Since we're poor, we've been really keen on saving money on the weekends while adding as much to the sight bank as possible. Fortunately, the area is abound with possibilities! So, the past two weekends Trip and I have hiked our brains out. Hiked all over the place, burned our quads like calories from cheap beer the night before.
The first weekend we hiked part of the Appalachian Trail to Kelly's Knob. I have photos to show for this, it was great. The hike up was extremely steep and sweaty. The first part was gorgeously rolling hills, mountainous backdrops, and fields full of donkeys and wildflowers. Indeed I was cursing it toward the end. Woodford even fell back a few paces behind us! The top, however, was view-bountiful.
This past weekend, Labor Day, was a figurative yard sale at our house. I ended up taking in three dogs (alongside Woodford) to watch over the weekend. I will never, EVER do that again. They were all big dogs; a golden retreiver, a border collie/ german shep mix, and a pitbull/lab mix. It was the equivalent of partying like its 1999 for canines. As it were, one of the dogs fell ill. The pit/lab starts pissing red, I freak out and call the owners, and they want me to do nothing. After many phone calls, and reaching my quota of negligence from the owners, I call the vet. He claims it a bladder infection, so the poor girl could wait. The owners refused to let me take any action whatsoever, and were possibly some of the more ignorant humans in general I have ever had the pleasure to deal with. Hmph!
However, we did hike the absolute crap out of these dogs (not the sick one, she rested). We hiked yet another part of the AT to discover McAfee's Knob, which may have been prettier. I think it was, anyway. We were much closer to Roanoke, so I actually got to see Tinker Mountain. This mountain is special to me in that it is the star of my favorite author's first Pulitzer Prize winning novel: Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. Apparently, this woman and I have made similar footprints all over the world, largely unbeknownst to me until after I read about them. I want to meet her, but I'm afraid she'd be a huge wench.
Let me inform all my faithful followers that I have indeed started my new job as a fisheries technician. Its great! My boss is a laid-back guy who is finishing his dissertation with VTech, but currently is a staff member of the state of VA, doing what we do in the field. We basically drive to Roanoke each day, put on waders (awesome), hit up a site on the Roanoke River, electro shock fish into a seine with a (heavy!) backpack shocker, drag the seine ashore, and survey the fish species. What we really want to know is if they prefer fabric softener in a liquid or dryer sheet form. Ha, not that kind of survey!
Anyway, I really like it. I've learned a ton about fish, which I previously never cared about. Today we caught a bunch of rock bass, a pickerel, and even a ginormous goldfish. Jamie is the boss man. He does most of this nonsense to monitor an endangered species endemic to the area, the Roanoke Logperch, in variously human-affected sites alongside the river. They're pretty cute little fish. Here is a picture of what they look like:
Mostly, thats what goes on around here. Trip's gearing up his thesis, etc. to defend the 25th. He's working so hard, pulling all-nighters and stuff. However, he did find time this evening to take me to a delicious Indian resturant. Man, do I love Indian food...
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