ranunculus & more snow

the weekend flowers, purchased yesterday at a break in the snowy weather. thanks to the bride who could not use them, i have a vibrant pink spot in an otherwise white and weary weekend, strategically positioned so i can focus on them rather than on the scenery beyond. more snow today, more tomorrow. someone once commented that i don't like snow, when in fact, i do like it. i love snow. just not so much of it for so long, that's all.

superlatives

even my morning coffee speaks to the endless winter we're having here in new england. and for cold, frosty mornings like this one, this coffee is perfect. wicked perfect. 

the gift of snow

another snowstorm and another snow day, home from work. in the long run, these days set me back. in a few months time, i will be questioning their worth. but short term, they are such lovely gifts. an entire day, spontaneously devoid of any responsibility and duty, with which to do whatever i choose. these were my thoughts as i gazed out the back window, coffee mug in hand, watching the snow settle on the blueberry bushes while, at the table, the little girl softly hummed as she drew.

through the trees

good morning, moon.

and good night, stars.

chip off the old block

a photo from a few weeks back shows the little girl's form with a camera, taking a picture of me taking a picture of her. due to this stomach bug, i have this weekend avoided contact with the little girl and her mother. i'm missing them both.

in preschool, they have been teaching french. counting. names of animals. that sort of thing. when we talk tonight, via skype, i ask the little girl about it and she obliges me by counting to dix. but when i press her for other french terms, she is done performing. and she tells me to arrête.  so i quickly change the subject, if only to make the call - and the fun - last a little longer. 

hiatus

three days of stomach bug coupled with two days of sleep puts a damper on both one's photography and one's blogging. the sleep cycle is beginning to acclimate itself but i still feel at loose ends, trying to prioritize all that i did not do. today is a stay-at-home and catch-up kind of day, that begins with oatmeal in the sunshine. i think it's time - but time will tell.

february 12 of 12: heart day

well, this was to be my 12 of 12 for the month of february - twelve of the many heart items i have around the house. but, try as i might, i just couldn't make them interesting enough to warrant description or narrative. so here they are, morphed into a post of photos only. a heart mosaic, if you will. for you, on valentine's day.

cookies!

when i learned to make them, the only way you could get toll house cookies was by creaming the butter & sugar in a big bowl, stirring in the eggs & vanilla, then mixing in the flour and baking soda and finally, folding in the chocolate chips. but now look: cookie dough all prepared and available in tubes for slicing, tubs for scooping, and arrays for  breaking off perfect portions. then why am i still creaming and stirring and mixing and folding, just as i always have?

decisions, decisions

for years, i've waited for the iphone. when it was first released a few years back, i debated breaking my contract to switch carriers, but did not. due to poor reception in these parts, i need to stick with the carrier i have. and now, at last, they have the iphone! i was up this morning early and online, looking at prices, sizes, and delivery dates, dreaming. and that's when it occurred to me that i might want to wait...not be so hasty. my ipod touch is only two months old and it can do everything an iphone can do (except phone!) apple always rolls out its new iphone features in june. only four months away. so i wait. and agonize over my decision.

again

it's snowing again, big fat heavy flakes.
beautiful.
mounting fast.
almost to my windowsills. 

from the writing box

this purple creature may well have started out to be a person, but in the end, it was an octopus. we're not sure who the benevolent blue face is smiling down on him. but obviously, it's a face that only a grandmother could love.

the beginning of the end

it's february second, groundhog day here. with the widespread snowstorm raging outside, there's no way he'll see his shadow. he may not even be able to to burrow through all the snow to get to the surface!

today is one of four cross-quarter days of the year, this one mid-way between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox, the halfway point between winter and spring. the importance of this time of year in many cultures gives rise to celebrations today like candlemas, imbolc, st. brigid's day, lichun, and gŵyl y canhwyllau. although traditions vary greatly, the underlying significance of this day seems to involve the slow return of light and the anticipation of new life and spring. interesting how universally important it is for winter to come to an end. 

it seems somehow fitting that today is the day i find these birds outside my window, robins at the holly bushes, scavenging for berries. later in the day, i find more at the crabapple in the field. i wonder if this is indeed a sign of spring or just an indication of what a snowy winter we've been having. 

first of the month

january passed quickly but was fraught with snowstorm after snowstorm. and look, here's another now, this morning out the window at work. at this point, we had already been notified that we will not be working tomorrow. again. if today is any indication that february is going to be as snowy as its predecessor, i sure hope it goes by with the speed that january did.