The Years To Remember

  A dull winter day on the frozen lake where my neighbors are ice fishing, skating, and X-C skiing.  I figured out how to get the picture of the hawk from my 35mm camera to computer. I found out there are no USB ports on the MacBook Air, so I had to use the old MacBook Pro. Glad I didn't recycle it yet! The dentist office has seen me more than I'd like and will continue for the next month. A regular checkup resulted in another appointment to fix a chipped tooth, but then two days ago, a different tooth broke. Who knew that fillings from 50 years ago could fail? Yesterday's emergency visit for a temporary filling was successful.  Now I am facing another crown with 2 more appointments. I'm going to choose to be grateful I can afford good dental care rather than dwell on my dread of the drill. I could not resist these charming quail eggs from my local farm shop. I needed a special pair of egg scissors to open them easily.  Quail egg cutter. The weather has been uncooper...

  I've been getting out in the dark on my outings so I get to see the colorful sky as the sun rises. As I drove to my latest outing at 6 am, it occurred to me, that for someone who doesn't like winter that much, I seem to be out in it an awful lot lately. I have 5 Cross country ski outings planned in the next month along with the usual winter hiking/snowshoeing. Maybe I like winter more than I realized? Monday and Tuesday After the mountain snow shoe adventure, I'm enjoying cozying up at home and embracing the hygge concept. I did a bit of remote shopping and picked up my purchases without leaving the car. I've done two strength workouts and much lounging with tea. This morning I gave myself a pedicure as well and watched all the bird activity in the yard. A hawk landed in the tree so I even grabbed my 35 mm camera to try to get a decent shot. The hawk waited patiently as I had to change out the camera batteries first.  I need to head over to Lowe's as I discovered...

From today's hike in the mountains.   Indoor winter projects finally came onto my radar this week as this was the coldest, windiest weather this winter. Project One was to repair a closet that had a bit of mold on the ceiling. This was caused by a leaky roof that was replaced over ten years ago, but I never addressed the closet - out of sight, out of mind. When I finally got up there, the joint tape was barely hanging on and the joint compound was crumbling. I scraped off all the compromised material, bought some compound and tape and re-plastered the ceiling joint. After sanding, and while contemplating whether to paint or not, I heard my father's voice saying, "If you're going to do a job, do it right." So I took down all of the closet shelving, rebuilt one of the brackets, and then painted the closet a fresh white. Job done, but not a very impactful makeover. Now I'm on to the basement which is in dire need of reorganizing and repurposing.  Yesterday's ...

  This little Carolina wren has been living around my yard since the summer. She inspires optimism seeing as she thrives despite the harsh weather here. Her song makes me happy as I count the extra daylight we have gained since the solstice - about 12 minutes. The waxing crescent moon and Venus keep me company in the hot tub. This plane was unusually low and off the usual flight path so I took a picture.  I realize it's only a matter of time before I drop the phone into the water. 😱 Since my knee incident I have been taking a greater interest in my health. I know I have arthritis which contributes to joint issues as well as inflammation. Therefore I am concentrating on drastically reducing any added sugar in my food most days. Now, there are big slabs of carrot and chocolate cake in the freezer, but I will be saving them for very occasional treats. I'm getting used to coffee with no sweetener. Just a few headaches let me know my body was reacting to the change, but that has ...

 Saturday I was invited to join my friend Annette at a restaurant to celebrate her 65th birthday. She chose a Korean barbecue which I had never experienced before. You order small plates from an iPad, which they bring (raw) to your table, then you cook it on the grill embedded in the table and share. I definitely enjoyed the novelty of it all and the company was jovial and engaging, and I was so happy to celebrate my friend. Would I go back? Probably not because I'm not a fan of cooking the food myself, nor with sharing food all around. As a social event it was great though. Rebecca, Annette, me The whole group, minus Jesse. Monday The snow is gone, the ice is melted, and it's supposed to reach 55 degrees today! There is a layer of water on top of the last of the lake ice so no more ice fishing.  I love the feeling of waking up with nothing on the calendar and musing about how I might fill my day. Today I thought I might go biking, do some business errands, or paint the closet...