01/25/2026
Snow days hit alot different than they have in the past. For nearly 20 years I managed the various food and beverage spaces at the Natural Bridge of Virginia. This meant snow days didn't exist. You basically were required to shelter in place at work, and work!! We stayed in the hotel and it was definitely an adventure. There are many memorable moments, keeping the staff safe meant bed checks for the younger staff but it could also lead to sledding using serving trays complete with pan coat added to the bottom for that death wish factor.
The most memorable extended snow stay was the blizzard of 2010. It was not expected. We closed early on a Friday night and sent most of the staff home. So it was me, 1 chef and his sweet fiance who could serve and bartend (they lived in an apartment on the property) and my 70 year old morning manager. There were 39 guest in the hotel that night...no problem! By the morning there were 120, and shortly it rose to about 50-60 more. No one could get in...the roads were shut down and most of the people who checked into the hotel were stranded there. Buffets were made, simple but even that was a struggle, we did the best we could, the first night people begged me to open the bar offering copious amounts of tip money for some alcohol, so I did. At one point I thought of drinking on the job myself when I looked at the dining room which seated 200+ people and every table was dirty with dishes piled high...but not one complaint from a customer. Many offered to help and do dishes...it was one of the most difficult tests of restaurant endurance I ever experienced. But we made it. I often look back and know all of those years at the Natural Bridge let me know what I am made of, and sometimes, especially lately I forget just how tough I am. Today I sit by my woodstove, next to the love of my life (also found at Natural Bridge). I am sipping Fireweed Mountain tea from my sweet friend's company in Alaska (seems fitting) Jen Hankins out of a pottery mug I made in the class where we met, too many years ago to remember. I'm am using honey from the sweet local apairy in Hurt, VA from White Barn Vintage. I am all up in my feels this morning...a
