SOTC 350/365

SOTC 88/365

The Wave That Never Crashed Upon the Shore (SOTC 88/365), a photo by gina.blank on Flickr.

SOTC 39/365

This was not the shot I was going for.

This is what I originally had in mind. A nice vision, to be sure. An S-curve, a contrast of colour, of texture. And it's not a bad shot, really. But, what came half an hour later--after inching the vase left, right, around, switching rooms, using two flashes instead of one, and coloured gels to boot--was, to my pleasant surprise, a way more exciting image.

...This photo brought to you by -25C, and a no-extracurriculars evening.

Winter Settling In

It's that time of year again. Layers. Foggy glasses. Ice on my windshield. Three feet of snow lining the driveway. Dark when I leave for work, dark when I come home; not exactly sunny during the hours in between, either.

Oh, winter.

In glimpses here and there, I do see its beauty. Slow, fluffy flakes, gracefully twirling down to the earth. Frosted branches lining the River Valley. Pristine snow fields, and their sparkle on that rare, sunny day.

But I tell ya, on the whole, winter is not exactly inspiring. My drive to take pictures of its beauty are trumped by the cold. My desire to be active outdoors is as fleeting as the sunshine. While in the summer, I am bursting through the back door to get to my garden, my hammock, my bike--the winter sees me sprinting into the house after work to get to my PJs, my blanket, my TV.

(And while yes, snow blowing does come with some feeling of satisfaction, I must say, it's been eating up a significant amount of my free time, and I'm about done with it.)

One thing I have recognized this year, though... is that while my general cravings--sunshine, the outdoors, taking pictures--seem suppressed by the cold and dark of winter, I am far from entering into sloth. I have simply traded those things in for activities that--I think--are more reflective of the pace of winter. Hot baths. One really good book after another. Tea. Yes, I do take in more television--but I don't really watch trash. The shows I watch tend to be as riveting for me as a good book. Plus, I generally have a cat on my lap. Win.

It is a season of drawing in, rather than exploring.
A season of wrapping myself up rather than spreading myself out.
And that is okay, too.

SOTC 16/365

Oh, tissue box. What fast friends we are this week.

272/365

My church is freezing. No, I guess a better way to say that is I always freeze in church. Because our church is in the gymnasium of a school. And even though we are all just standing or sitting in our spots while we worship and listen to the sermon, the fans blow as if we are running around, shooting hoops. So every Sunday I wear a hoodie over whatever else I'm wearing just to keep warm. And sometimes even that isn't quite enough.

Like today.


And even though the sun has been shining on and off, it's breezier and a touch cooler than it was yesterday. The clouds forecasted are rolling in, threatening showers later this afternoon.

And I just can't seem to get warm.

So I am wrapping myself in a blanket.
Climbing in my nest.
Settling with my Mac and then
a good book.

...Wasn't I in a tank top yesterday?



(PS--in my web-surfing, I came across a young woman's 365 project that I thoroughly enjoyed. She actually started about two weeks after I did, so she's not done yet! She can't be yet out of high school, but her photos are so well-composed and artistically creative. I highly recommend checking it out if you have some spare time.)

203/365

Snowy and blowy calls for cozy and warm.

172/365

About a year ago at this time, there was so much snow on the ground that when my friends and I snowshoed around the city's parks, we were flush with the tops of benches and large garbage cans. This year's precipitation levels have been the complete opposite. In some ways--particularly ways that involve a driveway and a shovel--I am grateful. That being said, I have missed the snowshoeing. As have my friends.

Currently, we are on Day 5 of a deep freeze stretch. But on day one of this stretch, it snowed. Enough to actually cover stuff. And enough to justify snowshoeing, -30C or not.

Sure, we could have tromped around the field in just our boots and actually been just fine. But that's not the point. It's half way through January in Alberta and we hadn't yet been able to break out the snowshoes. That's just not right. We were chomping at the bit.

We did pace ourselves, voting for a half-hour trek instead of our usual hour. It took us about half an hour just to get ourselves dressed and geared up. We are poorly out of routine. But now afterwards, as I rehydrate and have a bite to eat, I am awash in that endorphin-driven, post-outdoor-activity feeling of satisfaction.

Could it be that I actually find myself wishing it would snow a little more???

171/365

Around 8:15 this morning. It actually got a bit worse before it got better (and by better I mean -26C). On the plus side (ha, ha), it was bright and sunny all day long.

170/365

Hot bath on a super cold day: lovely.
Hot epsom bath after a deep tissue massage: relaxing.
One bath serving both purposes simultaneously: awesome!

169/365

The ASL sign for "cold." I've been using it a lot today.

168/365

I can either snow blow my driveway in the cold, or I can snow blow my driveway in the cold. So I chose in the cold.

117/365

Ugh. Ran out of decongestant.

116/365

It's the "still-have-a-cold-but-need-to-go-out-so-how-am-I-looking?" last glance in the mirror.

115/365

I hab a code id my dose.

109/365

The word of the day today is: cozy.

Cold.

I realized that it has been a while--a few weeks--since I last posted anything. What have I been doing that I haven't had any thoughts to share on my blog? ...Well, nothing out of the ordinary, really. But my brain has definitely been in a non-bloggy space.

It is winter in Alberta, and it has been a rather wearisome one. From November until mid-January, we had snowfall at least once a week--and generally more often than that--including two large blizzards in a row. I nearly broke both my body and my spirit trying to keep up with the snow shoveling. I have since purchased a snow thrower. And of course, now it has only snowed twice in the last month-and-a-bit since I got it.

But, OH, the cold! This winter has consisted of alternating cycles of -30C (-22F) or +2C (35F). And virtually no in between. We get anywhere from 3-7 days of bitter, nose-hair-frosting, face-freezing, why-do-I-live-in-this-frozen-wasteland cold, followed by 3-7 days of puddle-splashing, sunbeam-lounging, turn-the-heat-down-in-my-car-even, milder temperatures. The reprieve of mild temperatures is great, but the overall oscillating routine is getting a bit tiresome. Could we just be done already and move into spring? ...Alas, today is day four of a frozen wasteland style weekend. Which is why I'm sitting here in my pajamas, under a blanket, tea and a cat at my side, catching up on my blog.

The energy to be productive when your body is frozen is understandably low. Of the hours I spend at home, more of them have been spent curled up on the couch enjoying some television, or lying in bed with a good book. Blog? Ha! All my brain's resources go into keeping my demeanor amicable during the day as I drive on icy roads, do up frozen seat belts, dress in multiple layers, and wake up in the dark five days out of seven.

But the turnaround is coming. I noticed tonight that at 7pm, there was still just a little light on the horizon. When I leave for work in the mornings, it's actually daylight. And the -30 cycles can't continue indefinitely. Spring must come.

Thawing Out

Last week was so challenging. It seemed to be a week full of small frustrations--each of which I could have handled well; but to have them all attack me at once felt draining and unfair. By Thursday, I was completely irate with the world. I was tired of an unbalanced work schedule, I was tired of snow and cold, I was tired of dealing with drivers on icy roads, I was tired of spending upwards of 3hrs a day on those roads, and I was tired of the every day glitches that were being thrown at me in between all of that.

Driving to work on Thursday morning, I told God, "You need to get me out of this! I don't know how I am supposed to continue to handle this!" And I left it at that.

One at a time, I handled the glitches that I could. Voice mails at work reassured me that this coming week, things could be sorted out and a sense of equilibrium restored. It finally stopped snowing. And the sun even came out.

This evening, the graters came through my neighbourhood and plowed the streets. As grateful as I was that they did this, it was the second time that they left a pile of snow rubble across the entrance to my driveway. The last pile I was able to drive through. This pile was twice as high and had larger chunks. I found myself slightly frustrated; although notably, not nearly as frustrated as I would have been if this had been a few days ago. I was able to calmly accept the fact that after supper I would go out and spend some time tossing chunks of snow aside. And then, just before I headed to the kitchen, I glanced out the living room window. The rubble was gone. A small Bobcat was a couple driveways down. He had cleared out the rubble that the graters had left behind. And not only that, but in doing so he had also cleared the mound that had been remaining from the previous blockage. The entrance to my driveway was completely clear. And flat.

Weeks of building dissatisfaction, frustration, and patience-testing have been dissipated with a weekend's worth of blessing. Sleeping in, thawing out, spending time with those I love. And a clear path to drive back out into the world.

I'll Take the Glacier

At the beginning of April, I put my condo up for sale. I endured five full months of keeping my place painstakingly clean, watching interest rates go up, and sale prices go down, and playing the waiting game in a slow market. A couple weeks ago, someone finally showed enough interest to make an offer! A bit of back-and-forth between realtors left me with a final offer that was lower than I wanted, but higher than I really deserved. Would it go through? ...I waited again.

The conditions were set to be lifted on the same day that I was leaving to go backpacking with friends. Would I find out my condo's fate before I lost cell reception in the mountains? ...Sure enough, as we were loading packs and tents into my friend's truck, my phone rings. The condo sold. I can celebrate! The excitement of knowing I would soon be in a house laced its way throughout conversation over the weekend. My friends were just as thrilled as I was!

The entire weekend was just so wrapped in blessing! Hiking a total of 30km through God's creation; spending time with seven friends who are gifted in seven unique ways... I was in a place where I could be energized, encouraged, and open. It was such a safe space to be in; it is hard to describe it accurately with words, even though I have been in this abundantly blessed place numerous times. No running water, mild amounts of rain, wind gusts, temperatures typical of mid-fall rather than late summer, risk of bears, a smelly outhouse, blisters on my feet, achy shoulders... and I'm at peace?!

In the quiet of the forest, I feel peace.
In the crackle of the fire, I feel warmth.
In the rustle of the trees, I am humbled.
In the thumping of my heart, I feel alive.
In the circle of conversation, I am accepted.
In the hugs and high fives, I feel loved.
In all these things, I am blessed.

Upon return home, I got right into the week's activities. On top of work, appointments, respite, and general errands, my newly sold condo (!) meant number crunching and house viewing. Thankfully, I can still afford a house (although I would not complain if I right now stumbled into a random windfall of money!). Still, the half dozen or so I viewed just yesterday were not really worth getting excited about. ...And such will be my routine for the next few weeks.

What a brain full.

Can I go back to my glacier?

It Was the Best of Times, It Was the Sleepiest of Times

In an earlier post, I made mention that my sleeping bag deserves its own blog post. It really does. At something like 35-years-old, it is one of the oldest blankets I own. It is one of a set of two that my parents had, and I'm pretty sure my brother currently has the other of the pair. There are a lot of memories associated with this sleeping bag. I remember snuggling in it at Brownie camp at the age of six; sleeping under the stars in it at Girl Guide camp at age ten; hauling it to many, many a-sleepover, a couple school camps, and to the summer I spent in Sorrento at 16; and then finally removing it from my parents' basement sometime in university and claiming it as my own for independent adult adventures.

The sleeping bag is olive green on one side, and... 70's-printed (for lack of a better description) on the other. I'm pretty sure it's reversible, although I have never opted to sleep with the printed side out. I don't think I--or anyone I was sharing a tent with--would sleep properly with a print that... loud. It's definitely not the most aesthetically attractive sleeping bag out there. It's as if it walked out of a 70's camping catalogue and straight into the 21st century without looking in the mirror.

My bunk at Sorrento Centre

I seemed to sense the sleeping bag's dated quality even when I was young. As a child, I was often envious of the shiny, slippery fabric and fun colours of my peers' sleeping bags, and--while I was small enough--I always, always pined for a mummy bag to snuggle down in (now that I'm an adult with a tendency to sleep like a starfish, I appreciate the extra inches of roll-around space that barrel bags provide). However, I knew that until my sleeping bag was worn right out, there was no way my parents were going to just up and buy a new one. And this thing had a lot of give. Then why did you take it instead of buying a new one when you had the first chance? you ask. Srsly? You had to ask that? Hello--free sleeping bag. I had other, more important camping gear to buy at the time. Like a tent. And as an adult, the sleeping bag became a conversation piece. Laugh at the cheeziness; marvel slightly at the retro factor.

Anyway, in the last four or five years, Olive's old age has finally revealed itself. While still physically in great shape--only one small tear on the loud side from its zipper--thermally, its ability to stand up to Alberta Rocky Mountain camping has declined. At first, I noticed I was just a bit chilly at night, often requiring an extra layer over my PJs. I chalked it up to being a girl with little self-produced body heat. Then last year, after two ridiculously cold camping experiences in which three layers plus a toque and mittens didn't even help, I decided I was done with Olive. 2010 would be the year of the new sleeping bag.

I did my research on the MEC website. I looked at the temperature ratings. I debated the synthetic vs. down. I briefly compared bag weights (important factor in backpacking trips). I even considered my colour options. In the end, I chose the MEC Mirage sleeping bag--a synthetic barrel sleeping bag with a -5C (23F) rating. And while each of MEC's sleeping bags only come in one colour, this one just happened to be red. It's like it was meant to be.

My new sleeping bag made its maiden camping trip was this past weekend. I went camping with N and her little ones in Jasper National Park. The temperature went down to about 10C (50F) at night, and while my cold experiences from years prior involved night temperatures of 1-5C (34-41F), I was nevertheless smiling in my sleep at how fantastic the experience was! The first night, I ended up taking off my hoodie, and the second night, I opted out of the camping socks as well. I never once woke up because I was cold (one of my coldest nights last summer had me shivering so badly I only slept for four hours, and they weren't consecutive).

Olive still came along on this trip. I can't bear to part with her quite yet. Given that we were sleeping on air mattresses, which tend to make for colder sleeps, the aging sleeping bag was opened up and spread out (loud side down) on the air mattress that N slept on with the kidlets.

I have a backpacking trip in a couple weeks that I am quite excited about. I am expecting the temperature to be colder at night, as we will be higher in the mountains at a later point in the summer. Still, it's comforting to know that I will be warm, and therefore able to sleep solidly through the night. Pleasant dreams!