Fast times - looking to slow down

It finally feels like winter here in the beautiful Green Mountain State. It's cold and blustery outside, the days are shorter, the ground is covered with snow and our German shorthair  pointer will not go outside without his sweater on. In the morning, the boys are bundled up waiting for the bus in the morning donned in hats and mittens, huddling close to their hot chocolate. Salad days have ended and hearty soups and hot sandwiches are staples in my lunch box.  The buzz all around is about driving to the mountain, shredding and sledding, getting out to enjoy the white stuff. And then of course, there's the Holiday Parties, cookie swaps, shopping and decorating... so much to think about and so much to do. There are so many things to prepare for the end of the year holidays, it feels that if I don't slow down, just a bit, it will fly by without me being able to enjoy any of it. How quickly it can change from a magical to stressful.  I  want to sit back and relax and enjoy the beauty of it all, but the nagging feeling of all the "stuff" that has to get done, can be overwhelming.

So what are the things you do to keep yourself engaged in the spirit of winter? How do you find balance in all the holiday hustle and bustle? 

Anyone who posts a comment this week will be entered in a special drawing on Sunday.... More details to come.... stay well.

LR

unaltered

this past weekend it snowed here in vt, and snowed and snowed. burlington had a recorded 3 feet. i must have i shoveled about 2 1/2 off my back porch. (and to think taiwan was sunny and 65 degrees two weeks ago.)

the snow makes everything feel so quiet and calm. (atleast, when i take it in from inside my home or when i am talking the dog for a walk.) the sun has yet to really break through the clouds, so today, although the snow has stopped falling, there is a sense of stillness and white that envelopes everything.

yesterday as the snow was letting up and the sun was going down a beautiful blue light spread across the front yard. to my surprise, my very simple, unreliable camera, actually caught the moment. without photoshop, without any manipulation, the blueness and beauty i saw with my eyes came through the lens.

i suppose some things are just meant to be.

Snow and Shows

I woke up this morning to light snow showers. The light flurries quickly accumulated to 2". The morning rush hour turned interested with cars sliding off the road. The temperature out side has dropped so the chance of the white stuff hanging around is pretty high. It's good for the mountain resorts especially with Thanksgiving weekend around the corner.

Living in Vermont where winter lasts from November to April, you get used to the snow and the cold. It might take a squall or two, but you eventually find a balance between you and nature.

And speaking of balance, I have been putting more art back into my life, little by little. It's taken a while since we moved. My studio/workroom is still not set up yet. I've been working on some new books in the dining room. I still have to sort through piles of images that I've somehow accumulated over the past few years. I'm going to do a few give aways on my blog. Some lucky person will win a parcel full of collage materials.

Then there is the Middlebury Actor's Workshop. They contacted me to design, a three women show, On The Verge. The production opens in March, which give me some time to get everything done. With my responsibilities at home and work, it's the only way I could have agreed to do it. The play is about three Victorian women who stumble upon time travel while they are exploring the globe. Thinking some steam punk influence here. We'll see.