Icicles

Yep that's how it is...

Not much going on except less work hours with orders way down this week. I could get more pay calling in sick, but want to get out of the house.

All the heart products are likely to increase the next three weeks. No one I know actually spends much for that "Hallmark Holiday," but in past years I have seen crazy-long, drug store lines. Is is sad to have a holiday sales based economy in our off-tourist season here.

This week I watched the film "The Impossible" with Naomi Watts n Ewan McGregor about a family Xmas vacation in Thailand that goes horribly wrong when the huge Tsunami hits in 2004, a true story. I feel fortunate my life is not that exciting...

(Used for two crops here. )

At least I'm not still feeling the flu dragging me down, n the cool weather makes it easier to sleep.  Winter is expected back soon after all this 40F rain got us most of the week. The older you get, the more it makes you creak! Walking in it again today...

I like the graphic qualities of the altered color version better than the real photo.

I'll title this one "X's and O's on Fire"

Maybe it would make a good Val card...

I've designed my share of those!

The altered pic is an outside corner of a nearby market during snow-melting.

This is a different crop location of the first image used today. 

Main View

I'm attempting to take it easy for Day Off this week. The fourth in a row of not feeling well, like with a flu that won't clear up all the way. Still very fatigued, not sleeping, or eating right during the work week. Extra people have been in the house sleeping here to not to wake up too near the kitchen, n basically I've been doing nothing but movie n U-tube kitty video watching after work.

(From the cropped pic, mirror only.)

Well this pic playing thing takes up alot of time, too- but it's fun. All I've been catching up with gets interrupted with laundry n errands of course. I'm going to try making some better energy food for this week. I actually ate from a can of cold, no-name baked beans the other day trying to get some energy. Yesterday I used last week's chicken soup to make rice I'd wanted days ago.

TG I get to watch movies again this year. I think it helps me keep my sanity to be able to pick apart scenes n admire the director's choices.

I went thru some Marvel movies n Half-way thru digitally re-mastered Star wars yet again. I like the John Williams music score so much. Plus now that Carrie's gone to stardust, it feels different to watch her role. I haven"t gotten out to see "Rogue One" yet. The last movie theater trip was "The Force Awakens".

This pic is the view from the parking lot in back of Main Street businesses after the snow had melted for a day. I always like a snow at the water scene. The ocean here hasn't frozen yet...

(Original pic) 

The Home Cone

"Marge? "

reference is from "The Simpsons" cartoon show...

That snow piled up crazily on objects rendering them unrecog-
nizable.

I came home to this out front on Blizzard night.

I thought that planter was hilarious!

Yep, that's a bench buried on the right.

The above cone is visible on the left background here. That's the same little tree n porch rail as previously shown here. 

Taken from the second week of dec 2016

Lotz n Lotza sNOw

 The Cape n MA south coast area got the forecast Blizzard last Saturday. For the second week in a row I had to skip sleep n go in extra early to ensure we would get there.

About noon it started up at a quick pace, building up on the path into the building fast. I had my new cam in my pocket to get a few pics. Then mid- afternoon it was too deep n un-plowed out there to have driven anywhere. 

Sometimes it seems stupid to risk your life for bakery goods, n you wish you had an important job like being a surgeon to deserve going thru all the stress of the job we were expected to do in bad weather conditions. Who can afford an unpaid day, anyhow?

I went out 3 times to shovel the little dock to the dumpster. After adding up amounts moved I decided certainly it was a foot n a half or so. Luckily it was very cold out, (10 F), so very light n fluffy to move.

( Same view below, later)

When the drivers started arriving about 8 pm, (we were almost done), I joked with them that they should get a medal either in "Bravery" or "Tom Foolery," n that they should consider becoming a Navy Seal after getting to work in that storm... as they reported almost zero visibility n only main roads plowed.

It takes a trooper to go out in this stuff! 

There were alot of silly snow-monoliths to observe out the main door.

I got home about 10:30 Saturday night. The storm went on until about Midnight.

Finally Tues n Weds it warmed up to about 50 F n the sidewalks were usable again! Yay because I would've had a tough time walking from the library.

I bought some $1 chicken drumsticks, went under the plastic to check plants, n the Thyme was still green n alive! Yay, will go good in the chicken soup. 

Stay tuned for the upcoming, unusual, pre-scheduled second post of the week... 

Genesis

The Sun sets on another year. How do we begin again? How do we change things that we do so that our lives can be better than it was in the last year?

As I played with the current image I got confronted with these questions just as I invented an image that resembles replicating chromosomes by using previously used formula settings combinations. So very ironic - 

Aye yi, I just typed "flops" instead of "folks"... Also ironic! Back to what I was doing.

Folks at work all went in early to work, just to get out before party time, so I could go home n sit alone watching uTube n tv. Very anti-climatic. I just wish I didn't have to skip a day of sleep for that.

I'm trying to recover now. Plus that bout with the flu. 

The reflection on your life, n in my case on the past year's non-progress just makes me realize how difficult it can be to do what you want without compromising the few things you already have that you want.  

I don't like my job, but to quit would be a disaster trying to replace a full-time position, as all businesses here are now cutting work forces to the bare bones. Minimum wage just went up another dollar, to $11 per hour. I'm feeling devalued. 

 We are entering the slowest season here, the next retail focal point being Valentines sales.

Here comes bone-chilling icy weather right on cue for January. Apparently the ocean temps locally are way up for this time of year (47 F) n that may help us out a bit, but shoveling looks to be in store for the week-end, as all the moisture coming up the coast will get pushed back into the cold air for ocean effect snow here. 

I'm getting used to my new tablet, but am not comfortable trying to upload posts from home for several reasons. I can get around, read, n comment more tho! I also got a better camera to play with. Maybe stuff will be less fuzzy in the future.

Today's Photo is from the old cam last week. Sometimes The sunset marks an "X" in the sky right where you are meant to be... If you think it means something else, let me know!