And Then...

It snowed all afternoon and into the evening and this was the scene when we woke up this morning.  A nice layer of heavy snow hanging on everything.  The silvery light through the trees was magical and every single branch had a layer of white icing running its length.  The birds were busy and David saw a small hawk, we think a Merlin, though it was a fleeting glance, we have had them here before.  A little while later we spotted a red-tail eating a small bird or rodent for its breakfast in a tree out beyond the garden shed.  Puffy tufts at the top of the pine trees were all golden against a brilliant blue sky.

I'm just in from leading a kids hike out at Triangle Land Conservancy's Johnston Mill Nature Preserve.  6 hardy parents and 9 kids ventured forth, even though the temperature never climbed above 40 today.  We had a fine time strolling the trails, looking for signs of wildlife and the kids throwing lots of snowballs.  A big time was had by all and I was very happy to return to the warm house and a cup of hot tea.

The cold weather is slated to continue right on through the week with a low of 19 predicted for Wednesday night- Brrrrrr.

Snow?!

The scene out my window right now

Like I said the other day, we are not having normal weather for central North Carolina at all.  In the 30 years I've lived here I don't ever remember it snowing in early December and even snow in late December is quite unusual.  I doubt it will stick, but the temperature has dropped to 38 from 42 since it started.  The light in David's studio window looks so warm doesn't it?  I hope he is, I know he's got his little woodstove burning away.

The oyster stew was a big hit last night- so yummy I'm going to share the recipe right now.

Start with a half pint of oysters, strain the oysters and catch the juice,  check the oysters for any bits of shell. Then:

• 1 T butter
• 1 leek, sliced and washed (I slice and soak in water to make sure to get all the dirt out, then lift into strainer to drain)
• 1 stalk celery sliced thin
• 2 large shitake mushrooms sliced (you could use white or cremini mushrooms here)
• 1-2 large oyster mushrooms sliced (same as above but don't recommend portobello)

Saute above in the butter in a saucepan with some salt and pepper

when the veggies are soft add:

• 2t of flour and stir for a minute

Add:

• liquid from half a pint of oysters
• 1 cup cream (could use milk but then would need more flour I think)

Simmer for 5-10 minutes, adjust seasoning with a pinch of white and cayenne peppers, more salt as needed

Add:

• half pint of oysters
• 1T each chopped fresh parsley and dill

Cook just till oysters begin to firm 2-3 minutes.  Serve in warm bowls with toasted bread or crackers.

Makes 2 servings.

Yum.

As I've been writing the snow is actually sticking and piling up a bit, it's still coming down very hard....

From Snow Drifts to Hot Springs

Well, it’s been another amazing day starting with a harrowing experience getting the truck stuck in the snow, my brothers ingenuity an my ballsy driving finally got us out, then we found the Sharp-tailed Grouses on the lek as predicted and spent close to an hour watching them dance. Read all about it on my brothers blog.

After the grouse, we drove around for several hours looking unsuccessfully for new birds. We didn’t mind too much as our eyes were filled with lots of gorgeous snowy mountain vistas like this.

The historic hot springs in the town of Steamboat have unfortunately been turned into a bit of an amusement park complete with water slides which I couldn’t bear. So when I read about Strawberry Park Hot Springs I knew, being the natural waters aficionado that I am, that despite the tough time this morning on a snowy road, I had to see if I could make it up the back road to the springs.

Getting there was cake in comparison, just a dirt road, well packed, no snow, no mud, a bit steep and windy but the Tacoma powered me right up the mountain, through a fabulous stand of aspens, white bark gleaming in the sun. Once I arrived I was extremely taken by the “outhouse”, one of the most stylish bathrooms I think I’ve ever had the pleasure of using.

Inside was this giant agate wall that separated the men’s side from the women’s.

But the best was yet to come in the pools themselves. Two large pools that were 105 and 106 degrees respectively, with a chilly snowmelt river flowing past. There were two smaller tubs that were 102 and 103 but I spent all my time between the two hotter ones and took three bracing dips into the river as well. I finally tore myself away as the 5 AM start to the day and the rush of hot and cold was starting to make me a little weak in the knees and I still had to drive back down the mountain.

Here I am in all my bliss. Dorothy, we are not in Kansas anymore.

Hello Hellebores

This was the scene that we woke to this morning, swirling white, coming down pretty heavily. But it didn’t last long, by afternoon the white was all gone. I like the effect of the railroad ties holding the snow and outlining the path of stones.


This afternoon I took a brisk walk and it was windy and cold, but the sun came and went and it was good to be outside. Lots of birds were down along the creek, golden and ruby crowned kinglets, a phoebe, winter wrens and a hermit thrush were all twittering along the banks, staying just ahead of me as I walked.

The past week or so the hellebores or Lenten roses have begun to bloom- I just put that one together, last week was the start of lent and that’s when the blooms start and they pretty much last through spring. An Ah Ha moment for me!

They are quite delightful and these are some very special ones we picked up a few years back. I can’t help loving things that bloom in winter.

Still snow on the ground

It's incredible to me that we still have snow on the ground after 8 days.  I feel grateful that we didn't get hit with the huge storm that landed further north the last few days, knocking out power and leaving folks buried.  We have had a tremendous amount of rain.  The creeks are all really high and the ground is soaked.  I think getting peas planted this month may be a real challenge if we don't see some warmer, drier weather in the next couple of weeks. There is sun in the forecast but still below normal temps for the next week.

I also can't believe its been a week since I've blogged but I've been very busy with work, despite the weather, making plans and getting things in place for the Growing Healthy Kids community garden to hit the ground running as soon as the weather does warm up.  I'm excited about our gardens this year, we've expanded one garden and will be recruiting new families so that we may have as many as 50 families during the growing season.

I've got two fascintating photos to share from the snow week.  While out walking last week when there was still a fair amount of snow on the ground, we spied the tail of a snake sticking out from under the snow on the edge of the trail.  Seemed strange and not a good situation for the snake as it was getting dark and cold.  David dug a hole down into the leaves near by and off the trail and dug the snake up and moved it down closer to the earth and covered it back up.  Don't know what kind of snake it was, it was alive, but moving slowly.  Randy- if you're reading this- do you know?  It had a pale green belly.

On the same hike we also spotted this ice formation in the creek that looked just like a pear!

The sun is out today and though its chilly, I'm planning a nice long walk as its been cold and rainy since Thursday and I'm ready to get back outside.

Snow Outside, Flowers In

I cut this vase of prunus mume on Thursday before the weather changed and they’ve been popping out further each day. The blossoms smell like cinnamon, what a marvelous breath of spring on a cold day with snow outside.


Snow it did, all night and much of the morning and it never warmed above 26 degrees today so it piled up pretty nicely, 5-6 inches, enough to bring things pretty much to a halt. We bundled up this afternoon and went out looking for a spot to sled. Our neighbor with the steepest driveway is out of town so we worked getting a good run packed down over there with the plastic toboggan, hoping tomorrow we can try it with the flexible flyer since we got the base established. Had some pretty good rides, Dave on bottom, me on top, face first, trying to avoid flying off into the ditch or creek. There’s nothing like a snow day to bring out the kid in me. With lows in the teens and a high of 33 tomorrow it’s doubtful much will melt before Monday afternoon. Yippee!!

The feeders were grand central all day, I had to refill the two seed feeders midday there was so much action. A yellow-rumped warbler was among many to get their fill of suet. 

You can see the snow/sleet falling around this little guy.

Saw most of the sparrows today too, fox, white-throated, chipping and song all made appearances at some point during the day along with downy and red-bellied woodpeckers, white-breasted and brown-headed nuthatches, juncos, cardinals-looking brilliant in the snow- doves, chickadees and tits.  I even saw a hermit thrush on the suet, that was a first.  Watch for snow pics tomorrow.

Winter Landscape

I want to focus on some of my favorite features of the winter landscape over the next few weeks, things in the yard and woods that aren’t as apparent when everything leafs out or that get lost in the shuffle when blooms start to happen again.

I’ve shown this little Japanese maple lots of times on the blog, it’s gorgeous when it leafs out, tiny pale green leaves with red edges, but it’s also a wonderful little brush now in winter. I don’t know its name but it won’t ever get taller than this, just keeps reaching out. David transplanted the moss below it last year and the green has taken nicely and is slowly creeping out and around the tree.

Walking out to hang the laundry yesterday I was struck by how very happy I was feeling, just to have the time and freedom to walk out on a warm and sunny day and hang the wash. Thinking about how since I’m working less, I’m not making as much money but its enough. And instead of money I have time; to do things like hang out the wash, bake fresh bread, grow and cook fresh food and take walks in the woods. And that time and flexibility is more valuable to me than all the money in the world. I’m so lucky to have figured it out, to have had the opportunity to step back and decide how I wanted to live my life more fully, more wholly.

Snow is coming down now, supposed to get close to 8 inches, and we'll be free tomorrow for long walks in the wonderful quiet whiteness.  Amen.

March Fickle Too

Don't know if you saw my last Chapel Hill News column, The Push and Pull of Fickle February, but it seems that March is going to be fickle as well. On Monday we woke to 4 inches of snow, it was like a fairyland, piles of fluffy white whipped cream meringue on every branch and twig. I said to David "nature got a pie in the face!" It was bright white and even before the sun was up everything glowed with reflected light. That night it got down to 17 degrees and the high Tuesday was 34 I think. Yesterday and today will be 80! So all the plants are probably feeling a bit schizophrenic at this point. I noticed this morning the tips of the crab apple were looking mighty pink suddenly, hope they don't open and get bitten by another cold snap, by Friday this week the forecast is again cold and rainy.

Tiny twigs piled high with snow

February Has Arrived

This morning we woke to a light dusting of snow. As is typical for this capricious month we have a forecast this week that includes nights in the teens and days in the sixties, Sunday they say may be 70 degrees!

January flew by and now winter begins to ease off. I struggle between my desires for winter to continue so that I can stay inside and cogitate, and for spring to come so I can get out and see the new world unfold. It's a tough thing. Sometimes I wish for a colder climate with a longer winter. I like to spend time reading and thinking, napping and making big pots of soup and beans, sleeping late. Here in Carolina the time for these activities is pretty short, December and January really, with a few wintry days in November and February, but by March, spring is really kickin' in.

The to do list is long as ever, things that didn't get done in the fall, like mulching, always more mulching, and cleaning and staining the decks. Now the spring chores start to crop up too, planting peas and prepping a bed for onions and the earliest spring veggies. Another seasonal cycle rolls around.

Check out my latest column in the News, winter bird watching. I slipped down to the coast last Friday with big bro to look for wintering seaside sparrows. They eluded us, but we did see striking black oyster catchers, marbled godwits, bufflehead ducks, hooded mergansers and a whole flock of loons. I copped two new life birds; purple and western sandpipers, so it was not a total wash in terms of birding olympics. And the day was gorgeous, my spirits entirely renewed by a short walk on a sunny beach, watching the clouds lining up overhead, the waves rolling in. I forget it's so close to go down there, only 2 hours to Wilmington, think I'll try to do it a little more often. The beach refreshes my soul.

SNO-BAMA!

What a day. First to wake up to snow, something we haven't had in these parts in almost 5 years. Everything white and it was still coming down until about noon, schools were closed and everyone got a day off. I had about 6 things I had to reschedule but I didn't care. It was worth it to see the world white, just another example of how we are at a moment in time where we can wash the slate clean and begin anew.

And the snow made it easy for us to all watch the inauguration of Barack Obama. Once again we got to marvel at this amazing man who is so forthright and honest and apparently clearheaded about the challenges that he, and all of us, face at this time, and he doesn't hold back in his frankness about the severity of the situation or the fact that ALL of us are going to have to work to dig out of the hole we are in at the moment.

We must go from walking blind through the world, like my bird woman here,To accepting the situation and doing whatever we can to correct it.

Everyone I spoke to today was thrilled, energetic, with a renewed sense of hope. Many said they cried, as I have, again and again when I hear Obama speak. So many never believed the day would come when we would elect a black person to be president of the U.S. And I had lost faith that we would ever again elect someone to the office that could re-inspire hope in the people of the nation and in me. I was unsure I would ever have faith, respect and an affinity for and with a president the way that I do with Obama. Amen. May we go forward with strength and courage and good will to the new administration.