Last day of the year

Snow a perfect way to end the year, running errands in snow boots, the yard frosting perfect; nothing better than being warm inside when the wind is brushing snow across a cold gray sky to make you feel grateful for your home and your warm life and all the people you love and have loved whether with you in mind, body, or only memory.

So let's "tak a cup o' kindness yet, for auld lang syne". Peace.

Sunday quote

You don't have a soul. You are a Soul. You have a body.

-C.S. Lewis

post Christmas post

Here and then gone, so long in coming, so quickly over. One moment I am thinking Dicken's thoughts of how I should hold Christmas in my heart year round, the next I am as cranky as old boots, unkind thoughts clunking through my sinus-miserable brain. Was it even here? Amid the rush and the wrapping, the cookies and the midnight mass, the anticipating child, the folded up receipts, the endless calls to shop more - doesn't anyone get weary of all this buying? Hold on to a winter's thought, something in the darkness, the ice and cold, the catch of breath in the star-graced night. I think there was a small bit of magic, somewhere.

Last minute Charity round-up

There's still time for the holidays (or for the end of the year if you are tax-write-off-minded) to give to some great charities. Some involve sending money - although buying goats is fun, some require little more than clicking on words (with helpful pronunciation aids) or a button to give a donation to those in need. You can help out a teacher or someone trying to start a business, help the animals, donate to a hospital or a religious charity helping the poor, give a child a book, help out some nice nuns, and if you are unsure of any charity, you can look them up here before you donate. Some of the easiest ways are community based - a lot of animal shelters welcome old towels and blankets and pet food (call first) besides money, check your local newspaper to see if there are toy or coat drives, schools and religious places often have charity events, and of course, they may be annoying at times, but when they are ringing that bell, drop in a buck or two (it really does go to the poor). I would like to think we can change the world - and even if it is just a little bit here or there, I think it matters.

Sunday quote

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them; and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace,
good will toward men.

Christmas baking

and the house smells of ginger and cinnamon even after the cookies are packed up and ready to go. My car doors were frozen shut so my lovely daughter drove me to deliver cookies (leaving not so many in the house - a good thing as they are insanely fattening and incredibly addictive).

Snow!

peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth peth (to borrow from Lynne Rae Perkins' most wonderful book, Snow Music).

Storm moving in

or so the husband reports. I'll have to run out to the store tomorrow and get ingredients for the great cookie bake - ah, snow falling, house smelling of ginger, carols playing on the cd machine...hmmm...better make sure we have flashlights and batteries to boot and charge the cell phones - in our cul-de-sackish road graced by large and gorgeous trees, we get a ton of blackouts.

Submitted a bunch of poems and realized upon review so many of them mention dogs. White dogs. Old white dogs. Could they be Emmy? Hmmm. Here she is in an action pose under a "stained glass" summer camp creation by James the younger.

Happy snow, everybody.

The Christmas Tree Fetch

The Sunday afternoon trek to get the tree and wreaths - trees are looked at, branch widths discussed, shapes admired or scorned, and finally perfection or close to it.

On the way home, the youngest one told us to all look out of the car window for the holiday silhoutte of the tree riding home.

Sunday Quote

Patient Trust in Ourselves and in the Slow Work of God

Above all, trust in the slow work of God.
We are, quite naturally,
impatient in everything to reach the end
without delay.
We should like to skip
the intermediate stages.
We are impatient of being
on the way to something unknown,
something new.
And yet it is the law of all progress
that it is made by passing through
some stages of instability ---
and that may take a very long time.

As so I think it is with you.
Your ideas mature gradually –
let them grow,
let them shape themselves,
without undue haste.
Don’t try to force them on,
as though you could be today
what time (that is to say, grace and
circumstances acting
on your own good will)
will make you tomorrow.

Only God could say what this new spirit
gradually forming within you will be.
Give our Lord the benefit of believing
that his hand is leading you,
and accept the anxiety of
feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.

-Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Shop till you...

well not drop since that's silly. More shop until you wander into the kitchen and make tea. That's how to do it, people (said by the woman who went to a store to get gift cards, bought a shelf, had husband put together very nice shelf, and then remembered she forgot the gift cards). I love jewelery - this and this; lovely scents for the goth teen or dramatic friend, food lovers will applaud you (especially this maple spread), or chocolate yum. Green gifts here, creepy gift (skeletons?)(well not everyone wants L.L. Bean), my fave calendars, puppets, support crafters (buy their stuff!), frame these or a botany image, get this for your walking buddy, great children's books and more, and booky tees, my son loved everything he got from here last year, more children's sites, really silly joke gifts, I just sent off gifts from here and here, great books for all here, and more children's book suggestions since I love to give books. You aren't broke yet? There's always Amazon.

Shoot the moon

A giant moon, a freezing night, neighbor's Christmas lights, and a rather awful camera.

Woof if it's your birthday!

She may be 15 (!) today but she still won't stay still for her photo op.
Note her new blue jogging jacket - those old bones get mighty cold! (Especially here where we keep the house ice cube Arctic cold).
Happy Birthday to our craZy fluffy, barking, chicken lovin' , loyal, courageous, goofy, beautiful girl, Emily Pajamas.

Peace

A house I pass by on the way home from work.

Anyway, here's a little reminder to offer up some prayers for Dong Yun Yoon .

Nothing like New York City

Especially in the wintertime.

We went in to a friend's surprise birthday party (and she really was surprised!). I played tourist - I have lived/worked/gone into the city all my life and I never take a camera. So now to play tourist. The tower of tellies from Grand Central Station - as is the tree chandelier (at the far end of the market). Always love the outside view of GCS with a peek at the Chrysler building. Hope we have time to go in again this busy season to see the tree and the windows.

Riding with Earl

Cruising with Earl (the white plastic rat) and his lady friend (aka my daughter). Earl likes to dance, in fact, rumor has it he moves quite a lot.

Broken frogs and Mondays get me down

A post-holiday Monday at the library, sigh. Home, smell of burning, what is it? Could it possibly be the lack of oil in the engine? Even though nothing in my Honda suggested this was so?

Home, barely. Husband goes to gas station for two cans of oil. Daughter runs past me on way to vet, pausing long enough to grab my credit card. Mr. Grimshaw is hurt. Somehow Mr. G managed to break his pelvis. Swimming. Aren't frogs supposed to be good at that? The cure is let it self-knit (this sentence cost me fifty dollars from the exotic vet). A little depressed, I am beginning to wonder why I have eliminated most of my vices. They would come in so handy right about now.