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image credit: flikr.com
I shall not die of a cold. I shall die of having lived. – Willa Cather
michigan, united states – shot in january from space
and on the ground, in michigan, the falls are so cold they have stopped flowing.
it hits me like an avalanche on fire – i am in the united states, and talking to my daughter in australia, and i realize, that while we are both sharing this exact same moment in time, on the exact same planet earth, we are simultaneously experiencing extreme weather temperatures that are 100 degrees apart.
australia – shot in january from space
and on the ground, in australia. the trees are so hot they have not stopped burning.
as my aussie grandson, m, once said, on his first winter visit to the states, when looking out the window of the cottage –
‘look peaches, there must be a fire!’
‘oh, m, don’t worry, that’s just blowing snow.’
‘oh, then there must be some snow on fire.’
has hell frozen over?, i wondered.
One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. – William Shakespeare
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image credits:the ann arbor news, andy mcfarlane, http://www.esa.int/, inhabitant.com
just got the call from a robot at school. this is the perfect storm. snow day on tap for tomorrow, and knowing it early.
reminds me of the time i had a snow day and my daughter and i went shopping to celebrate. i was wearing my new, full length, warm, warm winter coat. as we got out of the car, i stepped on to a patch of ice and somehow slid under the car, and into a massive puddle beneath where the ice had cracked. my daughter, upon stepping out of the car on her side, said she looked around and was stumped when she couldn’t figure out where i’d gone. once she figured it out and heard me calling out from below the car, instead of rescuing me, she decided to take a picture of it and quickly send it to her sisters and call them to tell them what was happening. good thing i had on my new, giant coat, which acted as an impromptu flotation device. she finally helped me out and as we walked into the store, a bit wet and muddy, and we laughed so hard and so long that i then wet myself, making it even a bit colder. life does not get any better.
Each day provides its own gifts. – Marcus Aurelius
it was bitterly cold, with snow and wind and ice all around. the perfect setting for the detroit red wing alumni game against the toronto maple leaf alumni, long time rivals, and two of the original six teams of hockey. the fans came out in droves, from both sides of the border and there were hockey sweaters and hats and blankets of both blue and red, as they played in comerica park, home of the detroit tigers. it was hockey, as it was meant to be played – outdoors, and in the elements.
the day was a fitting tribute to these men who spent much of their lives on the ice, playing a game that is incredibly hard on the body as well as the mind, and yet, they all came back for one more day, for a chance to experience what it felt like again, and for the fans, myself included, to have one more chance to remember what they did with such passion.
they all returned, a bit older, a bit slower, a bit shakier, perhaps, but with the spirit that brought them to the ice in the first place. some didn’t wear helmets, some didn’t wear teeth, one goalie wore an old-school face mask, but they came to play as a team, just one more time.
so much history, so many stories, good, bad, and somewhere in the gray area in between, all here together again, they all came, for one day, the wings, so loved in this hockey town – all here:
the legends of the game – gordie howe and ted lindsay, tossed out the puck
the beloved former captain, steve yzerman, who hadn’t been on the ice in 7 years, since his retirement
sergi federov, who left the team for his own reasons, forgiven and welcomed back for a reunion with the russian 5, including konstantinov, so horribly injured during a stanley cup celebration
lidstrom , one of the greatest defensemen of all time, who took on the captain’s role when he retired, hard shoes to fill, now also retired
red berenson, mickey redmond – on the ice in their 70s, now having moved on to coaching and commentating, yet never having lost their love of being on the ice
scotty bowman – their legendary coach, came back to coach his stanley cup winners one more time
jiri fisher – who tearfully had to retire early, due to a heart problem, the only man in this 30s on the ice
joey kocur – wearing the jersey in memory of his hard-living teammate, bob probert
the enforcers, the scorers, the grind line, the goalies – lapointe, chelios, mccarty, ciccarelli,, draper, osgood and on and on
they came older, and broken, and most somewhat the worse for wear, but for a moment, they lived their glory days on ice once again. and they’ve learned the the meaning of life off the ice since then. and they won both games, but that was the least of it.
Age wrinkles the body. Quitting wrinkles the soul. – Douglas MacArthur
image credits: m-live
my children, friends, family, co-workers, and visitors of all kinds, know that i love my coffee. new, old, freshly ground, from a bag, from a tin, just dripped, just perked, re-heated, from all corners of the world, as well as the local coffee shop, gas station, or grocery.
when i make my own pot of coffee, i love it strong, black, with a bit of cream. i love to heat what’s left, in the microwave, or on the stove, over and over, until it’s all gone. it gets stronger and thicker and more potent with time. my daughters have taken to calling it my ‘chernobyl blend,’ my version of ‘turkish prison coffee.’ at least i know i could survive most any coffee, most anywhere i may find myself, be it a prison, a truck stop, or at home in my own cottage kitchen. and that’s a life skill.
here’s wishing you a hot cup of coffee, however you most like it, wherever you may be, on this, the shortest day of the year. and if you’re in the neighborhood, stop by my cottage in the morning, for a cup of my own special blend. we’ll share a pot, and toast to the beginning of a return to the long and brighter days of sun. happy winter solstice!
If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee. –Abraham Lincoln
alaláw (Quechua) – an exclamation that people say when they feel cold (it is pretty close to “brrr!” though it’s more fun to say and more expressive); also, people say it when they hear someone describe a cold place, even if they are not cold at that moment themselves.
I didn't have my glasses on.... 