On the trail...

A few pictures from Sunday's hike with the Sunday Hikers Meetup Group. We headed up Thayne Canyon, a Millcreek Canyon trail I never hiked before. It was a pretty little canyon, especially with all the snow. Like most Millcreek Canyon it was a pretty good uphill trek. The trail was pretty well traveled, we hiked until it narrowed and hit the spot where we would have needed snow shows, probably 3 or 4 miles round trip. Thank goodness for Yaktrax (traction aids for your boots) without then these hilly trails would probably be impossible in the winter. Unfortunately, I stuck my camera in pocket, but left my memory card in my computer, so I could take amy pictures. Thanks Jola, for posting these 2 pictures! It's kind of weird being in photos for a change. I'm the one with Daisy dog!

On being single...

Apparently, I just can't keep a man. They all slowly melt away.....

My New Man....

So last Sunday we finally had a nice snow storm. Not "The Greatest Snow on Earth" like the old license plates say, but heavy, wet show. Definitely not powder snow.
As I was shoveling the snow off of the driveway it occured to me that it was great snowman snow, something we rarely have, so why not roll great big snowballs to get some of the snow off of my driveway. So I did, and rolled the first big ball to the front yard spot where I wanted my snowman. Then I rolled the second ball over.

Of course the problem is that hefting the second ball up on top of the first ball is a two person job, and I'm a single gal, and my daughter was off visiting her borfriend. So what to do? A ramp,I thought, I needed a ramp. I tried a snowboard, but that didn't work, it was too slippery. Then I spied my rickety old stepladder in the garage. It was perfect, I was able to roll my ball right up to where I wanted it. So see, a single gal can manage just fine on her own with a little innovation!

And so it begins...

Yup, this week was started the last year of 4th decade.... the countdown to the big 50.... the 20th anniversary of my 29th birthday!!! Na, not the last one I am one of those strange folks that doesn't mind sharing her age, or being her age... except when trying to mountain bike up hill... that's when I wish I was 29 again.

It was a good birthday... my sister sent my the lovely flowers in the picture (she knows I love Santa!), my friend Jason, daughter and I out to dinner, afterwards we had cake with my neighbor Val and her daughter Zoe. The cake was a yummy flourless chocolate torte made my baker extraordinaire daughter. If that wasn't sugar enough one of the grad students in my lab had made me cupcakes.... I think everyone wants me sweetened up.

Interestingly I don't think I've ever had so many birthday greetings... a card from my mom who never forgets... a cool bird feeder from a friend and tons of cyber-greetings. The internet is fun that way. Open a facebook account and everyone remembers your birthday!!!!

If all the birthday greetings weren't enough, mother nature sent my favorite gift... a snow storm!!! What more could a December girl want?!

Tarot Cards

Tonight was Gallery Stroll night at the local art galleries, so I decided to head downtown to see what's up in the art word this month. My favorite gallery stroll stop is Artspace, where there's not only a gallery, but artist studios that are open to public on Gallery Stroll nights.

Linda Dalton Walker is one of the studio artists who's work I like. She does alot of portraits, big vibrant portraits. Normally portraiture isn't really my thing, but I really like hers. It's been interesting to see where she works, and to get to talk with her, and learn a little about her artistic process.

Her recent work includes a series of Tarot Cards that I think are pretty cool. It's been fun to stop by and see her progress on the set. Tonight we chatted a bit about tarot, a subject I really know nothing about. Discussing the fortune telling got me thinking about my future. A number of years ago I had an idea about what my future would be like, but after having my life turned upside down by divorce I realize I have no idea what my future holds anymore. On one hand that is a kind of depressing thought, on the other it is kind of intriguing. I have no idea what adventures, good or bad the future holds. It could be really intersting, it certainly will be different. But would I want to know? Right now, I don't think so. For some reason the thought of predicting my future is a little scary to me. I think I will have to be patient and just see what happens. I don't know if I even believe in tarot, but I'd be hestitant to dabble in it right now anyway. I may, however, be interested in buying a set of Linda's cards when she has them made. Maybe then I will be brave and find someone to read them for me.

So would you want to have your cards read?

More from the trail...

November has come and gone without enough snow to give us an early ski season. No big Thanksgiving opener, hopefully we'll get dumped on by Christmas. So instead of hitting the slopes I've been trying to get up in th mountains for a hike every weekend. This weekend I joined the Sunday Hikers Meetup Group for a trek up the Burch Hollow Trail in Millcreek Canyon.

I think we hiked about 3 miles up, and as all the Millcreek Canyon trails go, up means up! We were approaching a nice ridgeline in the distance, which seemed like a good goal, until one of the guys explained to us that while it seems like we should be able to hike to it, it never really get any closer. He appeares to be correct about that, so eventually we decided we needed to turn around and save the ridge for another, longer day.


Turning around was probably a good thing, because sometimes the downhill trek is as hard or harder (especially in the knees) than the uphill one. This time of year the trail conditions range from dry, to snowy, to icy, to thick and muddy. Slip sliding down the icy and muddy sections was a little bit challenging at times, but I'm proud to say I mangaged to stay upright the whole way.

And Daisy of course had a great time. This trail would have done her in during the heat of the summer, but this time of year it was perfect for her.