Mid February

I'm getting tired of the weather dictating so much about my daily activity. I'm going cross country skiing tomorrow and though the gearing up process is daunting, it's good for my soul to get out there. 

Another week of subfreezing temperatures.

 I don't see any temperatures above the freezing point until next week, so the ice coating on everything won't be going away any time soon. I thought the cover of the hot tub was cracking, but it was just the ice coating it, that cracked. The ice is so heavy that I had a hard time lifting the cover back in place. The trees are still coated with ice, and as the sun was setting yesterday, it lit up the ice in a firey red orange color. The camera didn't capture the color fully, and it only lasted a couple of minutes.

Ice coated trees.



Oops, I already removed the wing tips before the photo. I can count on one
hand the number of chickens I've roasted in my life.

Yesterday was an indoor day so I spatchcocked a chicken for the first time in my life, roasted it, then made stock out of the carcass. Quite bountiful for a $6 chicken. I also cooked up the gizzards and heart for a little nostalgia. When I was little, my dad used to buy a package of gizzards and hearts, saute them in butter, and we kids gobbled them up on toast as a Sunday morning treat. Sounds a little weird now. 

I completed my first shift as a docent at the Pine Bush Discovery Center. It went well even though my mentor never showed up. The volunteer coordinator jumped in and showed me the expectations of the docent. When she saw my interactions with the first visitors, she said I was fine on my own. Thirty years of teaching gives you people skills that are not easily lost. 

I then met Susan for lunch and we caught up on life. She heads to Florida soon on a kayaking trip. I'm heading to the airport to get my Global Entry Pass. 


We covered about 5 miles of ski trails at Brookhaven Thursday, then had lunch in the restaurant. It was a nice but tiring day and I turned down going to a concert back up in Saratoga County tonight. I just don't have that kind of energy today!

Ready to ski!

Friday is another day indoors as the winds are howling, and ice is breaking off the trees and raining down. At least it's sunny! I spoke to my brother about tax issues with Mom's estate and hopefully I will get the info I need to complete my taxes. I usually submit them the first of February but I've got to be patient for these other issues to settle out. 

About 18 months ago I begrudgingly made a substantial tax payment even though my Aunt's estate had that money withheld and sent to the tax people already. I paid it to get the tax people to stop threatening me and assumed I'd never see the money again. Well, it took 18 months, but they refunded the $ to the estate and I got my money back - what a nice windfall!

I just made a huge pot of Thai sweet potato and carrot soup for the freezer and I've got a lot of paper work to get through as well. I'm looking forward to another cross country ski event and temperatures above freezing this week end. Spring just might make an appearance.

Comments

  1. MargaretFebruary 22, 2025 at 8:04 PM

    I would love that Thai soup! Your weather is SO cold; ours has warmed up close to 60 although we also have an atmospheric river (Pineapple Express) happening. Not good for our mountain snow. I hate ice and ice storms! Stay safe. A bonus refund--yay! I like those kind of surprises. :)

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