Walking in a Winter Wonder-island

Although Christmas has long gone, it is still very much winter here on the island. We've had some blizzards and some snow days as well as quite a few winter weather advisories. And boy is it cold! But the snow makes everything just pretty and white! And it promotes thoughts of Christmas songs in my head. Why the other day I was singing Deck the Halls! But of course, with the snow comes the slush and the pains of getting around at times. Parking lots shrink because there are mounds of snow parked in them; driveways get narrow because the snow piles accumulate there; and salt and snow sneak into your house by silently hitching a ride on the soles of your boots. And the melting snow re-freezing into slabs of ice hidden under a coat of fresh fallen snow makes for some real slippery paths when walking. But still, I enjoy how the trees get coated with white and how fresh fallen snow reminds me of powdered sugar on beignets and cakes. Somehow I find little joys that at least make me appreciate the winter, even as I dream of flip flops and sunbathing on a beach somewhere warm; and SNOW is the key to keeping the smile on my face. :D

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Successful Summer

I know that's a funny title for a blog entry, but seriously, I had a successful summer. Now what constitutes a successful summer? I think a successful summer is enjoying the weather, having fun, and accomplishing what goals one needs to in the 3 months before school starts (obviously the school starts bit doesn't apply to those who are not in school). But I'm sure we all have goals we want to accomplish over the summer months. What were my goals aside from enjoying the summer, which might for all intents and purposes might be my last "relaxing" summer for a long time? Studying for comprehensive examinations. I didn't study as hard as I had intended, but I did study. And anxiety rose as the day of the exam drew near. Of course the actual date of the examination was at the very end of my summer so I didn't have much time to just relax. But in any event, I took my exam on August 20th and found out my results a week later. While my results were highly satisfac
Read more

A Happy Ending for the Dog Drama

Yes, I can say that it is a happy ending. What a difference a day can make! Yesterday I was incredibly sad at the prospect of not seeing my cute dog ever again. My blog posting yesterday might have provided enough evidence of my sadness. But today I am elated because we have found him and he is at home with us again! Where was he found? Someone finally called us to say they had our dog. He was in someone's yard in our neighborhood - maybe about 8 or 9 blocks away. I wasn't there to receive the call but someone else in my family was. When they went to pick up Snoopy and inquire as to where he was when they found him, they were simply told that he was sitting outside their fence and so they brought him inside. My sister-in-law told me she was inclined to think that they wanted to keep him but may have either listened to their conscience or seen the flyer that I had posted at the grocery store less than a block away from the house where Snoopy was found. Either way, I am just than
Read more

Reunion in Jo'burg

Image
On my return from the conference in Durban, I was fortunate enough to spend a few days with my childhood best friend. It was amazing to be able to meet her again some twenty years later. We had spent time catching up and also attended her daughters' cross-country event. We also had dinner at this African-themed restaurant (where else would we eat when in South Africa?) called Moyo's. This picture is of us after getting our face painted. :) For dinner I had springbok, and also managed to taste a bit of ostrich. Very interesting, and pretty good - both of them, I'd say. :) The next night I actually met up with some other people that I had not seen in twenty-one years. It was just amazing to see us all grown up (the kids), and the adults were somewhat the same, except for a bit of age of course. So I managed to have this big old reunion in Johannesburg. Oh, and we unknowingly drove by Nelson Mandela's house in Jo'burg, only having realized it as we drove past wondering
Read more