At it again...

We are on an odyssey as part of our ongoing need to figure out where we will spend the rest pf our time on earth. Our journey will take us through Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New York, ending in Pittsburgh, and will include time with old friends and family. We are in Roanoke Virginia now, an interesting town in the SW part of the state, near the Appalachians. Interesting town. It originated in the 1880s and attracted industrial workers from the north, so it was never part of the Confederacy. We chatted with a Sierra Club member yesterday. There is a big move to bring wind farms into the area, and to create greenways linking village-like neighborhoods. We walked along the Roanoke River Greenway today. It's really well done, very pleasant. It links neighborhoods and parks, very picturesque ones. Lots of comfortable houses with decks and porches overlooking the river. People here smile constantly. We even had some wonderful homemade ice cream sold by a couple who run a shop near the Greenway. Kate had Mexican chocolate, I had coconut fudge. There is a comfort to being in the east with its lush green forests in summertime. There's much we love about northern California, but it's hot and dry in summer. And dusty! Here, we love the maples and oaks, cardinals darting about, lightning bugs, and many more critters. There's a joy to the cool wind that preceeds an electrical storm, a thrill to jabbing lightning and crackling thunder. Even humidity, with its damp, warm embrace welcomes us. On to Charlottesville, Virginia tomorrow, More to come.