Whether it's one simple yet somehow perfect day or a dreamed about journey finally realized, I never want to forget the joy of the moment or how fortunate I am!
Unlike many, I actually LOVE Winter! I do want to add that I have a well insulated home, a car with heat, a healthy body, and I work indoors. There are many who are not so fortunate, and it’s especially difficult on the days where temperatures have been consistently below 15 degrees Fahrenheit (not typical for Southwest Virginia).
I love a good snow, especially in these days of climate change when, at least here in Virginia, we don’t see the snow as in the past. It’s all about the beauty, the peace, the quiet, AND the time with friends.
On my Morning Commute
After coffee with another snow lover
Along the New River
Back at home
And finally, sitting in my comfy chair while watching the snow fall
Virginia’s citizens overwhelmingly voted for Abigail Spanberger to serve as the 75th, and FIRST WOMAN Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Greg and I were fortunate enough to be there for some of the Inauguration Weekend festivities. We drove into Richmond on Friday afternoon and went straight to the Made in Virginia Market, a public, free-to-attend market that featured more than 40 local artisans, small businesses, and food vendors, many minority owned, from across the Commonwealth, The event also featured live musical performance from Virginia artists
The highlight, of course, was to connect with then Governor-Elect Spanberger but we enjoyed supporting these small local businesses. The crowd got bigger as the hour of her anticipated arrival neared and as you can see by the photos, she was just as excited to see us as were to see her!
We were up early the next day in order to get back downtown for the Inaugural Ceremony. By happenstance, we ran into friends from back home, and eagerly waited in the long line to gain entrance to Capitol Square, which we could see through the fence. We were giddy with excitement!
Once we passed through security, we walked by tables loaded with Inaugural Ceremony Programs, heated seat cushions, blankets, hand warmers, and reusable mugs filled with hot chocolate. Perfect for the cold day and to take home as momentos!
Despite the rain and 45 degree temperatures (not bad at all!), we found our seats and settled in. The rain stopped almost exactly as the clock struck noon, and the ceremony began.
First to be sworn in was Jay C. Jones, who made history as the first Black attorney general in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Next was Ghazala Firdous Hashmi who made history as the first Muslin elected to state wide office, the office of Lieutenant Governor. “She was sworn in by placing her hand on the Quran, marking a significant moment of religious diversity in state leadership”.
And finally it was time for the swearing in of Abigail Spanberger who became the “first female governor in Virginia’s 250-year history when she took the oath as the 75th governor. Wearing white in a nod to the suffrage movement, she broke a long-standing gender barrier in the Commonwealth”.
She noted “It is the honor of my life to stand before you and take the oath today. The history and the gravity of this moment are not lost on me — I maintain an abiding sense of gratitude to those who worked generation after generation to ensure women could be among those casting ballots, but who could only dream of a day like today”.
She also said “we do not have to see eye-to-eye on every issue in order to stand shoulder-to-shoulder on others”. You can follow this link to read her full remarks.
Tears filled my eyes throughout the ceremony, it was that powerful.
The 75th Inaugural Parade came next with over 40 entrants celebrating the theme “United for Virginia’s Future”.
The parade featured diverse groups including the Virginia National Guard, the Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums, the VMI Corps of Cadets, fire fighters, paramedics, and other emergency response workers from across the Commonwealth, local HS and University marching bands, Virginia’s Public University Team Mascots, the Girl Scouts, and Virginia State Park Rangers. Education, youth leadership, and student organizations marched alongside cultural, civic, and community organizations. The full list of entrants can be found here.
A favorite for me was seeing the heritage musicians from the Crooked Road Music Trail, which has sites located primarily in Southwest Virginia. As one of the marching string band members said in a Cardinal News article “I forget that the majority of people in this world don’t really see fiddles and banjos on a regular basis,” Dilg said. “And so just seeing all the looks of joy on everyone’s faces was really cool.”
The last group to come through was the Norfolk State University Marching Band. “Founded in 1975, the award winning Norfolk State University Spartan “Legion” Marching Band located in Norfolk, VA, has made a name for itself as one of the premier Marching Bands in the country. The “Legion” consists of 250 staff and student musicians, dancers, and flags from states nationwide”. This high energy, exciting marching band played “We Are Family” for the newly inaugurated Governor.
The energy and musical excellence were the perfect way to celebrate the end of great day!
Friends and I spent the morning of January 1st taking at First Day Hike at Claytor Lake State Park.
The First Day Hikes program originated in Massachusetts in 1992, and since 2012, First Day Hikes have been held in all 50 states, including in all 44 of Virginia’s State Parks. In January 2018, it became an international movement with many countries participating.
The temperatures were in the low 30s (Fahrenheit), the wind was gusty, and the sun came from behind the clouds at intervals. It was, in my opinion, a great day to be outside, and that afterall is the goal. Whether it’s a hike, snowshoe, or even a swim, First Day Hikes are an opportunity for folks to start the new year on the right foot in the outdoors.
It is tradition for Greg and I, and friends Ruth and Ralph, to visit the Roanoke in the month of December to celebrate the holiday season. We stroll through the halls of the Hotel Roanoke, originally built in 1882 by the Norfolk & Western Railway as a Tudor Revival landmark, and enjoy the beauty of the trees that have been decorated by local businesses and organizations in a decorating competition. Visitors vote for their favorite tree and every dollar donated supports a meaningful cause.
Our tradition was derailed a couple times by illness, but we managed to get to Roanoke twice and these are some of the images that I captured. The first is the fireplace in the lobby of the Hotel Roanoke.
The next is the Pedestrian Walkway that connects the Hotel Roanoke to the historic downtown and allows folks to see the railroad tracks that led to Roanoke, originally called Big Lick,to become one of the premier railroad cities in America. For a century, Roanoke was home to the Norfolk & Western Railway.
The next three are murals seen during a morning stroll around the historic downtown area
The New River Trail is a 57 mile linear State Park in Virginia. Created from an abandoned railroad right of way, this bridge is one of 30 along the trail. I recently crossed this bridge on my fairly new gravel bicycle (not the one pictured in my header image) while training for an upcoming ride in October.
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After several false starts, I am determined to get back into blogging (I’ve certainly said that before!). After posting regularly for almost a decade, life, work, and caring for parents seemed to keep me from following through on my goal. Fingers crossed, this time I will succeed!
Life on the Bike started as a travel journal and a place to share photos from the road with friends and family. Sadly, there was a two year time span when I wasn’t able to ride either the motorcycle or the bicycle.
I had also not picked up my DSLR for a year! But two weeks ago, I took a photography class in DC and have been practicing / refreshing daily. When I started this blog back in 2012, I had little more than an eye and a “point and shoot”. I look back at those photos now, and see good intentions but not much more. Hopefully, I’ve improved since then!
I am going to commit to posting once weekly, most likely the same day that I post on Monochromia. If you are a fan of B&W Photography be sure to visit and see the work of some amazing photographers.
I look forward to catching up with the blogging community and friends who have been much more diligent than I in maintaining their blogs.
Even though it means lots of digging to get the truck out and shoveling the driveway in order to get to work, I am always thrilled when it snows! The warming of the climate has caused so many worse things than alot less snow in Southwest Virginia, but even still I am saddened when we don’t get any. Ten days ago, we had the first snow of the year, and even though it was just a few inches, it made me happy.
This was my view on the way to work at 7:15am
And this was my view on the way home 12 hours later
This past weekend, the forecasters began calling for a significant snow fall, and the predictions started a full week ahead of time. Usually that means that the snow won’t happen but this time, the weather dudes were right! The wet stuff can cause misery, especially for the homeless and the less fortunate, but since it started on a Sunday, I was lucky enough to be able to just enjoy it, and photograph it, even if the photos were from my cellphone.
The frigid temps gave the beautiful fluffy stuff an icy coating, but we shoveled enough to get the vehicles ready for the morning commute.
Love it or hate it, you have to admit that snow makes for a beautiful landscape.
My very first blog post was in 2012 and I posted regularly until late in 2018 when somehow the fullness of life and work kept getting in the way. Back when I began, the goal was to “be able to look back on my life later and remember what a fabulous one it has been”, and by fabulous I mean truly fortunate. I intended to have Life on the Bike be a journal, of photos and words.
Each year, I create a desk calendar for family, friends, and personal use, and when exchanging the 2021 calendar for 2022, I noted one thing for sure. While my eye may be the same, my technical capability has markedly improved. Even still, it was fun to go back and view the years through my lens, and that is what I want this space to be. A record of travel and personal growth. Thoughts, introspection, and life’s journey. In order to make that happen, I need to commit to blogging more regularly!
Since 2012, I have published 738 posts, yet this past year I posted just 24 times, only 3.2% of the total posts. What should my commitment be? Weekly? Two Times Monthly? Only when I travel? How do you all commit yourself to documenting your lives?
In the meantime, from my hometown to yours, Welcome to 2022! May it be a healthier, more hopeful year for all of us!
Just when I was finding the time to get back to blogging, I jumped into a State Senate Campaign!
How did this happen, you might wonder.
Tragically, State Senator Ben Chafin from the 38th District in Southwest Virginia died, as have over 400,000 other Americans, from Covid. My thoughts have been with his family and friends, as my thoughts have been with all those who have suffered in one way or another from this dreaded virus.
The Governor of Virginia called a Special Election to be held on March 23rd, and despite my inordinately full schedule, I decided that I could not let a race go unchallenged. So, I am off and running! If you like, visit my website for information about my platform: Laurie Buchwald for Senate
I’ll take some photos of my socially distanced / masked travels throughout the district and share them when I can. I’ll look forward to visiting you and your blogs in late spring.
Most of us in the United States are in a state of anger and disbelief. I won’t desecrate this blog space like the insurrectionists desecrated the US Capitol and our country. I will however share the beauty of the snow that fell the day after, snow that helped to soothe our spirits to a small degree.
It wasn’t much, but it was a heavy, wet snow that clung to the leaves and branches.
We took a walk and felt the snowflakes on our faces, and the fresh, cold air gave us energy and gave us hope.
The next morning, I was outside in my PJs trying to capture the early sun on ice.
Even an error in camera settings somehow was a good thing.
I hung my new RBG Ornament in a tree and reflected on her words and the work we need to do.
We are worried. We are angry. We are frightened. We are appalled.
But somehow we must find the energy to keep on fighting, keep on persisting, and keep on resisting hatred.
Life on the Bike and other Fab Things 