Sunday PWYC: Run it up the pole and see if it flies edition

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

I forgot to post after we got home.

It felt so much colder today than on Friday. My hat blew off and just walking very short distances (50' or less) outside was bone chilling because I wasn't properly dressed. I had 4 layers on top but only dress pants and hose on my feet. My boots sit in the vestibule at the retirement home and were freezing when I went to put them back on. When I arrived, my shoes were freezing after spending 45 minutes in the car during lunch.

Service at church went well (I was just doing the reading, prayers and the anthem.) We were singing Holy Ground and I went over it with the musician playing piano and discovered I was doing completely different harmonies than when I do it with dh playing the guitar. I have no idea why but I only sing the harmonies that come into my head and with the piano it was a different set. I seem to be some sort of idiot savant with this singing thing - ask me to sing an alto part and I tend toward be an idiot struggling to learn my part well enough to sing it with others. But when given free rein, with some songs a complete harmony just comes out of me from I don't know where. That's the savant part. Unfortunately, when our musician hands me a new piece neither of us know whether I'll magically hear a harmony or not.

After church was coffee hour, I picked up the Sunday School curriculum for next week and then picked up the mail from the general store. A quick lunch followed and we were off to my service at the retirement home. It went well and after I had time to have coffee with them. I get next week off and then am back for two Sundays before I go away.

We picked up more plastic food storage containers (my collection has gotten thin over the past few years) since there was a sale of 12 pieces for just $5. Even if they only last as well as the Glad stuff, that will be a good deal. Currently I'm using Chinese food take-away containers for a number of items and they fall apart if opened and closed daily.

Once home, I surfed the internet until our supper of reheated pizza. I've just finished almost 1.5 miles on the treadmill and will do up the dishes next. Our visitors just called up to say they'll be here at 8:30 in the morning for breakfast. They have a 6 hour drive in front of them so want the morning to start early.

[Harriet]

I was so emotionally exhausted after church that I fell into a nap through the afternoon. Several things happened to cause that.

For one thing, embarrassed because of awful hair - I usually wash it the preceding night, but company during wild weather here stopped me. We were all too on edge to be normal.

Then as soon as I got dd to rehearsal, I was told I'd be needed to sing after all, because the other soprano wasn't there. surprise. Also surprised to be asked at last minute to help others during service. So just felt "on view" and nervous. I would never have worn what I did if I'd known. It was a cardigan that's attractive but flippy-floppy rather than one that will be still and hang straight. I couldn't hold the music and get it to look sensible at the same time.

Anyway, we got nice compliments on singing, which in itself doesn't make a lot of sense. We are supposed to be song-leading, but I think some in the congregation take it as a chance to avoid having to sing and consider it our jobs. That has never been clear to me. But then I don't make the decisions.

Now that I am back among the awake I've finished a load of laundry and the Evening Daily Card.

Tomorrow is both a bank and P.O. holiday. So even though I am prepared for both after finishing some church work, I'll be waiting.

BUT we are supposed to start with our bad, bad weather through the night Monday night. Some are predicting enough accumulation of ice to really "sock us in" and threaten electric power. So I don't know when I might get errands done, or when dd might get back to school.

Harmony's family south of us
Sadie's family south of us and
my ds29's fire department south of us
are expected to get more ice than we do, while we may have an odd mix-in of snow with the ice. Who knows. I'm so used to these things being fly-by-the-seat-of-the pants expectations.

[BookSaver]

Hello, villagers ~
After the stressful day yesterday, I decided that today I would concentrate on the 3Ds and not try to do anything else. The cat let me sleep late this morning (or maybe I was sleeping so hard she finally gave up trying to wake me) and then I also took a short nap mid-day, so I feel rested.

We will be very cold all this next week. I can't complain too much, though, when Harriet is having such freaky weather. I know it is very serious when ice hits the southern states.

I only did a mini-declutter session today, sorting but not discarding anything yet. I will spend a block of time at it tomorrow because I'm working on putting together a large box to go to Goodwill. I'll be in the GW neighborhood on Tuesday for a dentist appointment.

Tonight I still want to do half an hour or so of bookkeeping for the sewing group before bed. I need a cup of hot tea to warm up my hands before I do any more typing.

[helia]

We're safely home, unpacked, and dd16 is off to take her brother and sister back to campus and then stop by friends' home to care for their dogs while they are out of town. I called Tori's family, and they seem fine to keep our dogs until tomorrow, so I'll go pick them up tomorrow morning. My tutee R has called to cancel our meeting tomorrow morning. Her ds2 is very sick. . . .

Our hens are still alive, even without having their door closed last night when the temps got down to -13. They do have a little heat lamp in their coop.

Our forecast is just for cold temps this week, not much in the way of snow.

I'm drinking tea too, Booksaver.

Ski trip ramblings: I stayed in during the first skiing foray this morning but went out in the afternoon. I guess it was about minus 10F at that point, but I was perfectly comfortable - except once again my toes got cold after a while. I'm not sure how to correct that. I brought my warmest wool socks. I've been told not to wear more than 1 pair in ski boots b/c the space in the boots is so tight. As some of you must know, the boots are like putting your foot into the middle of a very tight plump stuffed animal with a hard plastic shell, so you'd think they'd be warm enough with all that padding. I'm the only one who had issues with toes. I should also say that I did cover up my nose from time to time so no skin at all was exposed, but I had some difficulties with my goggles fogging up if the face mask wasn't positioned correctly with the goggles. Then, at one point, the fog in the goggles started freezing, and I kind of had a problem as I couldn't see very well.. . . Also, my face mask completely covered my mouth and would get damp from my breath, which would make it kind of cool and clammy. That was still better than baring my skin to the elements. . . We did have hand warmers, which I didn't need or use (our ski mittens have special zippered compartments for hand warmers!) and foot warmers, which dh tried but said they weren't particularly helpful. I wonder if they would have helped me?

I must say, it was really beautiful out there! Not much wind today, clear blue skies, brilliant snow - the perfect day for skiing! From one chair lift, dh and I turned around and got a great view of Lake Michigan glimmering in the sunlight past the wooded hills. I started to loosen up and feel more comfortable with my skiing, so that was good. And then after about 1.5 hours, I decided my toes really needed to thaw out. . . .We were on the road by 4 pm and home around 8:20 pm, so our drive home was considerably faster than our 6 hour drive there.

I did have one brainstorm after skiing outside in such cold temps; if I can dress warmly enough to be outside skiing for 1.5 or so hours, why can't I dress warmly enough to be outside for 30 minutes to go for a jog? I think I have the right clothes to do that without being too bulky. . . . That might be an experiment for sometime this week.

I think I'm going to work on Hebrew tonight. Once in bed, I think I'll sleep really well; I can feel that some of my muscles are tired.

Good night SHE friends!

[Harriet]

helia, I'm glad to hear you are home safe and everything's fine. Maybe that product was helping your dh's toes more than he knew.

Most here agree we definitely had some kind of an impressive whirling wind last evening, but they don't know what to call it. Lots of questions about exactly what WAS that, especially since, of course, it was dark - no one had a visual. Many trees down. But surely ( most are thinking ), it could not have qualified as a tornado, however small, since they are so rare in winter months.
And finishing with that into ice Well, at least that makes some sense in Feb.

BookSaver, it is I who cannot complain when I read about the roof-collapse risk that is in the news now for more northern climes. So much back-breaking work for those who try to save their at-risk homes, plus it could be dangerous. Our weather outlook would be very much improved if it were snow because we likely wouldn't get much accumulation and could be back to normal so much sooner. So I see our blessings, but do dread the ice replacement we'll have.

Actually, I should check again. Oh, they have made up their minds. First we will have more ice, then we will have snow over that, then freezing rain during a brief spate of above-freezing temps, so it can drip down through the snow for an ice parfait, and then we'll plunge into a cold snap to make sure surfaces stay as slick as possible. Yep, that sounds about right. We'll do another hop and skip above freezing Tuesday to get that slick surface back, and then down into (for us) the deep freeze again, probably hitting our usual winter lows while under ice this year. We won't come out of it until Saturday, but I can't tell if it will be for long enough to clear roads.

Maybe during that Tuesday afternoon moment, I can get my bank/PO errands done. It will depend upon whether they send the kids to school - I think they would be crazy to chance it but can envision an attempt at, maybe, a 2-hour delay. Otherwise, HRH and I are making a grocery list for tomorrow and we're pleased that his only absolute meeting of the week is tomorrow. If he had to work from home for the rest of the week, it could be done. It's ds I'll worry about.