Winter Wonderland

The snow got a little lower during the night.

This is what I awoke to.

I took the picture through my den window and the glass reflected my lamp a bit.

Meanwhile, in front.

It's early but the dog-walkers and the car drivers have already been out messing with the street snowscape.

I love this view with the early morning sun casting a pinkish, orange-ish glow over the town.

Meantime, the Weather Gods say the temperature will only rise to 36 degrees here today.

In Arizona?

They've got to be kidding!

SNOW TIME

I had expected the ground to be white when I rose from the arms of Morpheus yesterday.

The Weather Gods had predicted snowfall during the night.

But lo and behold there was nought to be seen.

Until later, when I drove to the grocery store.

Against a murky gray sky, I noted the tops of the Bradshaw foothills just south of where I live were dusted with white.

Prescott, just about 8 miles away from Prescott Valley (where I live) is a couple of hundred feet higher in elevation.

And an old friend from my home town in North Dakota who lives there, Corky Jackson Hintz, posted this delightful picture on Facebook.

The beautiful photo from the Christmas-lit Courthouse Square shows that the increase in elevation was enough to create a bed of white.

STRIPPED DOWN FOR WINTER

It doesn't really make sense to me.

You would think as the weather gets colder the trees would want all of their leaves to surround them.

But instead they remove all of their protection from icy temperatures and snow.

For example, you remember that big red maple in our front yard?

Here's how it looked this morning.

I suppose the one advantage is it gives us a little easier view out toward the town and the mountains in the distance.

The sycamore with its huge leaves is nearly as equally bereft of foliage.

The ash tree is the last to release it's clutter.

And clutter it is.

In spite of raking up four big bags of leaves only a week ago it looks like another day of yard labor awaits us.

So it goes.

FRIDAY FUNNIES

You've done it!

You've struggled through another week!

Congratulations!

Here's your reward.

Feeling better?

Yeah. Lots of luck with that one.

And, of course, the cat.

Looks like kitty turned it into a Festivus holiday.

Hey, have a great weekend, friends, and always keep a grin on your kisser*.

*In honor of Mistletoe season.

THROWBACK THURSDAY

Smack that fish!

That Walleyed Pike was as big as I was.

My dad is showing off his prize catch from a fishing trip, probably to Carlyle Lake in Saskatchewan.

It was about 100 miles north of where we lived in North Dakota and was a favorite vacation spot during my childhood.

Pretty good fishing, too.

SEEKING THE SUN

Blackwell always find the sunbeam.

And the Arizona Diamondbacks face the 2016 season with a sunnier outlook, thanks to their new pitching ace.

216.5 million dollars brought Mr. Greinke to Arizona from the Los Angeles Dodgers for six years.

Now we'll see what happens.

TUESDAY TRAVELS

How can thirty years have gone by so quickly?

April, 1985. 

Hangin' with the rich folks.

Lots of nice "boats" here in the marina of Monte Carlo.

We also walked up to the casino and wasted a few francs trying to "break the bank".

Needless to say we didn't come close.

This was also where we had lunch and the first (and last) escargot of our month-long tour of Europe in 1985.

Before the trip, SWMBO had said she was going to have it every day of our four days in France.

We never found it on the menu there but we enjoyed it at a sidewalk bistro here in Monaco.

For those of you who don't like snails, it's the garlic butter, the garlic butter!

The snails are only the carrier!