and we're back

Della knitting a sock. Excellent form for a novice!

The laptop was delivered tonight. I was watching for the Fedex truck and skated out with a flashlight to meet the driver walking up the driveway before he could hit the icy spots. Don't want anyone dropping the laptop!

So far, I've only uploaded the 742 images on my camera (which shows considerable restraint, doesn't it?) and now I'm going to sleep. But I'll be catching up on blog-reading in the next few days, and will write and post some snaps soon.

I've missed you!

~~~~~

brief very

I dropped my laptop a few days ago. Internetting through a cellphone the actual size of a credit card is...interesting. May not be much blog activity til laptop is repaired or replaced, but this (from tiny phone w terrible camera capability) is an experiment.

a special saturday

A little while ago, I stepped out the east-facing back door and took this picture. If I'm awake in the wee hours of the morning, I will see the moon again through the west-facing window next to my pillow, and perhaps take more pictures. I often do. This sleeping on the porch idea is working out as beautifully as I had hoped.

Today marked the start of the Christmas season for me: the annual tag/bake sale benefiting the Pat Brody Shelter where I first met Kitty Rex, Moxie, and Della. This event is literally the only time I approach shopping with both happy anticipation and a complete absence of mental debate: if something takes my fancy, I buy it. This year I came home with a typically nifty collection of treasures. Suffice it to say, being able to buy two aged hammers and a homebaked apple pie at the same location is my idea of shopping success. I will post a few pictures in a day or two, when I unpack all my little bags and boxes. Right now, it's time for sleep.

Thanks, Pat Brody Shelter.

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fairies taking flight

When I was a child, we called milkweed seeds, floating through the air, "fairies."

If you gently caught one, you could make a wish

before setting it free to float away again.

As far as I know, there is no age limit on this.

Go forth and make wishes.

~~~~~

one quick sketch

Daytime temperatures have been ranging from 15-40F this week - quite a shocking plummet from ~70F one week prior. I set up one of the bucket de-icers a few days ago; I think this may be a record for how early in the season I've done that.

At noon today it was 32F, not windy, and brightly sunny. I went outside with the cats - who zipped around maniacally and were probably quite warm - and Piper - who almost immediately turned around and stood at the door, waiting for it to open in the correct direction. I opened the door and she headed straight for her couch, which I must admit, does look rather appealing:

In the time it took to open the door for Piper and take this picture, both cats raced back inside, did a lap around the house, and then raced back outside again. Wheee!

My energy level is somewhere between the cats' and Piper's. I went back outside with one little pan of black watercolor paint, a waterbrush, and a little sketchbook. I tilted back in a chaise (which felt exactly like having an icepack on my back which was fine with me) and I painted this quick sketch looking up into a red oak:

My fingers were soon numb, so Moxie and Della and I came inside. They are already cozily asleep in pools of sunshine. I'm going to back outside to set up the second, slightly more complicated, bucket de-icer. Which will pretty much guarantee a return of warmer weather.

Here's hoping!

~~~~~