Spring with Flurries

Spring is here-ish. The daffodils are almost finished, the tulips are coming on, the blossoms have just started on our backyard cherry trees and I've been weeding like a madwoman AND they are predicting snow flurries this weekend.

Yes. Life is like that. All or nothing. And then sometimes - everything at once. Is absolutely everything a metaphor for life with a capital "L"? I believe it is.

Haven't done this blog thing in a long time. So much has happened.

Cancelled the trip to China due to their ice and snow storms. Quickly rebooked for a month in Morocco ending with a week in Paris. Good thing I brought one tiny little stuff sack with cold weather gear cuz that's mostly what I wore the entire 5 weeks. So much for seeking warmth. Somehow it just didn't work. I'm beginning to find the whole mobile home in Florida schtick very appealing. Maybe I could learn how to lawn bowl or something.

I hate to whine but I'm really sick of being chilled and thick feeling. OK. The whining moment is done. The garden is starting to look pretty groovy and I've been playing with taking some photos of some of the stuff that is embedded among the plants. Like this photo of the old rusty underwood that sits beneath our arbutus tree between the bunches of salal and crumbling leaves.

The Inevitable Resolutions

I think this whole season of binging and darkness and consumerist frenzied overindulgence is the perfect set up to start fresh in the New Year. It's brilliant actually.

My friend Mary had a recipe for the flu or feeling blue: if you're feeling crappy, just make yourself watch daytime TV, and when you're really sick of the couch, make yourself watch it for four more hours. By then you won't be able to stand another minute and you'll get over whatever it was.

This seasonal extravaganza falls in the same category. Eat one more piece of fudge, stuff in some shortbread, slop down some Bailey's, put on your fat pants and by New Year's Eve you'll be so ready to stop, that you will. Hence all those January over-enthusiastic gym-goers and instant marathoners.

The key is baby-steps. My tendency is to go from 0 to 60 mph. But it really is better to start small. And that is my plan...instead of thinking I have to paint the entire inside of the house at once, I will do one or two hours a day.

And. I won't be doing any of it until we're back from our train trip to Montreal. Hmmm...which means I'll be overindulging for another two weeks. Forgot about that. Oh well.

My New Year's resolutions will begin when we return on Jan 16th. Wow. I'm really going to be ready by then.

The Next Thing (ish)

We're going to China. Kevin & I as backpackers, albeit rather old backpackers. But still.
This will be a trip just for the sake of travel. Not because I want to write about it or have an assignment or anything like that. We leave February 18th and return March 27th. Six weeks of planes, trains and bicycles.

I'm finding it harder to do the whole writing pitch and query thing lately. Not sure what that's about. Maybe this rainy grey day is just leaching all ambition from my bones. I just want to read and lie around and eat bon-bons. Is that so wrong? I figure as long as I don't start watching daytime TV, I'm still okay. That has to be the line in the sand for me. Just say no to Dr. Phil.

I'm pondering the idea of what I want to do with this whole writing thing. Perhaps this is just a Christmas phase of inertia. Let's call it that. Now I don't have to make any decisions about it. Just ride it and see where the wave lands.

Make shortbread. Surely, that's the answer. Though quite honestly? I'd rather just have it show up in my house somehow. Oh dear. I'm in a completely lazy-dog mode. Let's call it an incubation phase instead. It sounds more promising that way.

That's it. I'm mulling big thoughts and grand plans even though it might just look like I'm drinking rum and eggnog while working on a puzzle of a world map.

Been thinking about the past year

I've been thinking about this past year. It's been another rather large one. Lots of trips and lots of memories. I'm working hard at being able to have lots to reminsce about when I'm old and stuck in my rocker.

It was great traveling with Dee Dee & Karen this past spring. Who knew that our regular hiking appointment would turn into a month long trip into India? Holi is a great tradition. I love the
idea of tossing bright colours on each other. It was so intense.

That's India.
Intensely Bright and Beautiful.