Mary Soderstrom's Blog, page 49

Saturday Photo: Snowcat by Jeanne

Such a nice thing to see little kids spread their wings and make interesting things.  Jeanne was sick this week and stayed home, which gave her quite a bit of time, it seems, to draw and paint.

This is a water colour she did of a snowcat with the snow falling, and her name written on some of the snowflakes.  Quite delightful, says Grandma!

Thomas, two years younger, isn't as adept at drawing yet, but Thursday when I picked him up from day care he had a drawing that he wanted to take home.  Looked like a bunch of squiggles in red pencil, but he had a wonderful story about the firemen in it who were climbing ladders to get to the fires. Quite delightful, Grandma repeats!

Saturday Photo: Libertarian or Socialist Ways to Clear Snow

What more can be said?  Snow removal is one of those many things that governments should do.  We grouse about how well it's done up here, but at least we are agreed that all of should contribute. 

That's why I love this graphic representation of what happens when people don't help each other out in the most basic ways possible--by having government foot the bill to keep our lives going. 

Otherwise we're reduced to getting the kids to do it, right?  (The photo is of Lukas a good 30 years ago when he enjoyed moving snow!)

Saturday Photo: Skating, Finally

All's right with the world, more or less.  At least winter seems to have settled in, and the skating rinks are in operation.  Jeanne apparently has had a great time on the rink in the park across the street from Elin's.  Lukas hasn't had a chance to take Thomas out yet, but the small snowshoes that Sophie ordered came on Thursday and they're planning an outing to a park near them tomorrow,

Today I doubt if we'll get any skating done, but there is new snow to shovel in the backyard, so I'm sure they'll have a good time.

Saturday Photo: More Grey Weather...

When people have asked how we could have chosen Montreal over California when we made our great move decades ago, I always have said that I thought white, cold winters were a lot nicer than grey, not-so-cold ones.

My opinion certainly hasn't changed this winter.  We have temperatures above freezing today, with even higher ones forecast for tomorrow with lots of rain.  This means that the snow, which fell in abundance before New Year's, is likely to melt and leave grey sidewalks as well as  grey skies.

So this is climate change? Don't like it.

Saturday Photo: Sil, or Pickled Herring

As the holiday season ebbs, we have begun once again to eat sil, or Swedish pickled herring.  Our consumption was interrupted by bouts of stomach flu or some such.  Seems there's a nasty version going around: Lukas and family had it two weeks ago, Jeanne the week following and this week Lee and I succumbed.  This meant that the sil I made from 20 salt herring got pushed to the back of the refrigerator, as I cooked and we ate rice.

Thankfully that seems past and now we can take up where we left off a week ago, eating delicious things.  So tonight there will be sill and rye crisp bread on the table, beer to go with them, and the prospect of a nice white wine for the endives wrapped in ham and smothered in béchamel.

Oh, how I love to eat!  It's so nice to feel good!

Saturday Photo: A Little Snow for the After Party

We barbecued on Christmas Eve and went to the park with the kids on Christmas Day, but on Sunday, December 27 it actually snowed. 

Nice to to see the ground white.  Seems more normal.  But unless things get a lot colder, we're not likely to have a White New Year's.

Stand by, I'll keep you informed.

Saturday Photo: Melting Snow, or No Snow at All

The photo was taken in March when the snow was melting, but this year it looks like there may be no snow at all.

After a bit in October, we've had buckets of precipitation, but all of it fell as rain. Things are rather grey, as you might imagine.

If you'd like more about my thoughts on climate change and the world in general (plus some cheerfulness too), check out my holiday blog here

Saturday Photo: Red Flowers....

Just a bit of colour for a grey day.

Saturday Photo: Holly, No Ivy, No Snow

Don't know where this photo came from.  Since holly doesn't survive in this climate, I doubt if I took it here.  Nevertheless it currently is my computer wallpaper, and I think it's a great shot for the beginning of December.

A December that is unusually mild, I might add.  Perhaps it is appropriate that the bigwigs in Paris are talking climate change with a certain amount of seriousness.  If the trend continues, we may have very few white Christmases in the future, although in the past Montreal has almost always had them.

Saturday Photo: Ice, Leaves, End of November, Climate Change

Walked up in the cemetery this morning where the ground was white, either from a heavy frost or the little snow that fell on Friday night.  Hard to tell, but it certainly was pretty.

Much talk about the climate change conference in Paris this week.  It's all to the good, would hate to have winter without snow.