Another Big Thaw

6:56

7:02

7:03

8:05

I'm sitting in my living room at 7:35, having been up for over an hour, watching the morning sky transform. At first, it was overcast, then it bloomed into various shades of pink, and now it's settled back to mostly gray with hints of color where the sun rises. We're in for another unusual winter day in Chautauqua—full sun and blue skies. Whatever happened to those trademark gray Chautauqua winters? This week is teasing us with spring as temperatures climb into the 40s, only to plunge back into the 20s over the week—if you believe the forecasters. Right now it's 29º, and only a couple of fishermen brave the lake.

Winterfest Flags Of Sponsors

Fishing Huts

Ice Castle

Door

Inside The Ice Castle

Saturday was glorious, full of celebration and activity thanks to the Mayville Winterfest and its featured ice castle. I was up early as usual and wanted to finish my morning routine by 9:00—reading, writing the blog, eating breakfast—all before Evie woke. By 9:15, she was up and had read the blog, and I was off to Mayville to photograph the ice castle before Winterfest officially opened. It was a smart decision. I parked for free and wandered around the ice castle and lakefront for a good half hour, camera in hand. Satisfied with my shots, I drove to Tops for a glazed donut and a cake for Evie—she'd mentioned on Friday that she wished we had cake for Valentine's Day.

Fish Frozen In An Ice Block

Looking Out the Door Towards The Lake

The Southern Sky

Amish Fishermen

More Amish

Section Of Lake Where The Ice Blocks Were Cut

Path Out To Ice

I was home by 10:30 and wanted to squeeze in a hike before lunch. First, I doctored up the ham broth, sautéing onions and carrots before adding them along with a couple of cans of beans, then left it to simmer. I headed out for a half-hour hike through our woods, following the path our neighbors had broken while cross-country skiing. I finished by walking home across the lake, its surface still frozen but beginning to melt.

Path Through Woodlawn/Victoria Woods

Woodlawn

Selfie

Back home, it was time for lunch. I cut up some leftover ham, put it in the bottom of a bowl, and ladled the bean soup over it. Decent, but not great—it needed more seasoning or a richer broth. We'd planned to meet Linda and Ron at Winterfest at 2:30, so I watched some TV and read while Evie showered and got ready. 

Traffic Jam In Mayville

We left right on time, only to find traffic backed up at least a half mile from the ice castle. We inched along, passing one parking area after another, each with a FULL sign, until we'd passed the Winterfest entirely—and traffic was still crawling in both directions. Finally, we abandoned the idea and ended up on a 30-mile drive around the lake, crossing the bridge and heading into Jamestown to try a Mexican restaurant we'd been curious about: The Art of Flavors.

We assumed it would be empty at 3:30. We were wrong. The dining room was small—maybe 10 to 12 tables—and we were lucky to snag one. Despite having only one waitress, we didn't wait long for margaritas and dinner. She was remarkably adept, an attractive mother of four with tattoos running up and down her arms. We enjoyed our meals, left a generous tip, and took doggy bags home. By the time we left around 4:30, there was a line of people waiting to be seated.

Enjoying The Lake At 5:00 PM

We were home by 5:30 with nothing pressing to do. We'd already had margaritas, so wine didn't appeal. Evie relaxed upstairs for half an hour while I watched some basketball. We ended up streaming a couple of episodes of DOC on Hulu until 8:00, when Evie went up to bed. I stayed up to watch the first half of the Ohio State/Virginia game, then two episodes of The Lincoln Lawyer before calling it a night—the end of a busy day.

Russ Vought, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, didn’t just gut aid, he stole it for himself. Here is what happened, in plain English. Reuters reports that the White House is using $15 million from leftover USAID funds to pay for Vought’s U.S. Marshals Service security detail through the end of 2026.

That money was part of a system built to fight HIV, malaria, polio, and the kinds of outbreaks that quietly kill people who never make the evening news. Now it is buying armed protection for the guy who helped torch the agency.

Call it “reprogramming.” Call it “budget authority.” Call it “security needs.” Regular people have a simpler word for taking money meant to keep other people alive and using it on yourself: STEALING.

Maybe it is technically legal on some spreadsheet. Morally, it is looting.

And the worst part is the shamelessness.