New Year in Newark?

OK, so last night after the fabulous football game, the weather reporters finally decided that it will in fact snow starting sometime after midnight tonight. Instead of the initial inch or two predicted earlier, it was 4-6 inches by 9 am Monday. Then it would be time to 'clean up'. So all the morning flights will be backed up, I'm sure. Including the Brandeis Swim Team's 9 am flight to Puerto Rico...

I got up this morning, and the weather report is now for up to 10 inches, starting after midnight and getting heavy (an inch an hour) after 5 am. Right now, I'm hoping they'll be oh so wrong, and the rain line will move up from the Cape to include Boston...Otherwise, I might be camping at an airport for the festivities. Ah, the joys of traveling in winter. Good thing I've been preparing myself mentally for hassles. Half the trip was easy. It's that second half...

I wonder if they'll have Perfection Patriots shirts at Logan...though I wouldn't want to wear it to New Jersey....

Stay tuned!

Last Days of 2007

Greetings from the home of the bean and the cod...and the Red Sox, Pats, Celtics, Bruins, and BC Eagles! It's been a nice week visiting the family, reading the local papers, and watching local sports, including BC's whatchamacallit bowl game win last night. Tonight, bring on Eli Manning, we'll have him for dessert.

The weather is like what I left in the Northwest, snow, rain, snow and rain, sleet, a sunny day here and there. Ventured out to the new and improved Natick Mall (now the Natick Collection) with more shopping than the Houston Galleria. They even have a Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. The kids needed to return something there and we needed to go by the Mass Pike Service center at that same exit. I hate malls. New and improved ones are the worst. Too big. And WHY were all those people there the day after Christmas with their little kids? There are no malls within 60 miles of my new home. I like that.

One big difference here in Boston, there are LOTS of presidential primary political ads, in the run up to the New Hampshire primary. Mostly Clinton, Edwards, Obama, McCain and Rudy G ads. Oh, and Mitt. Lots of Mitt. Mitt's most played ad was about a guy (I don't think he was from MA) who worked for Mitt. Seems his daughter was missing in NYC. Mitt put all his company resources into sucessfully finding the girl. We know he's a good friend, employer and family man. But it seems Mitt isn't that popular locally. What? The former MA guv not popular? Didn't he reign over a governance miracle in the Bay State? Reducing taxes, fixing health care, walking on water? He touts himself as a turnaround, mr fixit, kind of guy. I've been talking with folks here on the ground. Apparently Mitt loves to reduce taxes, and put the power back on the towns and cities to control their destinies- without the funds to do it. The end result: every fee imaginable in the State of Massachusettes has been raised, with more to come. The Mass Pike tolls and the tunnel tolls are going up again in the new year, so get those transponders now, folks. My own daughter wanted a toll tag for Christmas. It's funny that people are quick to complain when these fees go up, but don't connect the dots. There's no free lunch. The Big Dig cost overruns didn't help state finances either. I still need to find out how the new health plan is working. So before you head to your polling place or caucus, or mail in your ballot for your primary, you might want to check and see what the people in MA really think about the Mittster and think about whether that's what you want for the country. I'm sure he's happy all the focus has been on his Mormon faith rather than on the mess he left behind. Though we probably don't have to worry too much. Political candidates post JFK haven't been treated kindly. And Mitt's no JFK...where have I heard that before....

I'll be back in the Gorge for New Year's, unless I get stranded in Newark. Then I start my learning curve for how to caucus. Something new and different- I've never lived in a caucus state before. Now if only I could figure out who I want to vote for...I've got it narrowed down to three...I don't think that's good enough. It's tough being a Gemini...

What's Cookin'

Sorry I haven't written for a few days. I've been REALLY busy…baking COOKIES. Nothing gets me in the holiday spirit more than baking cookies. First, I put on my favorite CD, The Best Christmas Album in the World (Virgin Records), which I bought years ago in the UK. Ask my kids, it isn't Christmas unless we hear this album, ESPECIALLY disc 1, which starts out with John and Yoko's And so this is Christmas/War is Over. What's not to like about that?

Next, I dust off my folder of cookie recipes, gathered from 6 Christmas Cookie Exchanges in Nigeria (1991-1996). It was nice to live in a place long enough, with people who like to bake. We'd get together for lunch at someone's house, and everyone brought a dozen cookies for each participant. Then you'd take home a dozen different cookies times 8 or 10, or however many friends came for lunch. I have my favorites, which I make every year, and each recipe reminds me of a wonderful woman. Maren is those Hershey Kiss peanut butter blossoms, Jane is Ginger Cookies, Linda and Kim are the chocolate mint cookies with melted Andes chocolates on top. There's also a Rocky Road Bar recipe the kids and I added to the repertoire when we moved to Louisiana in '97. And of course, my Mom's Spritz cookies (I do have a cookie press, gotta have the trees), and Macaroons (off the Baker's Coconut bag) which remind me of Uncle Dick, who made some every Christmas. Some years I add in a not so often made recipe, but the listed ones are the standards. I don't have a cookie exchange these days, so I have to make them all.

I've sent off boxes of cookies to both kids to aid in finals studying. Some will stay here, some will go out as small gifts to neighbors, most of whom I don't know. We always did that in our neighborhood growing up, and I've done it everywhere I've lived, most of the time…

So, Cookies and Tunes. I'm feeling in the spirit!

Further Adventures in Snow

I'm starting to get grief for not posting more regularly from my 4 readers. I'm sorry. But I use the computer downstairs, and it's COLD down here. That's my excuse, or at least the best one I could think of right now.

Been working on some more profound, issues related posts, but they aren't quite ready for prime time. Soon, Susan, I promise.

For now, amuse yourself with this entry about our snow park adventure. See? Another excuse. How can I post when I'm having so much fun outside? Didn't you mothers all tell your kids to get away from the TV/computer and go play OUTSIDE? Just walking the walk here….

Last week we loaded up the new snowshoes, the old XC skiis and boots, and the dog, and drove up the road a piece, past Trout Lake, to the Atkinson Snow Park, which is about as far as the snow plows go. For a mere $31 a season, you can get a parking pass for all the WA snow parks, where you can do any combination of Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, dog mushing, or snowmobiling. A bonus for those of us who live on the state line, they're good at OR snow parks as well. AND they're easy peel off passes so you can use it on multiple cars in your ownership. Pretty cool. But back to my story…

We arrived at the empty lot (it was a week day after all) and found latrines, a warming hut (photo right) and the ungroomed trail. We also found out that dogs are verboten, but no one was there to say anything, and we did take care of 'business'. We strapped on snowshoes for the first time, and headed off down the trail. What great exercise! I clomped along behind Lloyd and Brindle, who finally figured out it was easier to follow his packed down trail than to leap through deep snow on her own. (Boy did she sleep well that night!) A few more regular outings like that, and I'll be in size 10's in now time!

The dog was running out of steam, and enjoying burying her head in the snow to reach the soft, more edible stuff rather than trekking, so we headed back to the car. Time to dust off the old Nordic gear, which has been in storage for about 16 years while we lived in warm places.

The good news was, the old skiis worked okay. The bad news? My hardly used Asolo touring boots succumbed to degenerative glue syndrome. At first I thought the old 3 pin binding broke. I looked down and saw the binding intact, with the toe piece firmly secured in the pins. But the rest of the boot? Divorced from its sole. The only thing keeping the boot anywhere near the ski was the gaiter strap under the boot. VERY funny. Fortunately, we weren't too far from the parking lot, so I turned around and tried to slide/walk back on one ski. Bad idea. The disease was contagious, and boot two separated. I was wishing I had my snowshoes back! Bottom line, we need new Nordic gear. A lot has changed since the 80's with regard to ski equipment, so we have some research to do. Meanwhile, we'll try renting some, and do more snowshoeing! Fine with me!

For My Friends in Warm Places

Today we are savoring a snowy DAY after a snowy NIGHT. Glad we don't have to go anywhere. This is what I woke up seeing this morning. That's right. Open eyes, see this. The birds are having a feast at the feeder. Blue Jays, chickadees, sparrows, juncos, Eat At DK's neon signs must be pointing the way.
The driveway is getting covered. Lloyd drove the Outlander to the street to see how it did on our steep gravel driveway. Test result: A plus.
Had to shovel the slush off the front deck earlier, but it's coming down a little drier by noon.
Brindle likes this stuff. Fun to romp in, fun to make yellow snow on, fun to eat. Just like a kid.

Our walk was messy at times, slippery at times, but beautiful and peaceful. And not windy. Here's a snowy gorge view from our walk.
So we came back home and are decking the halls. Inside. How nice and cozy.

Savor the Moment

It snowed last night. I mean REALLY snowed, not just errant flakes. I looked out on the deck (aka the spare fridge) to retrieve the leftover pumpkin pie and there it was...White Stuff. Several inches of it. By the time it was done, there were four inches piled up. I went to bed with visions of a winter wonderland greeting me in the morning. Alas, the wind shifted and warmed air came rushing up the Gorge from Portland. All but a dusting on the ground was washed away. Good thing I took a picture. The daylight photos will have to wait for another storm.

APB on Chip and Dale

Where are all the chipmunks and squirrels that should be packing away acorns and nuts for winter???? The front deck has become a hardhat zone. I was sitting out there the other afternoon, reading a book and enjoying a cup of tea (it's not ALWAYS wine, guys!) and was constantly dinged with falling acorns. A tiny acorn falling from 20-30 feet hits the deck with a very audible crack. It hits ones knee with a similar audible crack, followed by a short burst of expletives that can't be written here. Like my friend Susan says, My Momma Comes Here.

I have seen nary a squirrel since I got here. I never saw any squirrels in Sugar Land, TX, but then I didn't expect to. There were few big ole trees where I lived. Just new sticks in the ground. We did spot deer, armadillos, rabbits, mice, rats, skunks, snakes and the occasional feral pig but no squirrels. In Mandeville, LA, we had a mini forest behind our house, so we had LOTS of squirrels, along with raccoons, foxes, and other small varmints. A major sport was watching the squirrels try to defeat the anti squirrel mechanisms on our bird feeders. Cajun squirrels are pretty crafty.Those barrel jobs you put on the post so they can't climb up? Took 'em a week to find a tree branch that hung sort of close to the feeder and perfect a death leap to the platform containing the treasured seeds.

The special Canadian made spring loaded feeder we attached to a tree trunk was a bit more trouble for them. That one took almost a year. Conquest involved carefully approaching the feeder from above, in a head down, claws dug in position. Carefully, the squirrel would move on to the little roof area, then finally hang on the spring loaded bar, shaking the seeds loose for his waiting friends below. The funniest thing I ever saw was the day a raccoon decided if a squirrel could do it, he could too. But he got stuck in that head down position just inches above 'the prize'. Needless to say, he eventually took a tumble and never attempted that maneuver again.

So what to do? I've swept loads of the suckers off the deck into a growing pile on the hill beside the house. In plain view of any industrious squirrels who might want easy pickings. Timmy Tip Toes, where are you??? Winter's coming! The paper said today that a La Nina is forming that will bring us an unusually wet and cold winter. Tell you what, I'll save a pile for you under the deck…and hope they don't sprout into more trees!

Happy Thanksgiving

It sure feels like the Thanksgivings I remember in New England. It's gotten colder. In the low 30's when we get up. And grayer. And Sunday night it SNOWED. We went up to Wind River Cellars for a vertical tasting event (meaning tasting successive years of a wine, not the postion of the taster, at least by the end of the event), and just that slight elevation turned the icy rain into snow. We had a dusting on our deck by morning, but it melted pretty fast. But it's all still on Underwood, across the way, as evidenced in the photo.

So we're off to my sister Mary's for dinner. Thanksgiving with someone from my family, for the first time since I left Rhode Island, so that's over 26 years. My girls are staying in Boston, and will feast at my sister Linda's house. It will be a good day for all.

Wishing all four of my readers a Happy Thanksgiving, wherever you are!

Best Early Xmas Present EVER

I have the best husband in the world. Life is never dull with him around.
It's been a crazy year. We sent our oldest off to Berlin for almost 6 months. Then put our house up for sale. We graduated the youngest from high school. Then Lloyd retired after 25 years, 5 moves, three different states (TX twice) and one foreign country with Gulf/Chevron. He and I moved our family's earthly goods to Washington. I moved the Alina from TX to Boston. We all visited Keara in Berlin, and helped schlep her excess baggage back to Boston. Their lives are in Boston. Ours is in White Salmon, 3000 miles away.

Late Finals and Swim Team training trips meant limited time for a holiday visit. Combined with the fact that there is no reason to make the trek but to see us and the dog, I really don't blame them for preferring to stay with the Sullivan clan this year. And with tickets running over $500 even for the red eye, it's a pricey proposition. But I was feeling mighty blue about not seeing them this holiday. I knew the day would come, but I wasn't ready for it yet. This place already feels like home to Lloyd and the dog, and it's starting to feel like home to me. But except for their beds and books and stuffed animals that we moved with us, there are no memories yet to endear this place to them. Yet.

Anyone who has traveled at Xmas time knows how AWFUL it is. And going cross country is even worse. Lloyd had no desire to repeat our October itinerary. He'd made the PDX-BOS via Newark round trip in Aug as well. A third time in 4 months was not in the cards for him. Especially after getting stuck in Newark for 12 hours on the way home in August. But because he got stuck in Newark, I get to go to Boston for Xmas.

A Continental free flight coupon showed up unexpectedly in the mail just a week or so after his trip from hell. And my dear sweet husband let me cash it in to fly to Boston on Xmas eve, when everyone in my family usually descends upon my sister to begin the festivities. Hey, guys, don't disband too early this year...I'll be along about 8...unless I get stuck in NEWARK!

Election Day, Northwest Style

This is something very new and strange to me. It's election day. I voted. But I never had to leave home to do it. I have to admit, I actually LIKE the physical GOING to the Poll. I like voting in a booth, surrounded by others voting. I even volunteered as a poll watcher last year, back in the contentious TX CD22, to make sure there was no funny business (there wasn't at my polling place on election day, but there WAS in my early voting assignment). Voting at your local polling place is a community thing, democracy in action.

This year, I'm living in rural WA. Washington and Oregon have evolved to Mail In Ballots. A few weeks back, we got a Voter's Guide. Imagine that! (Hey Susan, when was the last time you saw a Voter's Guide with the issues to be voted on, an explanation of what it is, followed by Pros and Cons)

So what does one do with this information? After the guide arrives, your ballot arrives in your mailbox. You take your black pen, and fill in the little bubbles yes or no, and fill in the bubbles beside the names running for office. This year they were all non partisan offices, and all unopposed (at least one thing was familiar to me). Looking forward to NEXT year's ballot to see how things shake out when there are partisan positions to fill.

Anyway, you fill in your bubbles, sign the ballot, put it in envelope 1. Sign envelope 1 and seal it into envelope 2. You now can choose to put a stamp on it and have the mail truck pick it up from your box at the end of the driveway, or you can drop in off in the voting box at the Post Office. You're done! Sounds like a good thing, right, and that EVERYONE would vote...

Not so fast, buddy. Estimates are that at most 50% of people will have voted in Oregon, where there are two very contentious measures to vote on. I'll bet WA is a lot less. That 50% might sound good to y'all dealing with abysmal turnouts in your off year elections but it's rather pathetic to think that HALF of the people didn't bother to do what people in other countries would kill to be able to do. Or die trying for that right.

Come on people. All of you of CST, you've got an hour. Get out there! There's still time on the west coast to vote. You just have to drive down to the collection box by 8 pm. You're too late for the mail truck.