Meeting of the Mind and Tongue, Finis!, Not Soon Enough, A Project

1. I lunched with a fellow Northerner today. It was refreshing to be around someone as 'to-the-point' as myself. 
2. We watched the final episodes of 'Fringe". It was an incredible letdown to learn it was over, but the ride was extremely fun while it lasted.
3. Daughter #2 phoned and her hike will have her at home right around Easter. Oh how I cannot wait!!
4. A poem for Daughter #1 and husband whose offer was accepted on a pretty (but in need of TLC) house:

He who loves an old house

Never loves in vain,

How can an old house

Used to sun and rain,

To lilac and larkspur,

And an elm above,

Ever fail to answer

The heart that gives it love?

Isabel Fiske Conant  Old House

More Snow, At the Machine, Falling

1. I saw the snow falling heavily outside when I walked past the window on my way to bed. As I drifted off to sleep, I imagined the quiet sound of it piling deeper and deeper.
2. Another snow day from school!
2a. I sewed new pillow covers with a deep, purple-colored linen. This little touch of something new is a boost for the whole room.
3. Snowdust filters down from the cedars, falling over us like glitter. 

A Love Song

Considering a song over here today...

Gifts for the Eyes, Tastebuds, and Someone Else

1. Nature paints the most beautiful color combinations in the landscape. Today was a purple and brown day. They would have been perfect to knit into a sweater.
2. B. sent over a freshly baked loaf of bread.
3. I like dropping stuff off at Goodwill. It lightens our load, which feels fantastic, and at the same time provides treasure for someone else.
4. Photos and stories of the grandchildren make me smile.

Nothing New Under the Sun, Something Tropical, Renewed and Refreshed

1. I'm slowly reading The Rim of the Prairie by Bess Streeter Aldrich, copyright 1925. I read a timeless passage with which I agree wholeheartedly. Two hard working, mid-west men are casually talking of "modern times" and the types of stories published in newspapers. The older gentleman says, "No, If you've lived life deeply...touched bottom as it were...it takes away any inclination to sit and wade through pages of sex stuff or even wearily follow somebody's ponderous mental reactions. They call it real life. At least if it's a sordid thing they say it's real life. If it's decent, it's bunk. Are indecency and slime all that constitute real life?"
2. We crave fruit more on these cold, winter days. We had a fruit salsa for lunch with crispy, baked, cinnamon-sugar tortillas. It made all of us happy. : )
3. Sundays have once again become a high point of the week and it does my heart good.

A Perfect Beginning to the Day, We Waited a Long Time, Sharing

1. There was a glorious sunrise today! 
2. The salesman asked what type of system we were upgrading. We were speechless for a moment because we're upgrading from...nothing? "No upgrade. We're starting from scratch." The guy smiled at that.
2a. Steve said we're buying it for the kids.
3. We shared it with the "kids" and I even made popcorn for them.

Today's Normal, Heckel and Jeckel, Do I Know You?

1. Wow! 8° was a cold way to start the day. The school buses were running but the bus garage called to tell us they wouldn't be able to come all the way up our road. Tess had to meet the bus two miles down. We were forced to get out and function and be hardy, scraping windshields, preheating cars, and covering exposed skin. Normal things have become rather exciting and death-defying : )
2. Today was the second day that I saw these two black crows sitting together on the same guardrail. The sun glints on their beaks and shines on their feathers. I think they're having a nice little chat.
3. Lesson learned today: Always enter a name with someone's cell phone number into your contacts. Otherwise you won't recognize who has sent the long, cryptic text and you'll feel like a dope when you reply that you don't know them. It gave us a good laugh, anyway.