) . It was a very domestic evening... headed over to the base to do laundry at the pier-side NEX. Pointed out the Truxtun and the aircraft carriers on our way there. I fell asleep as we sat in the car (with the heater) as Mike finished up an article on his laptop.

Friday I had to work again, and it was killing me. I begged and pleaded, and finally, at around 1:30 (just after lunch was cleaned up) I was let go. I flew home, changed as fast as I could, and the two of us flew downtown for the Naval Base cruise on the Victory Rover. We bought our tickets as we boarded and had about five minutes to spare. Sat on the top deck for a wonderful view of the Battleship Wisconsin and everything else in the harbor. As the cruise continued past the DEPERM station and towards the base, we stood out on the bow. Sat down out there on the way back... what a fun little cruise! I loved getting the names of all the ships in port with me... and I loved being able to show off my ship to my darling!

When we got back to Norfolk, Mike and I reprised our dinner at the Outback Steakhouse downtown: I had a little steak with mushroom sauce and he had the Alice Springs chicken. Back at home, even though it was late, I baked a pumpkin pie and put it in the fridge for the night and we enjoyed our desserts from the pizza place from Wednesday.

Saturday after breakfast we went to Colonial Williamsburg! Got there just in time to see an actor speaking to a crowd as if he was Thomas Jefferson and the war of independence was still undecided. It was a great speech... and then he took questions from the crowd and answered them in character. He schooled one guy from Florida when the guy tried to belittle his regard for freedom by his owning slaves. "And your point is?" :) We saw a few other things, but we really enjoyed our lunch (or feast, rather) at The King's Arms Tavern. A plate of cheese and fruit started us off, then Mike had chicken and I had it in a pot pie... a Norfolk Pottage Pye. :) The other highlights included seeing the proceedings of court at the courthouse and taking a carriage ride through the town.

We stopped at a Walmart on the way home for some hamburger helper. This we made at home, and watched Harrison Ford in The Fugitive (1993) and we ate some delicious pumpkin pie! The week went way too fast, but at least we still had another half of a day.

Sunday morning we went to my friend's church (Kristin and Dan) with the intention of meeting up for lunch afterwords. But Kristin stayed home with a migraine, so we had our own day. Headed out to Cape Henry to climb the 1791 lighthouse and get a grand view of the Chesapeake. Also peeked at the First Landing monument nearby before heading back to the Olive Garden we found in Virginia Beach. Not only was Colonial Williamsburg free for us this Veteran's Day weekend, but the Olive Garden gave me my meal for free as well. Spending every last second of our time to the fullest, we ran home, packed Mike up, and got him to his plane on time. It's never enough time together, but at least we were able to be domestic together at our new home.