Evangola, Long Point, WCA SOUPer Bowl

7:35

Loneliness of A Solitary Ice Fisherman (photo is NOT out of focus)

A morning of darkness at 6:30, the sound of strong winds whipping the trees, the canvas porch covers, the bird feeders.  It's 14º out, a couple of inches of snow overnight, but for now, the wind is the thing, howling, creating snow squalls on the lake.  A solitary fisherman sits on his bucket, his silhouette disappearing on and off behind the snow squalls, like white sand storms crossing a desert.

With David and Gabrielle from Evangola, and Kevin, from Long Point

Black Locust Trail

Yesterday, as I mentioned, we were to meet friends from the Evangola State Park at Long Point for cross country skiing.  Unfortunately, we were both waiting for each other at different parts of the park, figured the others had decided not to come, so we both started to ski and ended crossing paths in the woods.  We talked for a few minutes, laughed about our not connecting, talked about visiting them at Evangola, then went on our way, as they were hoping to meet another couple at the Marina.  Ironically, we passed them once again as we were finishing our skiing.  It was a fun day to cross country ski, the wind surprisingly tame, even along the west side of the park, where it's most ferocious.  We were out for about an hour, wished we could have spent more time with our  friends, but it was nice to see them again.  Neat people and we hope to connect with them in a couple of weeks, to see the ice volcanoes, perhaps ski some in the Evangola State Park.  

We returned home around 11:30, realized we wanted to go off to Lakewood mid afternoon, so Evie put together a quick breakfast of bacon, eggs, and toast.  We watched CBS Sunday Morning, with Charles Osgood, the very best of regular television.  The show was celebrating its 35th year on TV,  begun years ago with host Charles Kuralt, who said about the show: "We dreamed up a program about music and art and nature. Because of its necessary preoccupation with politics and wars and calamities, television journalism doesn't get around to those gentler subjects very often." 

Our Neighbor's Daughter, Julie Maitland-Alpha, A Soup From Shawbucks

The Ash

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Our Favorite, Twice Baked Potato Soup,  from Sandee's: caterers and owners of the cafe at Med Center at Riverwalk

Around 2:45, we drove to the Lakewood Rod and Gun, which was hosting the annual SOUPer Bowl Sunday, to benefit Jamestown's WCA Hospital.  Local restaurants put together their favorite soup recipes, served it to crowds in mini-steaming cups, who eventually voted for their favorite. We hung out for about an hour, tasting at least ten to twelve different soups, talking with the restaurateurs, deciding we like the twice baked potato soup best, with the chicken wing soup a close second.  The chicken wing soup won last year, but this year it was Fire Roasted Red Pepper soup, from La Scala. Unfortunately, it was gone when we arrived so we did not get to taste it. Nineteen restaurants participated and close to 500 people paid the twelve dollars admission fee to enjoy the soups, a real community event.  

Free Soup Bowls 

Hundreds Enjoy Their Soup

We came home around 5:00, loggy and full from our SOUPer Bowl Sunday, relaxed in our living room, Evie working on the photos from the day, me reading my new book, The Light Years, set in 1937 England, a series of five novels which reminds readers of Downtown Abbey, with its emphasis on Upstairs Downstairs.  So far, so good.  About 7:00 we roused ourselves from our books and vino and put together a taco dinner.

We watched some of the pre Grammy show, enjoying the various gowns, then Downton Abbey, where Bates finally discovers the truth about Anna's rape.  He's a curious mixture of sensitivity and violence, and no good will come of the violence.  At 10:00, after Downton Abbey, we returned to the Grammy's, loved Taylor Swift's song, and Pink was also amazing.  We did not stay up to the end but will watch the rest today, sans commercials.