Lake's Open For Boating/Kayaking

7:13

7:32

7:44

It's 7:21 and the ice has disappeared, the lake's ready for me to kayak. It's a beautiful morning, the lake's placid, cloud banks and some light fill the sky on a 46º morning.  A few ducks and geese are making scribbles on the water's surface and a muskrat just glided by our shoreline.  It's hard to believe it may snow this weekend.

Wednesday was a wasted day, windy and wet, as neither of us did much, got much done.  We were up early, wrote the blog, and our coffee, and talked about what to do with our day. We had some ideas, talked some, did a few minor things and by noon, all I had done was do a Yoga With Adriene class and was ready for lunch. 

Evie had the great idea to get out the pancakes from a few weeks ago and heat them up in the toaster and I had my lunch. I watched my show, then read and napped and that was it for me, for both of us for much of the day except for watching on and off the Supreme Court Nomination hearing on TV. What a joke, an embarrassment, when the vile, despicable Republican three Mouseketeers, Ted Cruz, Lindsay Graham, and Josh Hawley took the stage and I mean stage as they really put on a performance of caring about the nomination.  It was hard to watch as Judge Jackson sat there, unable to really respond to their indignities and accusations because that would only give them what they wanted, a candidate who loses their cool -- aka an angry Black woman.  She never did despite their verbal spittle. 

So that was it for part of the morning, much of the afternoon, and some of the evening.  In between, we had a dinner of leftovers, the stew of squash, garbanzo beans, potatoes, and tomatoes, topped with yogurt. We did get in a Jeopardy and a couple of episodes of Suspicion on AppleTV+ before bed. 

Ah Spring: Heavy Winds And Rain

7:20

7:21

7:34

The southerly wind is howling this morning, the flag flying and the lake is open, with white caps, except for ten yards of ice floes along the shoreline.  Once it moves on, it will be kayak morning for me.  It's 38º and looking ahead, it's scary, as the temperatures drop to the low teens with snow over the weekend. Better get my snow shovel back out of the attic. 

Buffleheads

Tuesday was a busy day for both of us which we like as long as it's not too much. For me, it was a morning like most others the past eleven years, getting up early, writing the blog, having my granola with yogurt and blueberries, then driving off to a good yoga class in Lakewood. My routine has not changed much over the years except during the Covid epidemic. 

Wood Ducks Have Arrived

I was home by 11:30 and Evie was ready to roll, as she was going shopping at Wegmans and getting her hair done in Lakewood.  Fortunately, she had my lunch out,  veggie soup, sardines, and a bagel to toast. I heated the soup, took the lid off the sardines, toasted the bagel and smeared it with cream cheese, and topped it with a tomato, a tasty lunch. I then watched my show, read some, got bored and watched more TV, and napped briefly.  Evie did not get home till after 3:00, the car loaded with groceries. I helped empty the car and put the groceries away then around 5:00 when she started a Zoom call with her sisters. I made myself go for a walk through Woodlawn woods. It was a strange walk, the woods floor brown with leaves just a few weeks after being covered with a foot of snow. Now,  shoots of green have begun to rise. 

Woodlawn Woods

Dinner was easy, clean some Brussel sprouts, simmered in chicken broth, heat up the lamb meatballs and orzo and make a salad.  We were excited to watch an Academy Award-nominated film, Licorice Pizza. Like House Of Gucci, it was a mistake only a bigger one. We hated it, maybe that's too strong of a word and I should have said we disliked it. The worst part was its length; it went on and on, and we kept hoping this scene was the end but no, on it went for 2 hours and 15 minutes.  Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 90%, the audience, 65% -- maybe we are not very discerning?  But what a waste of six bucks. I was happy to get back to news in Ukraine, that they seem to be holding their own against the Russians. 

Bye, Bye Ice

Feels Like Spring

7:05

7:09

7:28

It's 7:50 as we sit here, watching the sunrise then hide behind a cloud bank.  It's 36º as the lake continues to thaw but still frozen out in the middle. Not sure what today will bring other yoga this morning, perhaps a walk in the woods this afternoon.

Yesterday was a good day as I felt like doing something, rather than moping around the house.  So after the blog and helping Evie get a few things done, I spent a good half hour doing a yoga class with Adriene in the TV room.  Once I was finished, I had to decide whether to get in a bike ride in the morning when the sun was out or the afternoon when it was cloudy I decided to ride under blue skies so I drove to Mayville park, got on my bike and rode through Mayville, down Sea Lion Drive, on the Mayville Trail and back and was out for just under an hour.  I was winded, out of shape at first, but then felt better as I went along.

Biking Sea Lion Drive, The North End Of Chautauqua Lake

I didn't get home until 12:30 and Evie already had my lunch ready, an egg salad sandwich, and a bowl of her soup. Egg salad sandwiches are right up there with a BLT as a favorite so I was happy. I am getting bored with The Sopranos but will stick with it.  Once lunch was over, I was excited to get back to my book Razorblade Tears and take a nap.  By 3:30, the lake was too tempting so I put on a life jacket and hip boots, grabbed a paddle, and went kayaking around the shoreline, dodging ice floes for maybe 15 minutes. I could only paddle along Woodlawn as it was frozen otherwise.  It's amazing all the junk floating in the lake, detritus from creeks and streams.

First Kayaking Of 2022

We watched Ketanji Brown Jackson address the Senate and were impressed. Unfortunately, confirmation these days is about politics, not qualifications. I hope she makes it.  I also finished my book, really liked it, and started another The Man Who Came Uptown by one of my favorite crime novelists, George Pelecanos.  Around 4:30, Evie put together our dinner of squash, potatoes, and garbanzo beans, a vegetarian dish. Along with a salad, we felt good about eating a healthy dinner although we missed the 'meat.' We watched a couple of episodes of Suspicion on Apple TV+, Jeopardy and a fairly new show on HGTV called Rock The Block, where four designers compete in designing the same space. After that excitement, we went up to bed.

Clear Skies, Sun Bright

7:11

7:11

7:11

7:33

It's just before 8:00 and both of us are quiet, intent on our devices, ignoring the beautiful morning sky, the lake half-frozen, a few ducks floating in the open waters.  It's a chilly 36º but should get up to the 50s later in the day.  It looks like a good morning for some exercise, perhaps a paddle or bike ride.

We woke yesterday to overcast skies, some drizzle or sleet and it stayed that way much of the morning, a miserable start to a Sunday. So we had a long coffee, wrote the blog, had some breakfast, and listened to Jake Tapper on CNN. By 10:30, however, we were bored and despite the nasty weather, we decided to take our usual Sunday walk at the Chautauqua Institution. It was nasty enough to cut our walk short to a mile, but not so nasty that we did enjoy it a bit.  We were home by noon, feeling righteous and Evie made us an egg, spinach, and feta cheese omelet and toasted a bagel.  

A Gloomy Morning Walk At Bestor Plaza

The rest of the afternoon went as usual, with either me in the TV room watching March Madness until I got bored, or Evie in the TV room watching a movie and me in the living room, reading or falling asleep. It ended up being a fairly nice afternoon compared to the morning as the skies cleared and we had some sun. The lake seemed alive for once, with ducks, muskrats, and floating dock pieces.

Mergansers Arrive

Enjoying Open Water

Floating Dock Piece

Around 5:30, Evie made our dinner, lamb meatballs with a tomato sauce over orzo. Ir was another recipe from Smitten Kitchen which we both like. I forgot to mention that our daughter Jill sent us a neat cookbook called Skinnytaste, her favorite and we can't wait to start making recipes from it.  Since we have had trouble finding something we like, we decided to try Brit Box for a week and watched Shetland, a series we started a few years ago. I have read a couple of the Shetland books by Ann Cleeves so the story was familiar to both of us, so we must have watched it.  After the first episode and a half, Evie was tired and went up to bed and I watched another half hour of March Madness before joining her. 

Overcast, Some Rain, Perhaps A Few Flurries

7:30

It's an early Sunday morning as both of us are up at by 6:45. The lake is still mostly frozen with pockets of open water along the shoreline. It does not look like a very nice day so we will be sticking inside, watching March Madness, hopefully cooking up something good to eat.

Saturday Morning Fog

Saturday Afternoon Clouds

Saturday morning was a busy morning for me.  After getting the blog done and gathering the trash, I was off to the Transfer Station by 9:30.  I then drove to Jamestown, parked my car, picked up my taxes, and received a nice refund from both the federal and local governments.  I then stopped at Walmart on the way home and picked up a bird feeder for orioles as well as six dahlia tubers as they are now available in various stores.  Walmart was packed, as usual, basically the only retail store around now that the Mall had become mostly moribund. I ended my trip by dropping off cans and plastic bottles at the Can Man in Lakewood and donating the few dollars to St. Susan Center.  I often wonder if the kids really ring it up as a donation or just pocket the money.

And that was it for me for the day. I was home by 11:30, read some, and then had lunch ready in time to watch the beginning of the Baylor/North Carolina game.  I finished the last of the tuna hoagie along with another bowl of Evie's veggie soup.  I soon got tired of the game but taped it in case I wanted to watch it later, after my nap and reading my book.  Evie even got in a brief nap which is unusual but she was up early.  Around 3:00, I watched the thrilling last ten minutes of the Baylor/North Carolina game which eventually went into overtime with North Carolina winning after an amazing Baylor comeback. 

A Hungry Muskrat

I felt bad not going out for a walk because it was a decent afternoon weather-wise, with warm temperatures and some sunshine, Neither of us had the mojo and were happy to be sitting in our house, looking at the lake melt, the next-door neighbor's dock collapse, the muskrat ramble.

Going

Going

Gone

By 6:00, we were on our way to the Viking Club which opened last week and met Linda and Ron for dinner.  We found seats in the bar which we like even though it was fairly crowded for a Saturday night. Ron and I hoped for a fish fry but they ran out of it, so we both settled for Viking burgers as did Linda. Evie ordered bourbon pork chops, not wanting a burger, and by 8:00, we were full and happy to be once again at the Viking, a sign of summer's coming. We were home by 8:45, in time to watch Real Time With Bill Maher and some news before going up to bed.

 

I liked this poem from Writer's Almanac because it gets at some of the reasons we like winter,

A Northern Town by George Denham I grew up in a northern town Solemn people all around, Not so joyful, goodness knows, Except on morning when it snows. We wake to worlds all wondrous bright, Glittering particles in the light, Dazzling snow and shining ice, A January paradise. After school, down at the park, We play hockey in the dark, Grand Forks, Green Bay, and Duluth Vibrate to the love of youth,           Snow and ten below is sweet,           Skating, generating heat.

Waiting For The Ice To Melt

7:05

6:34

6:34

6:35

7:55

It's 7:30, a strange morning because we have both been up since before 7:00, watching the fog roll in, then the sunrise above Bemus Bay. The lake is still frozen except in areas where creeks drain into the lake and that's where we might find ducks and geese.  I hope to be kayaking within the week.

Yesterday was another warm one, well, warm for a winter day, with temperatures in the 60s again. I had nothing I had to do, nor did Evie so much of the day we just hung out, straightening things up, doing the wash, whatever. I did not get outside until late, 10:30 or so, after writing the blog, coffee, and finishing my book.  I had three pails filled with deadfall and leaves and took them up the hill to the woodpile for the first time this year.  I also made a big decision and put the snow shovels away in the garage attic and started to bring down some of the Spring stuff.  I hope I don't regret it. 

I had lunch at 12:30, a tuna sandwich, and Evie's soup and watched some basketball, then my show,  Evie, however, drove to Westfield to the doctor's office to get a steroid shot for bursitis in her shoulder which has been bothering her.  So far, it seems to have worked. While she was gone, I started a new novel, Razorblade Tears, and I immediately liked it, a best-seller already being made into a film. 

Warm Enough For A Long Point Hike

Around 3:00, I went back outside and raked the rest of our yard and our neighbors and filled a couple more pails with deadfall, and took it up the hill. It felt good to have the yard cleaned up somewhat, getting it ready for Spring and Evie and her lawnmower and the planting of dahlias. And it was a fine afternoon to just enjoy sitting in our living room and watching the action on the lake.

A Lost Fawn

On Thin Ice

We had an extended happy hour with good cheese and watched the sky change and a couple of geese seemingly skate on the frozen lake. Dinner was the leftover corned beef, cabbage, and vegetables and a cabbage salad with an Asian dressing.  Yum.  We broke down and spent six bucks and watched House Of Gucci on Prime.  Neither of us was taken with it, found it boring but stuck with it to the end. We seem to be severe critics lately, not liking much of what TV has to offer.  

A Rosy Fingered Dawn

6:58

7:44

7:58

What a plus to have a sunny morning to wake up to.  Not a cloud in the sky, the sun full and bright, filling the living room, the lake with its light.  It's cool still, 41º and will warm up to the mid-60s.  

Like this morning, yesterday was sunny most of the day with temperatures rising by mid-afternoon to the mid-60s. It was a busy morning for me, up early, writing the blog before driving to Bemus for breakfast. I was home by 9:15, finished up the blog, and drove to yoga at 10:00. Unlike Tuesday's class of two, we had at least 15 students, most regulars. For some reason, yesterday felt like a coming out, to yoga and later to a coffee shop crowded with regulars who I had not seen in months.  After a coffee, I drove to Wegmans to do a quick run through and it was a good time to shop, the store practically empty, a couple check out lines open. What a pleasure to shop in that kind of environment.  Unfortunately, they were out of cabbage so I drove to Brigiotta's Grocery to pick up a cabbage for our corn beef dinner.

I did not get home until 12:30 and Evie had been busy, making a pot of her vegetable soup, getting our dinner prepped.  I bought a tuna sub for lunch so I was happy watching my show, feeling righteous for having gone to yoga and gotten our shopping done.  I am reading  You Belong Here Now, a book set in Montana on a farm in the early 20th century where a family adopts three orphans from New York City. I like it enough to stick with it.  Around 3:00, I was tired of reading and had taken a nap and wanted to do something.  So I decided to tackle the deadfall in our yard from the winds and snows of the past three weeks.  I was out for over an hour, filling three trash cans with deadfall, actually working up a sweat, and wearing just a tee-shirt.  It felt good to get a headstart on Spring clean-up. 

When I came in, I watched Iowa lose to Richmond, an upset, while Evie was getting our dinner ready.  Around 6:15,  I sliced the corned beef, and  Evie put the cabbage and veggies on a platter,  We served ourselves and enjoyed our St. Patty's Day dinner, wondering why we don't have it more than once a year.  We watched a film which was tough to watch called Mudbound, about racism in the South after WW II. The racial hatred of the white farmers, the hardscrabble lives of the blacks, as a result of racism and the legacy of slavery, was shocking to watch.  It's the kind of film all Americans should watch but would probably be banned in most schools in the South, especially Florida because it does not show white people in a favorable light.

Full Moon