The Jonathan Apple
I bought a bag of Jonathans on Sunday and have had a couple to eat in the past few days. Jonathans were my mother's favorite apple. She loved them in pies and just to eat. They are best at this time of year so I always buy a bag in the fall and think of her as I eat.She always said that the autumn was a time of year that made her "blue." She remarked that she always cried when she sent us back to school. (Different from me. I always rejoiced. It seems like the kids got tired of the summer schedule, too.)
She also said that (regarding food) she liked everything. As kids we would try to come up with something that she didn't enjoy eating. Too bad we didn't know about anchovies, I'm sure that would be the one thing that she hated.
She recalled the wonderful sleepovers that she enjoyed with her best-friend Doris as they were growing up--especially sneaking my grandmother's mustard pickles (?) and eating the whole jar. They also talked about Mom's banana diet. (That's a new one on me.)
She was a lovely woman and I remember that she was cheerful and loved to share in conversation. After I married Mike, she always greeted us eagerly and sat with us to find out about our lives. (I'm hoping to have a picture of her scanned and posted so that you can see what she looked like.)
posted by Jody at 6:34 AM
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These are sunsets seen from the car window.
Thanks to Mike for all the great photos.
The next shot is Washington's headquarters. You can see that at this time of year we miss the crush of families but run into the occasional school field trip.
The last shot is a picture of the guard huts near the headquarters. Each hut held 12 men. 4 sets of bunks--3 beds to a set. We hope that people really were smaller then.
Fall is upon us. The colors were out this morning and all the way to 
Drove through some heavy rain and still the mountains were beautiful. 
The walk below is on top of the working part of the house. It is in a "U" shape. Jefferson put a series of gutters in that fed 4-4000 gallon cisterns for dry periods. 
The keepers still plant the gardens...even the vegetable garden.
And they 
Decided to drive back north on the through Shenandoah National Park/Skyline Drive. We got our first real taste of fall with the beautiful colors--all sorts of reds, yellows and oranges.
But it was a long drive and we needed to drive north to Philadelphia or near Philadelphia for the night.
Impressive.
Then Walked across the street to the Korean and Vietnam (and the Vietnam Nurses Memorial) and then a long walk to the Metro. The monuments are a far walk to the Metro stations. Dinner before going home.
For a riding day I still did a lot of walking. 16, 930 steps (per my pedometer). At home during the week I go about 4,000. No wonder I hurt.
The Hopper exhitibit was in the East Gallery dedicated to modern works. A light and airy space.
Lunch in Cascade Cafe under the street between the East and West buildings of the National Gallery of Art. The cafeteria had excellent food and all went well until I went back and got stuck in a Gelato line behind 12 pre-teens who consumed five samples each before ordering. Look at the picture carefully--you'll see why it's called the Cascade Cafe. There is a fountain cascading from the street level into the lower level. These is a window in front.
We walked UP Capitol Hill. There is a reflecting pool in front, but it had been drained. I never remember how massive the Capitol building is. The National Arboretum is right on the grounds. It is compact, but interesting with sections on medicinal plants, jungle setting, orchid room, and dessert.
Anyway after the LOC we walked passed the Supreme Court and were surprised as we crossed the street to see "The Methodist Building." Mike took a picture since we were puzzled. It's a clean looking building that seems narrower in the front than the back and (I checked it is still in use by the Methodists.
By now, pretty tired we walked north to Union Station watched a movie in the basement theatre (Michael Clayton), had dinner and rode the metro back to the hotel.
Sunday, First Full Day DC. Taking the metro in--our first destination is "The Castle"--the Smithsonian Welcome Center. It faces a dry, dry mall. (The weather here has been so dry that even the crab grass on the mall is dead.) Still the plantings and the gardens have been watered. Every backpack and bag carried into a building is checked by security. Mike worries about the two bottles of wine he is packing--gifts for high-school friend Dennis and his wife Vera who have invited us to dinner this evening.
On the way to the National Gallery of Art we toddle around the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden. I remember on our last trip to this outdoor experience with the kids over 15 years ago. Daniel had a laugh over the naked women statues. You know that little boy giggle. Great memory. 
What a treasure is the National Gallery of Art. Renoir, Manet, Monet, Degas, and more. We know many of these images as reproductions...but it is really something to see them and to see them in actual scale. It's Sunday so we enjoy the buffet in the cafe in the West building. Mike was wishing that they left the menu so we would know what we were eating. I did recognize the winter squash, the smoked salmon and the bean soup...hey, they said it was their harvest menu. Mike said that the price was worth the roasted pears and whipped cream that we ate for dessert.
As great as it was, I found that the Korean and Lincoln monuments moved me more profoundly. I felt that there was a greater feeling of context--for sure with the Lincoln memorial because two of his famous speeches were carved in the wall. The silence prompts emotions that sound doesn't. You have to be more with yourself--introspective. Even from a distance you can get a feel for Lincoln's character.
At night, the monument to the Korean War is just spooky with lifesized statues of men on patrol. Accurate down to the last detai--rifles and radios. There is a wall at this monument too. A wall of faces instead of names--sacrifices to "the forgotten war." 
