Life in the Frozen Northlands - Live With it or Move

We're under a Winter Storm Warning for the next 48 hours. *sigh* We could potentially get up to 14 inches of snow with wind gusts of 39 mph and 1/4 mile minimum visibility. The storm is really hitting to the South and West of the Cities, but we're not escaping this one, and I'm really NOT in the mood for a winter storm. Especially when I know we'll be heading back to the shop tomorrow because we're still getting things ready for our closeout sale which starts all too soon. It's all a bit of a mess. 

We're under a Winter Storm Watch from mid-afternoon today 
until early Monday morning. But, we'll still need to get to the 
shop tomorrow - there's too much that still needs to be done 
to skip a day of working. 

Of course DH is double-thinking every decision we've made regarding the shop. That only makes things harder for Chickie and me while we're trying to make sure as many of our ducks are in a row as possible. I totally re-arranged a portion of our Northern wall yesterday to allow for a bit more artwork to be displayed, and new signage to be placed. 

We're not backing out of using Travis' company to help us 
liquidate the business, so complaining about minor details 
really is a waste of time. We don't have to like 100% of 
every action, but we need to do them anyway. 

Speaking of signage - DH is also complaining about our business liquidator. "When will the signs arrive", is a good question. "Did you read the postcard?" is another one (yes, I read it several times and I rather liked it - with a few specific changes that they are instituting before the print run). In the main, his comments are too few and too late, but annoying nonetheless. The contracts have been signed and we are committed to this action. We'll deal with any fallout after the fact on this one. 

So I'm wrapping this up, eating breakfast, and heading to the shop before the snow starts falling. Winter in the Frozen Northlands ... you either live with it or you move. Be safe and I'll be back on Monday. Slava Ukraini. 

Still No Success - My Certificates Just Aren't Here Any More

Yesterday's swim was more normal. The roads, although typical winter, weren't skating rink icy, and the usual group of swimmers showed up. (I rather missed my "private pool" - LOL). It was good to see my friends again though, and to share my lane with Jolene. Even Meg showed up, her Hubby having once again dropped her off in her wheelchair. I'm sure she's getting closer and closer to being able to put that wheelchair behind her, but it was a serious lower leg break that she experienced at the dog park, and she did say it would be a minimum of eight weeks before she'd be able to walk on it again. I think it's been longer than that by now, so her doctor must be erring on the side of caution. With a weight-bearing fracture like that, caution is a very good thing. 

Winter up here in the Frozen Northlands can be beautiful, 
but we all know to dress appropriately, and have the proper 
boots for walking on ice and through snow. I really feel 
sorry for our ancestors who didn't have down coats, internal 
self-heating vests, or good snow boots. 

I'm still looking for my "certificates" from DH for this past Christmas, but I'm almost ready to give up the hunt and admit to him that I have lost them. It's totally tearing at my heart. The certificates are my absolute favorite gift that he gives to me. Losing/misplacing/throwing them away (all possibilities) just makes me sick to my stomach. But, there's nothing much I can do about it. It's rather like a lost sock in the washing machine. You know you put in a pair, but there's only a single one when you remove the load. It's rare, but it does happen. In this instance, I had a brain glitch and I have NO idea what I did with the certificates. *sigh*

Sometimes my brain glitch really stops me short, and losing 
my certificates was a brain glitch. I've totally run out of 
places to look, however, so it's time to tell DH about my 
stupidity. *sigh*

I did, however, get a LOT done in the kitchen yesterday. I did my "Ogre Juice", I did a new batch of baked fruit for my breakfasts, and I did at least two different things for my dinners. My empty shelving on my side of the refrigerator are once again filled. What a relief! 

I squeezed in a quick run of baked fruit in my kitchen 
work yesterday (I don't do the crumbles that this photo 
has, but the general fruit mix is pretty close). I adore my 
baked fruit for my breakfast, along with a couple of 
pieces of toast and a nice, hot, cup of tea. 

So today I'm off for my final swimming time of the week. I listen to audio books while I'm swimming, and my current book's characters are in the middle of a hidden city inside a glacier - very cold and icy. Highly appropriate for a Minnesota winter's day - LOL. I'll be back tomorrow, so have an excellent Thursday. Slava Ukraini. 

Running Late, So Just a Quick Post About the Minnesota Blizzard

Just a really quick post. We got a blizzard yesterday, so the family get-together has been rescheduled for Wednesday instead. We ended up with 6"-7" of snow here at the house, and I just got in from shoveling most of it (DH actually got the snowblower started and did the last third of the driveway for me). We have the third day of our four-day End of the Year Blowout Sale going on today. The roads should all be plowed, and we shouldn't have any access issues, so I'm hoping for good sales today. Saturday was a good day, Friday was a bit slow, but still OK. We have today and tomorrow, and then we're done for the year. 

This could easily be DH - our snowblower is yellow like this, 
and he often wears a red parka (although he's usually wearing 
a blue one when he's working on the roof or snowblowing). We 
were clearing just about that much snow away this morning 
from yesterday's blizzard that dumped 6"-8" over the Metro 
area. 

I hope all of you are safe, sound, bundled up (if appropriate for your weather and temperatures) and able to spend some time with friends and/or loved ones over this holiday season. I'll be back tomorrow, but I've got to get going. Shoveling the driveway took a serious chunk of time (before DH finally came out and snowblowed the final 1/3 which included the plow scree, so I was happy for the mechanical assistance). Enjoy your Monday. Slava Ukraini. 

Yesterday Was a LOT of Work, But Now Our Gutters Are Ice-Free

Good Monday and Happy December to all of you. I'm cold, I'm tired, and I'm already OVER Christmas, even though it hasn't arrived yet. DH is already awake, about an hour early, I was too cold to run on the treadmill this morning, so I'm without exercise until tomorrow's swim, and I have a day of working with DH without a Chickie buffer. So far, the day truly sucks. 

I'm SO over the holiday season already, and it's 
only December 1st. ARGH! I'll be counting 
down the days until Christmas when we'll actually 
have a day off again. From this point on, we're even 
open on Sundays for limited hours. 

We spent a lot of time yesterday melting and breaking the ice and leaves out of the front gutters of the house. They should have been cleaned out no later than last week, but he didn't have the energy. So he paid for it yesterday when we had our first truly cold day, with a snowfall of more than an inch, and some nasty winds. The gutters, which he had hoped to clear out fairly easily, were frozen solid. That meant I was on stove duty, boiling water in the kettle and one pot, which I then would bring out to him as he was perched on the ladder. It took well over an hour, but he finally did get the gutters he needed cleared, so we're now set for the remainder of the winter. 

If we didn't melt the ice buildup in our rain gutters, we would 
end up with ice dams like this one, which would, eventually 
cause flooding in our home. NOT ACCEPTABLE. So, 
DH was on a ladder doing what he should have done a week 
ago in much warmer temperatures - clearing the fallen leaves 
and other debris from the gutters so that we don't have ice 
problems. 

I finally, after more than a year, had a chance to try out my automatic snow shovel. It's basically a snow blower in miniature. It actually works fairly well, although it's only tossing the snow ahead of it. I'm bringing it over to the shop. I think I'll have more use for it there. I'll have to get everything shoveled from the front of the store when I get in today, so it might be put into use immediately. I have a lot of older customers, and I don't want them breaking their legs by slipping on ice. 

I have a mini snow blower shovel very similar to this one 
that I purchased last year. I didn't use it at all (cancer 
took control of last winter), but I plan on using it this 
winter at the shop. It won't do everything, but it should 
be quite helpful. 

Adding to everything else, it's really cold today - not sub-zero, but single digits. A bit over two weeks ago, we were in the garden and only one week ago or so, we were raking the last of the leaves and putting everything away in the shed. Winter had no intention of waiting around this year. She's come, and she's going to stay a while (rather like an uninvited house guest - LOL). So, I'm going to wrap this up, grab some breakfast, and head over to the shop. I don't like being rushed when I have to clear snow before I open. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Winter Will Arrive Today in Style *sigh*

We're under a Winter Storm Watch for the next 24-48 hours. Of course, my luck, those are also pool days, so if it does snow overnight, I'll have to shovel before I leave for the YMCA. Just one more thing on my possibilities list - do this, do that, do the other thing. And, of course, into the mix comes DH and his very uncertain and volatile temper these days. We're both under a lot of pressure. I internalize it, he strikes out verbally. I'm tired of being yelled at for something I didn't do. 

I don't think we've seen a single flake of snow in the Twin 
Cities yet, but we're solidly in the red for a Blizzard Warning 
for the day and into the night. *sigh* Nothing like having 
Winter arrive with a fist of fury. 

The latest is my oldest niece. I had spoken to her about an idea I had for a Family Trust several months ago, but eventually she had decided the role I had requested for her simply didn't work for her. No problem, I withdrew the offer/request. But DH wants her to be in charge of a different Family Trust, and that one is structured very differently. What she would have to do would be minimal and almost just exist on paper. No real effort on her part. She's still uncertain about accepting the role, however, and DH is blowing up at me for having "ruined" it for him. Well, he'll just have to explain, in detail, what she would be expected to do. The funds are being handled by our brokerage, and hands-on would be minimal at most. 

My oldest niece might not accept the position that DH 
would like her to hold after we're dead, but it's totally 
her choice. I don't think DH has explained her role in 
any depth, and it really isn't much. Just overseeing things 
to make sure things are above board and the investment 
firm isn't siphoning off funds under the table. 

But DH got home late last night, and blew up at me for "ruining things with" my niece. Of course, he stayed late at the shop working, and didn't get home until I was ready to go to sleep. Then he wants to "talk" to me about it, which means "yell" at me about it, and I simply said "No. I'm going to sleep. I have to wake up in six hours to get to the YMCA for swimming. I'm not discussing anything right now." And I turned around and did exactly that. He'll be fuming today, I'm sure. It should be an "interesting" day at the shop. 

Catie's Mom had turned down the position of administrator 
for her Dad's estate, tossing that job to DH instead. In fact, 
I don't recall having see my sister-in-law even pass in my 
Father-in-Law's house after he passed. There were a lot of 
bad memories, I guess. Maybe my niece thinks it might be 
somewhat horrid. I suspect it will be rather boring. 

Plus, when we add in the possibility of some potentially serious snow ... well, things are very interesting right now - LOL. Personally ... I really don't like living in "interesting" times. I'm hoping you have a really uninteresting day ahead of you. Interesting is highly overrated. LOL I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

LJ Idol, Bags and Winter is Coming

A bit of a rushed post today because it's a swimming day and I actually slept until my 3:00 am alarm went off. Thanks to all of your votes, I survived last week's Idol challenge and move on to Week 12. I think this is the longest I've survived in this writing competition, and I'm thrilled. The theme this time is "From the Wreckage" - appropriate since our Guru and Moderator lives in Florida. 

I don't think I've ever survived to Week 12 in LJ Idol 
before this time and I thank each and every one of 
you who have voted for my stories. This week's story 
is due in two days, so I'd better get thinking and writing. LOL

I'm heading to the pool in about 20 minutes, so this post will be "compact" LOL. It's been a bit crazy at the shop - either feast or famine. I need more "feast" days and less of the "famine" days. Yesterday was a total famine day, starting out with a street person buying a single long leather lace to redo his shoelaces. Apparently he suffered from narcolepsy, because he had a couple of episodes while he was in the shop chair changing his lace and getting things cut correctly for the pair. He was well spoken and quite nice, but I imagine his illness made him completely unemployable. He lives on the streets, it was easy to tell, but he was bundled up appropriately for the much colder weather we are having right now, and for the winter upcoming. I wish him well on his journeys. 

I'd never met someone suffering from 
narcolepsy before. It was rather 
eye-opening and a bit shocking. I 
really felt for the guy because the 
impact on his life must be horrible. 

I offered to buy him a cup of coffee, but he turned me down with thanks and headed on his way. I did have one of my regular customers in later, but it was a really slow day. Maybe just because it's a Monday, maybe because people are apprehensive about their futures until after the election. Maybe a lot of things, but the result was a really poor day of sales. 

My paper bags are packaged and wrapped 
into "sleeves" with two sleeves per 
box. Usually they just pull out the excess, 
this time they didn't, and I had a 
new salesperson. So I suspect I got 
and was charged for two times what 
I needed and ordered. The excess is 
being returned for credit this morning. 

So I'm off to the pool to work off some of my frustration. I'll have to make a detour on my way to work and drop off a bundle of paper bags I purchased yesterday (and get a refund for them). I ordered one sleeve of bags, but they gave me a box which has two sleeves. I don't need that many bags, and can't afford them either. So, one sleeve is going to be returned today. 

Without a doubt, winter is coming to the Frozen 
Northlands. We escaped winter last year - it was 
highly unusual and exceptionally warm without 
snow. We won't get that lucky a second time 
in a row. 

That's all from St Paul. Our temperatures are dropping, and I suspect I won't have a wonderful winter like last one's. This year I'll be doing a lot of snow shoveling to get to the gym. Last year's winter was a joke. This year ... well, let's just say that winter will return from its' vacation ready and willing to give us lots of snow once again. The vacation was very nice, but I think it'll be good to have a real winter also, even though it's a ton of work for DH pulling snow down from the roof so that we don't leak in the house. Have an excellent Tuesday, I'm off to the pool. Slava Ukraini. 

Another Week Gone - Another Week Ahead

So it's Saturday once again. We should have reasonable weather today - good enough for DH to get some garden time in. Yesterday was rain, and tomorrow is supposed to be rain again. The flowers are thrilled, but DH wants to be outdoors in his garden puttering around. Rain doesn't suit his plans at all. 

This is about right - we had a snowflake this winter - but 
hardly our usual of shoveling almost daily and building 
a snow wall at the shop that's more than 3 feet tall. Winter 
forgot the Frozen Northlands this year - I'm just fine with that! 

When I look back on this "Winter That Winter Forgot", I'm amazed. I had to clear snow off my car two times, and only one of those times was it a major clear. I shoveled at the store three or four times, but that's only because I like bare concrete for the walkway, so I'll shovel even with 1/2" of snow. We shoveled the driveway either 2 or 3 times, and DH cleared the roof twice. This WASN'T a Winter at ALL! This was a small blip on the weather radar, a stutter step between Fall and Spring. 

This year's Winter was a blip on the radar. It barely showed 
up at all. I know people who were very disappointed about 
that - no snowmobiling, no outdoor skating, no cross-country 
skiing ... I say "Bah". It was wonderful to have one winter 
without the interminable white scenery, the cold frozen ice 
against your skin, and the endless chores required by 
snow removal. Global warming? Maybe. Bring it on! 

I haven't seen any hummingbirds yet, although I did start putting my feeder out almost two weeks ago. They usually won't come around until there are leaves on the trees, but those are also coming in now. The trees are starting to wear their Spring raiment - so gorgeous. That shade of yellow-green that I totally adore, before the darker green of Summer and the bronzed green of Autumn. Spring is my favorite time of the year - new flowers, new birds, new animals, new hope. 

Stuffed peppers are such an easy thing to make. I use my 
rice substitute, lots of wonderful spices, good quality ground 
beef, and I love using the colorful peppers. They're not a lot 
of work, and they're so very tasty. 

I decided on stuffed peppers for yesterday's cook. I'm stocked for the next week's meals now, and they're absolutely awesome. I added a small bit of my dried crushed Jalapeno peppers from last year's garden. It really spiced it up! I also added the last bit of the dried and crushed tomatoes that I had made from last year's crop. It's a very tasty filling this time, although the peppers definitely carry some heat. On that note, I'm signing off for a weekend. Today I work, tomorrow I clean the kitchen/breakfast nook. It's getting on my nerves - too crowded with old mail - LOL. Enjoy your weekend. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל. 

Ready For a Late Winter? It's Here!

Until just a few days ago, we had been experiencing a winter of no snow. It was astonishing and quite fun. The fun is now over, and early Spring is giving us what Winter refused to - snow, and a lot of it. Of course the worst part of Spring snow is the humidity factor - it's wet and heavy snow, not lightweight flakes floating down. Instead of drifting on the breeze, it's pelting the streets, cars and houses. 

Wet heavy snow is great for sledding, cross country skiing, and 
building snowmen. It's crappy for driving and clearing the snow 
from walkways and driveways. We're going to get a wet, heavy 
snowfall of up to fifteen inches starting around noon on 
Sunday and continuing through Monday. Ick! 

I went outside to shovel the driveway clear around 8:30 or so in the morning, and was a bit shocked. I had come in from the movies Thursday night, parked the car in the garage, and went to sleep. When I entered the garage in the morning to grab my shovel and take care of the snow, there were two four-foot long 1x6 boards lying across my car, just missing my windshield. Too weird! I know we have squirrels in the garage, but these would have been a bit heavy for squirrel power. All I can figure is that we might have a raccoon in the garage. That would be a large enough animal to push the wood off the beams. DH stores his extra smaller wood pieces up above, leaving the wall space for the sheet lumber. I'm grateful Minion is unharmed, but a bit concerned about possibly sharing my garage with a larger animal. 

The refrigerator door has five containers 
of my Ogre Juice for the next week. I rely 
on it to get nutrients I wouldn't get 
otherwise, and it's an easy lunch to have 
at the shop. Very green - LOL. 

But I got the car unlumbered and the driveway shoveled, and headed to the grocery store to get veggies for my week's Ogre Juice batch, and my salmon for dinner. Then I came home and cooked - a lot. As you can see in the photos. The upper photo is my week's ration of Ogre Juice. That usually will take me an hour from start to finish (initially, when starting WildFit, it would take 2-4 hours for this - a good blender and lots of experience sure helps cut that time down). 

Here, taking space in what had been empty 
shelves, are my cooked fruit, butternut 
squash, roasted carrots and in the white 
containers, eight individually packed stuffed 
"mini" peppers. I'll be eating good over this 
next week! The white, wrapped pack at the 
bottom is my fresh salmon for last night's 
dinner. Now all I need to do is reheat things, 
if needed, and add my salad. I'm set for the week 
ahead. 

The second photo, of "my side" of the refrigerator shows eight containers of roasted butternut squash, four containers of roasted mini carrots (so good!), eight containers of cooked pears and apples with cranberries and crushed nuts, and my package of salmon at the bottom, waiting for later in the day to be baked and broiled. The white containers holding stuffed peppers were cooked on Wednesday. 

We already got a couple of inches from the first bits 
of the storm, but we're going to get hit on Sunday with 
up to 15 inches in that 24 hour period. In the photo, we're
right where the 20"+ is located - LOL. Getting to work 
on Monday might be interesting, and I'll actually have 
to shovel out the store for the first time this year. Uck! 

We're supposed to get a LOT of snow starting on Sunday and continuing on into Monday. I'll need food for all of that shoveling. DH wants take-out for his Sunday, but I'll make a final decision on that based on the weather and the roads. I wouldn't mind a meal of Moo Shu pork from our local Chinese restaurant. We'll see what the weather brings - we might be getting our entire winter's snowfall in a single large storm. Have an excellent weekend and I'll be back on Monday. Be kind, enjoy life, Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.

A Tale of Snow, Winter, Spring and Life Lessons

It actually snowed last night! Our ground looks white. The roads look fine, I think it melted on contact with the roadways, but there are probably a few icy patches so I'll be cautious when driving. I'm going to leave tire tracks on my driveway - DH "gave me permission" to leave "bunny tracks" in the driveway and he'll shovel them up later today. This is a quick storm - in and out and then back to our crazy winter once more. But it's really nice to awaken to the supreme silence that snow can bring. 

There's a silence to snow - it's like Mother Nature took 
her down comforter and pulled it over her head - pushing 
the world and all of its' sounds out and leaving the 
peace of total silence unmarred. 

Have you ever experienced that blanket that Mother Nature places over the world with snow? It dulls sounds, mutes them into the song of the stars so that you can hear and feel the rhythms of the cosmos much easier. It pulls color away and shows the world in shades of grey - brown-grey, black-grey, and all shades in between. The colors of Winter are unlike any colors for any other season. Every color in the neutral spectrum is contained within a 24-hour after a deep snow. 

There's something very restful about the neutral 
colors of Winter after the color riots of the 
other three seasons. It allows the palette to 
delve deeper into thought, and the body to reset 
for the challenges that lie ahead. We haven't had 
much of a winter up here in the Frozen Northlands 
this year, so having these few inches of snow 
is a relief. (We should normally have had 35-40 inches 
of snow so far this year, and we've had NONE 
until yesterday). 

This, isn't a "deep snow", this is only a few inches, and it's not sticking to the roadways at all, just the lawns and driveways of the houses fronting the roads. This is a baby snow - but it's a welcome one. It's on the far side of Winter, and will soon be gone, but it served to remind us that this year has been an anomaly - that rare thing in the Frozen Northlands. We've had an almost snow-free winter, and that's as rare as hen's teeth - in other words, it really doesn't happen. 

Winters up here without snow are as rare as hen's 
teeth, and this year was turning into one of the driest 
winters of our history. I'm grateful to see a few inches 
of snow on the ground. We desperately need the moisture. 
But, if we dive into a deep freeze, we'll lose trees and 
other plants that have sprouted early, and some of the 
animals are also ahead of schedule with their young. 

Our plants will be happy for the moisture that a snow brings, but our trees and plants will be confused. We've had a rare Green Winter, and many of them have already formed buds. If we get a truly deep freeze, it will be very hard on the trees. But I think we'll be all right. We're actually heading into the time of year when we usually see the most snow. But this crazy winter ... well, who can tell? We'll just take it as we take life - one day at a time. I'm off to the pool, have a wonderful Thursday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.

Starting Out In A Rush - Not All Days are Smooth as Silk

Today actually didn't start out badly. I awakened 10 minutes before my alarm went off, and had a lovely meditation. But after I was finished with that and thought about the day ahead, I realized that I was behind schedule a bit. Things I usually do the night before for a swimming day ahead, didn't get done last night. Add in the fact that it's a "day off" and a "laundry day" and a day of errands, and I'm only grateful that this is the Winter That Missed Minnesota. I won't have to deal with shoveling the driveway or any extreme snow or ice conditions getting to the gym in a half-hour. I can be grateful for that. 

I feel quite fortunate this year. So far we haven't had any 
extreme weather conditions. If we avoid serious thunderstorms 
and tornadoes this summer, I'll consider this a weather year 
of fabulous weather. I'm really liking this winter - the winter 
of no snow. My trees are already budding, so if we have a 
deep frost in a month or so, we'll have some serious issues. 

I'm trying to think of what I want to make for my meals for the rest of the week. I really don't have to worry about that until Friday, I always do chicken on Wednesday, which gives me two meals. However, I'm usually ahead in thinking about stuff like this, and I'm totally NOT ... ahead, I mean. 

Tonight is a chicken night, that will give me my 
dinners for tonight and tomorrow. I can worry 
about the rest of my food on Friday, if necessary. 

No, I'm running a bit behind, today. That might cause problems. But I'll have a chance to breathe at some point today. And I'll settle on what I need at the grocery store after I return from the gym and have my breakfast. I have time. I have time to breathe, I have time to write my daily blog to myself (and any readers), and I'll figure the day out as I go, I guess. Not everything can be planned, nor should it be. 

There are some times when I have total brain fog. 
I can't afford the luxury of this often, so I need to 
chase the fog away with the sun of exercise. Off 
to the pool! 

So, I'm heading to the swimming pool, and I'll work a bit of this fog and frustration out of me in the water. That's one of the most wonderful things about my swimming mornings. I get to listen to my next book, and I get to work out some of my frustrations in the way I prefer - in the water. I consider myself to be a very fortunate person, most of the time. So I'll focus on the positives today and push the negatives into my mental "dust bin", at least for the time being. Have a wonderful Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.

Blessed Solstice to All and a Blizzard Awaits

Good Solstice to all of my readers this day. If you're one of my friends in the Southern Hemisphere, you're celebrating your Summer Solstice. If you're like I am, stuck tightly in the grip of Winter, it's the Winter Solstice. Either way, the sun will begin it's return journey today and the seasons will progress in their dance of days. The nights will begin to shorten/lengthen, and we will move onward in our cosmic dance. 

Good Solstice to all on this winter's day in the 
Northern Hemisphere. Enjoy your summer, those 
of you in the Southern climes. 

Additional cards have arrived to brighten my day. A lovely hand-painted card from SeaIvy, a beautifully handcrafted card from my long-time friend "Poo" (aka Pam), and yes, cmcmck, I also got your absolutely stunning owl card yesterday. My mantle is looking quite festive and lovely and I'm looking forward to my three days off at the end of the week. 

I did a lovely meditation this morning for the solstice, 
with one of my favorite teachers - Keziah Gibbons. She 
lives in the southern hemisphere, so it was a summer 
solstice meditation, but more than that, it was a Solstice 
meditation, and equally balanced between Summer 
and Winter. 

Of course, that means I have to work today because Chickie and Chickie Mama have to return to the Mayo Clinic for another test today. Yesterday's drive was fraught with danger and lots of glare ice making for a gnarly drive there and back. Today's - with the snows and possible blizzard conditions that will be hitting us beginning at 9:00 am and continuing throughout the day (with sub-zero F temperatures and higher winds creating blizzard conditions) might be even worse. I asked why they just didn't stay in a hotel overnight and the response was that Claire was afraid her cat might get into mischief. ARGH!!! Sometimes this highly intelligent woman just doesn't use her brain. Today's drive will be horrific for them. 

Mayo Clinic in Rochester is a HUGE complex of 
15 hospitals and countless other health-related 
clinics and outbuildings. It's a great thing to have 
something like that so close, but I'm really hoping 
I'll never need to take advantage of that proximity. 

So, send positive thoughts out to Chickie who will be driving her Mama to her MRI today through the blizzard and back. It shouldn't have been necessary to take that trip twice in two days over the solstice and through the snows of winter. 

We're full on in Capricorn right now - DH's 
astrological sign. If you ever need to wonder why 
we butt heads all the time, he's a goat, I'm a bull. 
Horns do get into play. 

Blessed Solstice to all, I'll be back tomorrow. I have to get going - I'll need to do my grocery shop first thing in the morning today, and take everything to the shop with me for the day. I can leave the frozen goods in the car - it will barely get above zero for our temps today. I can take the few refrigerator items into the shop and keep them in that refrigerator for the day (there's no room in that old refrigerator's freezer - it needs defrosting and I hate doing that). I'm thinking positive thoughts for all of you who might be affected to day's huge storm system. Slava Ukraini and again, Good Solstice. 

Snow and Seven Degrees of Separation - A Fun Tidbit to Share

DH worked very hard yesterday shoveling the driveway again after I had already headed to work (I shoveled it completely before leaving for the gym several hours earlier, but it was snowing consistently, so needed another pass). He then tackled the roof and got the snow down from it. 

DH worked hard on the roof after I had gone to the 
shop. We need to keep the snow off the roof as much 
as possible or we get leaks in the attic which is a 
VERY bad thing. DH has it down to a science, but 
it's hard work for a man approaching 70 years of age. 

I had shoveled the driveway before leaving for the swimming pool, and then, when I got to the store, I shoveled and salted over there. Fortunately our temps stayed barely above freezing all day, so I only had to shovel the one time and the walkways were still clear when I left at night. DH, on the other hand, had to shovel the driveway at home one more time before I got home. I suspect we got some snow and some blowing snow overnight, so I'll probably start my own day by shoveling the driveway yet again - LOL. 

Yesterday's snow was a beautiful snow, with 
enough moisture to coat each individual branch 
on the trees. Here's my chestnut maple from my 
front yard, all dressed in winter finery. So pretty! 

It's the routine for winter in the Frozen Northlands, and part of my exercise routine, to be honest. I get a lot of excellent cardio working on the driveway and walks. I don't, however, do the roof - EVER. That's DH's job and he does it well. I know some people use cables to melt the ice/snow buildup, and in some cases they work well. But we've found that pulling the snow off the roof is really the only thing that works in our house to eliminate roof leaks during the cold months. Maybe a teepee would be easier - LOL. 

Tipis (or teepees) are remarkably comfortable dwellings 
that are quite portable. For someone experienced, they 
can be erected within a half-hour, and if the inside is 
correctly hung, it's snug and dry. Putting snow around the 
exterior helps insulate against the cold, and a small fire 
can easily heat the interior to a comfortable temperature. 

At the shop, our clients are shifting from those making gifts for the holidays to those wanting to purchase items already made. Selling jewelry, pottery, katchinas and paintings always makes me happy. They go to good homes, and we get dollar amounts that would take a LOT of beads to match. My long-time friend and customer dropped by yesterday to pick up beads for her relative in Israel where she will be heading next week. It was wonderful to catch up with her. She's also on WildFit - a fact that we only found out when seeing each other in one of the Zoom calls held earlier in the year. She's actually met the founder of WildFit - her granddaughter is "best friends" with Eric's young daughter in the Dominican Republic. What a hoot! There's my five steps from fame for WildFit and I just love it. 

Apparently my long-time customer and 
friend Ellen Sue's daughter has a time 
share condo in the Dominican Republic, 
where her daughter became firm friends 
with Eric Edmeades' young daughter 
Zoe. The two girls were joined at the hip, 
so Ellen Sue had an opportunity to meet 
Eric over dinner one night while the girls 
were together playing. What a wonderful 
thing for her, and of course, the girls were 
just happy to be together. 

So, today I'll be baking a new type of gluten-free brownies, grocery shopping, and doing general stuff around the house. Next week I only get Friday off, and the week after, I actually don't get ANY days off  since we're holding our End of the Year 4-Day Sale on the 27th-30th. (Sorry Aearwen - I didn't think about that when we were talking on Wednesday. It looks like the 23rd will be our final conversation of the year)! On that note, I'm out of here. Have a fabulous Friday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

It's a Very Busy "Day Off" and Computer Repairs are Added To the Mix

Today I take my main computer up to Dale, let him work on it, and when he contacts me, I'll drive back up to him again to pick it up and pay him money. *sigh* It'll be worth it to get a repaired computer. I desperately need files that are on it and that I can't access directly through the laptop. All of the cables are labelled and removed, and the big box is sitting next to my study door, waiting until I get back from the pool before I put it into the car. 

Dale looks nothing like this. He's a large man, very tall, 
with hippie hair and bare feet (in any weather - his feet 
are always warm where mine are always cold). He's become 
a good friend over the years and is another person who 
saves my holiday cards. 

We're barely above freezing, but we are. So I'm hopeful the roads won't be sheets of ice today as I drive to the pool. Of all the weather aspects of our winters up here, serious ice is my LEAST favorite road condition. I don't handle ice well. To be honest, I think MOST people don't handle ice well. But I've got a good start on a very busy day with my first load of laundry already washing, my laptop ready to post today's daily post, and just enough time to deal with it in 33 F temperatures. That's very borderline, though, so I'll have to be cautious. No broken legs today! 

We don't get as much ice to deal with up here 
as we do snow, but when we get ice, it's a 
miserable experience. I park in a part of the 
YMCA parking lot that will allow me to have 
a level walk to the door. I got tired of 
dealing with ice when  parked next to 
Rosemary down the northern slope of the lot. 

I might buy myself a Holiday Gift of an online course in reading Egyptian hieroglyphics. It's put on by a professor at Penn U. It's NOT inexpensive, but if I pay in three installments, I can easily cover the cost, and since it's online, it's available to me whenever I need/want without time constraints. I've been studying hieroglyphics for decades now, but have hit a wall. Maybe this would be what I need to break through it. Merry Christmas to me - LOL. 

I've worked through several books on Egyptian hieroglyphics 
over the years and have always been overwhelmed. Her 
approach is different. Learn by actually reading the carvings, 
not a printed font. See the differences and the weathering and 
see how to recognize what it is you are seeing. Much of it 
are standard phrases, and it would be a delight to be able 
to actually read more and study a bit less. And, more than 
anything, enjoy myself while doing it. 

I got cards yesterday from Iris, a long-time friend in Germany for whom I used to do Beta work on her stories, and from my "sister" and "brother" Starlet and Peter back on Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. It's great to hear from them. The last I heard, Starlet was in the hospital again with an aggravated lung infection and an infection from a non-sterile needle from an IV she received at the hospital in Pine Ridge. Yes - a non-sterile needle at a hospital. That's the state of health care in the Rez, and one more example of the wide gaps between those who have and those who have not. 

There are so many different color palettes for Christmas. I've 
probably used them all at one time or another. The lovely 
think about getting holiday cards and putting them on display, 
is the total randomness of the colors and images, that still 
manage to work together for a harmonious whole. Rather 
like people at a gathering, working together for joy. 

It was lovely to hear from both of them, however. Their cards have joined the others on my mantlepiece and look beautiful hanging there. Small bits of color against the white marble and darker wood above. There's something so wonderful about holiday cards. 

When I look through photos on Google, I see a lot of 
"cards hanging from a mantle" photos like this one. 
But, this is a TINY fireplace, compared with my full 
wall, and I don't use a string - I just attach the cards 
directly to the marble mantlepiece. By the time 
Christmas comes, I usually have a lovely display of 
cheery cards to look upon. 

So, since I'm in a rush today and will have a schedule filled with errands (and interruptions to drive 1/2 hour north for computer work two times), I'm cutting this off here today. I'm going to find some photos, get it formatted, and post. I hope all of you have an excellent Wednesday. Slava Ukraini.