Tag: winter

  • It’s SPRING!!!

    Last autumn, I heard predictions that the winter would be one of severe cold. I had my doubts about the accuracy of those predictions when we very nearly had a green Christmas,  but then January set in, and holy mother of frozen wastelands, did we ever get cold. Then colder. Then colder still. And the worst part…

  • A Study in Ice: Pictures after an ice storm

    So Giant Dog and I have been doing a lot of walking along the river again since the advent of winter. I love that we have the trails pretty much to ourselves…seems very few people enjoy walking when it’s cold enough to freeze your nostrils together. Go figure. 😉 Anyway, following last weekend’s ice storm,…

  • In Praise of Warm Feet

    For those of you who don’t already know, I live in a temperate climate. Continentally speaking, this means warmer summers and colder winters. We regularly hit 40C (104F) with the Humidex in the summer, and -40C (-40F) with the wind chill in winter. As you can imagine, most sane people are out walking in the…

  • State of the Garden: January

    Years ago, I read an article in a gardening magazine about how beautiful a garden can be even in the dead of winter under a blanket of snow. The writer talked about leaving many of her perennials untouched in the autumn rather than cutting them back. She pointed out that the seed heads provided food for…

  • The winter of our discontent

    Mother Nature apparently didn’t get my memo about wanting a nice, calm 2014. I woke to this outside my front door this morning–actually I woke too early to take a photo because it was still dark, but the picture didn’t change much over an hour or so. That’s ice you see on the street stretched…

  • It’s Winter: Let the Whining Begin

    Before I begin, let me just say that I’ve tried — really tried — to embrace the whole spirit of winter thing. I’ve done the snowshoeing and the cross-country skiing; I’ve admired the sparkling beauty of fresh snow on a sunny day (and beneath a full moon, for that matter); I’ve thrown myself with determined…

  • Winter photo shoot

    So from the number of photos I’m posting on here, you’d think I was a photographer rather than a writer. But Mother Nature is putting on such stunningly beautiful displays…how can I possibly resist? For your viewing pleasure, then, today’s efforts: [slideshow]

  • Winter beauty

    I was going to write a commentary on common courtesy today, inspired by a writer friend’s blog on assertiveness vs. rudenss, but Mother Nature put on a show with an ice fog over the Ottawa River this morning. It was too pretty to pass by (I even braved a -33C/-27F wind chill for this!), so…

  • Sharing winter

    Ah, the Canadian winter. Besides the image of the Mountie and our infamous (and exaggerated) inclination towards being polite, our winters may well be what we’re most known for. And for good reason, because some of them are downright legendary. Sadly, however, many Canadians  tend to take the beauty of the season for granted…or to…

  • The Holiday Lull

    Happy middle of the holidays, everyone! I love this lull midway between Christmas and New Year’s. One celebration done, another to look forward to in just a couple of days. We’re pretty much snowed in at the moment — oh, traffic is still moving and everything is open, but it is distinctly more pleasant to…