in like a lion

looking for a change of scenery this morning i shift my work to the small bedroom desk. at least there when i glance up i can see outside and up into the woods to watch the snow fall. since it's lion-like in its entry, here's hoping the new month of march goes out like the lamb it's supposed to.

more dairy products!

at a leap day lunch with a friend, the waitress brought me this bowl chock full of half-and-half for my single cup of decaf. i wonder what she might have brought if i'd mentioned that i like my coffee light. sadly, i did not check to see when this stuff expires. but i shudder to think...

set to expire

this milk has been sitting in my fridge since saturday. seven weeks from today it promises to sour and go bad. in seven weeks easter will be over and spring will be here. the red sox will have played the yankees five times. daffodils might be in bloom and robins may have returned. so perhaps when i'm sitting at an open window in the warm evening air listening to peepers, i'll have a glass of milk. because this milk will still be good even then. and that's a pretty disturbing thought.

black snow

one of the curses of any winter is dirty snow. but this winter, old snow is particularly revolting, perhaps because it's at eye level. it follows you as you drive down the street. it's on either side as you as you slide down a walkway. it mocks you when you open the door. and this pile, arrived upon at the end of a slick trip down a back road, is hands down the most unsightly of all black snow piles. in the town's defense, it looks as if it was collected somewhere else and dumped here, perhaps to make way for more snow from the forecasted storm. the one that will cover all this black snow and make it lovely and white - for about fifteen hours before it invariably reverts back to black.

at the mall

here's a new style for the spring. little short jacket, little tiny sleeves. now i admit i'm hardly a good judge of fashion, but to me these look a bit like elf clothes. perhaps they were made in a hollow tree along with all those cookies.

more of the same

peering from a downtown doorway out at the swirling flakes, this husky must think he's at home in nome. because this place sure does look like alaska these days.

stall street journal

some clever someone on campus has a really good sense of humor and knows just where to put information to have it read. but judging by the font size of the publication it's meant for those with twenty-twenty vision only who can read from the toilet. and that would not be me.

eclipse!

the feet are frozen and fingertips numb, but it was worth it. tonight's lunar eclipse at totality with saturn to the lower left and regulus just above. be sure to click on the picture to see it in a larger form.

lighter earlier

leaving the house this morning i paused to notice sunlight touching the tops of trees and to listen to a little birdsong in the woods. at 14° i even detected a bit of warmth. maybe the days are finally getting longer after all.

from the roof

this afternoon's roof clearing extravaganza gives whole new meaning to the term snowed in.

for shame

saving the environment and polluting it, all in one shopping trip. it's high time to find a substitute for that bottled water - the worst of my eco-unfriendly vices.

cry uncle

the view from the kitchen window
as it snows - and rains - and ices over.
we may still have snow on the ground for memorial day.
enough already.

coping with weather

if its going to snow tomorrow, which it is, and i have to stay home again, which i might, at least im going to have this sign of whats-to-come to focus on instead of just dwelling on yet another snowstorm.

a bit of progress and a bit of a stretch

although this may appear black to some, it actually shows the bottom three stars of the handle of the big dipper. look closely. squint. click to make it bigger. maybe another night i can see enough to capture the upper part of the asterism.

clock wise

as the world continues its slow conversion to all things digital, i wonder what will happen when we no longer use analog clocks. could things still "run like clockwork" if there are no "works" in a clock? will terms like "clockwise" and "counterclockwise" become archaic or obsolete and, if they do, what will we use to describe those circular directions? will we still be able to work or play "round the clock" if clocks no longer have faces, round or otherwise? no doubt some analog clocks will always be with us - the four-sided one on the Customs House in Boston, Big Ben in London, the black-faced clocks on white steeples in New England villages and towns. but digital is so quickly becoming the norm, i wonder if we'll ever wish we could turn back the hands of time on that.

late morning commute

how is it that i can be so sick of winter yet so enchanted with scenery like this on my ride to work?

below the feeder

scuttling back and forth on the path under the bird feeders, this mole had to be pretty hungry to be out in plain view in the middle of the day. it must be hard for wee critters to find food with all this snow covering the ground. i just hope they all stay outside and stick to a diet of bird seed.

super fat tuesday

as candidates tally their delegates,
as party goers parade at mardi gras
as christians indulge in donuts before lent
i drink an extra coffee
and read
and hope for change.

dark in the morning, dark at night

if the days are getting longer, you can't prove it by me. i go to sleep by starlight and arise by starlight. most days i leave in this darkness in the morning and come home in darker darkness at night. i miss sunlight and think maybe seasonal affective disorder might really be real. people in far northern climes endure a period of darkness more prolonged. good thing i don't live there.

aftermath

ahead of me down the slush covered road i see early morning sunlight emerge from thick clouds and suddenly light up the fringes of hills and trees. the sight takes my breath away and i stop short to try to capture it before the light changes. a magical start to the weekend.

ice storm II

the lilac outside the door now covered in ice from tonight's storm and illuminated by doorway light. a wild night with wind and rain and sleet and ice. earlier this evening i slept deeply under puffy quilts as sleet and ice pelted windows and doors, the rhythmic staccato sound a soothing lullaby to my tired mind.

lost found

since last spring i've been waiting for the premiere of season four of Lost. finally it is almost here and i can barely think of anything else. tomorrow night will find me on the edge of my couch once again embroiled in the lives of the survivors of oceanic flight 815. pretty bad for someone who doesn't even watch a lot of tv.

green eggs and you-know-what

fresh from a chicken this morning and gifted to me this afternoon. the planned supper of some nameless soup concoction was reshuffled to tomorrow night in favor of fresh eggs tonight. bad lighting in this shot masks the fact that these eggs are not only brown, they're green. and, no kidding, i served ham with them and never gave it a second thought until i sat down to write this post.

spring semester

this week begins another semester at university bringing with it all the clutter and disarray of prepping for class on the largest flat surface in the house. which unfortunately is also the most public. you can't even see the top of the dining room table for all the textbooks and articles and schedules and plans.

spaghetti o

dropped at precisely the right angle with exactly the right amount of force, spaghetti makes a pleasing pattern as it hits the pan of boiling water.

frost on the window

a long week this week with early morning departures and late evening arrivals. not conducive to good photography! made this east facing shot this morning as i left at sunrise - without even waiting for the windows to totally clear themselves of overnight frost.

wolf moon

the almost full wolf moon shines brightly this calm, cold, and clear january night, illuminating not only the surrounding landscape but also icicles off the roof. inside i am cozy with wool and woodstove and steaming mugs of tea.

movie night

tonight i rented a movie online through itunes, downloaded it to my computer, and watched it while i did some work. amazing. i'm not very good at multitasking that way so i don't know that i'd ever do it again. but it sure was mind-boggling that it's even possible to do that.

holly in the snow

what do you think - next year's christmas card? or at least next year's christmas stamp?

rosemary in january

this is rosemary, my favorite herb. love the subtle flavor it gives to food and the piney smell it leaves on my hands. every may i plant rosemary in a big pot and snip it all summer. every year i don't compost it at the end of the growing season. and every year i bring it into the house as late in fall as possible. only to have it dry up and die - every year. but this fall i tried the plant in a new location: the unheated bathroom with the west facing window. its certainly hasn't thrived there, but it also hasn't died. and now just look - new growth! whether it will be new leaves or the rare and coveted tiny blue flowers remains to be seen. i can only hope against hope for the latter.

narcissus II

a leftover narcissus bulb from christmas, one that never made it to the shallow pan to force the blooms in time for the holiday. my intent was to throw it out with the compost. but just look how badly it wants to grow!

comfort food

another snowy monday with no work and no escape from the house save a trip to the driveway to rid the car of its thick blanket of snow. work-at-home did not satisfy today nor did reading. and so i cooked. pot roast with onions. parslied potatoes. organic carrots from the back of the crisper drawer. and this rice pudding, embellished with cinnamon and raisins. the carrots were a hit. the others sadly were not. but the process of cooking in the warmth of the kitchen while outside the snow twirled was a comforting indulgence indeed.

stars?

for weeks i've been trying to photograph stars. so far this is the best i've got. not very impressive but if you click to make it bigger, at least it's interesting. i think i may have found the camera setting. i know now i need a tripod since the shutter stays open for a long time looking for light. i thought this shot from a few nights ago might finally be a good one - but see how camera must have moved a bit on the tripod? all the star tracks are uniform! tonight i got a shot of the belt of orion and was disappointed to find it was badly out of focus. maybe all this peering at stars is giving me eyestrain. perhaps i need new glasses.

amaryllis

looking into the enormous flower of the most beautiful pale pink amaryllis sitting on the counter at my local florist. another patron told me the collective blooms on the thick stalk were as big around as my head.

ice storm

overnight an ice storm, the loud kind that wakes you up as the rain and sleet pelt the windows. and this morning everything beyond it was encased in a thin covering of ice.

logic

when you find great gloves always buy two pair. then when a single glove goes missing, you will be happy to have a matching substitute. even though it does mean that you now have only one and a half pairs of gloves instead of two. because you know you're going to eventually lose another glove anyway. and then you'll still have a pair of great gloves left to wear.

milkweed in winter

i took this over the weekend - when the early morning sun was bright and the air was cold and the snow was glistening with millions of tiny points of light.

new tech

look! serendipitous on my brand new ipod touch!
how cool is that!!

pre-primary

ten presidential candidates in new england today. but in a nearby city, even though the weather was balmy, there were no motorcades, no stumping, no babykissing. just business as usual on every single corner i passed.

"grinching"

what is that, you say? its a great new word i read a few days ago, one that refers to undecorating the place after christmas. and its a particulary credible word having come directly from santa claus. speaking of santas, this salt and pepper set belonged to my mom. no more salt, no pepper, just a place of honor on my desk. but he'll be gone by the weekend. tomorrow night's grinching around here.

heating up

still grappling with the heating system in this new car. recirculating air or fresh air intake? do i want defrost on, heat at my face or heat at my feet? how much fan is enough? despite the fur lined hood and even a scarf, tonights drive home was particularly chilly with outside temperatures sinking as i drove. suddenly i remembered - this car has heated seats!!! such an extravagance but what a toasty ride they provide!

new year snow

one of the last leaves on the oak out back, dancing at the impending storm. after a starlit new years eve, our second snowstorm in as many days started late this morning. we havent had this much snow to usher in the new year in a very long time.

fast away the old year passes

and what a year it was. college teaching, beach vacations, old and new jobs, championship baseball, the birth of the baby girl. my hope for the new year - family happiness, good health for good friends, guardian angels for those in harms way, global sanity, and many more serentipitous opportunities for us all. happy new year!

noises in the night

black stillness on this night at years end. soft snow falls adding to the depth already present from previous storms. earlier tonight on the edge of the back woods a lone fisher repeatedly cried out as he traversed the property. loud shrieks emitted in anger or frustration, he sounded eerily like a child in distress. had i not known what it was i might even have put on boots and coat and gone to help. as it is i have yet to turn off outside lights lest he return to wail in the darkness once again.

the girl's christmas

only once have i used someone else's photo in this blog - now i do so again. this was taken by the girl at her house. her christmas tree and yes, the baby girl gazing up at it. ive had this photo for days and am still totally captivated by it and all that it signifies. the simplicity and wonder of the season. the peace and the beauty of the holiday. what's most important at this time of year, now and always.

cam-pain

five pieces of mail today from presidential hopefuls. eight phone calls from people i dont know urging support for their candidate. thank goodness for caller id. i think i'll be very glad when our primary is over and attention is focused elsewhere. it seems a bit unamerican to say that but its what i feel.

heav'nly peace

its hard to imagine the turmoil in other parts of the world this day given the fact that its such a peaceful quiet winters day here in new england. it takes a day like today to remind me just how blessed my life really is.

christmas

may your days be merry and bright!

the night before christmas

three brand new versions of the night before christmas this evening. a mary englebreight cloth book for the baby girl and the grandma moses version for her mother. but the girl gave me the best edition - one with transparent black and white illustrations that project shadows onto a dark wall when you shine a flashlight through them! heres the final page. happy christmas to all and to all a good night!

wrapping paper

in her eighth year the girl made this wrapping paper from a grocery bag and a two halves of a potato she carved to use as stamps. and she wrapped my christmas gift in it. that present is long forgotten but the paper lives on as an important part of our holiday celebration. each year i wrap one of the girls presents in this same paper being careful not to cut it or fold it excessively or to use too much tape. if calculations are correct, this is the twenty-fourth christmas this paper has been under the tree.