sky promises

It is supposed to snow today, or tonight, or possibly tomorrow. Or so they tell me. We've had a few flurries here and there, the road is icy, but I'm not seeing much snow activity and that seems... Well, a bit unacceptable.

I'm not asking for Minnesota snow drifts or an Antarctic freeze. I would just like to humbly request that we get at least one snow day (or a snow week, that's really up to the snowmakers; I won't judge). I'd like to open all the shades, and drink a cup of hot chocolate whilst watching the snow come down. I'd take the Pup out romping, and hold my hands out to watch the snowflakes gather.

There's a book I'm reading which refers to studies about people and their behavior and how they're not as likely to watch a big soccer or other sports game after the fact, because the outcome has already been decided. We inherently feel a sense of control over the world and the things in it (like whether it will snow) and feel that by our rowdy cheering, or by closing our eyes and wishing really hard... We can affect the outcome.

I'm all for it, really.

And so I am now sitting at my desk (at work, yes) and closing my eyes every few minutes and hoping, urging, willing, and wishing really hard...

For snow.

Lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of snow.

PS If it doesn't snow, I will be forced to transmogrify you and all of your non-snowmaking friends.

*google snow + forest for the photo

the wimp in me

We went cross-country 'Nordic' skiing over the weekend. I rented my gear. This was a huge mistake. The bonus was that it was super inexpensive compared to downhill ski rentals (think a quarter of the price), the gear is much lighter (think a quarter of the weight), and the groomed trails out at Hyak in Snoqualmie were fantastic! We saw maybe two people an hour, which meant we basically had the beautiful, falling snow and untouched snowy forested mountain to ourselves. Pristine! Plus, it wasn't too cold and it was actively snowing all day. Wonderful.

The down side? Oh, the down side.

My rentals were rentals. The boots were so excruciatingly uncomfortable that I literally have bruised ankles (yes, both), and blisters the size of quarters, wait nickels, on both heels. I really tried not to complain too much, because my wonderful cross-country ski companion was being so supportive and trying to show me a good time, and I really love the snow.

But then I waited too long to have a snack. I'm thinking about 2 hours too long. So then I was a bit grumpy, and being hungry and grumpy meant I was no longer really trying to be tough and just get into it and go for it. That's when I met the wimp in me.

Don't get the wrong impression: I've met the wimp in me before. But I really don't like her. She whines and sometimes she cries, and it's not pretty. I was pretty gung-ho about being tough and having fun no matter the situation with my ankles and heels... and then I wasn't anymore. Gung-ho me got punched in the stomach by the wimp in me, and the wimp in me won.

So, after many adjustments to my socks (I'd wear two pair next time), and a few stops to write "Love" in the snow, we had a snack under a tree just as the ski patrol were heading down off the mountain. We had some apples and tasty Beechers raw cheese (yummmm), some crackers and trail mix. I felt a little better, and actually cracked a couple of jokes as we packed the food away. My sweet ski companion laughed (luckily) and commented on how ridiculous it is that I can't tell yet when I've passed hungry and headed straight into crazy-hungry land. I'm working on it, but sometimes it's hard to tell until it's too late. I giggled and whizzed by (there was a slope) excited to head home for a meal and a hot bath.

And as we headed down the mountain, the wimp in me whined, "Are we there yet?"

snow wishes

The temperature here is a brisk 26F. The sky is blue. There is no snow to speak of, but the promise of snow has had me waking up in the wee hours of the night and peeking out of windows to see if it has snowed yet. The answer is no. Well, not really. We got about half an inch, which makes the little Snow Wisher in me very sad and pouty. To make matters worse, there are people I work with who actually got snowed in. Granted they have a 45 minute commute in the morning and I have about a 7 1/2 minute commute. But still!

So to perk up a little, I poured myself a cup of hot tea and poked around on Google Images looking at scenes of "winter." Here are a few of the most wonderful winter wonderlands I came across.

I feel much better now, and have changed my desktop to the photo of pretty iron lawn chairs stacked with white, fluffy, wonderful snow.