Staying warm

It's been warmer this winter than it typically is, which means lower heat bills and less snow shoveling.  But we've had some snow and frigid temperatures this week, so to celebrate I thought I'd share this little video.  Yes, Calgary is a little to the north, but this Southern gal welcomes any and all advice from those more experienced with cold winters.

Singing Tweets - Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra - YouTube

Hmmm.  Apparently, the key to staying warm in the winter is alcohol...alcohol and rich food.  If I'm not quite...myself...in the spring, you'll know why.

UPDATE:  Here are some pictures of the approximately six inches of snow we had last night.  It's moderate by local standards, but rather a lot by mine, and of a different consistency than the icy stuff we get at home.  When it snows here, life goes on, and not just because we have snow plows and salt trucks and "know how to get around in it." You're as likely to stay in when it snows as you are when it's cold and rainy, which is not very often for me.  And with the snow we've had so far, shoveling the driveway has only taken about 15-20 minutes.

My driveway and the house across the
street, as seen from my garage

My back yard, and house behind me

I shoveled that!

Home again!

The title of this post holds a double meaning, because in the time since my last post I've travelled home to be with friends and family for Christmas, and home again, back to my new residence and way of life.

I ended first semester jubilant for having survived it (quite well, if I do say so myself), exhausted from months of stress and transition, and desperately homesick.  I counted those last hours before I left for home, walking out of my last meeting directly to my packed car, and made my way south for a "progressive vacation" (some people have progressive dinners; I have progressive vacations).  I stopped at my brother's house, then moved on to my home of the past 11 years, then finally to my parents' for a week at Christmas.  A few days after Christmas I reversed it, finally making it back "home" on January 2...in the middle of the first real snow of the season.

My time home with family & friends revitalized me.  I basked in every moment of swapping stories with the adults, playing with the children (and secretly enjoying their bickering over who got to snuggle up with me next), making THREE batches of Christmas cookies (my favorite treat), watching movies I hadn't had the attention span for in months.  One friend, who saw me both at the beginning and the end of my vacation, commented on the difference in me.  I felt the difference, too...I felt calmer, more relaxed, less frazzled.  I don't think I even realized how stressed I'd been.  I felt more energetic, more optimistic, more eager to take on the challenges of a new semester.  I also realized that I don't have early stages of Alzheimer's after all...I'd just had so much going through my mind that I couldn't take any more in.  It's great to be able to remember things again!

Now, I'm back in my new home.  Unlike last semester, I don't have to figure out where to find groceries, exercise classes, or a dry cleaner's.  I don't have to experiment with different ways of washing dishes (sans dishwasher) to prevent sickness and grease fires.  I know my preferred Mass times, and I've decided which parish to join.  I even shoveled the driveway and figured out how best to clear it on snowy mornings.  All of that will make this semester much less stressful than last...I hope!

I have one more week before classes begin again.  I worked most of last week, and I have a great deal of work to do this week to prepare for classes.  But since my brain feels less cluttered, I feel more excited about tackling it, more confident in my ability to do it and do it well, more grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this work.

I hope 2012 holds abundant blessings for us all!