A new category has been added to my blog. Since the addition to our family of our Miata, (more commonly known to us as Mia) I foresee new adventures in our future in which she plays a major role. Therefore she deserves her very own category: Driving Miss Mia. The blog posts will range from me snapping photos along the way, to photos once we reach our destination and who knows what else.
It was a beautiful weekend. Perfect “top-down” weather for sure. On Saturday morning we started our drive up to Monroe, New York and Warwick.
Our drive took us along the shore of Greenwood Lake.
A stop for ice cream at Bellvale Farms. They have the best view of the lovely Warwick valley.
A funny sign on the way back from the Warwick Winery. It says something completely different on the other side as you approach the Winery but we didn’t realize it until we were past it. Next time…
And no, we didn’t taste. We just drove there to find out where it was never having been there before.
An old barn along the way.
Look who’s driving!
Later on that day friends Bill and Carol called to see if we wanted to take a drive down to Lake Mohawk in the Sparta area. They have a convertible too, you see. On glorious days the “Convertible Club” (which also consists of neighbors Kim and Mark) get together and go for drives, usually ending up somewhere to eat.
It was a beautiful drive down and I can’t wait to do it again once the trees are out.
It’s a quaint little town with odd architecture here and there.
We walked along the boardwalk next to the lake.
We stopped into a local pub and had a beer, then a slice of pizza and headed home.
After watching this pretty hawk fly over us I had to wonder ... do people in convertibles get bird poop on their heads very often? Certainly something to ponder.
Spring is definitely arriving in my front yard. The maple trees are the brave ones—they are always first. Their furry buds look so pretty lit golden by the late afternoon sun.
Up close and personal they look entirely different, like some exotic flower.
The forsythia hedge is not going to be left behind. Its buds are expectantly waiting to burst open in their full cheery yellow glory.
Small bushes are starting to unfurl their first new leaves.
And since I don’t have any crocus, I had to go outside of my own yard and into those of my neighbors. This pretty grouping is from Luke’s yard.
And these are from Luke’s next-door neighbor. He has a nice cheery row planted against his stone wall.
Even though our temperature is not anything to brag about this weekend (23 degrees right now, heading to low 40’s by midday) I know that warmer weather is on its way. At least today it’s sunny and not rainy like it has been this past week. We’ll be thankful for seat heaters when we take Mia out for a spin today!
Let’s face it. Men go through a mid-life crisis just like women. With one difference. Woman go through menopause and put up with it. Men either get a mistress or a sports car. I still don’t know what women get.
Lately Rick has been talking “sports car.” Well, actually since we arrived in New Jersey I’ve been getting the “wouldn’t it be nice to” (have a convertible) speech. Lots and lots of convertibles here! You don’t see them that much back in Colorado and I’m not sure exactly why. Like swimming pools: lots here; not so much back there. The season is about the same, so it’s a mystery to me.
The other day on the way to the Great Falls I was talking to neighbor Kim about how Rick had called me up out of the blue and said he’d been down to the Mazda dealer looking at Miatas. He wanted me to drop by on our way back from the falls to look at a 2009 that they could make a good deal on. We joked about the sports car vs. mistress thing.
Kim had words of wisdom for me. She said:
“Well, if you let him choose the mistress then you might lose him to the mistress AND the mistress will probably let him have the car too.”
Good point.
Over the past few days we’ve been talking a lot about the pros and cons. Kim has been a big help. First, I heard from Rick that as we were leaving the dealership she gave him a double “thumbs up” behind my back. Then when I went back to Great Falls with Rick the following day so he could see them, she sent me an email that said something like “How convenient that the Mazda dealership is on the way back. Better take that checkbook!” Then today she sent Rick (and not me) an email saying “what a beautiful day to be out tooling around in a tiny sport car…” Isn’t she a big help? Well, it was a beautiful SPRING day (which arrived today at around 1:30 p.m.) with 70 degree weather and sunshine.
I am sorry to report that Rick chose the mistress. She’s younger than me. She is certainly a lot more agile than me. She is sassy. She is always ready to go. She always wears red.
Meet Mia.
Okay, Rick, when did you say you were going away on that business trip so I can drive her?
P.S. This is not the I-can-give-you-a-good-deal-on 2009 model we first looked at. Of course not.
Certainly by now you’ve heard of the record flooding New Jersey experienced this past week after our torrential rainfall. Something every good New Jerseyian (or is that Jerseyite?) does at times of record rainfall is head to the Great Falls in Paterson. So when neighbor Kim proposed a field trip yesterday, I was more than game. It was a beautiful day for a change, sunny and mid 60’s.
The Passaic River falls 77 feet, making the Great Falls the second highest falls on the East Coast. Second only to the mighty Niagara Falls!
The river (we think) crested on Tuesday, but on Wednesday it was still pretty angry! With a mighty roar it thundered over the rocky cliffs.
We decided to walk over and go across the bridge for different views.
The river before it reaches the cliffs.
On the opposite side of where we were, with some of Paterson’s old factories in the background.
Just before crossing over the bridge there was a beautiful rainbow in the mist. I tried several different angles and shots.
On the bridge! Pretty scary! (Doubling up on rainbows.) The mist coming off the falls was just like being in the rain. We were drenched by the time we got to the other side.
On the other side of the falls there was this little observation point where you were ever so close to the falls. Motion sickness alert! It was mesmerizing watching all the water coming straight at you. It made me feel very unbalanced.
The following photos were taken from that vantage point in each direction. First photo is looking to the right. Middle photo is looking straight out at the water, and final photo is looking left and to the main section of the falls.
We walked around to view them from the back.
And back on the bridge again.
They surely were a sight that I might never see again.
P.S. Video to come!
P.P S. Since it was St. Patrick’s Day when we went, we tried to find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but did not succeed.
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