Yuck

50°f this morning, partly cloudy and breezy all day.

Well, the threatened power outage did not happen. I was right, the many outages overnight kept the power companies plenty busy.

I started feeling badly during the day yesterday but chalked it up to just being tired, but no; it seems I have a cold or bug of some kind. All the bad feels: stuffy head, sore throat, sneezing occasionally, and just feeling dragged out. I am drinking something called Umcka that granddaughter Sarah gave me and it seems to help. And because I was feeling sorry for myself, I made a nice big mug of hot chocolate with three

marshmallows. Comfort food, much?

But I did restock our booths at one location today anyway, because tomorrow I have a doc appointment and the van was full of stuff. We are breaking in the new van quickly, putting her right to work. Tomorrow is the bone doctor for my last, I hope, knee appointment.  The knee is still not bending as it should and was pretty painful all weekend but seems better today.  We shall see what they have to say. I am getting around much better, so I am seeing some light at the end of this tunnel.

In Buddy news, we put up a long run for him while my son was here. He seems to do all right with it, not exactly happy but not crying and barking the whole time he is on it. We left him on the run while we were at our booth today, and he seemed fine when we got back. Little Boy hung out with him, and we put down lots of straw so they wouldn't get muddy. We will only put Buddy on the run for a few hours at a time, and only in good weather. It is a relief, though, to not have to monitor him 24/7 to keep him home. 

And I guess that's all the news that isn't,  to quote Garrison Keillor. Stay well, friends.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Nice weekend

60°f, or 15.5°C this morning! 

Crazy December weather! This morning was cloudy after showers in the night. Then this:

What beauty! It was soon followed by rain and showers all day, but still ridiculously warm. Then around 5pm the wind began to howl, and is still blowing hard. Which makes me a little nervous after that tree fell a few weeks ago...but so far  so good. An outage was planned for tomorrow, but there are so many places without power this evening I am pretty sure the outage will be canceled. There will be a lot of repairs needed tomorrow. Right now our lights are still on, but that could easily change.

Oldest son and his wife and daughter made the 4 hour drive across the state to visit this weekend. They arrived in time for lunch Saturday, so I opened a couple jars of the tomato soup I canned last summer, and pulled out the leftover cheese ball, cranberry spread, crackers, fruit and so on from Christmas.  It made quite a feast. Then we ladies went to shop an after-Christmas sale at one of the malls where I have a booth. 

We all found something, of course. Sandy bought a truck! Well, not a real truck, but a pretty good-sized one that even has solar headlights, which she wants to put on her front porch. She can change the decor year-round, and at 40% off it really was a good deal.

We got home in time to pick up the guys and go out to dinner. It was a lovely evening with good food and conversation. Granddaughter Grace is 26, and so interesting to talk with. I do enjoy our grown-up grandkids, one of the perks of having children young-- you get to be around as they reach adulthood.

This morning I made breakfast with help from Sandy and Grace, and then we just sat around drinking tea and coffee and chatting. I sure hated to see them leave, but they had to go to a wake for a former minister's wife, so back on the road they went for the return trip.

The rest of the day? I have done not one thing, except to throw in a load of wash. Tomorrow, I suppose we will work at our booths, since the van is all loaded up. So I don't feel at all bad about resting today.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Poor Baby

32°f, 0°C this morning. Sunny, then overcast and raining moved in around 4pm.

Little Boy is feeling very sorry for himself. With good reason. He started the day with no food or water since yesterday evening, and a ride in the truck to a strange place with strange dogs and people who took him away from Larry. 

Then when he woke up after surgery, feeling all woozy, he whined and cried incessantly, according to the staff there, and didn't stop until Larry picked him up. He is a very vocal pup, even at home. 

Worst of all, he has to wear the cone of shame. This is really to protect him from our other curious dogs. They are completely baffled by it, and have given him plenty of space. But he is so funny with it! He thinks that when he bumps into furniture that he's stuck, so I have to go move him around whatever it is. His eyes are so sad, it just breaks your heart. Like he trusted us and now this! Still, it had to be done. Now we will babysit him for a few days to be sure he heals properly. 

Honestly,  young dogs are like having young children all over again. This morning after the truck pulled away Buddy was so upset he demanded petting and stroking for a full 20 minutes. Maybe he thought his friend was never coming back? He howled and whimpered pitifully. So I sat here and comforted him with soft words and much stroking. Such a baby. Regular doggy daycare here.

In retrospect, maybe having 2 young dogs at the same time at our age isn't such a great idea.  But here they are, and I have to admit they certainly liven things up. Larry takes them for at least 2 walks a day, which is good for him, and I take them out too. In the evenings they come for cuddles,  then lay down by the fire to sleep.  Our old girl Daisy gets aggravated with them sometimes, but she's lost weight and loves the walks too. And she mothers Little Boy so sweetly.

        Left to right,  Buddy, Little Boy and Daisy

I have almost always had a dog, usually 2 at a time, but they were outside dogs for the most part, and demanded little except food, water, shelter and the occasional petting and praise.  So I am in unfamiliar territory nowadays, but I think I like it. Most of the time, anyway.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Boxing Day or St. Stephen's Day?

Forgot to check the morning temperature,  but today warmed up to 56°f, or 13°C. Nice day, lots of sunshine. Rain expected to move in overnight.

Did you celebrate Boxing Day in any way? My mother always said it was a day for visiting and taking boxes of cookies to neighbors. I don't remember us boxing up and delivering cookies anywhere though, but I do think we went visiting sometimes, before there were so many of us children. Taking 13 kids visiting, can you imagine?  Historians say that it was the day that the wealthy gave gifts to tradesmen and servants, and sometimes boxed up leftover food from their Christmas feasts to give to the poor and their servants. 

Then there were St. Stephen's Day customs in the UK, one of which was "hunting the wren". According to some sources,  a wren supposedly betrayed the hiding place of Stephen to his pursuers. Today no one actually hunts the poor bird, thank goodness, although a fake wren may be paraded about on top of a pole.  I actually really like this song about the custom, called "Wren in the Furze".

Along this line, I do have a "bird tree". Somehow over the years I ended up with enough bird ornaments to decorate a small tree.

Below the bird tree is where I put the creche this year. Somehow we have managed to misplace the stable, so the poor folks are out in the cold. At least Baby Jesus arrived on time; last year i couldn't find him until several days after Christmas. My mother would always March the Wise Men around the living room until January 6th, when they would finally arrive at the stable. I used to do that too, when my boys were little. (Once I caught my youngest son using the manger scene pieces as action figures, waging a mighty battle. I never did find out who the bad guys were in that war.)

My mother had a real heavenly host of over 100 angels in her creche, and Dad built a special corner shelf to hold it all. In May it became the May altar, with a statue of Mary and fresh flowers all month. My creche seems to be a combination of a couple different sets of figures although I don't recall doing that. I like it though.

But I digress. Back to Boxing Day: these days, people hustle to the stores for the after-Christmas sales. I used to do that when my boys were young and money was so tight. I would stock up on wrapping paper, ribbon, lights, etc. Some friends even waited until after Christmas to do their shopping, then would have gift exchanges on New Year's Day or Old Christmas. They saved a lot of money that way, and avoided the pre-Christmas frenzy.

I admit to doing none of the above today. I stayed home while Larry went out to deliver a load of firewood (trading for some work on his truck). I took care of some ebay business and just enjoyed the nice weather and quiet. 

Tomorrow Little Boy will go to the vet to be neutered, poor little guy. I will stay home while Larry takes him in, as it really doesn't need us both to go. My oldest son and his wife and daughter are coming Saturday, so I will get ready for their visit. And maybe I will have a little time to read the book I started two weeks ago. Maybe?

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

And So It Came

37°f, about 2.5°C, I think? Overcast all day. Warmed to 45°.

And finally, it is Christmas day. We slept in until 8:30 this morning, and just had pastries for breakfast. Then coffee by the tree to open gifts from each other, and it was time for Larry to take the dogs for a long walk while I started preparing for our visitors. 

They arrived promptly at noon, and I was just about ready! I do love it when people come hungry.

This is my favorite punch. It is non-alcoholic but of course could be spiked. It combines apple cider, orange juice and ginger ale, and I float fruit slices and cinnamon sticks on top. I didn't think to take photos til it was half gone. This evening I added champagne to mine. Delicious. 

Derek took over with the ham, helped by Haley.

The desserts end of the table.

I had fun making a couple cheese balls. I have never bothered with them before. And the cranberry spread (in the center top of the photo) was a big hit. 

Larry did the meat and cheese board, and the pickle dish for me.

So, good food, much talk and laughter, gifts, more food...lovely.  Now everyone has gone home, we have finished cleaning up, I have got my feet up, and the house is quiet.

...And Later

Making lists, and checking twice.

I think I'm ready.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Christmas Eve

34°f, about 1°C, overcast and raining. Most of our snow has melted

Not a creature is stirring...except Larry, Buddy and Little Boy, who are out for their morning walk, in the rain. 

But here is Clyde the cat, who rarely stays still long enough for a picture.  At 15, he's a pretty spry old fellow. 

And here is the couch, boobytrapped because someone seems to be getting up there at night! Not naming names, but it's probably Little Boy, since Buddy claims Larry's chair. I have given up on that front, but am determined to keep dogs off the couch. Will I win that battle? The odds aren't good.

We don't have much on the agenda today. The house is clean, laundry caught up, the porch mopped and the yard tidied yesterday. My pies and tarts are done, and I just have a few things to make this afternoon. So maybe we will have breakfast in town, pick up olives ( which I forgot the other day), and enjoy the last minute bustle of shoppers. Or maybe just stay here? We shall see what Larry wants to do when he returns from his wet walk.

Merry Christmas Eve, friends!

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Look Back Monday

22°f this morning, -5.5°C. Clear.

Random pics from this past weekend.

One of the churches in Charleston, not the one where I was on Sunday, but from the steps of that church one could see this one and another. Very religious neighborhood apparently. 

Inside the concert church

Suzy enjoying her cake. She broke a tooth recently and refuses to smile until it is fixed. It really isn't visible, but you can't convince her of that!

Inside Taylor Books. It's a popular spot downtown. 

Nice fire last night.

Solstice sunset

Part of our driveway, which stays snowy long after the snow has melted everywhere else. We often find mushrooms along here in warm weather.

Our mailbox and package box.

 A little beech tree clings to its leaves.

Buddy wasn't sure he wanted to go out after all.

Window view

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Solstice Weekend

19°f, -7°C, frosty frozen morning that eventually became sunny and 32°f. Some snow lingers, most has melted away.

We spent most of Saturday cleaning house ...again. How do two people make so much dirt! I know the answer: we are constantly busy, constantly in and out. And then there are the dogs. I have never had housepets, but this winter there's poor old Daisy, 15 years old and arthritic. Well, she has to come in, doesn't she, poor old girl. Then Buddy, who won't stay home, has to be inside as well, and can only go out if we take him. And poor Little Boy can't be left outside by himself! So, everyone is inside in this cold weather, and that means a ton of extra cleaning every day. It's like having my herd of little boys again to clean up after.

Still.  We swept and mopped and dusted and waxed and cleaned the glass door and put away clutter.  And then we were off to a Christmas carols singalong at our favorite café,  Shari's,  where we had a good time with a few good friends. Afterwards we stopped at the Yacht Club for a drink and a visit with our son Derek and some other friends. When we returned home (early, really, by 9:00pm) we lit the fireplace and watched A Christmas Memory, about a particular Christmas in Truman Capote's childhood, a poignant movie we watch almost every year. (If you want to see a bit of how fruitcake is made, it will enlighten you.) It was a nice way to celebrate the Solstice, and see in this new season.

Today I slept in until 9:30am, so rare! A leisurely breakfast, a little laundry done, then I picked up my friend Suzy and we drove to Charleston for a pleasant afternoon, stopping at Taylor Books for a little book browsing, coffee and cake,

before attending a "Celtic Christmas" music program at a Presbyterian church. The program turned out to be more  religious than Celtic, but the music was beautiful all the same, and the church was just stunning. 

Mary and Joseph. I hope they enjoyed the concert.

The Charleston Civic Choir, accompanied by some fine musicians.

The church has a domed, almost Byzantine roof, with this intricate interior.

A tiny clip of the concert, not the best part and on my phone so not the best quality either. 

When I returned home, Larry had the fire lit, and the dogs were a rambunctious welcoming committee.  I put in the movie, The Man Who Christmas,  a great story about Charles Dickens and the creation of A Christmas Carol, and we settled in for another cozy evening. 

Oh, and did I mention that we did find another van on Friday? Car shopping is grueling, and it was a long day, but we found what we were looking for over in Athens, Ohio--a 2020 all-wheel-drive Toyota Sienna, which oddly enough is the same color as our smashed van. Neighbors who have seen us in it are a little confused, I think, wondering if we managed to get the old one fixed! It's a big relief to get this off our to-do list. This is our third Sienna, so you know we like them a lot. 

Tomorrow, back to the usual life here.  It will be pie-baking day, I think. 

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Merry Yule!

26°f, -3°C, snow flurries and icy after yesterday's rain. A proper start to winter and to welcome Solstice.

Found on Facebook

The wheel turns, and round we go again to welcome the Oak King! (In this folkloric tradition, the Holly King represents the gradual fading away of green and light, while the Oak King represents the slow stirring of life beginning again, and the return of green.)

A song to welcome the season: Welcome Yule

This is, I think, another example of a very old song "Christianized" to blend the old traditions with the new religion. These lyrics are from the best carols website on the internet, in my opinion, The Hymns and Carols of Christmas.

Welcome be thou, heaven-king,
Welcome born in one morning,
Welcome for whom we shall sing,
Welcome for whom we shall sing,
Welcome Yule.¹

2. Welcome be ye, Stephan and John,
Welcome Innocents every one
Welcome Thomas Martyr one,
Welcome Thomas Marty one,
Welcome Yule.

3. Welcome be ye, good New Year,
Welcome Twelfth Day, both in fere,²
Welcome saints lef and dear,
Welcome saints lef and dear,
Welcome Yule.

4. Welcome be ye Candlemas,
Welcome be ye, Queen of Bliss,
Welcome both to more and less,³
Welcome both to more and less,
Welcome Yule.

I learned the song from an old video found online, in which the verses were arranged differently, and it did not double the third line. The melody was also quite different, much simpler than the very pretty one above.

So, welcome Winter! And welcome light!

Old Barns and Back Roads

36°f, about 3°C, overcast, a damp chill in the air.

Today we had a leisurely day planned. Online van-hunting in the morning, then lunch with a friend and the last, I hoped, of Christmas shopping. I think I have remembered everyone.  Usually we give quite a few homemade gifts--things from the cellar, dried herbs mixes, baked goods, etc. But this year I just wasn't feeling like it, so we made our small contribution to the economy instead. 

We met our friend Suzy at our favorite place, the West Virginia Artisan Market. When Shari started the business in 2020, she had no plans to get into the food business, but she did want to serve beer and wine to customers strolling the aisles of arts and crafts. In order to get the proper State license,  however, she had to serve food. Weird, she thought, but she devised a simple menu and figured she wouldn't sell many meals anyway. Wrong. Her prices are reasonable,  the food is good, and now in her new location the place is usually packed. 

As we dawdled over our coffee, my phone rang. The auction company, reminding me that the online auction pickup would be over in an hour and did I want my stuff. I had totally forgotten! So off we dashed, fortunately being only 35 minutes away from the auction site. 

Google maps took us to the place expertly, but boy was it out there. I mean, I live on a gravel road, 4 miles from the 2 lane highway, 12 miles from town. This place was 9 miles back on a one-lane road--paved (called a hard road here) but narrow and twisting with many a blind hill and curve. Just the kind of road we like. 

As we drove,  I was struck by the number of barns and silos. 

While there was some good bottomland here and there, this was hilly, steep country. 

Where, I wondered, did they grow all the corn to fill those silos? 

Obviously most of them were no longer in use, just silent reminders of the days before regulations shut down almost all the small dairies. But still, they had to have grown the corn somewhere. My mind is still ruminating on that.

There were so many things I wanted photos of, but I was only able to get a few as we drove along.

Our destination, Ghost Hollow Road. And my mind is also busy with that: where did the name come from? Was it based on the 200 year old story from that area of the bear hunters who camped under a shelving rock one night? It was winter, so the men built a fire right at the front of the shallow cave. The rock here is sandstone, which can have water trapped between layers of rock. The rock exploded from the buildup of steam, crushing the men. Sadly they did not die instantly but sent a young boy who was sleeping outside for help. The area was so remote that it took hours for help to arrive, by which time the men had died. Is it their ghosts this sign refers to?

Well, enough of that chilling train of thought! A few other sights along the way:

And finally, after picking up the few things I had won, we made our way down the steep driveway to the road...

and back to town to do that shopping.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.