Tag Archives: swinging-bridge

Driving to Mendota On Nordyke

We got up early this morning and decided to run to Sam’s Club.  Our forecast has been right-on-the-mark with the extreme temperatures but snow has been more miss than hit.    I didn’t even think of snow as we left.    It was a surprise when we got to town and this occurred within minutes. …and it was a slippery bit of snow.  This was the Walmart/Sam’s Club parking lot.

Walmart in the Snow

We grabbed a few things and headed back to Mendota.     Mendota is located in “Poor Valley” and you must travel downward to get here from Bristol or Abingdon.   We drove on Nordyke Road which twists and turns.  I’m always amused when I hear newcomers talk about Nordyke in the winter…they should have seen it before it was improved many years ago.  I barely remember it, but no one used it in bad weather.

Speaking of bad weather and our extremely cold temperatures, my sister, Pat, has this thing figured out. There has been a mix-up. Obviously we have been mistakenly given Michigan’s weather, while her son, Cory, has Virginia’s weather where he lives in Texas. I believe there are plans in place at the end of next week for Texas to return Virginia’s weather; and we will, of course, ship Michigan’s right back where it belongs.

It’s pretty driving down Nordyke…I had the camera and took some pictures.

Nordyke in Snow

Another…some of these pictures are blurry on the left side because we were moving when I snapped them…

Nordyke in Snow 2

Lots of frozen water falls..really pretty this time of year.

Ice on Nordyke

After a few miles, the land levels.  Here’s the Nordyke Creek as that leveling occurs.

Nordyke Creek

Nordyke Creek flows into the North Fork.  I took this from the truck while stopped on the Nordyke Bridge.

North Fork at the Bridge

Stopped at one of the Swinging Bridges to look around.

Swinging Bridge Mendota Virginia

Gray, dreary and really pretty at the same time.

North Fork at Swinging Bridge

Another taken from the bridge…facing the opposite direction. The Barker family had a mill at this location near the turn of the century.

North Fork at the Bridge

And now…home. This was taken in front of the house.

In Front of House

Our cats, which normally stay out a great deal of the time, have been mostly “in” for days.   Boredom has set in.  Mike yelled at Sam the Cat for playing in the dog’s water bowl. Within minutes, he was elsewhere up to his naughty business.  He’s not drinking; he’s tossing water around.

Sam and the Commode

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Plans for Today

At some point, I’ll be sharing the contents of this blog with others instead of writing to myself and my immediate family and a good friend. I didn’t have a picture for this post so I thought a peek at one of the Swinging Bridges might be interesting when the time comes that someone reads it who doesn’t really know me.  And…yes, Virginia, I have ridden a bicycle across that bridge!  I was not always as cautious about everything!

Today is going to be a busy day. I have the usual housework, etc., but it’s also the day that we’re putting the foyer back together. I thought this was a two-day job, but we started Wednesday a week ago and we’re finished today. Mike, aka, Retired Man, did the painting. I started and did so poorly that he took over.  What a strategy

I also am going to do a post later this evening detailing my morning walk on Swinging Bridge Road. I wrote to my cousin, Betsy (also known as Betty Lou) in Cincinnati, and she loved getting the newsy snail mail letter about all our happenings (yes, you heard that right) in Mendota. So, I decided to take her for a “virtual” walk on Swinging Bridge. She is learning to use a computer and I hope she enjoys it. This is a “SHOUT OUT” to Betty Lou when she reads this !!

My weight loss is going fairly well. I’ve been calling this my 90 days of summer/30 pounds of weight loss experience. I do not think I’ll lose 30 pounds in 90 days, but I do think I’ll lose 30 pounds.  I’m losing about 2 pounds per week.   I stopped working on Thursday, May 31, but I really did not start trying to establish healthy eating and exercise habits until June 1. I did not start Weight Watchers until Monday, June 11. I realize I could possibly have done this while working, but I knew for true success, I had to focus. The risk of continuing on with a so/so attitude on weight loss while focusing on other things would move tired feet, swollen ankles, back aches — all symptoms of being too heavy — into chronic ailments. I don’t want that. I want to live a long time and enjoy the good life I have.

I’m using this blog as a part of my accountability — a sort of “if I say it…I will do it.”    This is true in terms of project work and activities around my house and health-related matters.

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