A Rainy February Morning

A Couple Of Cuties

7:26

8:53

It's an ugly morning, falling rain, a slick, still frozen lake, gray skies, and 39º. The flag is frozen/stuck on the flag pole, unaffected by the windy morning. 

Yesterday was probably the last sunny, blue-sky day in a while, at least looking at the forecast. The lake is still useless, no kayaking, no fishing, just an enjoyable view. I was off to yoga at 9:40, to a good class with just three of us. I was tempted once again to hang out at the coffee shop but came straight home because Evie had a doctor's appointment in Westfield.

Lunch was the last (maybe) of the pastitsio and I continued with The Vietnam War, 1967/68 as things only got worse and almost 500,000 American troops were in the country. Evie left at 12:30, leaving me to the usual, napping and reading and waiting for her to come home. I did spend maybe half hour out in the front yard, picking up deadfall, enough to fill a garbage pail. 

We were going over to a friend's home at 4:00 for a venison meatloaf dinner. Evie didn't return until after 3:00 so we didn't have much time to get ready. Julie and Tom live on 40 acres of woods and a pond, where we would want to live if not on a lake. We enjoyed appetizers and red wine in their great sunroom, looking out at the ever-changing woods. Evie thinks it must be spectacular in a snowstorm and I agree. 

Dinner With Former Woodlawners

Tom is a bow hunter and dresses two or three deer a year, thus the venison meatloaf, a recipe I sent to Julie from the NYTimes. We loved the meatloaf, topped with tomato sauce, mashed potatoes from Tom's garden, and a salad. We ate slowly, enjoyed the conversation, and had strawberry shortcakes for dessert, with the last of their frozen strawberries. We couldn't believe it was 7:45 when we decided we better head home. 

By 8:30, Evie was ready to head up to bed but I stayed up and watched some basketball and a half hour of a film I had seen before called Shooter with Mark Walberg.  It was a way to waste an hour before going up to bed. 

Musical Chairs

7:02

7:13

8:32

It's 8:30 and I have been up since 7:00 and this is the fourth or fifth seat I have been in, as I move around the living room to avoid the bright sun. It's another brilliant sunny, blue sky morning and the lake is still frozen. It's warming up with this morning's temperature, a chilly 31º but by noon, it may be a toasty 48º. An example of how fickle weather can be, by Saturday, the temperature may get down to 17º, 31º colder than today's high. 

Canadian Geese Are Back

Yesterday was a strange day because  I woke up tired, lacking mojo, and forced myself to go to yoga. I didn't kayak because the lake was frozen and was up early and had a bad night sleeping. So after breakfast and the blog, I was off to yoga, and by the end of class, I felt better. By the time I got home, I was back to the blahs and didn't feel like doing anything, no hiking, no cleaning up the deadfall in the yard. 

Evie made me soup and cheese sandwiches for lunch and I got further depressed watching The Vietnam War on TV. After lunch, I couldn't wait to take a nap and was surprised to wake up at 3:00. I then did little other than lie on the couch and read, and at 5:00, Evie had a Zoom call with her sisters. We were supposed to go to a local basketball game with friends. I wanted to go but just didn't have the energy to do it so we stayed home and had the leftover pastitsio for dinner and had our usual evening of TV, Hometown, HGTV, and another episode of Marcella. I feel more like myself this morning so I will be off to yoga in an hour.

 

Sunny And Cold, Again

7:25

8:43

Winter temperatures this morning were 18º when I got up but having sunny days is unusual for us. I am not complaining. The lake, interestingly, keeps thawing and then freezing. This morning, because of the cold, it's frozen again although yesterday afternoon it was partially open. I listened to a podcast by Derek Thompson who wrote an article in The Atlantic called The End Of Hanging Out. Here he argued that today, everything is a cult. He made a convincing argument for Maga and Swifties as well as politics. The Dems and Republicans have become cult-like, passionate, and insular,  not just polarized, and hate each other and cannot talk to each other as a result. Interesting. 

Long Point State Park

Yesterday, a Monday, was beautiful if you like cold weather, sun, and blue skies. I do. Again, when I woke, the lake was frozen so there was no kayaking, no big deal. We both had a leisurely morning because I did not have yoga. Evie had a couple of things to do because we were having Linda and Ron over for Sunday dinner on Monday. I wanted to get in a hike but first, Evie gave me a much-needed haircut. It's always a pain for her (she has been cutting my hair for over 50 years), so I don't blame her. The results, however, are always worth it. It makes me look younger, no longer an 80-year-old or so I think! After a shower, I dressed for my hike and drove over to the end of Lakeside Drive and walked Long Point State Park for forty-five minutes, 1.76 miles. It was basically empty except for one couple with their daughter and a dog. The trail, however, looked used as the snowy paths were rutted from bikes and hikers.

In The Distance

Snow Covered Trails

I stopped at the Bemus Point Market, under new owners, bought some chips and dip for last night's snack, and came home for lunch, soup, sardines, and crackers. I continued my viewing of The Vietnam War and right now, I am in 1967 as the troops keep building and the casualties. While I was gone, Evie finished prepping our dinner so she could relax for much of the afternoon. My afternoons don't change much these days, reading, nap, and helping Evie in the kitchen. 

Afternoon White And Blue

A Changing Lake

Linda and Ron arrived at 6:00 and we sat around the fireplace as the sky darkened, enjoying wine, pears and cheese, chips and dip, and homemade cream of mushroom soup.  Tasty.

Evie's Pastitsio

Dinner was a Greek specialty, pastitsio, along with a salad, rolls, and a good red wine, compliments of Linda. Dessert was Greek yogurt, with blueberries, raspberries, and brown sugar. As always, it was good to be together. It always finishes the week or starts the week in a good way. I am tired of using the word 'good' but cannot think of a better one. 

Monday Night Dinner

Blinding Sun, Blue Skies, And 20º

7:29

8:06

I woke at 7:15 to a bedroom filled with sunshine, a delight actually after yesterday's morning gray. Right now,  I can hardly look out our living room window because of the sun's reflection on the partially frozen lake.

Ice, Malards, Open Lake

Yesterday was not much of a day because I was not feeling up to snuff, whatever that means. So I just hunkered down on my couch much of the day, either reading or in the TV room watching the boob tube, waited on by Evie, what a gal. I did get the blog done and skipped my usual breakfast but Evie made me scrambled eggs and toast around 11:00 and it cheered me up. 

Sunday Afternoon Blue Skies And Clouds

Evie spent much of the day in the kitchen, prepping tonight's dinner with Linda and Ron, and, as usual, I helped clean up. It was actually a decent day as neither of us had much that we didn't want to do. Evie enjoyed prepping and I enjoyed doing nada. I skipped lunch and read and napped and woke refreshed to blue skies and some sun. The afternoon went quickly, reading and watching some basketball but after 10 minutes, it bored me.

Dinner was great, BLTs! They have to be one of the great sandwiches of all time, with bacon, juicy tomatoes, lettuce, and this time, lots of Duke's mayo. I had two and a half sandwiches. We started watching an older film, The Holiday, but it seemed dated, silly, and predictable, and turned to Real Time With Bill Maher, a good choice. Evie was tired and went to bed early so I watched some of the NBA All-Star game which I had saved, a mistake. I saw this morning the winning team scored 211 points which should give you some idea of how both teams played defense. There was little or no defense, nada competitiveness, and mostly shot-making and dunking highlights. They ought to just cancel the game because it's not really a game, just showmanship. 

A Winter Sunday

Clevelanders Loving Chautauqua

7:34

It's 8:40 and I have been up since 7:30 watching the birds at our feeder, the ducks floating in the open water, beyond the ice. It's cold out there, 15º and a few snowflakes are falling. No paddling obviously as the shoreline is covered with the skin of ice. It seems like the migration of mergansers has begun as at least 50 or 60 are floating on the open waters near the reeds. 

Feeding Ducks

Yesterday actually seemed like winter. We woke up to four or five inches of snow, a welcome surprise. And the sky changed back and forth between overcast and gray or blue skies and some sun. We were in no hurry which was nice and the only thing we had to do was gather the trash and take it to the Transfer Station. Around 10:00, I spent 15 minutes cleaning the snow off the car and shoveling our parking area. Evie gathered the trash and I was off to the Transfer Station by 10:15. And that was my only chore for the day. For some reason, by the time I was home, I lost my mojo as did Evie and thoughts of walking Long Point were put off until today, maybe. 

Saturday Afternoon Blue

I was looking forward to a lazy afternoon so after lunch, soup and pita with tomatoes and cheese, I watched some basketball on and off during the afternoon, read some, and of course napped. Since we were going to a neighbor's for dinner, Evie put together a tasty appetizer, eggrolls with veggies, tofu, and an Asian sauce, then baked them before we left at 6:00. I am almost finished with my novel, Absolution, and will be looking for my next read. 

A Raclette Dinner With Woodlawn Neighbors

We walked down our street to Newt and Elizabeth's house, in crunching snow and a refreshing nighttime air. Jim and Barb, also neighbors, were also there so it was a Saturday night dinner party. Newt and Elizabeth have done lots of remodeling to their house and added an amazing front porch, with floor-to-ceiling windows looking out at the porch and lake. We sat around for an hour with wine and appetizers, then moved to the dining room for a Raclette dinner of potatoes, bread, various cheeses, chicken, shrimp, and scallops.  It's a relaxed and sociable way to enjoy eating and drinking, a perfect way to spend a Saturday night. We sat at the table the rest of the night, enjoying the cooking, eating, and conversation, with brownies and ice cream for dessert. We didn't leave until almost 10:00 and walked home happy on a cold, dark evening. 

Morning Surprise: A Few Inches Of Snow And Sunshine

7:32

7:50

8:07

8:07

8:44

It's just after 8:00 as I start this on a surprisingly beautiful morning, as the sun just came out and we have some blue skies to go along with a heavy cloud bank over the eastern shore. It's chilly, 20º, with little if any wind, a nice change from the past few days. For some reason, Evie and I just watched a few minutes of Taylor Swift's concert in Australia before 96,000 people. It was amazing, the fan's hysteria, reminding us of The Beatle's hysteria back in the 1960s. Imagine, standing on stage, singing alone, before 96,000 screaming fans. It gave both of us goosebumps. Reluctantly, I am going to skip kayaking because of the soupy lake, with various ice floes and thin ice. 

Finches This Morning

I should be using ChatGPT to write this blog. Just tell it the specifics, coffee, blog, yoga, nap, reading, happy hour, and TV and it will write me up a blog, one that is better written and more interesting than what I could do. I also just started playing around with Microsoft Copilot, free, which answers any questions and can draft content, like a lesson plan or blog. I think I am too old-fashioned and will just stick with the old ways and write the blog myself.

So yesterday was a Friday and like most Fridays this winter, I was up early, wrote the blog, had breakfast, and was on my way to yoga class. Wednesday and Fridays are becoming the same, with just three of us in attendance, two gals and me. It's always rigorous and different, which is why the three of us attend. When I returned home, Evie had been busy but not too busy to make my lunch, the chicken soup from Thursday night, and another tomato and cheese pita sandwich, with the great bread from the Middle Eastern Store in Erie. 

For some reason, I was more tired than usual and fortunately, was able to take another good nap, waking refreshed, ready to clean up the kitchen after Evie's' cookies, always a mess. I also had lots of time to read because I skipped taking a walk, unfortunately. By 5:30, however, we were enjoying our usual Friday night Manhanttans, with sushi and cheese and crackers, always something to look forward to. For dinner, we had both the leftover chicken and short ribs with mashed potatoes and we watched Criminal Record, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, and Colbert before bed.

Heavy Winds, Choppy Waters, Gray Sky

6:56

7:57

It's not a very appealing morning, with the cold, 23º, the winds and gray but I am used to it. We got a dusting of snow if you call it that, I think we might almost call it a drought lately, with our lack of both snow and rain, with no snow days for sure.

Yesterday was a bizarre day for us, totally off the charts. For some reason, I did not want to go to yoga and had been reading about a new Turkish bakery in Erie called Bakery On Fifth Street. So after the usual blog writing and breakfast, I suggested to Evie we take a road trip to Erie despite the snow warnings. She was game so after a shower, we drove to Erie late morning. One of our destinations was Cutco, the home of the best knives in the US. Evie had been wanting some so we stopped, were led through the best options, and left with a few new knives. Yippee. 

Turkish Delights

We then drove down to 5th and State where what used to be a Starbucks lived. Instead, it was a very busy Turkish bakery with all sorts of Turkish as well as typical desserts one might get in a bakery. We ordered various Turkish rolls, with feta and Evie's favorite, a simit covered with sesame seeds. We also had Turkish tea in the glasses we love. We were, however, a bit disappointed in our boreks, a bit dry and they needed to be warmed. We left without getting the delicious baklava and regretted it the rest of the day. We will be back. Before stopping at the bakery, we tried to find a Middle Eastern store, and walked it but the language on everything was in Cyrillic. We asked and found out it was Ukrainian. We then drove to Parade Street, to a Middle Eastern store called Almadina Supermarket. It did have some Turkish products and we left with some freshly made individual breads, almost like a pide. We drove home in some snow flurries but nothing like it was forecast, fortunately.

Afternoon Snow On Freezing Lake

Light Snow, Frozen Lake

We were home by 2:00, in time for a nice nap. The rest of the afternoon we were treated to wind gusts from the west, shaking the house and a partially frozen lake. We enjoyed a glass of wine before a light dinner of chicken soup made by Evie and cheese and tomato slices of bread from Amadina. We loved both and wished we had bought more bread to freeze. We watched an older Colbert where he interviews filmmaker Christopher Nolan which we really enjoyed. We then watched another episode of One Day but we are not loving it. We ended the night with House Hunters, where a woman was looking for a cabin in the Smoky Mountains of Tennesssee.