To the Winery! Chestnut Ridge Winery

44°f/6.7°C, clear. 

Our destination yesterday:

Chestnut Ridge Winery is in Spencer, West Virginia,  and only 30 minutes or so from home, but we seldom get there. So yesterday we decided to have a Spencer day, with the winery as our goal.

The trees are starting to  turn now so it was a beautiful drive. We had breakfast at a place we still call Price's Market, although it has a different name now which neither of us can remember. One thing we did remember was their good food, and the breakfast was delicious, with good service and friendly staff too. They used to be a produce market but sadly that part of their business seems to be gone, with only a few fresh turnips on display.

We then went across the street to the Salvation Army store, where we found all kinds of cool stuff. Thrifts in small, out-of-the-way towns seem to have more vintage and antique items, I have noticed, probably because they typically have older populations.

By then it was noon so we headed for the winery. It's not an easy place to find! First you wander through narrow town streets,

one lane, with many steep curves.

It's kind of an obstacle course!

At one turn the poor power pole has been scraped many times---it's not an easy turn to make.

Up and up an up...

to the top of the ridge, where we were greeted by this large steel sculpture by West Virginian Jeff Fetty.

One of his huge flowers.

The view, looking down over the town, was almost 360°.

Then finally we arrived at the winery! I sniffed my way to the door because the path is lined with many different herbs--lemon balm, rosemary, lavender, sage and others, such an olfactory delight.

Jeff Fetty's blacksmith shop is just across the road.

Silly me didn't take any inside photos, but we mainly stayed outside anyway, to enjoy our glass of wine in the crisp fall sunshine.

In true Blogger fashion these loaded in random order, but most were taken along the Phil Holcomb Memorial Trail. Phil was a dulcimer maker when I met him, and I still have the dulcimer he made me in 1999. He went on to open this winery before passing away unexpectedly about 10 years ago. His wife continues to run the winery, and established a wonderful trail in his memory.

There's also a little free greenhouse! I did not take any plants, although I wish I had because there were some nice houseplant starts in there.

The glint of the wine on a leaf made it look like the leaf was on fire! This was their blood orange wine, a really interesting flavor. We came home with a bottle of this and one of Gewürztraminer, which according to Google is made from "an aromatic wine grape variety, used in white wines, and which performs best in cooler climates". 

Along the walking trail, there were many tags identifying the trees.

And aound the winery, so many flowers! This cosmos was striking 

The beautybush was loaded with berries, which i have read make a good jelly. I need a beautybush! The color just pops at this time of year.

Speaking of color...

This lovely cat came out to greet us just as we were getting ready to leave. A stray, he has made himself a new home at the winery.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

A Few Finds

42°f/5.6°C, clear and dry. Still no killing frost.

I thought I'd share a few finds from one of our local Goodwill stores on a recent visit. You never know what you're going to turn up at Goodwill. There are two stores in our county; one has shifted to lots of toys, plastic and new items, and they expanded the clothing section. So for someone like me, there's not much excitement there.

The other, a newer store, is fun! They offer a wider variety, not much plastic, and more interesting shopping. For example, here's some of what i found there last week.

Don't you love this Ug Mugg? Made in Alabama, this should sell for between $20-$30. 

Vintage Cristal D'Arque-Durand wine goblets in the "Antique" pattern, were made in France.

I love these tumblers, made right here in West Virginia. There's a set of 6 here, in perfect condition.

This might have been a mistake. While this big ashtray sells for about $30, this one has a lot of small chips. So maybe a bad buy.

I was intrigued by this "reclining Buddha". I don't think it's old or rare, but still pretty cool, and made in India. 

Pyrex is almost impossible to find in thrift stores these days, so this was a lucky $2.99 find. 

Another surprise was this pink Fiesta Ware platter, also in perfect condition. Fiesta is a popular collectible here and is made in West Virginia too.

Then a nice, antique finger lamp was hiding among the pots and pans. It's called a finger lamp because of tgd little round handle on the base, and was used to carry to bed at night.

Two ladderback chairs in great condition for $3.99 each? Yes please!

I found the lampshade below at least 5 years ago and kept hoping I would find the lamp to go with it. Finally!

Just look at the detail on the base. The finial was missing, but again, in my stash of "maybe one day" I had just the thing. It's so satisfying to put together something like this.

We were looking for a furry jacket for Larry's Halloween costume,  and found this lovely vintage faux fur jacket with satin lining. It was way too small for Larry, but it will go to the booth, where someone is sure to love it. We've sold several vintage furs like this one, usually to young women who like the glamorous look.

Not old and not vintage, but just cute hand towels that I will keep for my bathroom at Christmas. 

Also not old, but a sweet handmade bib apron. Maybe someone named Amanda, Amy, or Anna will find it in our booth? 

I think today we are going out for breakfast in Spencer,  then browse the thrift there, visit the winery, and maybe take a walk by the abandoned dam. Or maybe we'll just stay home; decision yet to be made! But tonight we'll be in Ripley for another broom dance, this one for the town's Monster Bash. 
Should be a nice day, either way.

I can't do Caturday since we no longer have a cat, but here's Buddy, trying his best to be a lap kitty last night!

Have a lovely Saturday!

Simple Things and Good News

48°f/8.9°C, clear. Continued gorgeous days, perhaps Nature's apology for the past horrible summer?

No, the garage isn't on fire! It's just the sun hitting the heavy dew on the roof, causing condensation that then evaporates under the hot roof. It made me jump the first time i noticed it!

Q

It's been a slow couple of days here. I had a 7:20am video appointment with my doctor yesterday, which meant being up earlier to do the pre-visit questionnaire,  then answer questions from the nurse, then finally talk to the doctor! Same questions, basically, three times. This was my Medicare Wellness checkup, where they ask silly things like what year is it, who is the President (had to say his name, gag), count backwards from 20 to 1, am I depressed, etc, etc. But I did get to talk with her about my shoulder pain, so that was good.

I was so tired the rest of the day (bad night) that I did little to nothing. I did pull weeds for half an hour, and practiced the broom dance at least a dozen times so I have it carved into my brain. But that was about it.

This morning we were both moving slow. I did my daily puzzles,had my tea, and we had cinnamon muffins for breakfast. I finally got dressed at 11am! Bad granny. Then we took our coffee outside, made a fire in the firepit, and hung out with the dogs until noon. Perfect way to start the day.

This guy was hanging out on the porch, enjoying the pretty leaves, I think.

His buddy looked like he might want to go inside, with his back turned to the outside world.

Morning fires are such a treat. I have to remind myself that we're retired and can do this if we want!

The trees are slow to turn this year, but so beautiful. 

Flowers are still blooming in this bed, where I have been weeding. I did another 20 minutes out there today, after cleaning up and organizing the van. 

And now I am on the porch, eating lunch and getting ready to bathe the dogs one more time. I hope this might be the last time, but if this doesnt stop their itchiness, then next week we will have to talk to the vet. 

• News from Suzy, Sarah, and my sister Theresa: Suzy is doing very well with her recovery from her bypass surgery. She and I discussed the Christmas open mic, already making plans. 
• Sarah had a little setback, an infection in the surgery site on her spine so she was back in the hospital after another surgery ro clean that out. She is doing well otherwise, working hard on her physical therapy. 
• Theresa learned Monday that she is in remission from her multiple myeloma cancer, so praises be! She took is still in recovery from the aggressive treatment, but is doing well. Please keep them all in your good thoughts and prayers.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.