Another Reason the Pioneer's Went Crazy

I thought that raging thunderstorms and tornadoes were enough to make you lose your mind in a sod house on a prairie, but then I encountered my first blizzard. We've received about a foot of snow in the last couple of days, and last night's howling winds upped the ante and brought about a true weather emergency. Lucky for me, work was cancelled for two days straight, so I've been holed up like Laura Ingals Wilder, taking advantage of being snowed in by sleeping late, journaling, and working on this weekend's sermon. Warm carrot ginger soup for dinner and Swiss Miss for desert has made these last few days more enjoyable than scary, but severe weather always manages to get under my skin a little bit. I'm happy that the snow has stopped falling and the winds have died down, but now I need to deal with the little problem of unearthing my car and driving to the office tomorrow morning...not something this Seattle girl is too comfortable doing. 

(the storm was not this bad) 

Anyway, I thought I'd take advantage of the cozy silence by updating you on my otherwise un-updated life, using the form from the Simple Woman's Daybook.

Outside my window...snow is covering everything. The strong wind turned the yard and parking lot into a tundra of white dunes, and very few people have ventured outside to disrupt the cold beauty. 

I am thinking...about John the Baptist, who takes some of the fun out of Christmas but puts all of the drama into the first few weeks of Advent. 

I am thankful...for safety and warmth, and for hot chocolate with marshmallows. 

I am wearing...a pink thermal shirt and jeans. 

I am remembering...how important it is to challenge myself and not get comfortable. This is a lesson I've learned in the past but seem to want to forget.

I am going...nowhere! 

I am currently reading...The Life You Save May Be Your Own by Paul Elie...for the third time. It is a "simultaneous biography" of Thomas Merton, Walker Percy, Dorothy Day, and Flannery O'Connor. These four Catholic writers were contemporaries who emerged on the scene independently. This book always inspires my creativity and my imagination. It also highlights, rather starkly, how much American religion has changed in the past thirty or forty years. 

I am hoping...for safe driving tomorrow. Or for another snow day.

I am creating...a lot, actually. I have finally recommitted to the discipline of "free writing," something that I was obsessive about in college and have since managed to let slip away. Although my writing isn't entirely "free"--I am trying to focus on a couple of topics/themes--lots of ideas are flowing. 

Around the house...it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. I decorated an adorable little three-foot tree, which is full of bird ornaments which nest in the branches. I wish I had a Christmas tree all year round. 

How is your winter going so far?

Comments

[Ricardo]

Not sure why, but I was drawn to check out your blog after many months. It's great to hear your voice! I think I'm lacking some creativity in my life these days, so thanks for the idea of reading this book. I actually own it, but have yet to crack the spine. Maybe after "Just Kids"!