27f and light snow this morning that only stuck to roofs and branches, and ended by 1pm with no accumulation.
Happy New Year, all! I hope your celebrations were fun, festive and safe. We went out to dinner with friends and had a great time. We were back home by 11:30pm. Plenty of time enough to get the fire going, open champagne, and find the ball drop on my new tablet so that, for the first time in many, many years, we actually got to watch it fall. I must say, I was quite happy not to be one of those packed into Times Square.
Today has been quiet, just a nice day. I decided to try Catalyst's suggestion and made a Dutch Baby for brunch, with a fruit salad side. It was very good! I will definitely make it again.
After phone conversations with my sons, I went for a long walk in the woods. Now, I have been pretty leery of doing this, as my knee is tricky at best, but I have had such a strong urge to ramble that I decided to give it a try. I took a sturdy walking stick that used to be my mother's, and it was a great help. It was such a pleasure to be in the quiet winter woods. I didn't even take the dogs with me. I just wanted to enjoy the stillness.
Larry's poutin' house, a little cabin he built for hunting but rarely uses these days.
A stump slowly returning to soil.
where I saw evidence of another traveler,
and back home after a good hour's walk.
It was time to make our dinner of venison in gravy with mushrooms and onions, homemade noodles, and cabbage with, of course, silver coins in it to bring us prosperity in the coming year.
Oh, and rabbit, rabbit, rabbit, friends!
So many little things in the woods to see and discover. Nice to see you take the time to really see in the forest. I have not had any issues walking in a while, but when I do, it is always when I am going downhill!
ReplyDeleteWasn't it John Muir who said that to see, we should meander, not hike? Or something like that. I move slowly as I truly do not want to fall, or twist my knee. But I have always wandered, rather than hiked. I like seeing the little things.
DeleteTo some extent elevation does for you what latitude does for us. at least your morning temperatures have often been similar recently. I expect that real winter will soon settle in here and similarities will vanish.
ReplyDeleteI hope you are right. I am waiting for winter!
DeleteLove Dutch baby..sweet or savoury. Venison in gravy sounds absolutely droolworthy.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!
ReplyDeleteThose little ferns peeking out from the beech leaves made me smile! Your wintery landscape looks very, very similar to mine. I think I'd feel right at home in your neck of the woods. Thanks for taking us along on your walk. I was thrilled to find how much a walking stick helped me carry on rambling with Piper. I still use a stick some days, just doing the chores, but only if I'm feeling wobbly or extra-stiff, since everything takes so much longer with only one free hand.
ReplyDeleteYes, I was very pleased to find that the stick helped so much. A simple thing, but it made climbing around our hill feel a lot more comfortable. I am thinking about getting a pair of those walking sticks. Are 2 better than one, maybe?
DeleteSometimes I use two if I'm "just" walking - not carrying buckets or whatever else I'm always toting around. I'd say yes, two can be better than one, for getting a nice balanced feeling. Unless you need your hands for something every two minutes, like a camera, and you have to put the poles down instead of just tucking one under an arm. That must be how I lost one pole on a sketching stroll with Piper - had to put two down and then only picked one up and didn't even realize it til days later :)
DeleteSo glad you took us along on your walk through the woods. Loved seeing all that nature provides to look at! Yes the downhill walk does stress one's knees!
ReplyDeleteSuch simple beauty, so complex a system, was what I was thinking, Barb.
DeleteI always mean to say 'Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit...' I never remember.
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing quite as therapeutic as a walk in the woods and I am glad that you did it. Perhaps the help of the sturdy stick will spur you on to making a habit of it.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed your Dutch Baby and that fruit salad looks extravagantly delicious. I'm wondering if you have bears or other wild animals in your woods. Though I used to love prowling through forests I think I'd be a bit nervous with so little "civilization" there.
ReplyDeleteI have never thought about that, Catalyst. I have always wandered at will. We have black bears, coyotes, bobcats, etc, but rarely see them. Wild things will usually leave an area if a human enters it, unless the animal feels threatened or is surprised.
DeleteThere is nothing like a walk in the woods. I take one quite often around our farm.
ReplyDeleteTruth! It's great therapy.
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