Full Moon

Nice moon last night. I am always amazed by the moon, I love watching it. Why does the moon always look so huge in the sky and so tiny in a photograph. I know it has something to do with perspective...so there. But sometimes I wish I had the Hubbell Space Telescope in my back yard. We have a nice telescope, and before there were houses built behind us, we used to take it out and have Star Parties. Too many lights around here now, and we rarely haul the telescope out away from the city. I kind of miss that. Perhaps I need to talk to Hub and see if he would consider doing that one of these times. Anyhow, here's last nights moon through the trees. Because the heaviest snowfalls usually occur in February, the full moon for the month is called the Snow Moon. I think I read that some Native American tribes called it the Hunger Moon, because hunting was difficult during that time because of the snow.

Remains of The Day (Snow)

I would not have complained if we had two days of snow...a week would have been too much. But by noon it was pretty much melted off. There is still some evidence in shady parts of the yard and on some of the roofs. It got up to 53 today.

Here's what was left by mid-day. A comparison shot of the patio table and back yard.


Off to watch some more Olympics, speed skating, my favorite event. Just because of Apolo Ohno.

SNOW They Said

And snow it did.
Huge Fluffy Snow.
Proof was fleeting.
Most has melted.

But for one day, we had SNOW in Austin, the most they say in 25 years. Certainly the most I have seen in my 16 years here. Wow, that was fun! Glad I was home to see it. Parts of town got a LOT more than we did out here. A funny moment, yesterday morning when I was out taking photos, me being raised in Idaho, and my across the street neighbor, being raised in New York, was out doing the same. She says "what, ya nevva seen SNOW before"? LOL

Snow falling, just starting in the a.m.


Back yard, table


Snow on metal flowers, backyard


Front yard, car, fountain

Another Blue Norther

Here we go again. The cold front coming down from the North has arrived. It is 38 right now, and the prediction is that we won't see above 40 tomorrow. Those temps are really not that cold, but when you factor in the wind, it feels much colder. It was 74 yesterday and everyone was out in short sleeves. HUB even played golf...but of course he will play golf even in snow, but around here when it snows they close the courses. LOL The weathermen are so enamored of the word SNOW because here in Texas they don't get to say it very often. They expect more snow in the Dallas area and it may even reach central Texas as well. I doubt that we will get snowed in here in Austin, we haven't so far... but if the COLD keeps us in, we have plenty of supplies. Soup, bread, comfort foods. We are on our second pot of coffee and it's still very early. I cooked Oatmeal for breakfast, and we feel like that made up for the entire box of Girl Scout Thin Mint cookies we ate last night while watching the Olympics. Can you tell, we are still trying to wean ourselves off the "sweets"? That is such a challenge.

I wouldn't even care if we got snowed in...as long as I am not here alone, and HUB is snowed in up in Dallas.

Does Trouble Really Come in Threes?

Remember the old superstition we always heard our parents repeat? At least mine did, maybe it was just the "time", but it seems I've heard that my entire life. It has shown to be true around here the past couple of weeks. But, I find myself thinking...maybe it is just pure coincidence after all. Or...maybe...I think my wise old self has figured out something entirely different. Well,I'll tell you my troubles, then what I have figured out about them. Number one was the water incident earlier in the month. Last week while driving home from Dallas in the dark, the headlight in Hub's car went out for the second time in 6 months. This one sounds like an easy fix, right? Not so, as the entire insides have to be taken apart to replace a little bulb, racking up about a $100. in labor charges. This is not a DIY project. Then this week-end my computer modem died, leaving both Hub and me internet-less so that had to be replaced. My computer is old and needs replacing anyhow, but there are no funds for that. Nor were there funds for all these other things. Now, here is where Barbie figures things out. In the old days, back when we had a steady income, we always kept a "slush fund" for emergencies and things of that nature. Now, during this limited income period, there hasn't been money for a lot of the basics, let alone any emergency slush fund or things that inevitably happen. So the first thing happens, and you groan...well if there is no money for the first thing that happens, it stands to reason there will be no money for the second and third thing that happens. We are living on such a shoestring now that any thing that comes up which would ordinarily be just the normal "stuff" that happens in life, becomes an emergency. Then you find yourself standing on one foot, dreading the next thing that might happen, yet another demand that you don't have the money for. All three of things that happened would have happened regardless, but when we had the money set aside for them, they are just blips on the radar screen so to speak, but when funds are so tight, they became real "troubles" that came in threes. That's what I have figured out. Now I hope the troubles in threes will just stay away from my doorstep for the next little while. I've had my turn.

Water, Water, Everywhere

Yes, there was the rain. For several days and nights. I wish I could say that is the only water I saw. However, last week we had a plumbing problem...what do I mean we...It was ME. Hubby was out of town. He is usually out of town when disaster strikes, I have a long list of events to prove it. He used to travel a great deal, and the weirdest things would start to happen round here when he was gone. Usually things that I couldn't repair! Anyhow, one morning I came downstairs and proceeded to do the normal morning routine, open the shades, start the coffee, etc. All of a sudden I noticed my fuzzy boot slippers felt a little soggy. Looked down, and I was standing in about an inch of water. I heard a whooshing noise, and I wondered why the heck hubby was running the sprinkler system, as that is what it sounded like. Well I opened the cabinet doors and more water came rushing out on my feet. I ran, kind of "sloshed" rather, out into the garage and grabbed a pile of towels and blankets and tossed them on the floor to soak up the water. Then I managed to get down under the sink and get hold of the cold water shut-off and get it turned off. The whooshing stopped but I could still hear a drip-drip so I got a bucket and put it under there. I diagnosed the problem, I hadn't the strength to get it totally turned off, so worked on it a bit more. Then I proceeded to clean up all the water. Thought I had, until about an hour later, I walked over to open the back patio drape, and I was standing on really soggy carpet. UGH.... So that entailed more clean-up. By the time I got it soaked up with more towels, and another inch of standing water under the table, and got the towels in the washer, I was exhausted. Thankfully, it was not as bad as it could have been, but it was pretty bad. But if this had happened while we were out of town for several days it would have ruined a lot more. Most likely the entire downstairs carpeting, and who knows. As it is, my art table is in the family room and I have a bunch of boxes of supplies stacked under the table. I had to move those, find a place to put them and get the papers out of them. Only three boxes of stuff were ruined where they had soaked up the water. I had to throw away a couple of paper shopping bags that were sitting under the table with magazines and catalogs stored in them. I mean the contents were soaked as well.... That was a really crappy day. I sure did need a nap that afternoon. Luckily, with hubby coming home the next day, I did not call the plumber, which would have cost a bundle. When hub got home the next afternoon, he ran to Home Depot for supplies, replaced the broken pipe and it's all good. Having a hard time getting the carpet entirely dried, as the weather has been so cold and wet. Oh, the joys of home ownership. Our house is 16 years old, this is the longest we have ever lived in one house. We used to move every three to five years, so have had lots of new houses. I want another NEW one...home repairs suck. Having to move the boxes of art supplies out from under the table did uncover several treasures I hadn't been able to get to in awhile. And stuff getting wet, did force me to actually toss more than I have been able to in awhile as well. So that worked out well in a way.

Happy February

I'm totally enjoying looking at my Paper Source calendar. This months is bright and vibrant, a really nice contrast to the greyness of the atmosphere of late. I think it would be nice to have a little sun peek through the clouds at least for a short time, a promise that it is still hanging out up there.



I like February. February contains holidays for me...Birthdays. My Dear Daddy will be 95 tomorrow. He is an amazing man.. still very active, walks several miles each day, works hard, is funny as funny can be. He's a cowboy..he still wears his boots and jeans and is quite the dapper gentleman. All the ladies, both young and old, love him. This does not always sit well with my Mother however... she sometimes gets a little irritated when the ladies flirt with her husband. LOL She will be turning 87 on the 9th, and she is a corker too. She still crochets doilies and other things, using the finest thread, that I can barely see. She's always crafting something. Ask her if she can make a snowflake, and 10 minutes later she hands you one, a lovely crocheted one. She makes killer deviled eggs, and she can be a real devil herself at times. I mean this in the nicest way...she cracks us all up. Both my parents are pretty darn funny. I miss them, as I live far away and only get to see them a few times a year. Hub and I are planning our February trip and will be going there later in the month. There are a lot of other family birthdays this month...son, brother, cousins. But I consider my parents birthdays extra special, and feel so fortunate to still have them in my life.