Where I’m from

This weekend, Larry and I drove to Rustburg, the county seat of Campbell County in Central Virginia.

I grew up in the country, so I don’t really have a “hometown.” But Rustburg was the closest thing to a town around our farm (six miles away), so I’ve always thought of it as the place I’m from.

To call Rustburg a town is a bit generous. It’s really a village. In fact, the road that runs through it is called Village Highway.

When I was growing up, if my parents or a neighbor said “We’re going to town,” they meant they were going to Lynchburg.

In my work for the newspaper, I visit Rustburg frequently to cover a court case or a Board of Supervisors meeting.

But our trip this weekend was for something fun: the Rustburg Christmas Parade.

After we parked the car, I got out my camera and snapped some photos of some of the “landmarks” in the village to share to give you a sense of where I’m from.

This first shot is actually from 2013. I took it before last year’s parade and liked it because it shows the main road through the village with Long Mountain (not very high) in the background.

From this year, here is the Citizen Services Building. It’s the newest county building, constructed to house the offices that closely serve the citizens. It includes the Treasurer’s Office, the Commissioner of Revenue’s Office, and the Community Development Office, which includes zoning, planning, and stormwater management.

I took this photo from too far off to get a clear shot, but I wanted to show you the building that the public library was housed in when I was a young girl. This is where I spent many happy hours.

Now the building houses the Virginia Cooperative Extension Office and the Farm Agency Office.

This is the current Rustburg Library. The School Administration Office is closer to the street, with the library at the end. It’s one of four branches in the county. One branch is in Altavista.

This is probably the most recognizable building to those knowledgeable about Campbell County history. It’s the Historic Courthouse, built in the 1840s. It was used by the courts until the new courthouse was built in the early 1980s.

The Historic Society of Campbell County is doing fundraising and working on renovating the building to enlarge its museum and preserve the county’s heritage.

This is the “new” courthouse. It’s not as impressive as the old one, but it’s nice. Some weeks I spend a lot of time within these walls.

Here’s another view of the courthouse. The adult detention center is connected to it.

This is a side view of Rustburg Presbyterian Church. It’s not a great shot, but it was what I was able to get with the parade crowds around me.

I don’t know how old the building is, but the way the brick is laid makes me think it has been around for a while. I’ve always thought it was a pretty church.

Members of the church give away free cookies and hot chocolate at the parade each year.

So there’s a little view of where I’m from. Altavista is part of Campbell County, and I’ve lived there for 11 years. But it still feels a bit like I’m visiting my old “home” when I go to Rustburg.

What do you consider your hometown to be?

I want my normal house back!

It’s not even over yet, and already I want my house back.

It’s in disarray. Things are out of place. And there’s a feeling of anticipation in the air, the feeling that it’s only going to get worse.

On Friday, the HVAC contractor came to the house and measured and looked around and decided where the hole in the ceiling for the new heat pump would go.

They are coming back today to take out the old pump and install the new. At least we hope they’re going to complete the process today.

This new heat pump is larger than the one we have now. Plus, Larry wants to install those attic steps. So the new, larger hole has to be in a different part of the ceiling: right where we have a bookcase full of books and my keyboard.

OK. I can deal with that, I thought.

It’s a heavy bookcase, made heavier with more books than the bookcase should hold. We’d have to pack up the books before we could move the bookcase.

This isn't the usual home for the keyboard.

On Saturday, Larry was going to cut the hole in the ceiling, do the prep work for putting in the attic steps, and get me to help him install the steps.

He had been working for a while when I went into the den. The keyboard was gone. It was now in the futon room/my office. On the floor in the den, there were pieces of plaster and plaster dust all over the large dust cloth covering half the room. Tools lay everywhere.

I didn’t say anything. I just walked out of the room. And took some deep breaths.

I don’t do well with chaos or even semi-chaos. I like things to be somewhat orderly. But I told myself I’d be able to get through a few days of things being upside down.

Chase Bird feels left out.

Poor Chase Bird was not very happy either. We needed to keep him out of the den while dust was flying and dangerous tools were lying about. So we closed the French door between the futon room and the living room, keeping him safe (or trapped, in his mind, I believe) in the other part of the house.

The measurements provided by the contractor didn’t seem to line up with where Larry thought the joists were. So he reluctantly decided to wait until Monday, when the contractor returned, to finish the hole. He taped up what he had done with duct tape.

It looks like we're in the midst of moving. 

I packed books. And packed. And packed. Larry put the boxes on a hand truck and moved them to the foyer in the front of the house. Thirteen boxes of books. And that’s from only one of four bookcases/shelves in the house. Plus, I have many books packed up in boxes already.

We carefully folded up the dust cloth so Larry could take it outside while I picked up pieces of plaster.

My grandfather built this bookcase. My father refurbished it when he and my mother gave it to me.

Then we allowed Chase Bird to come back in the room. He jumped up on the now-empty bookcase. I wonder if he thinks it’s now a bunk bed for cats?

To me, the empty bookcase looks sad. It’s waiting for the books to come back.

I’m waiting to get my house back.

Do you operate well in semi-chaos? How do you cope when you have to live in the midst of a work-in-progress?

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My website for my editing business is now live. If you'd like to check it out, it's at http://www.tinafbarbourediting.com/.

Random 5 Friday: Leaves and Christmas preparations

I’m so happy that this week Nancy of A Rural Journal is again hosting her wonderful meme, Random 5 Friday. During her break, I have been posting randoms on Friday, but it’s not the same without Nancy.

Check out her blog HERE, and find other bloggers enjoying sharing their random facts and experiences.

One

Larry got up the last of the leaves Wednesday (yes, we still had leaves in the yard) and then put up the lighted trees he made last year, along with the lighted Santa. I like having a festive display in the yard.

Two

We never know the exact day the town truck will come by to pick up leaves. While Larry was working on the leaves the other day, he looked up and saw the truck. The driver slowed down in front of the house but then drove on by. Larry thought he had missed it, and we’d have the leaves down by the street for a while.

But later that day, the truck came back to get them. I thought that was a great customer service by the town.

Three

When I was at Avoca last week, I saw some vases with tree ornaments in them. 

I thought it was a pretty and simple way to decorate. So I tried it at home.

Four

Another little decoration that gets pulled out each year is this snowman that plugs into Larry’s laptop. He turns different colors.

For reasons he doesn’t know, Larry’s dad called him “Frosty” as a nickname when Larry was a boy. And Larry also loves snow. So we have several snowman decorations around the house, and they bring back sweet memories of Larry’s dad, who passed away seven years ago.

Five

I finally—finally—finished shopping and decorating. I want to do a little cooking, just simple dishes to enjoy.

One thing I didn’t get done is Christmas card writing. I’ve decided it’s OK. 

Happy Holidays from my almost-decorated home

First, I’d like to say that I’m thinking about all of those caught in the latest winter storms, some with ice included.

We have had some sleet, a little snow, and freezing rain that left us with some ice. But we fared just fine and didn’t lose power—at least as of late Sunday night.

The frozen camillia bush in the backyard.

Larry and I were busy bees Saturday. We dusted, vacuumed and scrubbed floors, wanting the house to be extra clean before we started decorating for Christmas.

On Sunday, we put up two trees: the main one in the den and a small one on the dining table at one end of the living room.

With the main tree, we decided on red and silver for this year.

I still need to put the tree skirt around the bottom.

For the little tree, we used mostly gold and a little green.

Here are a few individual ornaments:

Larry likes snowmen. I found this ornament at a flower/gift shop in town a few years ago.

I bought this Mountain Lake ornament when I was at the resort on Thanksgiving.

A friend from grad school gave this ornament years ago. I like the stained glass look of it.

I cross stitched this kitty in 2000. She's black and white like both Waddles and Sam were.

I also put out Mr. and Mrs. Snowman. This pair lights up a cabinet in what we call the futon room (because it has a futon). It’s where I have my office, and I like glancing up and seeing the snowy duo smiling at me.

I get a little nervous while decorating trees. I worry about balancing things and whether or not the tree will look “good enough.” Isn’t that a waste of worry? It’s the meaning and thought that count, right?

The wreaths are on the doors. But we haven’t finished decorating. The lighted Santa and Christmas trees need to be set up in the front yard. And I need to set up the Nativity scene and hang the stockings.

I recently watched a show on TV that featured a woman who has well over 100 trees in her house. I wouldn’t want that many, but I am thinking of getting one more (small) tree for the back bedroom that we use as kind of a second den.

What about you, dear readers? How many trees (if any) do you have in your home for the holidays?

Home

When Larry and I got home after dinner on a recent evening, we saw a little head at one of the windows in the house.

It was Chase Bird.

I grabbed my iPhone for a photo. It was dark outside and it’s a pretty grainy photo, but I was so happy to get a photo of him in that position.

Chase likes to sit on a stool that we placed on top of a table under a window. He can watch the goings on outside.

Sometimes he watches us come and go. We look up at the window and see his head and know he’s sending us off or welcoming us home.

I like to think that our cats are glad to see us when we get home after an absence. And we are glad that they are they to greet us and help us make our home.

What are some things that make your house a home?

Around home: Random 5 Friday

Home is my topic for this week’s link up with Random 5 Friday at Nancy’s A Rural Journal.

My home is in the small town of Altavista, Virginia. Larry and I live in a quiet neighborhood. We have a large yard with woods in the back. We have our share of visitors from the wild, including deer, squirrels, birds and groundhogs.

Home is very important to me. It’s my refuge. It’s my resting place. It’s where I can be totally myself.

Here are some facts about our home.

  

One

I like some color outside around my home. But as you can see, my flowerpots are still empty. I haven’t made the trip to the nursery to buy some annuals like petunias or impatiens to fill the pots. That’s a trip I need to make soon.

 Two

Larry sent some soil samples from the yard to Virginia Tech to have them analyzed. We found out that the yard needs lime. Lots of lime. As in half a ton to start.

 Three

Before our cat Waddles died, she had trouble getting up on and down from the bed, where she liked to sleep, especially during the day. So Larry built a ramp for her to use.

Waddles used the ramp until she died. Sam runs up and down it. Chase Bird jumps over it. He can still leap small buildings.

The ramp has become part of the décor of the house. A beautiful part.

  

Four

When Larry and I started dating and I first visited his house in Lynchburg, one of the first things I noticed was his grandfather clock. The bells rang every 15 minutes. I asked him how he managed to sleep with it clanging, and he said he didn’t even notice it anymore. I couldn’t imagine not hearing it.

Now these many years later, I don’t usually notice the ringing of the clock every 15 minutes either. You really can get used to things.

The only time I do notice the sound of the clock is when I can’t sleep. Then I hear the passage of time very clearly.

Five

This is my space where I write. I create my blog posts here and do my other writing here on my laptop. It’s in a little room we call the futon room because there’s also a futon in the room. It’s a small room in between the den and the living room.

From my seat at my desk, I can hear Larry on his computer or watching TV in the den, and I can hear the cats wherever they are in the house.

I’ve tried other places in the house for my office, including in the basement, but I felt cut off from my family.

 

What do you like most about your home?

Where I live

For this Friday post, here’s a tour part of of the town where I live, Altavista, Virginia.

It’s not my hometown. I wasn’t born and raised in Altavista. Rather, I grew up in the rural part of the county about 25 minutes away.

But I’ve lived here almost nine years, and I’ve grown fond of this small town of around 3,400 people.

I took most of these photos on a Sunday morning.

Staunton River Memorial Library.

A gazebo downtown.

A view of downtown.

Broad Street.

Gateway Park.

In English Park.

View of Staunton River from English Park.

  

Tell me one thing about the place where you live.

Note: I’m getting ready to post five days next week in honor of OCD Awareness Week and Mental Illness Awareness Week. So I won’t post tomorrow. See you next week!
(Second note: corrected "Mental Health Awareness Week" to "Mental Illness Awareness Week" at 1:49 p.m. on Oct. 5, 2012. I apologize for getting it wrong the first time.)