When in WV . . .

My in-laws came to visit West Virginia for the first time over the 4th of July weekend. They were probably expecting banjo-playing, toothless rednecks like most people do and, yes, we have our fair share of those. But so do Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Luckily they both enjoy the outdoors, so we were able to show them a lot of what WV has to offer.


The first night they came, we stayed at the Dian Lee House in Bluefield:





Brad and I stayed in the Abe Lincoln Room. It was awesome.






Over the course of the 5 days they were here, we did a lot of this:

And Brad and his dad even did some of this:

We spent some time in Fayetteville, ate at one of our favorite restaurants, Diogi's, and I purchased a pair of Merrell Pace Gloves (which I ran in for the first time today and LOVE). We hiked, drank, ate at a fancy restaurant, visited the Capitol Market, and hiked some more.

While we were showing them around our lovely new(ish) home state, I felt proud of WV. There are so many beautiful places to go and gorgeous natural things to see. So Charleston has very few good restaurants and there isn't a Whole Foods or a Lululemon in the whole state. So no good bands ever play here (outside of Mountain Stage, of course) and the theater is limited. So we're not a major city and we don't have a professional sports team. We have met wonderful people, are making great friendships, and we can get anywhere in the city in 10 minutes. There's never any traffic to speak of. You can hike up a mountain 5 minutes from your house. The air is clean (if you're not near a coalmine) and the trees are big. I've become a trail runner, and Brad a better cyclist. Mountains do that to you -- they make you strong.

OMG a Snake!

Yesterday we went to the house of a partner at Brad's firm for a cocktail party. It was pretty fun; there was good company, good food, a live band, and iced tea flavored vodka. I felt under-educated and underpaid, as I tend to feel at most lawyer gatherings, but I still thoroughly enjoyed myself.

We drove home, making up words to turn an Usher song (the atrocious OMG) into a song about robots and laughing hysterically because, as Brad said this morning, we're like Beavis and Butthead. I don't remember most of our lyrics, but the line "There's so many places to oil you" was definitely in there. Heh heh.

As we were getting out of the car, Brad said, "What is that?" He leans over to investigate and exclaims "It's a snake! Cool." And then my husband, the attorney, crouches down and starts poking the snake with a stick.

This lead to a conversation about the surely thousands of snakes that live in our area, and how surprised we both are that Brad has never seen a rattlesnake (apparently, everyone he knows that lives here and spends any amount of time in the woods has seen one.) I trail run and hike by myself all of the time, and I don't know what I would do if I ran across a rattler. Actually, I do. I'd panic, turn around and run the other way, and maybe cry.

Since the snake sighting, every stick in the grass is suspect. I know they are harmless but I just don't like them. They're fast and slithery! Some of them can kill you!

Something Has Got to Change

Snowpocalypse in Washington DC. An earthquake in Chicago. Snow in Louisiana for the first time in like 10 years. But no snow in Vancouver?

Meanwhile, energy companies in West Virginia are blowing up the beautiful Appalachian mountains for coal, coal, coal to burn; never mind the harmful run-off, which is rendering previously pristine streams and rivers polluted and unusable. They are drilling horizontal gas wells in the Kanawha State Forest. And that one redneck that lives on my street keeps throwing empty Gatorade and Natty Ice bottles out of his car window onto the hillside.

I've always been a bit of a tree-hugger, and I do my best to live a green life. We recycle, buy energy-efficient light bulbs, and try to reduce and reuse as much as possible. I was lucky enough to be able to attend the Forum on Energy a few weeks ago, in which Robert Kennedy Jr. debated Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship on the devastating practice of mountaintop removal mining. Living here and witnessing this first hand has really opened my eyes. There is so much more that I can do.

I am pledging right now to do more personally. I will also be looking for ways to do more publicly. West Virginia is the most beautiful place I have ever lived, and I want it to remain as beautiful for my future children to enjoy.

Small Comforts

Our trip to Davis was wonderful! Brad and I both left with the opinion that Charleston was going to seem very dull in comparison. Oh, Blackwater Falls. Oh, the Purple Fiddle. Oh, the pumpkin pancakes at the Bright Morning Inn.

Unfortunately, we both came down with bad colds immediately upon arriving back at home. So bad, in fact, that I stayed home from work today and yesterday. I always feel guilty for missing work; I think about the work I have to do and I don't want to let anyone down. So happily, I will be back in the office tomorrow. But on days like this, I look for small everyday comforts to make me feel better. Nothing beats a day of cuddling on the couch with my dog, Boy Scout caramel corn, and a Project Runway marathon.

Davis

We're taking a romantic mini vaca this weekend and heading to Davis WV. We'll be staying at a Bed and Breakfast, hiking in Blackwater Falls State Park, eating at Hellbender's Burritos, and shopping at Mountain Made.

The weather forecast looks awesome. I'm really hoping for clear nights so that we can see the stars (I've heard that the views there are spectacular).

I can't wait!