i love the way a stormy night sky glows

how was your holiday?

ours was perfectly magical.

snow settled cozy on our streets and trees,

the milk gravy, vegetarian stuffing, and from-scratch-banana-cream-pie

were favorites...even among the traditionalists.

the day after we stuffed our bellies with harvest goodness

ceej and i signed a contract for our new abode...

tree-lined street, 1960s kitchen, large basement for teaching yoga,

within biking distance of our favorite places and work,

neighborhood 4th of July parade,

and.........

a garage!

we can hardly wait to make it home.

good news:

the snow keeps falling...it's just about to my knees.

bad news:

ceej is having serious difficulty flying out of the country for work...

the sooner he leaves, the sooner he comes home.

hope your holiday was just lovely.

happy monday!

there's a big storm coming and i couldn't be more giddy with anticipation

ceej and i are off for the wonderful blizzards of utah
for the holiday.
tuesday promises snow upon snow upon snow...
i've packed my favorite wool sweaters, gloves, scarves,
and boots and hats and pants for playing in the snow with nieces and nephews.
i've scanned recipes for homemade eggnog, banana cream pie, sweet potatoes, and more
to avoid trying to pack all my favorite holiday cook books and magazines.
i also scanned knitting patterns so i can knit away while snow falls heavily outside
and we watch charlie brown inside.

we also get to look for a new abode...
yes, it has snuck up on us...the big move.
in just over a month we will find ourselves back in the bosom of our mountains.
as i wrote that it finally hit me.
it's real.
we're moving.
and i haven't even thought about packing.
and i'm going to be gone for three weeks.
eek.

oh well.
somehow we'll get there.

i'll be away for this week,
and will be back next week with lots to show and tell.

happy thanksgiving!!!

"i am bewitched, enchanted"

here's a bit of that wonderful frosty morning we had in yosemite.
isn't it absolutely fantastic?
i dream about it every second i can.

we were oh so incredibly tempted to return to the valley again this weekend,
but grown-up things have kept us home...
you know, saving money rather than spending it and cleaning our house
and packing our bags for three weeks of travel we have ahead of us.
we're really missing the valley...especially since there will be snow there this weekend.
big sigh.
we'll just have to come back next year.



"i must return to the mountains--to yosemite.
i am told that the winter storms there will not be easily borne,
but i am bewitched, enchanted,
and tomorrow i must start for the great temple to
listen to the winter songs and sermons preached and sung only there."
-john muir

yosemite: "every rock in its walls seems to glow with life" {project film}

wouldn't it have been something to have run into john muir on a trail
back in the day?
he could tell us about how the valley lives in his scottish brogue...
about how he would climb to the top of a tree during a storm
just to see how the tree felt being blown about,
or how he first entered the valley with birds singing and flowers carpeting every inch.

at least this wonderful place has been preserved to a large extent
so we can enjoy it.
thank you, john muir, for advocating national parks.

welcome to our yosemite weekend abode : heated and oh so cozy

i usually try to avoid winter camping...
or sleeping in a tent when the temperatures are freezing or below freezing.
i hate thinking about waking in the middle of the night
to have to go out into the freezing cold.
so...
was happy indeed that we reserved ourselves a heated tent cabin
in curry village, with half dome watching over us.
it made the trip so very lovely indeed.
i was in heaven every night after hiking and climbing all day in the cold
{i do love the cold during the day for sure...i just don't like it at night when camping}
...it was nice to hang out in our tent reading, writing, and talking until we
easily fell into sleep.
next time we return to yosemite in the cold weather we will be
reserving one of these again...so worth it.

yosemite: "in every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks"

lately i've been dreaming, thinking, and talking about how
desperate i have been for a frosty cold morning...
yosemite gave me a frosty morning beyond my sometimes
limited imagination.
it truly does pay to wake just before the sun
{and before the rest of the tourists}.
as we began our hike looking for the trailhead
i could see just beyond the pine trees that there
was a frozen mist hanging above a meadow just beyond.
i quickened my pace, and my giddiness overcame my lips and my eyes...
i knew this was going to be pure joy.
i'm awaiting the development of my film images that i captured;
you're going to love them.
we hiked up a little canyon and i was so pleased to be wearing
an oversized sweater and a ridiculously huge down coat to keep me warm.
i loved our hike.
i loved stopping to take photos,
and i loved talking with ceej along the way about the things most important to us,
and how we were going to work hard to achieve simple, but profound, goals.
we had a mid-morning picnic on a granite rock near the water...
you have to have mid-morning picnics when you wake up so very early.
this was the beginning of our trip.
and the rest was just as good.

i had no idea how much the cold and the changed leaves
would rest my soul and heart,
and give me inspiration and determination beyond anything else...
i've forgotten how powerful mountains are.
can't wait to live in a mountain valley again...very soon.