Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Hobble, Hobble, Hobble

So, it's been an interesting couple of weeks.

First, right after school was out, I promptly went with Mr. Math to a nine-day in service on STEM at the local University.  It was, truth be told, better than most and I'm glad I went.  I didn't get much else accomplished during those two weeks however.  (Gardening?  Weeding?  Cleaning my house?  Nope...)

Then as soon as that was done, Hubby and I headed to Virginia to do some battlefield stomping and had a mini vacation - we did touristy things in the morning and he talked to Civil War groups in the evening.  We went to the new Museum of the Confederacy Museum at Appomattox, then on to Fredricksburg, Mannassas, and the Seven Days Battles around Richmond.  Malvern Hill is a gem.  I got my National Park Passport Book stamped quite a few times and saw some Civil War sites I hadn't seen before.

One of the highlights of our trip was a visit to the Marine Corps Museum at Quantico.  Go.  Whatever you do, just go.  Plan on at least 4 hours, 6 if you can.  It is stunning.  I've been to a lot - and I mean A LOT - of museums in my day (that's what we do - other folks go to theme parks, we go to museums) and this has got to be the BEST museum I've ever been to.  Period.

On the way home, we stopped at Daddy Bird's (just in time for him to get his #1 Dad Cubs t-shirt for Father's Day).  The only down side was I managed to slip somehow and fell off his front step, skinning my left knee and rolling my right ankle.  I did get to my doctor and had it x-rayed - nothing is broken, it's just a bad, bad sprain.  So it's ice, some anti-inflammatory meds, and an ankle wrap.  It hurts but I'm walking better.  The thing that aggravates me the most is I've been actually running (okay, it's more like plodding, but for me, it's running) since this spring with the goal of running a 5K during the year I turn 50.  Now that's obviously going to be on the backburner until this ankle heals and I can start training again.  And I was making huge progress!

Now Momma Bird is here from California so we're running here and there and having some fun.  The weather is better than expected and we're able to spend some time outside.  It's nice having her here.

But I still feel like actually haven't had much of a chance to just chill yet this summer.

2 comments:

EveryNewBeginning said...

Hope you are feeling better soon!

One of the girls on my team did that last year... said it was the biggest waste of her life. I think maybe it was because of it being the first time for them to do it? They wanted me to go, but I was out of town. Next year we are departmentalizing, so guess I won't have to worry about it.

Every New Beginning

W.R. Chandler said...

I'm extremely jealous. You have probably seen a famous and haunting photo of Confederate Private Edwin Jemison, who sat for a portrait soon after his enlistment, and then was killed a year later at the Battle of Malvern Hill.

I have also read of a story that happened at Malvern Hill where a Union Sergeant shot down a Confederate officer at quite a distance, and then when the sergeant later came upon the body of that officer, he found to his horror that he had killed his own son, who had moved south prior to the start of the War. In his grief, the sergeant then charged the Confederate lines, and was himself killed.

I myself have had the opportunity to visit the battlefields at Fredericksburg (twice), and Gettysburg. I would love to visit more.