A Historic Day "Full of Sound And Fury, Signifying Nothing."

The Loneliness Of A Cross Country Skier

7:09

It's an early morning for me as I have breakfast at 8:00 in Lakewood at Schuyler's, then I have a drive to Niobe, about twenty minutes to get my brakes repaired at Finn's Auto.  We had quite a bit of snow last night, so it will be slow going to Finn's and since it so far away, I will just have to wait there for my car.  I am sure there's no wifi so I will just bring my Kindle, perhaps go for a hike if the weather is decent.

7:10

The hearings reminded me of the Kevauger hearings in 1951.  One of my earliest memories is sitting on the floor in our living room as my Mom, then, was ironing and listening to the hearings on the radio.  Secondly, like Cohen's testimony, the nation was glued then to the radio, yesterday to their TV's.  Because it did not start until 10:00, I decided to go to yoga, on slippery and slushy roads, a result of wet snow overnight and uncleared roads.  The class was the usual six of us, with Jen and it's always good.  I stopped for coffee, in no hurry to get home to the hearings, talked with Dave and was home by noon, missing the first couple of hours of testimony.  I am sure by listening for an hour before lunch,  I was able to digest most of the hearings, the Republicans impugning the veracity of Cohen, never once mentioning Trump's lies.  Meanwhile,  the Democrats lead Cohen through his various dealings illegal or otherwise with Trump.  And so it goes.

Lunch was a respite from serious men with contrasting ideas.  Earlier, Evie had made black bean soup with sweet potatoes, topped it with chips and avocados, a lunch I would like more often.  Hint.  I watched with Evie until 1:30 when I returned to my Kate Atkinson book, took a nap, then came back down to watch more of the hearings for a few minutes, then return to my book.

Skiing in White

At 3:30, despite the fact it was snowing, I put on my cross country skis and tried out the lake.  I stayed in our area because the lake was mushy in front of both Woodlawn and Victoria creeks.  It felt good to be out there, however, the snow hitting my face and I lasted for a half hour before coming in to watch more of the hearings, again, for about 10 minutes before I got bored.

Long Point In The Snow

Around 5:30, the hearing was finally over and we decided to celebrate with a Manhattan or two, the lake a blur because of the snowfall.

Falling Snow/Sleet At 6:45

Dinner was made mid-afternoon, rigatoni with pasta sauce, sausage and mushrooms.  It hung out on the stovetop as we enjoyed our cocktail and appetizers.

Dinner was just want we wanted, warm rigatoni pasta with mushrooms, sausage and lots of parmesan cheese of course.  We watched the news, listening to the pundits tear apart the Cohen hearing from their perch, either CNN or Fox News depending on your prejudice.  We ended the evening with The Great British Baking Show and Vice News because Colbert is on vacation, the bum.

A Cold, Snowy Morning On Chautauqua Lake

Walking A Frozen Lake Erie Shore

7:00

I was up just before 7:00. just as the sun was rising behind the clouds and falling snow.  It's a whiteout morning, as a wet snow fell as I walked outside to get my paper.  We are under another Winter Weather Advisory which means it's going to be cold and snow today, somewhere between 4 and 8 inches.

Long Point During A Morning Snowfall

Yesterday was cloudy and overcast but a good day overall, surprising both of us.  We started the day as usual, with coffee and the blog and my deciding to go to yoga despite the weather.  I cleaned off the car, scraped ice off the windows and drove to Lakewood for class.  Before going, Evie mentioned it might be fun to drive up to Barcelona on Lake Erie to see the frozen peaks of ice.  I had a good class, then stopped for a coffee and picked up some organic eggs before coming home.  While I was gone, Evie made a batch of peanut butter cookies, so I had something sweet to enjoy with my glass of Turkish tea in the afternoons.  What a gal.  Around 11:45, we pulled on our boots and winter gear and drove 16 miles up the Portage Trail to Barcelona's beach.

Chautauqua Creek

The Mouth Of Chautauqua Creek As It Debouches Into Lake Erie

We pulled into the parking area next to Chautauqua Creek then walked along a path following the mostly frozen creek to Lake Erie.  It was an easy walk, not much snow and lots of deadfall on the path from Monday's winds.

Barcelona Beach

There was no beach left, just huge twenty-foot mountains of ice and snow, blocking any view of the frozen lake unless you climbed up the to the peak. I attempted it but it was icy and I stopped midway, afraid I might fall.  We walked briefly along the ice shelf, but it was not fun, just junks of frozen ice and snow so after a few photographs, we got back on the path and walked back to our car.  We drove down to Barcelona Harbor so we could get a good view of the froze lake before driving home,  arriving at 1:00.

An Attempt To Climb An Ice Peak

Evie made me a couple of tasty avocado and tomato sandwiches and I then watched the final episode of Friday Night Lights and as I predicted, Coach Taylor followed his wife to Philadephia, the good husband, leaving his team and Texas football behind.  What a good guy.  I will miss this high school soap opera although many have suggested its one of the top two or three series on TV, right up there with The Wire and The Sopranos.

We did not do much the rest of the afternoon, tired from our morning hike.  I read and napped of course and read some more in CASE HISTORIES, a thriller unlike any I have read before as Atkinson seems interested in our getting to know everyone surrounding the death except for the killer.  She's in no hurry and the novel feels like one holding action, with the reader waiting and waiting for the tension as Jackson Brodie finally discovers who might be the perpetrator if there is one.  We had decided early in the day to go out to Steeners Pub for dinner because of their steak special so we left around 6:15, were lucky to find a parking spot as a truck pulled out just as we arrived.  We found the last two seats at the bar, struck up a conversation with a nice guy from Jamestown when our neighbor, Barb, walked in and asked if they could park behind our car rather than on the street.

A Good Night With Neighbors At Steener's Pub

We obviously said yes and ended up leaving the bar and sitting at a table with them and having dinner.  We had not seen them in weeks so it was fun to see them again and catch up on their lives as once they sell their house in Cleveland, they will be our neighbors full time.  Evie and I had the special, Barb and Jim, a double of grilled wings, the best around in their estimation.  We ended up getting home around 9:15 and the roads were fine.  The night ended with a Colbert from last Friday before bed, the end to a surprisingly good day.

Snow And Cold Return

Tufted Titmouse

Sheltering

6:50

It's 7:30 and both Evie and I have been up for an hour, a white morning with a few snowflakes.  It's a chilly 15º and it's a relief to have a quiet morning, no howling wind.  I noticed a few tents out on the lake, so the guys are returning after a windy couple of days.

Bed and Breakfast

Yesterday was just too windy and cold to do much outside.  And driving was not recommended so we both stayed home during the day.  I decided to do my yoga at home and found some good music to listen to on my phone while I did my practice in the living room, looking out at the lake.  It is not the same, however, as yoga in a studio.  Afterward, Evie and I went outside and worked on our parking area for about a half hour, pushing six inches of snow aside, cleaning off our car.  And that was it for us for the day.

Tufted Titmouse 

Lunch was simple, soup and the leftover burger and mac n cheese and I have one more episode to go before I am finished with Friday Night Lights.  Will Coach stay or go, listen to his heart or his wife's. I am betting on the wife.  I am reading another Kate Atkinson, CASE HISTORIES, another Jackson
Brodie thriller.  So I spent a good part of the afternoon on the couch, reading after a good nap, of course.  I also made some Turkish tea, a good way to spend the afternoon, reading and drinking tea.  I just need some biscuits, something to nibble on with my tea.  Evie amused herself by taking photos on and off during the afternoon of birds at our feeder and rhodos.

Finding Seed In The Snow

We had our glass of wine around 5:30 and Evie had already prepped the pork chops, made the salad, put the red potatoes in the oven and made some apple sauce.  Around 6:30, then, she browned then baked the pork chops and once they were done, she plated our dinner, and we had to decide what to watch.  We started with a recommended series called FLEABAG, but after the first five minutes we turned it off.  We then decided to go crazy, spend six bucks and watch A STAR IS BORN  on Apple TV.  It was up for an Academy Award, received much praise when it first came out so we expected to really like it.  It was good but neither of us ever felt much for the characters.  It was like we were watching great performances by Lady Gage and Bradley Cooper.  There was little tension or emotional involvement for us; the film, their characters, did not pull us in like they did in LEAVE NO TRACE.  We ended our evening with another week of THE GREAT BAKING SHOW.  Now that we care about!

So Far, So Good And Winter's Back

7:05

Sunday Night Snow And Wind

I am sitting here at 7:30, listening to the wind howl, the trees shake and watching the snow blow across the lake, practically obscuring Long Point.  We have had heavy winds for the last 15 hours, gusting up into the '40s or '50s but usually a steady 20 + MPH.  I cannot remember such sustained heavy winds.

Long Point This Morning

Yesterday morning was the calm before the windstorm, which we knew was coming.  So we continued with our preparation in case of loss of electricity.  Evie made up breakfast sandwiches in case we lost electricity, secured the kayaks,  and I brought the grill closer to the house in case we needed it.  And I moved the car to an area where it seemed safer than under our willow tree. 

Sunday Morning, Before The Snow And Winds

Because it did not start snowing or get windy until the afternoon, I went for a walk through the Woodlawn/Victoria woods.  It was a perfect temperature, the ground a bit frozen so I was able to avoid a soggy trail.  In other words, it was a good walk through the bare naked beauty of a leafless woods.

Woodlawn Creek

Woodlawn Sunday Morning

When I returned, we decided to have our breakfast sandwiches and watch CBS Sunday morning, back to normal for us.  Another good TV morning, with its emphasis on the Oscars.  We then whiled away the early afternoon, reading and for me, napping.

Around 3:00, however,  we decided to watch another film on Prime Video, LEAVE NO TRACE, which I heard mentioned as a film that should have been nominated for an Oscar and we both agree.  Critics may love BLACK PANTHER or ROMA or GREEN BOOK but for Evie and me, we enjoyed the quiet intensity of LEAVE NO TRACE much more than the Oscar nominees. 

A father, a vet of an unnamed war, lives off the grid with his daughter until authorities roust them out of their seemingly idyllic life in the woods of Oregon, forcing them to move into housing because they were deemed 'homeless.' The father, however, clearly psychologically damaged by war, cannot abet living within a society. This need ultimately leads to a conflict with his daughter who wants and needs a community. Mature beyond her years, she also understands her father's need to be alone.  The ending though satisfying brought both of us near tears.  WATCH IT.

After the film, Evie got busy in the kitchen, sauteing mushrooms and grilling some onions before frying us up a couple of diner-like burgers.  Along with microwaved Bob Evans Mac N Cheese, we had a dinner fit for a pre-Oscar party.  We watched some of the Red Carpet with Ryan Seachrist, then the Oscars until about 10:15 when we went to bed.  We can't say we missed having a host and the opening number by Queen was a fitting beginning to the celebration of film.  My one big surprise was that GREEN BOOK won the best picture, a film we liked but did not love and certainly did not think was Oscar-worthy.  Who can account for taste?

Sunday Night Blast

Waiting For The Winds

7:27

This morning the lake is empty of fishing huts, probably because of the winds and the slick, wet lake's surface.  I was up at 6:30, Evie followed about 7:00 and we are enjoying our coffee while listening to C-Span, our radio choice on Sundays.

Slick, Wet, And Icy

We did not get and do much of anything Saturday, no yoga or hiking, mostly because of the weather, cloudy skies, and winds. We were warned by First Energy about the winds that are expected for the next 24 hours, with gusts up to 75 MPH.  We decided to follow some of their suggestions in case we lost power, like making sure all our devices are charged.  After my trip to the Transfer Station with our trash, I drove into Lakewood, took a couple hundred dollars of cash out of an ATM, filled up the car, and bought water, just in case.  It makes sense to be ready for a lack of power around here because we are so isolated in our neighborhood.  So far we have been fortunate in our retirement with a loss of power only a few times a year and never for long.

Hanging Out In The Rhododendrons 

We had a different afternoon after a lunch of hot dogs and beans and another episode of Friday Night Lights.  After my nap, we decided to watch the highly acclaimed BLACK PANTHER film.  It's not our cup of tea, too much like a video game with lots of violence and fighting.  The story was classic, reminding me of the King Arthur legends though set in Africa in mythical Wakanda. The special effects, however, were amazing, the most memorable part of the film.  Kudos to writer/director Ryan Coogler for an amazing action film, like a comic book on film.

After the movie, which lasted until 5:30, Evie put our dinner, the leftover chicken from Friday night in the oven and we relaxed with a glass of wine in the living room for an hour.  Dinner was just as good as the night before, chicken with lemon, garlic, and anchovies, with rice and a salad.  We watched Real Time with Bill Maher for a laugh.  He is amazingly insightful if you disregard his coarseness and vulgarity.  We ended the night early, with another episode of The Great English Baking Show, a calming effect after Maher's satire, mostly at the expense of Trump.  If Trump is upset by SNL, I cannot imagine how he would react to Maher's Real Time which stretches the limits of free speech and good taste each week.  

The Great British Baking Show

7:26

7:49

It's 7:00 and we are both up, sitting by the fire, as the morning sky lightens.  For now, it's blue skies, a lake ready for ice skating with a few tents up already.  It's 25º but will warm up over the next 24 hours with scary winds forecast for Sunday, up to 75 mph.  We will be hunkering down, filling the bathtubs in case we lose electricity.

7:27

Yesterday was another day of yoga in the morning with Julie but then I did something different.  I drove off into the boondocks of Chautauqua country, on roads I have never been on, to a small village called Niobe where Finn's Auto sits.  He has been recommended to me as a great Subaru mechanic and I can see why.  He had at least twenty Subaru's sitting outside his shop.  Since I probably need new brakes, I made an appointment for him to check them out and replace the rotors and pads if necessary.  It's a twenty-minute drive from our house with nothing around so I am going to have sit and wait for my car, reading my Kindle for a couple of hours.

Not Wanted

When I returned home, Evie was ready to do some shopping.  Since she had just hard boiled some eggs, I had an egg salad sandwich with a bowl of her vegetable soup and watched another episode of Friday Night Lights with only a few more to go before I have to find a new series to watch during my lunch.  While Evie was shopping, I read some, napped and thought about taking a walk but it was still icy out on most roads and walks so I smartly stayed inside and read more of WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING.  I am really liking it. Evie didn't get home till midafternoon.  She immediately put things away and began putting together our dinner, a new recipe she found from the NYTimes.  By 6:30  it was ready,  boneless chicken thighs with a lemon/garlic/anchovy/caper sauce with rice.  It's a keeper, something I am sure she will continue to make and the best part, we have enough for another dinner.  Yum.  We watched Colbert, some news and ended the night going back to an old chestnut, The Great British Baking show because a New York Times article (see below) reminded me why we like it so much.

In yesterday's NYTimes,  op-ed writer Farhad Manjoo wrote that after Trump' election in 2016
"I wanted to find places where the American president-elect and his American opponents and their American controversies simply did not exist. I found such a place in a British reality baking contest."

The Great British Baking Show Judges Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood 

"For me, it was nice British people politely baking against one another... “The Great British Baking Show,” for those not in the cult, is an amateur baking contest, and it is one of the least American things you will ever see on TV.  It depicts a utopia: a multicultural land of friendly blokes and mums with old-timey jobs — Imelda is a “countryside recreation officer” — blessed with enough welfare-state-enabled free time to attain expertise in British confectionary.  To an American, the show suggests a time and place where our own worries have no meaning. And that, more than baking, is what “The Great British Baking Show” is really about"

A Fine Morning

7:13

7:39

7:40

Well, the sun is out and all is good in the world!  Not quite but it's nice to have a sunny morning on the lake.  It's cold, 24º with a partly cloudy sky.  Patches of snow still remain on our lawn but it has been melting the last of a couple of days. The lake is fine for fishermen and ice skaters but not cross country skiing, unfortunately. When I walked outside to get a photograph, I could hear the fishermen along Long Point dragging their sleds along the ice, and I could hear the groaning of the ice as it shifted.

A Hungry Cardinal

Not much changed yesterday until the afternoon. I did have breakfast with two of the guys at the Harbor House in Mayville as our go-to breakfast dinner is closed for a couple of weeks.  It was empty when we arrived, making us wonder how they manage to stay afloat.  I was home by 9:15, in time to finish up the blog and drive to a Yin Yoga class.  I usually am early so I get to listen to the women talk about their day, and yesterday it was their upcoming vacation in Mexico.  Lucky gals.  After yoga, I came straight home because I was taking my car in for an oil change at 3:00.

An Unwelcome Visitor 

When I returned home, Evie was busy in the kitchen, not cooking but taking photos of an unwelcome squirrel sitting in our window box finding stray seeds from the feeder.  Lunch was a tuna sandwich and soup and some TV.  I took a brief nap, falling asleep reading my novel but was up by 2:30 and on my way to Schultz Subaru.  While they changed the oil, rotated the tires and checked my brakes, I took a walk along the banks of the Chadakoin River on the paved Riverwalk. 

Jamestown's Riverwalk

I was out for close to 40 minutes and returned in time to have the technician explain to me why I will need new brakes, the back now, the front in six months or earlier.  It's always depressing to talk with mechanics about your car because it's never good news.  And now I have to make up mind whether to get just the back brakes done or both or neither. 

February Blue And White

To make up for the bad news, I texted Evie, told her I was going to Farm Fresh Foods in Jamestown for glazed donuts and asked how many she wanted.  Two.  So I picked them up along with a chocolate covered custard filled for me and was home by 5:30.  We decided to have a nice cocktail hour, with a Manhattan, red pepper jelly and cream cheese on crackers because dinner was going to be simple, either soup or a salmon salad with Portuguese rolls.  We ate around 7:00 and I always enjoy a salmon salad.  We watched Colbert, news and Vice News, no movie as we were not in the mood for one.  And we sometimes will take a peek at Everybody Loves Raymond, to see what episode is showing.  If we like it, we watch it again.   

Windy And Wet

7:31

It's 6:30 and I have been up since 5:30, listening to the wind whip the canvas porch covering, as drizzle begins to melt the snow.  No cross country skiing today, alas.  It's warming up some, 36º at the moment and will get into the 40's this weekend.  The weather gods cannot make up their minds.  Is it winter or the beginning of spring?

Yesterday ended up being a pretty good day as it was still cold, no rain, and the roads were fine despite the cold and snow.  I made it to yoga, an easy class because our teacher, Jen, was recovering from the flu.  So we had lots of relaxation, no problem for me.  Afterward, I drove to Aldi's, to pick up a few things and our dinner, a filet of 'no frozen' salmon from Chile.  Fake news?

A Docked Ice Boat In Lakewood

I returned home to a great lunch, basically a western omelet with the leftover Bob Evans sausage and home fries from the previous night's dinner.  I watched another episode of FNL's, then started to read a much-recommended book, LET THE CRAWDADS SING, by Delia Owens.  Set off the coast of North Carolina in the 1950s and 1960s, it follows the life of Kya, the 'Marsh Girl,' who is abandoned by her parents at a young age and forced to survive on what I will call 'shit, grit, and mother wit.'

Cross Country Skiing at 4:45

By midafternoon, I had my nap and was tired of reading and despite the heavy winds, I decided to give cross country skiing a try.  I expected to be out for 15 minutes but for some reason, the wind abated and I was out for a good forty-five minutes, following the tracks I had made the day before. Unlike Tuesday's sun and blue skies, it was overcast and gray but still exhilarating to be out on the lake.  I never tire of it, whether skiing, kayaking, swimming or boating.

Late Afternoon On The Ice

Earlier, Evie had made the maple syrup/soy/garlic marinade for salmon, so after a glass of wine, she baked it in the oven, made the rice, brussell sprouts and a salad.  I bought a fairly large filet so we had practically half of the fish left after dinner.  We are really enjoying this salmon marinade, something different from our usual go to recipe from my sister Ellen.  We decided to watch a feel-good movie on Netflix called DUMPLIN, about a heavy set teenager who decides to participate in a beauty pageant.  Predictable and at times corny, it was still fun, a film our granddaughters would have loved a couple of years ago.  We ended the evening with Colbert interviewing Andrew Mc Cabe, who must be the busiest guest on TV and radio.  Every time we turn to a news program, he's there being interviewed.  We ended the night with a depressing Vice News, as Haiti explodes with violence and the Amazon rain forest continues to disappear despite efforts to save it by locals using drones.

Back In The Saddle Again

7:58

It's 7:35 and I have been up for an hour, watching one fisherman after another take their sled or bucket out on the lake, maybe set up a tent and begin fishing, all this before 7:00.  It's 20º outside and overcast, none of the colors from yesterday's morning sunrise.

Early Birds

We certainly had a great time in Washinton this past weekend but it's always good to get home, to your routine, bed, and life.  We have certainly become creatures of habit and it's hard to break out of it especially as we get older.  So yesterday was Morning Joe, coffee, taking some morning photographs, writing the blog, then showering before driving off to yoga class.  I needed the class and left feeling energized, ready for the day, one of the best things about yoga.  It wakes you up to your body and self.  I stopped for coffee and bought a wiper blade for my Outback's rear window at Auto Zone.

At home, Evie had made a pot of vegetable soup, using up all the veggies from the vegetable drawer in the refrigerator.  She had made an extensive shopping list, so after making me a toasted cheese sandwich, she drove off to Wegman's to stock up on the staples we would need for the week.  I had lunch, watched Friday Night Lights, read some of my book FREEDOM ROAD, a freebie from Amazon Prime and took a short nap.  Evie was back when I woke up, putting the groceries away.

The Wonder Of Winter On The Lake

It was a brilliantly sunny afternoon, with blue skies, so tempting that I got out my cross country skis and headed out on the lake.  It felt great to be back on my skis and on the lake, and I skied as far as Wells Bay and back, noting all the fishing tents on the lake.  It was the kind of day that made you want to be outside either fishing, skiing or hiking.  When I returned, we enjoyed a glass of wine, listening to the pundits go crazy about the latest 'breaking news' about Trump's attempt to influence Cohen's court case.  Each day, week, month, and now a year, politics seem like a soap opera, with new tantalizing bits of collusion dropping each day or week.

Mid Afternoon Shadow

We decided to stay home for dinner, so Evie fried up some potatoes, Bob Evans sausage, and eggs and we had our dinner,  always a good choice.  We watched the usual on TV, a couple of Colbert's we saved from last week, The Circus, from Showtime, and ended the night with an HGTV show called Hometown, set in a small, quaint town, in Laurel,  Mississippi.