Enough

7:05

8:13

I never thought I'd say it, but I've had enough of winter. In fact, as I was thinking about it yesterday, I couldn't even picture what summer looks like here at the lake—the snow and whiteness have been so dominant these past couple of weeks.  Right now, a light snow is falling on a 16° morning as I count eight fishing tents out on the lake.

Yesterday was surprisingly good for both of us. Evie felt better and went off to kindergarten at 9:30. I was up early, perused a couple of newspapers and the web, then drove over to Bemus Point for breakfast with my friends—always a great way to start the day. I usually have an English muffin with either bacon or sausage, cheese, and coffee. Yum. When I returned home, I finished the blog, and Evie read it before she left for school.

I read about how cultures living in areas where villagers who climb stairs or walk up hills daily live longer. So I went up to the attic, pulled down Evie's plastic aerobic stepper, and worked out on it for 40 or 50 reps. I'll probably do this for a couple of days, then take it back upstairs and forget about it. And so it goes.

View Of Westfield And Lake Erie From Hardscrabble Road

Noble Winery And Vineyards

A Frozen Chautauqua Creek

By 9:45, I had in mind a drive up to Barcelona on Lake Erie. I drove almost to Westfield, then took Hardscrabble Road, which offered a great view of the vineyards and Lake Erie. I tried to park in the lot next to Chautauqua Creek but I almost got stuck because my loaner is front-wheel drive, so I parked on the road instead. It was an easy walk along the creek to Lake Erie—others hikers had made a path. The lake was frozen, and the snow and ice hills were 15 to 20 yards off the beach, which was unusual since they're typically much closer to shore. 

Volcano?

Up Close

Out to the west, I noticed what looked like a boulder sticking out of the frozen lake, maybe a quarter mile from shore. When I used the telephoto on my camera, I realized it was a snow volcano or cave—I'm not sure what else to call it. Walking on the shore was unlike any other time I've been there in winter. I stayed out for 15 minutes, then hiked back to my car.

Lake Erie, Looking East

Trail Along Chautauqua Creek

I stopped at Westfield Fisheries in Barcelona and picked up a pound of frozen walleye for dinner this week. I drove to Westfield and stopped at Full Strength Coffee, where I lingered for 20 minutes, enjoying a coffee and a chocolate chip cookie. I was home by 12:30 and pulled the leftover meatballs and spaghetti out of the fridge to heat up in the microwave for lunch. I finished my series, The Diplomat, then read some and napped. Evie didn't get home until later than usual because she shopped at Wegmans after school. I helped unload the car, and then we both relaxed—Evie in the TV room watching her shows and me on the couch, finishing my book, Victoria Hislop's The Island. I loved it and highly recommend it.

We had our wine at 5:00 and dinner at 6:30: Asian noodles and General Tso's chicken, both from Wegmans' ready-to-eat selection. The chicken was served over rice, and both dishes were surprisingly tasty. We started a new series, Hostage, on Netflix, and it's decent. The night ended with some basketball and junk TV.

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💼 Billionaires in the Trump Administration

🔹 Top Figures & Roles

1. Donald Trump – President of the United States (net worth in the billions) — the richest elected U.S. president in history.

2. Elon Musk – Served as a special government employee and head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) before stepping down; world’s richest person.

3. Joe Gebbia – Chief Design Officer of the U.S. government (a role created by Trump).

4. Melinda (Mindy) Hildebrand – U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica; billionaire philanthropist.

5. Stephen Feinberg – Deputy Secretary of Defense; private equity billionaire.

6. Howard Lutnick – U.S. Secretary of Commerce; billionaire financial services executive.

7. Doug Burgum – U.S. Secretary of the Interior; billionaire former tech entrepreneur and governor.

8. Jared Isaacman – Administrator of NASA; billionaire entrepreneur and pilot.

9. Linda McMahon – Served as Secretary of Education; billionaire former WWE executive (often included in billionaire lists of this administration).

10. Vivek Ramaswamy – Billionaire co-leader of the Department of Government Efficiency at least initially.

11. Kelly Loeffler – Administrator of the Small Business Administration; billionaire through marriage and business.

12. Warren Stephens – U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom; billionaire banker. 

* In contrast to the Trump administration, there were virtually no billionaires serving in top government positions under President Joe Biden’s administration.