Christmas in the North Woods


Play and rest. 


Eat and visit. 


Tell stories and make new ones. 

Christmas in the North Woods is much like Christmas elsewhere.

Friday, December 31, 2010

It was a perfect evening for a snowshoe on the shore of Lake Superior. Someone else thought it was a great evening for a swim.

Monday, December 27, 2010

From One Cardinal Point to Another

The anticipation, and the waiting, will soon be over. 

Sunday, December 26, 2010

 
Though darkness abounds, light holds fast.

Friday, December 24, 2010

The office is closed; the neighborhood lights are lit. Christmas is around the corner.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Winter Solstice

The long dark is at its zenith. On the other side, light awaits.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Though the mist and dark may obscure them, beauty and mystery are most always present.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Sparkling eyes and a broad grin made the effort totally worthwhile.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

It wasn't until right before we got ready to leave that I remembered I could choose to live in the present.

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Her new morning routine delights everyone involved.
Life is always hard and hope is never absent.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Little Todd Harbor, Isle Royale National Park
photo by Phil
Remembering that a storm at sunset can be beautiful takes practice.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Yesterday was a good day for planning. 
Today's news might precipitate a complete rewrite.

Monday, December 13, 2010

Cat Show, continued

I'm almost embarrassed to post more cat show photos here today, but a cat show is about the strangest thing I've ever seen and, really, how could I not share that with you.

Watch where you're puttin' your hands, lady.

No, I don't think so. Uh, nope. Definitely not.

Please, just don't look, okay?

You pinch me anywhere else and I'll show you what dees toofs are for.

Don't kid yourself. I'm letting her do this.

Here's how it's gonna work, Moe. You distract 'em and I'll slip out before anyone notices. Then we'll figure out how to spring you.

You're gonna do what?

Sunday, December 12, 2010

#59

Owner/handler places #59 on the judge's table.

and then walks away

to which #59 objects, strongly.

#59 executes his escape strategy

only to find his plan foiled by the evil judge.

#59 looks to his owner/handler for deliverance, but help is nowhere to be found.

Finally the judge relents and returns #59 to the show ring kennel

from where #59 gives the evil judge what for

and eagerly watches #60's fate.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Adventures in Cat Ownership

This could have gone one of several different ways. 
It's a good thing I needed a laugh tonight.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Day's End

I've been looking forward to this all day: relaxing by the fire, conversing with Phil, and enjoying a glass (or two) of wine.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

A Day in the Worklife

It began with a late bus and a cat hair on my breakfast.

The mid-point included gawking at this sugary habitation.

And it ended well before I could complete any of the tasks on my to-do list.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Viewpoint

The days haven't been what I had hoped for or anticipated.

Nor have they been completely ruined.

Monday, December 6, 2010

Creative Endeavors

Over the weekend I visited with two dollmakers.

Their creativity and originality delighted me to no end.

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Skill Sets

We lived for several years in rural Vermont. It's a nice place to live and all—very pretty in the fall—but can I just say that making a living there can be challenging, especially if one happens to have moved there right out of college?

One of my innumerable odd jobs during our tenure in the Green Mountain State was shipping and receiving for a small distributor of environmentally friendly products, a job in which I learned to cut down and reconfigure reclaimed cardboard boxes—it was the environmentally friendly thing to do—faster than normal people can pick a box cutter and tape gun out of an ordinary lineup of odd tools that make other people's lives easier. But that was a long time ago, and over the years my familiarity with the vagaries of cardboard and the wiles of packing tape diminished into a vague, "don't I know you from somewhere" kind of acquaintanceship.

Or so I'd imagined until the day I needed to ship something for work and I couldn't find a box for it anywhere.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Anticipation

I'd looked forward to this day for months, but I never anticipated how difficult it would be.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010