Spring…..is that you!?

Warmer weather and plentiful sunshine have arrived in Boston. It appears Spring is finally here, feeling like a warm hug from a favorite aunt. And not a moment too soon, for today is the Red Sox home opener. Thank you Mother Nature for smiling on our baseball team. Trees are showing signs of budding. Flowers are popping out of the ground before our very eyes. Allergy sufferers are reaching for medications and tissues. Spring is really here!

These plants have grown up overnight

Already today, I’ve been more productive than in the past month. Yesterday my husband and I did more yard work than we have in many moons. I was in shorts and a t-shirt for the first time in nearly 6 months (sorry neighbors for the glare from my pale skin). It is amazing what good weather does for the attitude and the soul. When it is gray, rainy, and cold, I want to curl up and hibernate. When it is warm and sunny, strap me to a go-cart because I’m off to the races!

Hello beautiful crocus!

I think the effect is the same on animals. My cats were out and about, wandering around the whole yard this morning. On rainy, yucky days, all they do is sleep. Well, all they really do is sleep on any given day, but on sunny days they have a 10% increase in activity. This is quite a jump for an animal that spends so much time practicing “energy conservation”. 

Neo strolling in the warm sunshine

The birds, the children, and the barbecues are coming out of hibernation. There is an undeniable effect Spring has on us all. But will it stay? Only Mother Nature can answer that. At this point, I’m just happy it isn’t snowing.

Will Boston *ever* see Spring?

I look outside my window and what do I see? That four letter word - snow. It is snowing...AGAIN. Folks around Boston have had enough of the white stuff to last 3 winters. Every time we turn around the meteorologists are predicting more snow. We've had 10 weekends in a row with snowfall. March only had a handful of days that were even close to normal temperature for this time of year. We've been below average all winter (except for the month of December), and we've had a record 110"+ of snowfall for the season. Thankfully all the snow hasn't melted at once (or we'd need our own arks to get around), but enough is enough. Thankfully I've lived in New England during another rough winter (Connecticut in 2010-2011 where they had record snowfall), so I've experienced a long, cold winter in these parts. But this is something else. By now, we should have highs in the upper 40s or mid-50s and some nice rain showers now and then. Instead we're stuck in Old Man Winter's grasp, and snow comes on a regular basis. Thankfully today's episode will turn to rain and by the end of this week the temperatures are supposed to moderate. 

Growing up, snow was a treat. Northern Georgia (around metro-Atlanta) saw more than an inch of snow at a time on a very rare basis. We only had four built-in snow days for the school district I attended. Generally you didn't need any of them, or may just one. But I do remember one winter we had a big storm that dumped 6" of snow. Six inches! The kids were in snow heaven. My mom and I went sledding down our street (and crashed into a holly bush, but that is a different story). There were other winters we did get a few inches, and I'd go to my Dad's condo to sled down the sunken soccer fields on a cookie sheet. And when it snows down south, everything STOPS. Each county might have 1 snow plow and a handful of helpful folks with their own snow plows on their trucks. People also tend to have 4-wheel drive since they like to go off road or get stuck in mud puddles. Snow was fun, and it was a happy occurrence. That's probably because we all knew it wouldn't be around long and Spring would arrive (mostly) on time.

Here in the Boston area, I don't think we can spell Spring anymore. I think it is hiding in the Bahamas somewhere. We keep asking it to come visit, but to no avail. I look at the bare trees in my yard and wonder if I'll ever see anything green again. The whole area is a study of brown, gray, and white. The only color we have are some songbirds that are feasting on the seed we provide. Poor little dears are probably also wondering where Spring is. They have nests to build and babies to raise. But not in this cold. One thing is for sure...when Spring *does* finally show up, everything is going to burst into action. Trees, shrubs, and flowers will bloom and sprout and leaf out all at once. Allergy sufferers, beware. It might be a rough ride.

Since I am not an all-powerful being that can influence the weather, I just sit here inside, sipping my coffee and trying my hardest to wish Spring into existence. Maybe, just maybe, we'll get some warmer weather and NO MORE SNOW during April. Hey, a person can dream, right?

Winter Storm Juno - my first real "blizzard"

I'm from down South where snowfall is cause for utter panic. Growing up in northern Georgia, we once had 6" of snow and it shut school down for 3 days! We had fun though. Now I live in New England, and we just caught the brunt of Winter Storm Juno. I have never stood in the middle of a blizzard, unless you count the time we had a sorta-blizzard back in 2011 when I lived in coastal CT. We currently have about 18-20" of snow, with more falling. Winds were whipping around about 20-30mph. The snow should taper off tonight. I actually took some footage with my trusty Canon PowerShot D10. You can see the video on YouTube: http://youtu.be/zmhp-Pb5oZ4

While shoveling snow, I also had my cell phone with me. I took a few pics of our car and the piles of snow, then put the thing in my outside coat pocket and promptly forgot about it. My husband and I spent about an hour or so outside helping to shovel snow (thank goodness our neighbor had a snow blower!). When I came inside, my poor phone was C-O-L-D and I received an error message: "Let your phone cool down before use". Cool down!? What!? I guess it has a generic one-size-fits-all error when it comes to temperature extremes. I left it alone, and it did finally come around and start working again. Lesson learned...if you take sensitive electronics outside, keep them in a pocket close to your body so they stay warm. 

Otherwise, we have weathered the storm well. We still have our power and we can get our car out of the driveway if we want to go somewhere. They've even plowed the street enough times that we can see the pavement again! My relatives called to check on me (from AL and MS) since they'd seen all the hype in the news. They were quick to point out that it seemed the Boston area didn't have much hype, but received most of the storm while other places made a huge deal out of it and only had a glancing blow. It would seem there is an inverse relationship between the hype of the storm and the impact of the storm. Folks here know what to do and how to handle snow. It ain't no big deal.

If you are somewhere impacted by Storm Juno, I hope you are safe. I am back inside now where it is warm and dry. My cats think I am totally foolish for going outside in the terrible elements. They are lucky...they can't shovel snow so they are exempt from such drudgery.  We are supposed to get a little more snow on Friday, and possibly more next week. I swear, that's the last time I'll ever ask, "so, when do we really get some snow around here?" Oops, guess I have my answer!

The view out my front window. Can't tell sidewalk from yard from street!

Just How Cold is an Arctic Blast?

I live in a region that gets cold in winter; really cold. But not one of those places that goes into the negative on a regular basis. When I woke up this morning, it was -3 outside. Yes negative 3 degrees:

This is our weather station...the HIGH was 3 and low was -3 over previous 12 hours

So, being the curious person I am, I wondered what -3 felt like. (I did a similar thing a couple of summers ago...I wondered what 102 degrees felt like. It felt like an oven. Maybe even a blast furnace. I lasted about 2 minutes outside before I was worried my innards would roast.) 

This morning, I merrily went out to my front stoop and experienced this blinding cold in my t-shirt and sweat pants. The result? Yep, it was cold....nay...FRIGID. My skin started to tingle (not in a good way) and my eyes hurt. The air being drawn into my nostrils was burning and chilling at the same time. After about 30 seconds I figured I'd better get my hiney back inside before I got instant frostbite or caught a cold. Oddly enough, it wasn't all that much different from, say, 10 or 15 degrees. Once you get below about 20 degrees, it is COLD. Mercifully, we were spared from the high winds the meteorologists predicted. Although I was mildly disappointed I couldn't experience a windchill of -20. It would probably feel awesomely frigid too, but with more bite.

As I walked around the house I noticed our windows were sweating and some even had ice on the INSIDE:

Nothing like some ice to keep your window from feeling lonely

This made me curious about other areas of the house; how cold was it around the windows and doors? Our thermostat was set for 67, but our bedroom and living room were only 65; the poor heater was doing its best. Here are some of the readings I took around the house:

This is what the window temp registered in the bedroom 

This is the closet in our living room; it has no insulation and overhangs an indoor stairwell

This was the stairwell leading down to our front door. Brrrr!

This was a reading I took at the bottom of the front door. We need some weather stripping!

All in all, I can say that -3 is a doozie to deal with. You have to let your car warm up more (or in our case, you have to wait for the coil to heat up before trying to turn the diesel engine over), and you certainly don't want to be outside without adequate protection. Bundle up and stay cozy folks! Winter is just getting started.

Happy 2015

The new year has arrived, even if you didn't stay up to usher it in. I stayed up until about an hour before and decided to go to sleep. I figured the new year could figure out how to arrive without my help and revelry. Thankfully no one in my neighborhood shot off fireworks all night long; it was a welcome change of peace and quiet. 

In addition to the stress of remembering to write "2015" on our checks (does anyone even write checks anymore?), we are bombarded with newsies talking about resolutions, tons of "get fit" advertising, and friends/family asking us "what are your New Year's resolutions?" It reminds us of all the things we didn't get done in the previous year. It can be a bit overwhelming.

I have an easy answer for this annual question: none. I have no resolutions. I find the concept a tired, silly idea that doesn't do anyone much good (except all those fitness clubs that get people to sign up and never come back). Let's face it, if you are waiting for an excuse or a reason or a specific holiday to get in shape or quit smoking or eat healthy food, you are kidding yourself. If you haven't done these things already, you aren't likely to stick to the new habits just because the new year has arrived and you made a resolution. To be fair, some people *do* stick to their resolutions and change their lives. Most of us, however, go right back to the lifestyle we've been living.

Why is this? Maybe it's because the human brain is wired for "routine". We like things to be normal, regular, and predictable. When they aren't, our brain has to work harder to sort things out. Or maybe we've become lazy in this day of instant information and smart phone "dumbing-down". If it takes more than 10 minutes to lose weight, we give up on it. I'm guilty of this frustration myself. I've been trying to get into better shape for a few years. I have tried different methods (couch to 5k, elliptical, treadmill, swimming, yoga, horseback riding, and walking), but I always let something knock me off my "game". I say let something knock me off because that is what happens. I'm in control of my life (with a few exceptions like health emergencies), so if I get out of the habit of exercising, it is my issue. I have no one else to blame.

So what is one to do? What do I do? Take small steps; don't try to do a sweeping overhaul of your life. Enlist the support of any friends or family members that want to help you make changes. Want more exercise without hitting the gym? Use the stairs instead of elevators. Park farther from your destination and walk just a few minutes more every day. Do some simple stretching exercises at your desk. Get up and take a coffee or tea break a few more times. Walk over to a co-worker's desk instead of IM'ing or emailing. Eat just a little bit less each meal, and snack on fruit instead of a bag of chips. Treat yourself every so often to keep cravings at bay. For me, I'm a lot less likely to scarf down a bag of potato chips if I've allowed myself to eat a small portion of tortilla chips and some salsa as an afternoon snack. For breakfast, I usually have a bowl of oatmeal with honey, raisins, and dried cranberries. Some mornings I'll mix it up and make a smoothie (frozen fruit, honey Greek yogurt, a banana, and a dash of fruit juice). Variety helps keep "bad food" cravings at bay too. 

This isn't a glamorous method, and it won't get me on the morning news shows, but it has worked for me. I've been able to maintain a consistent weight for the past two years. I'm brainstorming for an exercise (or exercises) I can stick with for more than a week. I'm thinking of doing elliptical in the morning and yoga in the evening. And I always look for that parking spot waaaaay in the back of the lot. Unless it is 16 degrees and snowing. Then I might look for a mid-parking lot space instead. I'm not resolving to do anything exciting. I'm not resolving to "remake" my life. I'm resolving to keep living the life I love and be happy with that. And if friends or family ask about your New Year's resolutions, tell them "resolutions are soooo 2014." Have a Great New Year.

Another Halloween, but with a new twist...

Halloween 2014 has come and gone. Children everywhere are still munching on chocolatey or fruity treats they worked so hard gathering last week. This year my husband and I live in a beautiful 1896 Victorian house in a historic district in a small town near Norfolk, Virginia. Sadly we turned out to be the only house on our street that did any real decorating or handed out any candy. We had about 20 kids (counting a group of 8 kids that stopped by twice...yes I realized they'd already stopped by, but I also realized I needed to unload all the candy I could). By comparison, when we lived in Northern Virginia, we had about 40-50 kids on average each year. That's okay though, I would have decorated even if we had zero kids show up.

For this Halloween, I added a new feature to go with my traditional carved pumpkins. I try to do at least 1-2 Jack-o-Lanterns every year, and some years I get expressive and do three. I was limited to 2 pumpkins this year, so I decided it would be fun to purchase and dress up a full-sized skeleton. And because we live in a Victorian era house, I went with an early 1900s theme for the clothing. I shopped around at local Thrift stores for all the clothing items and accessories I needed. The best part is I donated all the items back to the store so they could resell them. I figured next year I'll do a different theme with the skeleton.

I was happy with the final results:

The Old Victorian Lady and Her Kitty

I was also happy with my creative expressions: the skeletal lady is wearing earrings. How are they staying on? Magic! And her drink is red wine vinegar. I figured if she was sitting there long enough to skeletonize, her red wine would have turned to vinegar! Yes, sometimes I crack myself up.

In past years, I've done some fancy Jack-o-lanterns with elaborate carvings. This year I injured my shoulder so carving fancy faces wasn't in the cards. I figured I'd go with more traditional pumpkins instead:

The Surly Jack

The Happy Jack

I also created some additional Halloween ambiance by using candles on the stairs leading to the front porch. The final result was very satisfying:

Candles on the porch stairs

The whole Halloween Package

While I was a little bummed at the lack of trick-or-treaters, I had a lot of fun with the creative process of decorating for the ghoulish holiday. Who knows what kind of theme my brain will create for next year! Until then, happy candy eating.

Just Say "NO" To Fake Reindeer

WARNING: This post is meant to exercise your funny bone. If your funny bone has been removed, or is damaged, please do not read this post. 

There is a grave tragedy happening every Christmas that you may not be aware of. On lawns and cards, wrapping paper and napkins, the reindeer's image is being tarnished. This has been allowed to happen because people don't know what a REAL reindeer looks like. White tailed deer are NOT reindeer! (Yes, caribou are members of the deer family, but so are moose.) Christmas has twisted the reindeer into an over-simplified caricature of some cutesy animal that flies all over delivering Santa and his goods. 

Most deer are NOT working animals. Ever seen a white tailed deer pull a sled? Of course not. They can't handle the work on those pretty, spindly little legs. Caribou and reindeer ARE working animals. They actually do pull sleighs as well as providing milk, meat, and pelts to folks living in brutally cold parts of our planet. Their noses are similar to that of the moose so they can warm the cold air they breathe (when you live close to the North Pole, you need these sorts of adaptations!). White tailed deer could never fly; they are in no way awesome enough. They do, however, provide tasty sausage and steaks. Caribou are amazing animals capable of many feats, including flying Santa around. They aren't born to fly; they need a bit of help, so Santa puts special "additives" in their food each winter.

This is the typical "reindeer" associated with the Holidays

I have become much more aware in the past few years of just how far we've strayed from the reindeer's true image. Sure, some ads and cards get it right…they show real reindeer puling Santa. But most show simplified white tailed deer and pass them off as "reindeer" (like no one will care). Sadly many fall for this sham because they've never seen a wild animal (except the city pigeons that poop on statues all over town). Caribou cannot type and don't have Internet access, so someone must stand up for their image, and make sure the public is aware of this growing defamation. I took up this cause because caribou are stupendously more awesome than any white tailed deer. They are totally cuter and their antlers are WAY more breathtaking than any common deer can manage (except for maybe the moose and possibly the elk).  

THIS is a proper reindeer, aka caribou

So please, for the love of real reindeer, boycott yard decorations, cards, and any Christmas elements that show this erroneous version of the reindeer. Correct people when they talk about their "reindeer" decorations that are actually white tailed deer. Explain the difference, then reinforce the awesomeness of caribou. With patience and persistence, we can rid the world of this dreadful decor detour. And please, don't decorate your car, your pets, or yourself with holiday antlers; you cannot match the awesomeness of a real reindeer. On behalf of all caribou and reindeer around the arctic circle, thank you for your support and have a Merry Caribou Christmas.