The Importance of Being a Tourist

My mother-in-law was just in town for a week which meant Mark and I had the chance to play tourist in our home area. I cannot stress how much I value exploring, touring, playing, and just being in your town of residence. How many people live in Seattle but have never been to the top of the Space Needle or rode the ducks? Haven't you always heard of people living in New York City but never visiting the Empire State Building?

But Kristen! you say. Don't you live really far from any kind of big city with touristy things?


Well... yes thanks for the reminder. But that doesn't mean we don't live somewhere with fun things to tour! Every little or big town has its own gems to explore, and with a little effort and time and the right expectations you can find them! Here's what we found out and about in and near Blacksburg, VA.

First up is the Smithfield Plantation. Mark and I took my mom here when she was in town on her birthday and I knew I wanted to go back with Toni. It is a historic plantation building located on the Virginia Tech campus, built in 1774. They give a fantastic one hour tour and you can even take pictures! I found out that apparently most people from Blacksburg have never even been there, despite it's central location on the campus. Pity!

We also took the time to tour our quaint little downtown. Of course I have been downtown several times before as it is pretty much the only place to go out to eat without driving to nearby Christiansburg. However, walking through slowly you're bound to discover new things, like historical signs that actually tell you about your town! Turns out Blacksburg was named after Mr. William Black. Essential information? Nope. But definitely fun and interesting to check out things like your local friendly historical sign, enjoy your old fashioned post office, and appreciate the fact that the random buildings in the area just look cool. This is what a tourist would do, and this is what you would do if visiting a different city. Why not enjoy it in your own town?

On one of the days Toni was here, Mark, Toni, and I drove down to the Blue Ridge Parkway. While not in Blacksburg, this definitely counts as being a tourist in our hometown. Sometimes we can't believe how close we are to national parks and forests! It was a beautiful drive and we can't wait to go back during the fall when the leaves will hopefully be all different colors. 

On the drive we stopped at the Mabry Mill where the water wheel was restored and still running! Very cool.

And what do two former apartment dwellers do with their pool towels when they move to the country? Turn them into picnic blankets, of course! We explored the nearby country roads to find two historic covered bridges, and had ourselves a nice little picnic. Little did we know this would be the last cool day before the awful, awful heat wave hit us and the rest of the country (except the the PNW, which has always done its own thing.)

Turns out even the most boring of towns (cough) have plenty of cool things to check out! Here's a last pic of Mark and I at a viewpoint on the Blue Ridge Parkway:

What about you? Have you spent your weekends exploring your hometown? Made use of your free or inexpensive landmarks nearby? Taken a tour of the modest little museums in your neighborhood? If not, I encourage you to throw your camera around your neck (or in your pocket) and go out and sight see!

Sadie

Hello folks! Pardon the silence. Mark and I have been adjusting to our new lives as DOG parents. That's right! About a month ago we adopted a dee-oh-gee! So, if you're interested in dog stuff, read on! If you stopped by for travel adventures... keep an eye out for later posts and we'll catch you later!

Sadie is just over 1 year old (15months?) and she's an Australian Cattle Dog/Rat Terrier/Mix of Other shelter rescue. Like many rescues, she came home to us with many special needs and as time has gone on, we're getting to know just how much time and effort she is going to need to recover from whatever unknown life she had previously. Her biggest needs right now are being more socialized with people and other dogs and working on her fear reactivity (also known as fear aggression.) So far we're working closely with a dog behaviorist/trainer as well as reading a lot of books. We've seen huge improvements and our trainer has called her recovery "amazing." We are exhausted though! Who knew getting a dog would be so much more than walks and fetch? If you want to know more about her needs and rehabilitation, drop me a line and I'll be happy to tell you all about it. It's been quite a process but extremely rewarding.

Sadie models her gentle leader/ head collar (not a muzzle) which works to guide her similar to how a bridle guides horses. 

The longer we've had Sadie and the more she has learned to trust us and relax, the more we are learning about her silly personality. And wowie does she have quite a character! She has earned herself the nickname "Silly Sadie" in its full right. She loves to lay on her back for belly rubs, but she'll take it a step farther and fall asleep on her back. She'll toss her toys in the air and thinks rain is fun to play in. Sadie loves to climb in our laps if we're sitting on the floor and so far she has learned to stay off the couch--when we're not looking.

She is also super smart. Every day we try to teach her a new trick or reinforce an old one. Currently I'm working on roll over and Mark is teaching her "dance". There is a really fantastic book called 101 Dog Tricks that not only has a great assortment of tricks, but it has good pictures and step by step instructions for teaching them as well as beginning-advanced rankings. For dog newbies like Mark and me, this is awesome!

A lot of people have been asking us about how things are going with the cats. Well... to be honest the cats were never going to be thrilled about us bringing a dog into the house. Can you blame them? Another four paw-ed thing has taken their space and their humans! But mostly things are going better than expected, though maybe a little slower than hoped for. Sorry stereotypers... the dog does not try to kill the cats. While there certainly are dogs out there who need to be in homes without cats, in general cats and dogs can coexist given the right circumstances. So far we have a gate up so the cats can have a "sanctuary" where they can feel like they own the place. Most of the interactions have involved nose-touching and butt-sniffing. The main problem we run into is that cats and dogs speak different languages. When Mr. Finnigan puts his paw up, he's telling Sadie "GET THE FRAK AWAY FROM ME I'M GOING TO FIGHT YOU" Well... unfortunately in dog language, a paw-up is a friendly "hey, wanna play, huh? we could wrestle yeah huh come chase me tag you're it!" So, naturally, when Mr. Finnigan walks by and puts his paw up at Sadie, thinking he's warning her to stay away, Sadie thinks "ooh fun chase!" which only freaks the cat out. You can imagine this is not making budding friendships bud any faster. But on the whole, we see at the very least a lifetime of tolerance.

Sunspot for teh kittehs

I know I've been a bit dog-obsessed lately, so thanks to all who have put up with hearing me spout every other sentence beginning with Sadie! Life is actually returning to a new normal, we've been hiking and jogging despite the heat, and generally enjoying the summer. But we can smell football in the air!