Ski racers, snow angels and snoozes.....

Hello there. Before I start chattering,  I believe it is National International De-lurking Day. (I just made it International.) So, it would be really lovely if everyone popping in today would say hi in the comment section. You are very welcome to say a lot more than "hi" of course!  If you do not have a blog, choose the anonymous option and then leave your comment. I love to hear from you all - and making new friends is such fun!!

I am watching the downhill from Wengen (on TV) as I write. Isn't it amazing how, after watching 5 or so lunatics skiers hurtle down those steep slopes, one becomes an expert? We are sitting here saying - oh no, he is way too slow on that bend, off the pace, too late into the jump, skis to far apart, too wide, ski line to loose....... experts, I tell you. Can any of us stand up, never mind move on skis? Why, no. Of course not. We are armchair experts, and my snow expertise is limited to making snow angels. Or snow men. Or snowballs.

But the flags are waving and the crowds cheering and cowbells are clanging because so far, a Swiss is in the lead. The skies are blue, and the sun is shining on the snow, and if you get ski racing on your TV, have a look and see. Beautiful.

Speaking of snow angels, I persuaded David and Jean to make snow angels a few days ago. They took some persuading, thinking I had lost my mind, but, after I flopped down and made one, they conceded that it could be fun, and made angels too. The getting up again required a bit of ingenuity and one large son. It is good to do childish things now and then and abandon one's self to the fun. And it is also good for one's children to see their mother making a total fool of herself. Did I mention that the son had control of the camera????

I rest my case. Fun is good.

The snow is deep but firmly packed, so you have to climb up a snow slope into the garden and walking on top of it, you are able to look over the 6ft fence with ease, and lean on the top of the swingset, which is half buried. David had great fun breaking off the huge stalactites hanging from the balcony. And we keep saying how much fun Missy would have in the snow. She would absolutely love it all.

The snow on the hill has slipped down, and left a chicken on the mountain. Can you see it? Well, I think it actually looks like a kiwi. But then I can't remember how long their legs are. Anyway, I am rather fond of my chicken/kiwi outside the window. Maybe it is a "sign". Diana/NZ/me/dreams/etc/etc.

 Some of the paths are closed, and they make it quite clear why. However, it amazes me that there are ski tracks on the hill behind the gates. Oh well. Four languages should cover it. They know the risks.

I have been sitting in the sun for an hour or so and I tell you, the eyes keep closing. Nap time. Maybe I should walk outside into the frigid air. It will wake me up. Puzzle #3 is underway. All of them have been  1000 pieces.  Jean is an absolute whizz. Turn your back for a short while and she is half finished!

 I try to walk for at least an hour a day, and it has been absolutely perishing out there. We stopped for coffee and to thaw at Marge's work and the instant I swallowed the first sip, I could feel it inside as it radiated heat through my body. Divine. Just as well, because my hands were SO cold that even the marble counter top felt warm in comparison.

But the sleepiness now comes from being in a warm and comfortable chair, with a warm and not so comfortable laptop on my lap. It is Marge's and all the keys are different, but it is amazing how fast you can adapt.

So, either I will doze off now, or wake up in the bracing air if I can summon the energy to go downstairs. The living areas of the house are all on the first floor here, which makes perfect sense - hot air rising and so on. I know my house is lovely in the bedrooms and cold in the lounge. That makes NO sense. Maybe I should change it all around.... Or maybe not. But either way, it is time to post this before it joins the dozens of half written and unfinished drafts. Sigh. I am full of great intentions. OH..... just so you know, the Project 366 is going well, and so is the line a day. 2 of the goals. And the exercise. 3. The weight....this is Switzerland. Land of cheese and chocolate and brother-in-law = master chef, so WHAT DO YOU THINK??? Groan. Just as well there are 11 and a half months left in the year and that home has none of the above. And that home is where I will be very, very soon.

Have a great weekend!

Yodel-ay-hee-hoo!!!!

There is more, you know.........

It is beautiful, isn't it? Those of you who have been around a while will know just how much I love this place, and how I have loved it since I was a child. Some things do not change - they just get better. The beauty feeds the soul. My soul. Thank God I have seen this. I know this place. 

One of the ladies who works with my sister suggested that we get on the Number 4 bus and ride to the end of the route up the opposite side of the mountain, to get a totally different view of the valley. The bus is free during the season, so this morning, we hopped on it and zoomed up the very steep road. It couldn't go to the end of the line because the sun wasn't out yet, and the roads needed the sun to thaw the ice a bit more before buses attempt the climb. Not before 11am. The road is narrow and there is a steep drop down the side, and if you meet another car, one of you has to back down and let the other pass. The bus tends to win the showdown. 

We got off at the hotel, and walked a little way up the road the bus couldn't drive up, and discovered homes we never knew existed. Tucked away. Stunning homes. But we could not see the village because of mountains of snow, so we inched our way down the road again, avoiding the ice, and then wandered along the road, which winds its way around the mountain. Isn't it funny how we always want to see around the next corner??? I just want to keep going! I am curious, you see. 

 I had never been up this side of the valley before, but I will go up there again, because the road needs to be explored. Oh, it was so beautiful. We time the outings in the morning to be out and about when the sun reaches the valley. I have learnt the old mountisn maxim of getting up and out as early as possible when the weather is good, because things change so fast in the mountains. I took over 100 photos in the space of an hour or 2. You are just seeing a couple!

 I cannot tell you how much these photos do not do the reality justice. You can have no real idea of how lovely it is, you see. Or how high up we were, or what the 360 degree view was like. Words fail me at times, and no camera could possible capture it adequately. You need to come and find out for yourselves. I promise you will not be disappointed.

 So we waited for the little bus to chug up the hill, and on we hopped. We decided to take the bus to the Talstation, where Marge works, have coffee, and then wander around the lake, only, as we arrived, the fog rolled up the valley. So we had the coffee or hot chocolate, and hot dogs for lunch and then wandered home along the river.

 This is one of the amazing snow machines. It drove across the river, pushing enough snow ahead of it to make a bridge. Believe me, the back end was even more impressive! (I just KNEW you would all be totally fascinated by machinery!)

  

An unexpected bonus on our freezing walk back (the temperature plummets in the fog) was the almost surreal beauty of the trees in the greyness. We couldn't believe how beautiful it was. Mystical. Ethereal.

 And then - and THEN we noticed the sun starting to creep through the mist and it seemed as if the mountain ridge was on fire. The trees were silhouetted against the sun and it was spectacular. If we had caught the bus home, we would have missed it all. It was one of those perfect moments.

And the perfect moments are what make the ordinary extra-ordinary. The delight energises me, and the picture in front of me etches itself in my memory forever. 

I will remember the beauty of today. The cold. The cat which followed David down the hill. The silence,  the echo of voices in the snow. The hair-raising drive up and down the mountain. Discovering a new place to explore. The suddenness of the fog rolling in. Fire-sun. Tiramasu. Another Christmas puzzle. Chicken in a basket. Personal statements for masters applications. Icy snow crunching under the snow boots. Laughter and delight. The joy.

I can't forget this, can I?

PS: Did I tell you about how much I love the freezing temperatures? Did I tell you that I love being out in the cold? You see, for  few short hours, if I am out, the cold numbs my leg totally, and I cannot feel the pain. Oh, the joy. I cannot tell you how wonderful it feels to have numb legs. And hands and other bits too. I can live with it all. Layers are good. Thawing is a whole other story, which I will not discuss. but it is worth every single second, believe me! And tomorrow I will do it all again.......

Beauty.......

Today??

Just this............

Snow, sales and a new project.........

There has been a great deal of snow. Snow. And more snow. But life goes on as normal. Things do not stop because of snow here. This is a continual novelty for me, I have to say, after living in the UK. So today, we ventured slowly down the mountain to the valley, which has no snow at all. Jean had a gift token to spend. And spend it she did. Great fun for her at the sales! She is "puzzling" at the moment - doing a 1000 piece puzzle. The whole family joins in as they pass the table, and it is always a delight.

Pilatus from the valley

Marge is taking down Christmas in her doll's house, and the rest of the family is half comatose on various comfortable seats around the place.

A close up of Pilatus in the sun

Achievements of the week so far - the new gym ball has been blown up. We sort of demonstrated a few exercises, and then had a nap.  The house has been stripped of Christmas. And even the little village enormous city has been dismantled and packed away in boxes. It occupies nearly one entire wall in the lounge, so dismantling that took David's help and strength. And a conveyor belt of people up to the attic (which is not an attic, but a whole extra floor of the house divided into rooms, with the most phenomenal amount of storage space. Beautiful. I dream of storage space.)

And the restaurant is now back to normal too. Christmas has been packed away. So, I have started a Spring ripple blanket while I am here. I will leave it here, so I can do it when I come back. It is good to have projects I can pick up wherever I am. I love the spring colours.

 Oh, I wish you could see the beautiful spring things for the home in the shops here. I wanted to take a photo but the shop assistants said no. Beautiful things. I bought some raffia to crochet something I saw there. I think I can replicate one of the lovely ideas, but I wish I had bought some of the flowers. I showed Marge what I love, and she will check out the sales (when they start) of the spring things. Maybe they will be there then. We will see.

Time, I think to fill up the coffee mug and pick up the crochet hook before I fall asleep. All the mountain air, you know. It makes you sleepy. Well, that is my excuse! Happy Monday, people!

The snow came.........

Well, hello there. Yesterday was Dreikönigstag. Three Kings Day, and a holiday here in Central Switzerland. The day the Magi arrived to see the Baby. And there is a special cake too, Dreikönigskuchen. It is delicious. A circle of buns like a brioche, with sultanas in, and one of the buns has a tiny plastic king in it So if you are the one who finds the king, you get ot wear the crown (supplied in the packet) for the day. I found the first king. So I got to wear the crown. 

However, we liked the buns so much I was dispatched back to the shop to buy more, so we now have 3 kings. It was meant to be. I mean 2 kings would not have been right now would they? Or 1? I think not. 

The first king. Only we think it loks like a queen. But still.....

It was also "take down Christmas" day here, so down came the decorations. An epic move in Marge's home, because there is no house in the world quite as beautifully decorated as Marge's. And I mean that. It has been just SO beautiful. But it had to wait until the train arrived at 4, because on that train was my friend, Jean, who has come to join the merry throng here. 

She has been quite a few times before, and knows where everything is, both here in the house, (including the coffee)  and in the village, and she loves being here. So we had to wait for her to see it all first, and to claim the last present under the tree! 

And it snowed. And snowed. And snowed. 

And snowed some more. David did a lot of shovelling, and we watched the machines clear the roads all day. So much snow. Today was supposed to be sunny, but no, it was grey, but crisp and no rain so we set off on a walk along the river to work off the Dreikönigskuchen. David treated us to hot chocolate, and fortified by the hot drink and after thawing, we decided to walk on to the end of the valley. (I knew we could get a free bus home) and so we walked on. 

And guess what? It started snowing again. It did not bother us at all. So much cross-country sking going on. Runners in the snow. Hikers. People out enjoying the mountains, the snow, exercising. Kiddies being pulled along on sleds wrapped in cosy liners. 

We came across this amazing machine on the path along the river. It was smoothing then corrugating the snow and at the same time, carving tracks there on the right for the Nordic skiers. I had NO idea that was how it was done. By the way, you NEVER squish the tracks. You have to step over them, and leave them intact. The corrugated bits seemed to be for the cross country skiers. 

 The amazing thing is the silence. Profound silence. Skis glide silently through the snow. THIS, then is why being here is so good for my soul , you see. 

 Just beautiful. We caught the bus back to the village and wandered slowly home to a lunch of hot soup and home-made (by Mum) bread. In the snow. 

Well, this is Switzerland, after all. It snows here. 

Snow, old age homes and avoidance tactics.....

At the crack of dawn, my sister had a call to say that the mountain was closed because of high winds, so she and I zapped down the mountain to investigate the sales. 75% off is a good sale. A REAL sale. We had fun. We went really early because the storm was due to arrive around lunch time. Well, it sort of arrived a couple of hours ago and the snow is still falling. Apparetly Andermatt has had a metre and a half of snow today so far. I do hope Helen is not buried!

When we got back up the mountain, Marge's school friend was here - she is visiting her son in Zurich from SA and popped in to catch up with us all. That was wonderful - she is a delight.

You know, we were appalled to hear that she (she is 55) was thinking of putting her name down for an old age home for when she is 65. WHAT??? And that other friends of ours had already done so. The same age. The problem is that when your work provides board and lodging, you have nowhere to go when retirement looms.

The thought of considering old age homes, or senior citizens' abodes horrifies me. We are too young! And if we get into the mindset that there are no other alternatives, there will BE no other alternatives.

In my mind, I am still young. I want adventures, new experiences. Life. I am not that sure that adventures and old age homes can be used in the same sentence. I may be way off base. But still......

Dire. Just dire.

I need to win the lotto and buy a lovely big old home and all my friends can come and live there and we will have a commune. Hahahahahaha. Baby boomers to the end. We could all combine resources, actually, and have a place where we can grow old, supporting each other with combined skills and hobbies, and talents.

Hmmm.

The more I think about it, the more I like it. No-one wants to be a burden for the kids. We could look after each other. Gardening. Cooking. Crafting. Sewing. Woodwork. Among my friends we could muster a doctor, teachers, psychologists, banks, business gurus, DIY experts.......

Excellent idea. And the crew include superb chefs and gardeners and decorators.

We are all set.

I wonder why, getting back to reality, the SA contingent have not considered something like this. In actual fact, my local frineds have discussed this often. Combining resources to be able to afford heating and keeping costs down. A pipe dream maybe, but, if the only option was to go into an old age home, believe me, I would do everything possible to avoid that. I may consider it when I am in my 90s. That would be because I am also positive I will never get there. To the 90s.

Of couse, if Nostradamus was right, all the above is irrelevant.

I am off to investigate the depth of the snow. From the window.

A muffin day......

The snowstorm has not arrived yet. There has been a lot of rain. A few flakes of snow, but storm? No. Not yet, at least. It is one of those sort of days when I want to go for a walk, do things outside, but then, if the storm is coming, maybe not. 

So I am dithering about here, not sure what I want to do. WASTING TIME. 

That is not good. 

I am supposed to be living intentionally. Hah. Dithering has its benefits too. 

SO....

I have just made some blueberry streusel muffins. They smell divine. Unfortunately they are welded into the pans. So I do believe we will have custard or ice-cream with blueberry streusel crumbs instead. There were no muffin cases. 

Who needs muffin cases and who cares if the muffins are whole. I am sure the crumbs will taste good. Not part of the weight loss programme, of course. Treats are good now and then and they have blueberries in, so that means fruit and fruit is healthy. I will walk round the lake twice in the morning. 

The muse is quite evidently not in residence, people. I will be back tomorrow.

Every day brings surprises........

There is nothing like starting the day by having to instruct the son to dig up mountains of snow to unearth the manhole cover for the sewage system. And then making vague attempts to assist with the snow removal. Snow which had frozen. We had to check the summer garden photos to try to locate where it was, because the snow was deep.

 Son was not thrilled. However, it was done just in time because the man who fixes ailing systems arrived with his axe and mallet. I kid you not. The Swiss way to de-ice frozen manhole covers. You do not want to know what was under the cover. Suffice to say that we are now awaiting the arrival of a very large lorry. I may evacuate the premises for the duration.

2012 is shaping up to be a year of New Experiences. Ice hacker thingys and now intimate acquaintance with Swiss sewage systems. My Dad (a civil engineer) would have been in his element. I wonder what the Good Lord has in store for tomorrow. Apart from the snow which is on its way. OOOOOH! That means I get to watch all the amazing snow removal ploughs, trucks and tractors again. They have right of way on the roads, so cars, lorries and coaches scatter in their wake as they whizz forward and back at top speed. They really are amazing, you know, and the roads are cleared constantly and rapidly. Swiss efficiency.

At this point, I will inform you all that I cannot use spell check bcause this computer thinks that every word I write is a spelling mistake because it is Swiss.  And all the keys are in the wrong place. So I am apologising for any horrendous mistakes. I feel like a real failure here, because having every word I write underlined in red is humiliating. Sigh.

Today has been beautiful. So stunning. Blue skies, white snow and brilliant sun are a wonderful combination. And the place is heaving with people. The weather changes rapidly up in the mountains, though, and the skies darken for an hour or two and then clear once again. I never cease to be awe-struck by the way the mountains change minute by minute. The light, the shadows, the wind, the mist, the clouds. I love it.

I have another goal to announce. I intend to continue with the fitness quest, doing my aqua-robics/zumba and pilates, and I intend losing, at the very least, 20kgs this year. The quest is to strengthen the core, which will, I hope, help the balance. Healthy living. Simple food. Loads of fruit and veg and water. Fortunately, I love simple food. I love the aqua. This is not an impossible goal at all. Feeling that I am doing everything possible to strengthen my body is good. I know what needs to be done. I should really have a pacing goal, but that is doomed so I am leaving that one out for now.

Thousands of little ants(people) are swarming down the mountain. I can see them from my seat here at the window. The ski slopes up the mountain and here in the village have been very busy today. This is a bright, colourful world today and that, my friends, makes me smile!

PS: As I was uploading the photos, the doorbell rang. You guessed it. The lorry (which was actually a landrover with generator and millions of miles of hoses) arrived. Me with my Germlish. I called my brother-in-law after pointing them in the direction of the manhole, and thankfully, he arrived to do the talking. No chance to depart. And for the past hour and a half, I have been airing the house. In a coat. In mid winter. In the snow. Every door and window open. Lighting candles.

Sigh.

These things happen.

Ah well. No-one can say my life is boring!!!!!!

A goal or two......

I have decided to do a photo project 365 this year, only it is now a project 366 because it is leap year. I had forgotten. It doesn't have quite the same ring, does it? Project 366. It reminds me of what my kids called "The Monkey Movie" (Project X). (I am word perfect.) Anyway, back to the photos.  I know quite a few of you have done it before, and what I would like to know is this - did you just do it yourself, or did you link to any group? Anyone?

I love taking photos, so it should be relatively simple to keep up.

Well, it is a GOAL, people. I told you I was going to set some goals, didn't I?

As it is now 2/1/12, I can assure you that I have 2 photos sorted. I am on the ball. Today involved some ice hacking. So there is a splendid photo of the ice hacker thingy. It will trigger all sorts of memories of watching my son hack ice. Yesterday's photo was of fireworks.

Another idea I decided to embark on is a 5 (or more) year diary. Not a normal diary  I actually gave one of these to Glynis the Christmas before last, and she loved it. It is called a One Line a Day Diary, and one line is all you write, and as the years go by, you automatically look back up the page to see what was happening in your life on that particular day one two three years ago. A memory book. It should be really interesting and a lot of fun too.

Some people use index cards. Others buy the book, and then there is me. I have a new notebook with 366 pages in it. More, actually. I checked. It has to last a few years, so I want it to be strong enough!

So when I travel anywhere, I am now going to need a separate case for the books and notebooks and journals - don't forget the gratitude journal. That has to fit in as well. And this in the era of kindles, laptops, iPhones, iPads etc. How ironic. Just as well I have perfected the art of travelling light. I am very good at being ruthless re clothing options! But not so good at the books and associated paraphernalia.

My sister gave me one of those Granny tell me kind of books, you see, and I am so looking forward to doing it for my grandchildren. Answering questions about my life for them to one day read. Capturing memories of times and way and lives gone by. Different cultures, continents, customs. There is quite a lot to talk about!

 I have now exhausted myself with all this talk of stuff I need to do every single day for a year, and I am the one who found blogging for 60something days straight quite a challenge. Hah. I am QUITE sure I will manage the first few goals. Of course I will. It doesn't matter that this year is 366 days long.

And it is only the 2nd of January.

Hello, 2012........

So here we are - the first day of a brand new year.

 Blank pages on which we will scrawl our story. My brother-in-law has just informed me that the world will end on 21 December 2012 according to Nostradamus, the Mayans and the Swiss radio. Just so you know. He added (with a shrug) "C'est la vie" or however you spell that. My French is non-existent. 

Indeed. So, if Nostradamus is correct, then living out each day full of joy, thankfulness, with eyes wide open to see the small things we overlook so often, is a great idea. 

Back to the blank pages. 

I love the idea of blank pages. Oh, the endless possibilities!

I also have a "thing" for new notebooks. Especially ones with tiny squares. 

So I love scrapbooks. I love quilts. I love little squares. There is a link there. Lttle boxes all so very different, combining to make beautiful pictures. Not so stunning separately but perfect when melded into one. 

I don't make resolutions. Long experience has taught me it is a total waste of time in my case, and it brings great dollops of guilt when I fail miserably to keep any of them. I do not need shedloads of guilt to burden my days. Guilt does not inspire joy, after all.

Bev has a great idea when she talks of setting goals instead, and she is wise when she makes those goals achievable, not impossible. Her post today is well worth reading, so pop over and do just that. The art is in getting the dreams and the reality to dovetail. Of course I want to trot around the globe. The reality is that global trotting will have to wait. BUT there is no reason on earth why I cannot have a goal of exploring new places this year. 

So I am not going to rush to make the list of goals, but I will be doing it in the next week or so, because time flies, people, and the new year is gathering momentum as I speak. I do not want to wake up and discover the fact that one month has vanished already. 

We stayed up to watch the fireworks from London last night, and they were absolutely spectacular. We had a few moments of wondering how the nation could afford to explode all those millions of pound notes (recession), but decided that it had to be superb in the Olympic/Diamond Jubilee Year. Quarter of a million people lined the banks of the Thames to watch. We do fireworks beautifully. Expensively. 

I finally fell asleep around 2am, so it was no wonder at all when I tried to get up this morning, and found that my right leg was willing to move, but the left was on strike. So morning flew by and was gone in a flash. But I have been for a short walk this afternoon. Fresh air was an essential if I was ever going to be fully present in the new year. Lack of sleep has undesirable effects when you get to stare 60 down the barrel. (I have a year or 2 to go still, but it is on its way. Unless Nostradamus was right, of course....) 

My joy knew no bounds when I finally started moving. Think plod. Plod. Plod. 

It is all in the small things, you see. 

There are 7.5hrs left of 1/1/12. I need to go and find the diary.........