Mid-week skiing

There isn't much that could have made this afternoon skiing more enjoyable.  Only more family with us to share the beautiful afternoon, fantastic snow, and fabulous scenery could have improved it.  I thought the mountain would be crowded as it is NH school vacation week.  But no.  All our neighbors must be so sick of winter that they went somewhere warm for this week.  And so we skied with only a handful of other folks.

We spent the first hour or so on the bunny slopes; getting out ski legs underneath us.  On one of the rides up, I asked my Lovey Lamb if he wanted to try one of the other chair lefts and bigger slopes.  He shrugged his shoulders and seemed to indicate a yes.

And so we headed over to Ramrod Quad for a slightly bigger adventure.

No lines

On the way up, close to the top of the lift, I noticed tree decorations.  On closer inspection, it appeared as though some young ladies had tossed their undergarments aside along with Mardi Gras beads.  I know it isn't good behavior to litter, undress in public, or toss our clothing into the trees, but something about the display made me smile.  I felt a little guilty taking pictures and at the same time, trying to convey that this was not an activity I endorsed. Not sure I succeeded in my verbal message when my actions said something else.

That is just an aside.  What made the day magical was the snow conditions and Selim's skiing improvement by leaps and bounds.  By leaving the green circle trails and going over to the blue squares, he was forced to use his turning skills to ski in control.  The steep slopes and wide trail aided in his success.  My phone ran out of battery before I could capture the move that he made as he ended each run.  He would open his arms out wide and tilt his head up just a bit as if he was embracing the whole experience and couldn't contain his excitement.   It filled my heart with joy as I watched him make that move.  I don't know that he noticed that he made that gesture at the bottom of each slope, but I sure did.

At the end of the day, Robert took him up the top of mountain, so that he could see the view.  My legs were shot and I didn't want to risk a fall and ruining the perfect afternoon, so I didn't go with them.  I made two more trips up Ramrod and then waited at the bottom for them to come down from the top.  Both made it down safely and happily.

It felt so good to be out in the fresh air, not freezing cold, and getting exercise.  Riding the lifts with Robert is always fun because he explains that the branches on the snow over on the right were made by hungry porcupines, and the trails just over there were made by mice because you can see the tracks their tails made...or pointing out where the squirrel changed his mind about crossing the open space and instead, ran back up the tree.  Although I didn't get to the top for the spectacular view, I did get a partial sighting of the lake.

We had a great five hours -- 3 1/2 of skiing, and the before and after activity.  Both Selim and I felt that we were there way longer than that.  And to think that I worked a 1/2 day in the morning and only had to take four hours of annual leave to have such a vacation-like afternoon.  We ended the day with a cup of hot chocolate in the lodge and said to each other that we need to return, at least once more before the snow melts.  With more nights of below zero temperatures expected this week, that melting won't be happening any time soon.

Ocean Freedom, Istanbul

Last week, a Turkish ship pulled into the docks at Portsmouth.  I was in VT and didn't get the story first hand, but somehow, my hubby talked himself through security and onto the ship.  The owner of the ship may or may not be a "cousin" from the family village.  I don't know the exact details and I'm sure if I asked...it wouldn't be a totally accurate rendition.  He has spent all of his free hours there since.  And today, I got a tour of the ship and a glimpse into my hubby's past.  The ship's name "Ocean Freedom" is a complete match to my hubby's whole being.  He feels completely free when he is on the water.  I'm sure there is a part of him that wishes this was still a part of his life.

Today, I left work and headed right into town. Due to the cold weather, there weren't many folks out and about and I found a parking spot three slots away from the road.  Hubby had taken our Lovey Lamb there earlier in the day and now it was my turn to be parent on duty.  The boys were at the back of the ship, when I approached.

The ladder going up to the deck was really steep.  I didn't get a picture, as it took all my concentration to hold on to the metal poles and plastic tubing hand rails.  When I got to the top, I had a great view.

Emptying salt from the ship

Salt Mountains: loading trucks

The view from the back: Portsmouth tug boats

I got a tour and everybody was so nice.  I got to see the Captain's room

and the kitchen.

Chef and server.

We walked up four or five flights of stairs to the bridge.  I met the fourth captain

and the master captain.

He took our picture and allowed me to wander around taking other pictures.

Life boat

At the Captain's wheel

My hubby was completely in his element.  I'm not sure how many months or years he spent on ships just like this one, going from port to port, making welding repairs as they went.  He has been to New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Chile, through the Panama Canal three times, Eastern US ports, Greece, and more.  This was his life when he was 15 or 16.  And I got to see that little bit of him, with his boyish, totally relaxed smile as he showed me around.  I never expected to be able to share any part of that life -- but today, I got to spend a few minutes in his comfort zone.  I loved it.  And my little guy had a fun day with his dad as well.  Everybody will be a little to a lot sad when the ship leaves and goes back to sea on Friday.

Ferry to NY

The other night the weatherman said that Lake Champlain had frozen over for the 18th time since 1988 or some year in the 1980's.  That may be, but there are ferries that go back and forth between VT and NY, even when that happens.  It must be the frequency of crossings that keeps a channel open.  It surprised me, seeing all the cars waiting to get on the ferry,  I didn't get on it, just watched from shore.

I am really ready for some full on sun.  It seems like the sky palette still has been varying shades of gray for most of the time that I have been up here.

Tonight, the forecast is for snow.

Feeling the VT chill

While my siblings are enjoying the So. Cal warmth, I'm in northern VT where I awoke to find the temp -15.  That is actual air temperature, people.  Not wind chill enhanced, if that word applies to below zero.

Monday my Lovey Lamb had a delay because half the bus fleet wouldn't start and the wind chill factor made the air feel like -22.  When it is that cold, it is too dangerous for kids to be standing outside waiting for the buses to arrive.  The air was -1 or -2 and the wind was fierce.  The upside of the delay -- I got to spend two more hours with my guy and I drove him to school.  That prolonged our time together.

After dropping him off, I went back home, packed, unloaded the dishwasher and folded the remaining load of laundry.  I didn't manage to vacuum, but that was the only chore still on my list.  When I went to the office to pick up the car, it was where I left it, in the back, covered in snow.  Nobody had moved it or cleared it off after the blizzard.  Sigh.

We didn't get as much snow as folks right along the seacoast on Sunday.  We got enough for the pile in our front yard to expand from this high:

to this:

I tried getting pictures in front of the mountain, but didn't have much success.  The sun got in our way.  A selfie-stick would have been convenient.

We have had impressive icicles to boot.

Back to my road trip: on my way up to the hotel, I stopped for lunch at the King Arthur Shop/Baking School/Cafe.  I can't believe that I lived in Norwich from 1992-1993 and I never knew it was there.  I mean, I lived less than 2 miles away.  Upon reflection, I'm sure it is a good thing I was focused on my studies or just too oblivious to notice.

But back to the facility.  I picked up the last sandwich in their "grab and go" cooler.  Good thing it was vegetarian, brie and apple because my tummy was growling.  The chicken salad, turkey, ham -- all the meat options were taken.  I lucked out.

Then I popped into their retail store.  Oh my, I could have done serious damage to my wallet.  I bought a 3-pound bag of "European-style" flour,  two different kinds of yeast, bread bags and dough rising buckets.  I decided to forgo the tourist mugs, lemon doughnut sugar, mini doughnut pans, flour canisters, bread baking cookbooks, scone mixes, and baskets for bread rising.  I could have purchased a stiff dough scraper and that wouldn't have been broken the bank.  I didn't see it in the store, only in the catalog when I got to the hotel.
 
So this is my last week away from home for a long time, I hope.  I haven't signed up for any other classes or temporary assignments away from the office.  While I am happy to be here and learning the ins and outs of a small agency, I really miss my family.  I am ready to be home.

Potential to feel -35

The weather people are warning us of a deep freeze tonight.  At the same time, they seem to be excited to tell the viewers that the temperature will be below zero, and with the wind chill, it could feel as low as 35 below.  Fahrenheit.  Oh joy.  I guess any abnormal weather event is cause for glee in that business.  I'm not a big fan of arctic blasts.  Speaking of the weather, I am going home tomorrow and can anticipate yet another blizzard to hit the seacoast on Saturday night.  I can't seem to get away from weather issues.

I drove back to the hotel this afternoon, in the snow.  I got off the highway at Exit 17 again.  Instead of going west towards the lake, I went east on Route 2 and came at the hotel from the opposite direction as usual.  I had seen farms with big, beautiful, red barns off in the distance as I went up the highway and I decided to see if any were on this smaller road.  I passed a couple.  One was red.

And one was white.

They weren't as imposing as the ones that I have seen at a distance, but I was happy to have taken a few pictures today.

This work schedule is a bit hard to get used to.  I'm used to working 5:30-2:00.  If I leave the office on time, I am walking out the door with most of my afternoon and whole evening before me.  I have an hour or so before I get my Lovey Lamb at the bus.  There is time to do stuff.  Here, I am working 7:30-4:00.  There is just over an hour of daylight left at the end of my shift.  By the time I get back to the hotel, it feels like it is time to get ready for bed.  There isn't time in the morning before work to feel like I have a morning, and there isn't much time after work to feel any separation before going back in the next day.  I'm so glad that this isn't my normal routine.  For these weeks that I'm not cooking and having family responsibilities I don't mind.  But to have this on a daily basis would be really hard to adapt to after having the flexibility of the other schedule.