Auld Lang Syne

Translation: "Old Long Ago". The last day of 2011 brings reflection of another year gone that was filled with friends and family, meaningful work, and some time spent in other places. The comfort of the familiar mixed with the excitement of the new. Christmas holiday is over but the spirit of it will linger. This soon-to-be new year brings us new beginnings and new opportunities, but not without appreciation of the auld lang syne.

I spent (or will spend) the official "holiday" Mondays at work, not willing to pay for a day off when I will want that time later in this year. Many people do take those days off, so the place is quiet and the traffic is almost non-existent. A win-win. Since we didn't have any visitors visiting, spending the day at home seemed an unnecessary indulgence. John stayed up here for that second week and that has been nice. He returns to California on Tuesday.

Tonight we will celebrate the New Year at our favorite restaurant Four Swallows. We signed on for the 8:30 seating and hopefully I won't fall asleep before dessert is served. Except for an overnight trip on the train from Paris to Florence when we ate at 10:30 and family dinners in Italy which lasted until nearly midnight, my evening meal usually occurs much earlier (as does my bedtime). Then January 1 brings the traditional observance of the Rose Parade. I can't help it. I have been watching the parade since my grandparents got the first color television and we all gathered at their house to watch and eat lunch in the living room (an unheard of privilege in those days). Now I can watch it in hi-def, well before lunch time. Or I can record it and watch it later. But watch it I will.

The rain has returned. Once the calendar said "winter" was officially here, the weather obliged with typical Northwest rain. This morning it is 29 degrees and crunchy again and promises to be a mostly dry day. Tomorrow the rain starts up again. The sunrises have been gorgeous this week, though. The storms move through overnight and by morning the clouds open up just enough to let the sunrise show through and reflect off the formations. Some very pretty sights on my way to work.

I think I'll leave 2011 here. I'll be back next year...

These are a few of my favorite things...

Lovely week. The Solstice arrived and brings the return of the light. Hard to fathom that 6 months from now, sunset will be nearly 6 hours from its present time.

This Christmas has been somehow quieter than those past. John and I are on our own as the children-who-are-now-grownups balance their grown-up lives. That means that this year they are spending their small bit of holiday time elsewhere. We did much the same at their age and stage of life. They are missed but with us in thought nonetheless. So, without any temporary lodgers, we have had a pretty smooth week. This morning we were up at our usual 4:30-ish. Zoe spent lots of time smelling and barking out in the yard (perhaps at transient reindeer?). We enjoyed our coffee while opening gifts. We can now decant wine while slicing and dicing vegetables with a very sharp knife, enjoying homemade jams and pickles,watching squirrels eat from their own fast food station, or just pouring over wedding photos from the summer. I have a hat (from Ireland, no less) to wear on those frosty days and John will have warm hands and feet as he works in the garden. I have some books from my wish list and an audiotape for use with meditation. John can try new camera angles with his handy travel tripod while wearing new, warm track suit/pj bottoms. And we are the proud sponsor of a rescue dog at Best Friends in Utah. Santa was extremely generous to us this year.

The rest of the day will be spent enjoying time and the company of each other. We plan to get the good china out, prepare an extravagant Christmas meal together, and enjoy a nice wine (properly decanted, of course). Maybe we'll finish that jigsaw puzzle that has persisted since Thanksgiving. Maybe I'll finish my current book on my Kindle. Maybe. Merry Christmas to all...

Fa La La La La....

We have successfully avoided all the crowds of shoppers this year. That's a gift to us. Presents are secured and we are enjoying a lovely holiday season. John was away most of last week, so the Z-dog and I carried on with our routine. I'm not too fond of the flashlight-lit walks we take in the dark, but I do appreciate the opportunity to take in the stars and breathe in the cool night air. On Wednesday, we were on our last walkabout of the evening before heading to bed and somewhere out there were Christmas carolers! The woods were singing! That was a treat.

The mice have been at John's car again. We took it to the repair shop and left it for Monday. There must be a way to deal with these tiny vandals, but we haven't found it yet. So far, my acoustic disruptor system has worked for the house and garage. There have not been any "events" since I put them in place.

No progress was made on the gate repair this past week and it looks like that will be the first project completed in 2012. It has simplified package delivery during this season of online shopping though, so I can't complain. We are looking at replacing the dishwasher next. The one that was in the house is allegedly a high-end product but we were spoiled with our Miele in California. This current dishwasher doesn't clean well and has a poor dish-placement design. So, we've put up with it for nearly three years and have decided that enough is enough.

We are enjoying unusually dry weather. I think we have had something like 0.6 inches (or less) of rainfall this month. It was quite cold last week, but the temperature has moderated some as well now. What a difference a year makes. We are actually going to have a Skype call with our friends this morning. Turns out last week I was misinformed. And then I'm off to get a much-needed massage. We're on a path to achieve some health-related goals this next year. Again, enough is enough. And on that note, the day has begun...

You Know the Drill....Read On...

It was nice to have John at home this past week. It always is. Tomorrow morning he will head for California for 4 days and the hard headed brown dog and I will manage on our own. At least it's predicted to be fairly dry for the week so that makes some things a little easier (like taking the 4:30am walk outside).

We didn't get the Christmas tree up last weekend and have now agreed that it won't go up at all this year. What a relief! Don't get me wrong. I love the tree. It's an annual ritual that lets me reflect on the past year(s) as I place the ornaments on the tree. It's like comfort food. But we're on our own for the holiday this year and it doesn't seem necessary somehow. And it takes several hours to get it up and then to take it down. So, there are festive decorations about the house, but no tree. We mailed off the last of the cards and the Christmas parcels yesterday. Hooray! Most of our holiday is spent vicariously with those who are dear but not near to us. 

Progress is being made on repairing the gate. It is now mounted on one of the new posts with impressive hinges (ball bearing, no less). Hopefully, while the weather holds, they will be back this week to assemble the arm and opening mechanism so John can do the electrical wiring next weekend. They have to knock down the current base that is made of crumbling concrete and will replace it with a metal base. However, in the interim, the gate stands open which has allowed packages to be delivered right to our porch and that has been very nice.

We'll be working around the house today, doing some of the mundane things that keeping a house requires. We will talk with friends in England via Skype (what a fantastic invention that is!) and will make one trip out for the necessary pet food and the not-necessary-but-nice coffee. It's Soup Sunday, so I'll put something together to simmer in the crock pot and that will double for my suppers while John is away this week. Now though, I have a date with the treadmill in the garage...

Would you look at the calendar! It's December!

Wow. December. How'd we get here so quickly? We had a good visit with son Jake and girlfriend over Thanksgiving. November is typically the wettest month up here and it all seemed to come down during Thanksgiving week. But we took advantage of the one dry day on Friday to visit Port Townsend and if you have to be out on "Black Friday" that was a good place to be. Otherwise, we stayed close to home and enjoyed the visit. Thanksgiving dinner was a definite winner this year. The menu was largely the usual fare: roast turkey (brined), mashed potatoes from our garden, gravy, candied sweet potatoes that came out perfectly for once, homemade cranberry relish, homemade rolls, dressing made with fennel, prosciutto, pears, and toasted hazelnuts (a new "favorite"), and brussel sprouts sauteed with chestnuts, prosciutto, and shallots. Of course there were pies: pumpkin, pecan, and Banoffi. Something for everyone (with seconds!). Today the Autumn decor will disappear and the Christmas tree will go up.  December is official.

The weather has turned dry for a projected, extended spell. Historically, in our few years of experience up here, December has been the coldest month. It is certainly the darkest. We are dark by 4:30pm and still dark at 7:30am. Once the Solstice comes around this month, the light will start to reappear and I look forward to that. With the cold weather comes more frosty mornings and John took the first tumble on the steps this year. He lived to tell about it, but it was a reminder that slippers do not have the appropriate traction needed in this season. We got some tread strips and will apply those to the steps this weekend.

Work on the new gate mechanism began this week. Some pretty substantial black posts, approximately 4 inch square by 10 feet, have been placed in preparation for mounting the actual gate. They will likely finish the job next week. John will take advantage of this dry weather to make some more progress on the shed's gutters. My wall hanging quilt is complete so I am without a current project. Time to take a look through the accumulated "things I want to do" and see what calls to me. Today we will go to the monthly Farm Breakfast and meet up with friends there for a hardy chat. Then we have some errands to run and household duties to attend. The aforementioned Christmas tree will make its appearance today or tomorrow, and Christmas cards will be readied for mailing. There's a nice rhythm to all of this and a familiarity to it that I enjoy. Guess that's a good thing...