Let It Snow!

It snowed yesterday. I took the wife to work and put snow tires on her car...but I also had the camera with me...

The snow makes a very nice photographic back drop.

But the clouds did a good job, too.

Below you see our wonderful car...err, Cora's wonderful car which I sometimes get to drive. Doesn't it look fast sitting still?

Here is a local landmark. There is a winery that uses this as a trademark of sorts...ok, it is the Piety Flats Winery...I love their wine. If you are ever in the area, stop by and try their wines...they are simply...well...good.

I had a pretty good day. I felt better today than I have in a few. My cold may be losing ground...at least, I hope. Since I felt better, I cleaned. I did dishes and all manner of things since I am not working this week...its the least I can do.

I made dinner and was waiting for Cora to come home! Could not wait. Amazing how boring it gets when you don't have a job to go to. I went to the local store to get some rice and as I was walking down the isle I heard a noise and a case of beer jumped into my arms. Well, it was SOOO friendly, I decided I could not just leave it there. I had to bring it home with me. It is now sitting calmly in an ice chest just outside the back door. Everyone is happy!

This evening it began to snow. I was sort of happy about that. Then it began to REALLY snow. Then Cora got happy, well, it pleased her that it was snowing. We both stepped out and enjoyed the atmospheric phenomena. Here, you can see me enjoying the snow. Yes, I am not wearing shoes.

See, Cora is smiling, too!

The snow inspired her to work!

She shoveled the walk!

She's crazy efficient when it's snowing! And yes, she's in her PJs...and a coat...and a hat. you'd think she was cold or something. Me, on the other hand, well, you'll notice that I am very brave and warm blooded and strong. That picture of me, above, almost looks like I have a little of the Captain in me...

Some of those foot prints are bare, you'll note.

She Wore a Two Hour Delay

OK, Prince didn't sing THAT, but it works. There are no raspberry berets to be seen today. But there IS a two hour delay! As you can see I have been busy shoveling and sweeping!

You will note the absence of Cora's car...REAL JOBS don't have two hour delays...or snow days for that matter. On the other hand, I actually enjoy going to work (sometimes, I regret getting there, but there are few days like that). I made sure her car was free of snow and ready to go...although, I forgot to start it up for her.

You might be interested to know she made it and that the roads between here and her job were fine, they only got bad in the towns.

In taking the above photos, I just missed the quail...I put seed out for the birds and there was a covey of quail enjoying my generosity when I rudely stepped out the door and interrupted their breakfast.

OH, Regis and Kelly just came on and Anderson Cooper is in for Regis--why in the world would you ever give your kid a last name for a first name? Can you imagine the confusion experienced by teachers when he was growing up? I imagine him being called Cooper as a first name and also being called Mr. Anderson...

I wonder if he hates his parents. I think I have it bad with my name, but jeez, I wouldn't blame him for smacking his parents on his birthday every year. "Thanks for the stupid name, Mom!," SMACK! "Dad, next time you name a kid, call him Bill or John, or, for crying-out-loud, even Sue!" SMACK, KICK!

Ok, then, I will leave you to ponder that.

Snow

There is something to be said about having your own photographer...Cora can take a good picture when she wants!

Here is a self portrait.

And one of Cora explaining that she was NOT up to a walk in the snow.

Oh, the weather outside is frightful!

but the snowflakes are SOOOOO delightful...

and the car looks good under Sno-ow! And since we've no place to go...let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Ah, Winter...And a Blah Blog

So, today we had Snow again...

I am not sure I welcomed it as much as I did back in December. Oh, well..what did that Groundhog say?

I finished my book today. Several weeks ago, we were in the 3cities and I convinced Cora to let me buy a book. I bought a book about some of the experimental aircraft of WWII. Considering its technical make-up, I feel pleased that I finished it in that mount of time...also, I usually only devoted a small amount of time to it each day.

I herded cats today. They were a bouncy bunch of kinders...I survived, though, and THAT is the important thing! I also have jobs for the rest of the week, in fact, my week was filled on Sunday. and with the number of requests I got, I could hve filled it again! I am fairly popular, and yet, I don't understand it...Oh, well.

I got some Kitty Hwk stuff I bought on E-bay today. A patch and a souvenir coin, they should go well with my photos and my cruise book.

Hmm, intermediate kids tomorrow...

Friday and the FFFF

I taught second graders today. Everyone kept saying, "Oooh, I don't envy you." or "Ouch, she got a doozy class this year." "With So-and-so? Sorry!" Either I have low expectations, or I just managed to get lucky, because I had a good day! There were a few outbursts from student X, but those were relatively easily handled. I was happily surprised.

Tonight, I am about to watch Battle Star Galactica. It is a series I have been watching faithfully for the past few years, and I was very unhappy to see it is ending. Still, it seems better and has been longer run (In years, if not epiodes) than the original series.

Tomorrow, my favorite niece's birthday. It is hard to believe that FIVE years ago she burst onto the scene on the date I predicted. January 17, 2004. And she was a SHE! I predicted that too! I am looking forward to seeing her tororrow. She is such a cutie and she has grown up so fast!

We might drive down to the 3cities and have a nice dinner and do some shopping afterward. Who knows.

Oh, and the Snow for the FFFF...Diana has a wicked sense of humor...since we have NONE! These are from December...

Spoiler (maybe):

Uh-oh...Thrace! Ok...now I am fracking confused...is it Helen? Is is the entire Human Race? Glad they have made it so easy to follow by keeping the series episodes so fracking close together...is it too much to ask for them to have more than three episodes per year?

Nature's New Fashion Statement

This is the front yard this morning, about 730am

Apparently, white is the new earth tone. Everyone is using it to cover those unsightly...everything.

OK, not really, but I thought that sounded less cliche than "winter wonderland," or "white Christmas," which it definitely is and will be, but I feel I need to be more creative and a little less predictable.

We went shopping yesterday for a few necessities and just as we were calling it quits, mother nature decided to drop some snow on our heads. We obligingly stayed home after that. I smoked my cheese...does that sound middle school of me? Like cutting the cheese, except more "sophisticated" somehow? "Well, it was fine in here, until Jim Smoked the Cheese, then everyone started gagging and choking." Hmmm, yeah, I think that could be a new phrase for fart...somehow it gives a slight hint to the aroma one might expect from a fart thus described. "A burnt cheese smell hung in the air, as though someone had smoked the cheese moments earlier." yeah, very descriptive... OK, how did I get on the subject of gas exchange?

This is the front yard lst night bout 730pm

I began by talking about the snow, which appears to be about five or six inches deep out there now, but, since I just got up and am bare...foot, I don't plan on testing it anytime soon.

The other day I got home and saw the quail leave the front of the house. We have quail(California Quail, Callipepla californica) , by the way, that hang around the houses with bird seed. We don't usually have seed, since we don't have a decent tree to put a bird feeder in, but quail are ground birds and so I went in the house and found some seed from when we were in California and spread it on the ground...wow, you would have thought I had given them a new lease on life..which is possible given the temperatures lately. They scratch around just like chickens. I had no idea. They are neat little birds. I have some video, too.

We bought LED lights for the tree this year, since they are supposed to last some 10,000 hours and be more efficient. I opened a box the other day and only half of the damned string lit up. Then last night one of the strings on our tree suddenly and without any visible cause blinked a few times and went out. I am more than a little miffed. They cost a little more than the regular lights and, one would assume, with the billing they have received from the press, they would be better...not so.

I Am An Awesome Dodgeball Player!

I mean it. I totally kicked ass. I was catching the balls, and I was taking the opposing team out like pathetic little bowling pins. You should have seen some of them just tip over! Ahh, it was spectacular! I could totally go to a national competition.

I taught PE today. At one of the elementaries. I taught Kindergarten through Third grade today. Mostly they took care of themselves when I told them what to do.

About 1:00 pm, I was asked to take care of two classes at once, since the PE teacher had gotten it easy during the week when the classes went to practice their Christmas Carols for the Assembly with the Music Teacher. There were really too many kids to do what we had been doing, so I decided dodgeball was called for. I have a very bad habit of joining them when there is dodgeball in the offing.

So, one of the classes was full of second graders, the other was third graders. We had class vs. class, but the girls really wanted to kick the boys' butt. So, when I suggested that, they all screamed, "YEAH!!!!!" I said ok, and let them go at it. All this time I was aching to get in on the action. There was some cheating on both sides...but the girls were not catching very many balls, so fewer of them were returning to the game. I decided I should help. I picked up a few balls and entered the game, yelling to tell everyone. This brought cheers from both sides.

My volleys slammed into boys!! A couple were knocked over in slow motion, complete with the sound effects. I knocked one of the opposing team's bowling pins over (knock 'em all over and the game is done). I decided to bring some more girls into the action and reached out to catch a ball...and it bounced off my fingers. DAMN.

It didn't take long for me to figure out another way into the game. I finally got warmed up and was catching balls and knocking out players. Then the girls' last pin got knocked over. So, we decided another game was in order. At the beginning of that one, one of my balls knocked down two kids! HA!! I ROCK!! As long as the opposing team is made up of second and third graders. I could totlly win nationals single handedly!! In the Third grade level.

All in all, it was a good day...except the beginning did make it look like it would be. Just as I was leaving town I turned onto the hi-way, there were no cars coming either direction, and it was at that moment that I witnessed the front of my truck turn right into my lane...and keep going. I calmly let off the gas and turned the wheel appropriately and tapped the brakes. The truck stopped and I gently edged back onto the road. There were no other problems. still, I began to wish I had packed another pair of pants.

This is not really my truck, this is only a picture. If this had really been my truck, it would have been accompanied with sobs and cries of anguish.

I just found this and thought I should place it here for safe keeping!

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Spud Soup

At yesterday's wonderful birthday party, My Father-in-law-in-law (?) gave us some extra potatoes. (Tht IS what you call your sister's in-laws, right?) Fresh from harvest and OH SO PRETTY! I gladly accepted them and put the forty or fifty pounds in our trunk. This morning I scrubbed one up and, OH, what a beautiful spud! It was something like 18 degrees out and there was no promise of the temperature rising, we had some left over ham and some bacon in the fridge...I thought instantly of potato soup. I asked Cora what she thought of it, and she agreed.

the orange things are carrot chunks...

I don't claim that my soup is wonderful, but I will say ANY time you add ham AND bacon to anything (except maybe ice cream), it is bound to be good. Add to that the tempertures outside and you pretty much have a perfect way to spend the day inside.

WE DID venture out and managed to get a little Christmas shopping done, but it was VERY COLD, and we retired only a few hours after we had left the shelter of our home. It was a good thing, too, since it was about then that the snow recommenced falling.