One of the goals of the winter is to snowshoe more – I waited all summer for a chance to snowshoe again and winter has obliged and dumped a ridiculous amount of snow on us.
You know it’s bad when the weatherman starts getting sarcastic about it – “Oh, where would we be without a Tuesday or Saturday storm?” and “The kids will be in school until July but they are having fun today!” For once they are actually predicting the weather properly…and they really do not have a back up career as comedians…
Anywho, thanks to TGP’s motivation, we were up early enough to snowshoe a bit Saturday morning. The snow was sparkly, the air was crisp and we had powder to play in!
One of the coolest things was that I finally saw a Pileated (dilapidated) Woodpecker! It rather big and noisy…remind you of anyone?? Tee-hee! Seriously, it is the size of a chicken and Woody Woodpecker is modeled after him – think of Woody’s laugh…now imagine two of them calling back and forth….
I also got to try out my tracking skills….I can recognize the difference between cat paws and raccoons….and I found that they both like to hang out under the Maggie. (TGP’s macho car with the girly name)
During our break, we just sat enjoying the quiet…..until a chickadee started singing. TGP and the bird had a good five minute call and answer session before the chicka-dee-dee-dee decided that it had other things to do. It still amazes me that TGP can call to a chickadee and the bird will repeat the call and come closer!! During our first hike together last January, he called the bird and it landed in his hand to eat part of a granola bar.
We could have been out there all day but the day had a fun spontaneous surprise in store for us…..and that will be in the next blog entry!
As most everyone knows, we have had a ridiculous amount of snow in the past month. And I have not been able to enjoy any of it.
I would love to just snuggle in, have some cocoa or spiced rum and watch the snow fall.
BUT…..There is no enjoying the snow this winter.
With every snowfall we have to worry about you-know-who. If her caretaker can not make it there, one of us has to be there…and the other holds down the home fort.
The one that is stuck with you-know-who needs phone counseling because of that awful feeling - being stuck someplace that you do not want to be…and even if you could leave, you can’t because the weather will not let you. You are stuck and there is no way that you can get out of it. Depressing, huh?
So whenever the report of snow pops up, it is followed by a sinking feeling. Add to that, the fact that I am surrounded by people who talk about the next storm all day long – there is no need to for me to watch the weather reports.
I want to go back to skiing and snowshoeing in this snow….to watching the flakes fall….to planning what to put in the crockpot…to bake something to warm the house a bit more….
Why is she still here? I am actually jealous of the people that are dying….people that are not much younger than her have moved on…why is she still struggling with life….and dragging us down with her?
Interesting work day today – we had a scheduled luncheon - always fun since we have a leisurely lunch and there is never a rush to get back to work.
Dessert was a surprise twist - a traditional French cake that is used to celebrate the Epiphany.
In every cake, they bake a porcelain figurine – if you find it, you are the King/Queen for the day! (and you hope you find it before you bite into it….)
Anyway, we had four cakes and the first three were found rather quickly so I did not think much of it….
Until staring back at me when I removed a layer of crust was a figurine that looked like the Baby Jesus you would place in a Nativity scene!!
Since it’s a new thing for me, I had to do some research….
Back in grammar school, one of our class projects was a balloon release. Attached was a card with our name, school information as well as a request to mail the card back letting us know where i it was found.
Obviously this was back when releasing balloons was not recognized as a hazard to the environment and it was still thought of as safe to send children’s information out into the world.
One of the main reasons that I still have that card is because my balloon went the furthest.
The whole point of sharing this memory?
I realized the other day that I now work in the town in which my balloon landed….
I recently watched the first episode of TLC’s “Extreme Couponing”…take “Hoarders” and combine with an obsession for getting a deal…
It is couponing beyond extreme….hence the name…
One woman has an incredible stock pile…all stuff that she got for free…that is insured for $35,000. (That is no longer free, folks…)
She often blows off plans with her friends and her hubby to go get a deal.
Deals come and go…they even repeat…
Sometimes it is just not worth chasing.
I could have gone out the other night and done a diaper deal that would have resulted in a box of 44 count diapers for $3.50 – talk about a great baby gift!
But I CHOSE to spend time with TGP – CHOSE to have some yummy French onion soup, CHOSE to have a few adult beverages, CHOSE to enjoy the company of others.
The deal was great but I CHOSE to let it go and do something good for my soul.
Yes, I enjoy the deal high…I enjoy the finds at 90% off…
But I CHOSE to do what was important for me….
I’m sure that I will continue to watch the show….but I will not live my life that way.
I went food shopping last night… The people shopping there were nuts…even more nuts than usual….
Besides the “Pre-storm panic – we NEED eggs, bread and milk because we will never be able to dig out and what if we need supplies!!!” shoppers, there were the people shopping Shoprite’s famous Can-Can Sale…aggressively shopping, may I add….
People were SNATCHING cans of Progresso soup off the shelf…..one guy had a shopping cart full of Ronzoni pasta because it was 40 cents a box….(me? I had 3 boxes of another pasta that were free after coupons) It was impossible not to stare…
The jingle was playing every 20 minutes too…I’m already there – no need to remind me!! Of course it got stuck in my head…..was told that if I sang the “Can-Can” song one more time, I would have to walk home. Naturally I waited until we were pulling in the driveway to start up again…tee-hee….
For those of you that wonder what goes on in my brain, miss the sparkle or just wonder what I'm up to.....here I will share the randomness of my mind.....all the real secrets will stay in my paper and ink journal......
