On This 7th Day of Christmas...

I wish you a new year filled with joy, blessings, abundance, love and good health!  It's a very cold new year's eve here, snow is covering everything and that snow is covered by a layer of ice.  Every so often an icy-fingered breeze plays with the branches of the pines and cedars, making them sound like a million fragile crystal wind chimes.  (About the title...we celebrate all twelve days of Christmas which makes Christmas last until the 6th of January).

Little Gloria (left) and Malcolm are happy to be home from the vet's...

(look at the smile on Malcolm's face) 

and so is their brother, Merlin, snoozing on the floor after getting reacquainted with his Christmas toys.  All three are healing well.  And me?  You know I'm happy to have them back at home! 

This is what my laptop's monitor looked like after Gloria killed it.  Scary, huh?

But it came back home today!  I'm almost as happy to have it back as I am to have Merlin, Gloria and Malcolm back safe at home. . . nah.  Having a computer doesn't come close to making me as happy as Gloria, Malcolm and Merlin do, along with the rest of my fur babies. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

If You Have Some to Spare...

Could you please send good thoughts and wishes to Merlin, Malcolm and Gloria?  (That's Merlin (grey) and Gloria (black) in the top photo, and Malcolm (grey and white) and Merlin in the bottom photo).  All three of my babies have just left with their Dad to go to the vet's to be spayed (Gloria) and neutered (Malcolm and Merlin).  Arrrrrgh!  I hate this whole process, the being away from them, knowing how frightened they will be, worrying that everything will go all right (being spayed is just like a human woman having a hysterectomy, being neutered is not quite as risky).  I know it's necessary, all my other cats are spayed or neutered, but I will be one worried mama until they are all back home with me safe and sound!

(These are previously posted photos, I still don't have my computer back from Dell....sigh).

Merry Christmas Eve

I can't believe it's here already.  I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas that is filled to overflowing with love and happiness, blessings and bliss!   

Dreams Do Come True

In an earlier post I said I was dreaming of a white Christmas.  It's snowing lightly as I write this and the weather forecast says it will snow heavily all day tomorrow and tomorrow night.  Yay! :) 

The photo is from Pinterest...I will be SO happy when I get my computer back from Dell.  I don't think that will happen before the first of the year though.  Bless my husband for letting me use his computer (however briefly) while mine is being repaired.

Happy Solstice and...

A Joyful Yule.  The shortest day, the longest night of the year....but now the light starts to push back the dark.

And so the wheel keeps turning, as Mother Earth starts her dance back towards Grandfather Sun.

And may the darkness in human hearts be pushed out and replaced with the light of compassion, tolerance and love.

Sanctuary

"Trees are sanctuaries.  Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth.  They do not preach learning and precepts.  They preach, undeterred by particulars, the ancient law of life."  Hermann Hesse

Remember

Sandy Hook Elementary, Newtown, Connecticut, 12-14-2012 

CHILDREN
Charlotte Bacon, 2/22/06, female (age 6)
Daniel Barden, 9/25/05, male (age 7)
Olivia Engel, 7/18/06, female (age 6)
Josephine Gay, 12/11/05, female (age 7)
Ana M. Marquez-Greene, 04/04/06, female (age 6)
Dylan Hockley, 03/08/06, male (age 6)
Madeleine F. Hsu, 07/10/06, female (age 6)
Catherine V. Hubbard, 06/08/06, female (age 6)
Chase Kowalski, 10/31/05, male (age 7)
Jesse Lewis, 06/30/06, male (age 6)
James Mattioli, 03/22/06, male (age 6)
Grace McDonnell, 11/04/05, female (age 7)
Emilie Parker, 05/12/06, female (age 6)
Jack Pinto, 05/06/06, male (age 6)
Noah Pozner, 11/20/06, male (age 6)
Caroline Previdi, 09/07/06, female (age 6)
Jessica Rekos, 05/10/06, female (age 6)
Avielle Richman, 10/17/06, female (age 6)
Benjamin Wheeler, 9/12/06, male (age 6)
Allison N. Wyatt, 07/03/06, female (age 6)

ADULTS
Rachel Davino, 7/17/83, female (age 29)
Dawn Hochsprung, 06/28/65, female (age 47)
Anne Marie Murphy, 07/25/60, female (age 52)
Lauren Russeau, 1982, female (age 29)
Mary Sherlach, 02/11/56, female (age 56)
Victoria Soto, 11/04/85, female (age 27) 

May your precious souls be forever at peace and may the ones who loved you be given the strength they need to get through this horror. 

A Russian Santa

I'm so used to posting photos from my files, that I forgot I can post from the Internet via URL. 
I found this photo of a gorgeous Russian Santa on Pinterest.  I've never seen a Santa suit quite like this one; the embroidery (if that is what it is...maybe some sort of applique?) is so beautiful.  It almost looks like a Scandinavian form of painting called 'rosemaling.' 

No Fed Ex person came today to pick up my poor, temporarily (I hope) dead computer.  Maybe tomorrow...

My Computer Was Murdered!

I'd post a picture of the perpetrator, but I'm using my husband's computer right now and I don't have access to my photos.  The little stinker who murdered my computer was my darling little Gloria, the little black kitten that is the newest addition to our family.  She jumped up to the top of my laptop monitor (it was open), causing the whole thing to crash down from my desk to the floor.  I'm so grateful that it didn't fall on her because she could have been badly injured.

After 3 intensely frustrating hours on the phone with Dell, they finally told me that FedEx would come to pick up my computer and take it to them.  They think (hope) it can be fixed...for a little over $350.00.  I was so rattled that I didn't think to ask them if I would get my money back if it can't be fixed. 

So, when my husband isn't using his computer, I will be visiting your blogs but I probably won't be posting anything on mine. 

Thank goodness I have everything backed up to an external hard drive, because I've heard some scary stories about Dell's service department.  I've also heard some good stories about them, too, so I'm going to think positive thoughts and hope that my own dear purple 'puter will be back here soon with all damage fixed. 

A Quote for Monday

"I will honor Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year."  Charles Dickens' character, Scrooge.

Sunday Sunsets - Sunset Clouds

Taken in November of 2009 on Highway 18 at an elevation of about 5,500 feet - over a mile high.

A Bit of Christmas Cuteness

This little one is just adorable.  (I found the photo on Pinterest, attributed to Squirrel Hugger on Flicker).  I wish I could convince the squirrels who come to my feeders to pose in a Santa hat.  Or, I wish I could at become proficient enough in Photoshop to put a hat on my photos of squirrels.

Faeries Friday - Christmas Faeries

My studio was full of sparkles and stars today (no, I didn't hit my head on anything...honest).  I'm sure the sparkles were made by the Christmas Faeries who are everywhere this time of year, zipping about sparkling the world with Christmas happiness.  If you see a tiny twinkle from the corner of your eye, or think you've spotted a stray piece of glitter, chances are good that you've caught a glimpse of a Christmas Faery. 

There is one sure way to tell, however, if you've been in the presence of a Christmas Faery: you'll feel a nearly overwhelming feeling of joy, quickly followed by an absolutely irresistible urge to go out and commit random acts of kindness.

I hope the Christmas Faeries visit you!

Dreaming of a White Christmas

Taken December 17, 2008.  I'm hoping we have another winter like the one of 2008...we're overdue for a good one.

Little by Little

That's how I'm getting the Christmas/Yule decorating done.  First the garland goes up around the top of the living room walls, then my husband winds the lights through it, then I add the sparkly apples and snowflakes.  Then comes the top of the armoire next to the fireplace and, right now, my husband is assembling the tree. 

And, just 10 minutes later, the kittens have knocked the tree over!  Now, where did we put the wire that we use to anchor the tree to the ceiling and wall??? 

Sunday Sunlight

Welcome December!

One of my favorite months of the year, in spite of time seeming to go into warp speed mode.