Brr.

Will you look at that. Blue sky and sun! It's a beautiful thing. Funny coming from me- I usually find cold more comfortable than hot and darkness more interesting than bright day- but it's something of a relief. The unseasonable cold is here to stay though; mornings and nights are often in the Fahrenheit negatives. 

It's felt like a long winter, but we are... only about a third of the way through (Ranzenblog has a nice pick-me-up regarding this very thought). School has been keeping me busy and I've been starting to look forward to seeing the end of end of the tunnel, so to speak. And so we march resolutely on.

Food for Thought

...or maybe more for the eye.

Pomegranate. A classic winter fruit. The hassle involved in preparation pays off- it's not only filled with all manners of vitamins, antioxidants, and other good stuff, but it also tastes fabulous.

Fresh beans, anyone? Sounds unappealing, perhaps, but terminology and connotations can be misleading.

Skywatch No. 6

Here's another one of those photos I snap from the window of a car as it barrels down the freeway. This one dates back a few months, but I still love this cloudscape.

Inauguration Day

It's been a momentous day. It has ushered in a new president, a new future. History was written on this day. What was needed to be said has already been said; I will not trouble hacking out my own (mimicked) copy of flowery words. 

Today I spent my lunch break huddled around a television set with about thirty other people, and watched the news. The inaugural ceremony, with the air of a holiday? This should happen every day.

Later I again attempted to watch the inaugural proceedings in the company of two different groups of people. Let me say to the first- thank you. All attention was on what was happening. I have never seen so many people my age so engaged with affairs of state, all at the same time. It was rather amazing.

The second room was a different story. I don't have a problem with people acting like imbeciles. We all do sometimes. But it would be awfully kind of them to carry on somewhere else, so we can hear the news. It's a little shocking to see how little some know and care about one of the most significant events in the recent history of our country.

Grey Mornings

As routines are established, the beginning of every day starts feeling the same. From the moment I drag myself from bed (after several rounds of hitting snooze) to the time I am actually awake (which may not happen until the afternoon or evening), everything just feels... well, rather bland. This is a shot of the street sometime in the early morning, I believe. Each weekday, I head to class. Not too interesting. It is bitterly cold, the roads are covered with all manner of snow, slush, and ice (though not in this picture- must have been a good day), the sun has not yet risen, and the town looks deserted, except the traffic is still ridiculous. A change of season wouldn't be bad at all. 

Late Wishes and a Newcomer

It's more than a little late, but I have not yet bid you all a happy new year. So here it is, and there you go. Frequent updates I cannot guarantee until my schedule eases up.

Meanwhile, allow me to introduce my new comrade, my good friend. This is Phil.

He's been here nearly a month and has been of good service. Unfortunately however, poor Bob, the desktop, is not running like he used to. What this means is that I am doing a crapload of backing up, though admittedly mostly onto flash drives. When everything is sorted out, I promise you, there WILL be updates. 

Thanks for listening, everyone.

A Reflection

It's been nice, this past week. Naturally, I'm on break. Having some time to myself is a nice change. Even though I've had more time on my hands, though, it still feels like that I've gotten less done, that time has passed faster. Funny, how it works. Not having rigid schedules that dictate what you have to get done when tend to make time wander away. There are still several deadlines that must be met before classes begin, so I've not been doing nothing. Nonetheless, and I quote, "hours feel like minutes and days like hours." Having work to do but so much time to do it in, productivity quickly takes a tumble down the priority ladder. By the time I look up from whatever I'm doing, it's already one in the morning. Day after day passes, every one very much alike. I suppose pressure boots efficiency, but still.

I know I haven't been updating recently, and I've already missed three or four Skywatches without noticing. But never fear, I'll be back.

Madrigal Dinner

This weekend's madrigal dinner was also my last. We sang, feasted, and Renaissance-d away our past few days in several great performances (with an exception or two). It was held in our high-school cafeteria this year, unfortunately, but the audience and other atmosphere more than compensated. I did spend much of the first day feeling rather ill, though.

I also learned that:

-Volumious sleeves don't work well during meals.

-The audience can tell when nearly all members of an ensemble don't know their music.

-Singing after stuffing oneself with food is a bad idea.

-Wearing pants under one's costume gives one the handiness of pockets, but

-Reaching up one's skirt is only an option if others' views of one are blocked.

Good times.

A Dicken's Christmas

Every year, as the holidays approach, our town holds a festival downtown. During the busier hours, the streets are bustling and graced with lights. The atmosphere is crisp and cold (but not this year; it was freezing), snow falls, and occasionally the sound of bells or hooves can be heard. It's really quite picturesque.

Now, I've been for a while part of a madrigal group that comes down here to carol every year. We set up shop in a local business that's graciously let us use their building, sing some traditional music, and it's terrific fun. I unfortunately have no pictures of us to share- can't take 'em if we ourselves are performing.

Usually small ensembles of instrumentalists, our fellow students, also play in a shop down the block. I dropped by to listen to them today (or yesterday, rather), and... well. I'm jealous.

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Until next time-

Skywatch & More Snow!

Pardon another old photo- I needed this, as colorful sunsets are becoming rarer as the days grow longer. Just last week we had sky nearly as clear and beautiful- it quite reminded me of this sunset, so I brought this out. It was quite a sight in person. Unfortuantely, it didn't all fit into one frame, and so has been hastily and rather badly stitched together.

Anyhow, we are well on our way into winter. It's always held some sort of charm for me, especially right after snowstorms when the trees are still coated in white (people often say that infrared photographs remind them of snow-covered branches; I find snow-covered trees more interesting because they resemble infrared ones). Earlier this week

we had some fresh snow. It came in gloriously fat, wet flakes that clung to every surface for days.

Snow also has the advantage of being highly reflective. This is not so great during the day, but at night, especially clear, moonlit nights, it practically glows. So recently I've taken to setting up night shots. Both forest photos in this post are long exposures taken at night.