Comparative History

Yikes.  I've seriously been neglecting this blog.  New year's resolution? To blog once a week.  Is that too lenient a goal? Nah, I think it's a reasonable and actually attainable.  Since my last entry, I've gotten married, completed my first semester of graduate school, purchased a home, traveled to Thailand, and those are just the BIG things.  But let's not look back.

Rather, let's examine the present and the state of winter in Western Mass.  Last year around this time it looked like this:

Three feet of snow in our backyard at this time last year. 

"A dead person could be down there and we wouldn't know until spring." This was a thought that danced around my head all winter...there was that much f*cking snow.

Obligatory shot of Subaru. Subarus in the Happy Valley are like BMWs in Beverly Hills.

Keep in mind that we moved so the house is not the constant in this comparison.  The house is the variable and the time of year is the constant. Got it? Also, I'm now using the photo editing and sharing site Instagram so my pics look, in my opinion, processed but better. Here we go:

Beyond a line of trees at the end of our cul de sac is this ginormous field. Perfect for cross country skiing and snow shoeing...when there is snow.

Our home. See that pile of snow? Yeah. We're the only people on the block who still have any snow. After a few inches fell, I convinced Joe that we needed to shovel our driveway. Mind you, we were the only knuckleheads on the block shoveling, as everyone else knew that it would melt away in a few days. Hence, the remaining pile.

See? Everyone else was clued into the melting action.  That snow there? More leftovers from my genius idea.

Talk about extremes right? And some people still try to argue against global warming? I call those people bozos. Like the clown.

Robin's Roost

Early construction

The eggs are laid!

Makes you crave an Easter whooper, eh?

Once the weather started getting a bit warmer, I moved our plants outside to our second floor porch.  Being spring in New England, the over night temps can still dip into the freezing range so on a colder night a few weeks ago, I asked Joe to bring the plants inside.  "What is this?" I hear Joe inquire from the kitchen.  "I think there's a nest in here," he says as he brings the hanging plant into the living room.  I peek inside and sure enough--an early stage of a bird's nest had begun taking shape in our Pothos plant.  We cackle in unified excitement about the prospect of a little bird building a nest right outside our kitchen door!  And sure enough over the next week we watch the little red robin finish up her nest and lay her eggs, which she is currently incubating day and night.  In about a week we should have three baby birds chirping away on our porch.  Spring truly has arrived!

just in time for spring

Found via {wit + delight}

A delightful and necessary addition to any afternoon bike riding adventure--a six pack holder for your bicycle!  That bike is pretty rad too...

Please rain on my parade

At 5am this morning, I was violently awoken from dreams of friends' imaginary engagements, to the sound of howling, gusty winds and rain drops pelting my window.  After the shock of sudden consciousness settled in, I was mesmerized by the heavy weather whipping about my new home.  Rain in California consists of a sky covered in low gray clouds dripping a steady, medium-grade downpour.  Mind you, this only occurs during the winter aka "might be rainy season," depending on if it's an El Niño year or not.  The storms on the east coast are manufactured in a much more intense factory.  Deafening thunder, sky electrifying lightning, and wind to knock your socks off.  I sat on the window sill and observed the storm until sleep beckoned me back to bed where stormy dreams needed a good snuggle.


{Photo credit: me, on another rainy morning}

How I feel about winter's arrival

This horrifically awkward photograph of Prince Charles and the lovely late Princess Di succinctly captures my feelings about the inevitable arrival of winter. As I sat in my kitchen drinking my morning tea, I watched as a never ending shower of leaves cascaded onto the roof of my car. Leaf peeping was fun while it lasted but now its time for the trees to make like a passenger going through airport security. {sigh}

But how fabulous are her digs? Hunter green wellies and a pink fair isle sweater! It seems that yellow lab shares my sentiments and wants to get the hell out of that awkward encounter...

{Photo via A Cup of Jo}

Atkins Farms

Shortly after moving to the Amherst area, my brother, who is a proud alum of Amherst College, sent me a great list of his favorite sites and restaurants. While chatting with him on the phone about his recommendations I took away two very important pieces of information: Amherst is pronounced "AmERST," the h is silent, and I'd better learn to say it properly to avoid sounding like an uneducated ninny in my new home, AND, more importantly, Atkins Farms is famous for their cider donuts. The very next day I was on my way, mouth watering for this undiscovered delicacy.
On my way into the market I spotted some colorful leaves of the countryside surrounding Hampshire College and Atkins Farms and
some cute as a button, sugar pumpkins. These adorably charming distractions only briefly deterred me from my goal. The glorious cider donuts...
I also acquired some pumpkins and a little gourd. But oh joy, the cider donuts. Soft, sugary rings of wonder. Very similar to cinnamon sugar cake donuts but with a tang of apple cider. So delicious. Ziggy was very jealous as I dug into the appley goodness on the porch. Later, I gave her some cat nip and she forgave me, for now.

Cool runnings

Weather conditions may not permit these late afternoon runs much longer but I sure am enjoying them while the cool, not yet cold, temperatures last. About a half mile from our front door is a fantastic biking/running trail that offers stunning vistas of the fall foliage...

...the Connecticut River...
...the trail...
...and the gorgeous cloud dotted sky. I'm hoping for a tardy winter arrival so I can enjoy more of these outstanding runs.

Thin blood

After a 28 years living in a) SW Florida; b) Central Florida; or c) Southern California, I finally find myself in a locale that enjoys the weather of all four seasons.  Today was the first day since we've arrived in Western Massachusetts that the sun didn't at least cast me a loving ray.  And I'm scared.  The fall foliage is as glorious as a technicolor dream coat but the chill in the air has me shivering in my ballet flats and breezy cardigan.  I think it's time to upgrade my winter wear...I'm loving this Northface Woman's Brooklyn Jacket and these very warm yet chic looking duck boots from L.L. Bean.  

New new England

We made it. After months of waiting, anticipating, procrastinating, saying our farewells, packing, a trip to Paris, and a vicious cat bite later, we made it. Northampton is the now the city listed on our return addresses. First impressions: super friendly folks, lotsa restaurants--representing all regions of the globe, a dabble of independent movie theaters, a scant array of music venues with nicely varied lineups, and most importantly, all the fresh air we can suck into our heads. The air people, my toes, the AIR is so CLEAN. If the air in LA is a gritty industrial paper mill, the air in Northampton is the exhalation of a million peonies. I feel like President Skroob inhaling the canned Perrier oxygen in Spaceballs.
Now I'll leave you with a little taste of what I'll be posting about in the coming week. The utter adorableness of my new house and all the decorating I'll be doing. Check out the heart on the door knob!