use real butter

Recipe: vegetarian bagel

I am getting into the spirit of the season. And by season, I really mean season. The solstice is here, the longest night of the year for those of us in the northern hemisphere. Jeremy dreads this day because he really misses the daylight. I don’t mind it, really. And it seems to come upon us so quickly that I’m usually a little surprised when it arrives. Alright, honestly? I’m always surprised when the month of December arrives. For some reason, after the leaves fall, the last quarter of the year rushes in like a flood: one holiday after another, winterizing the house, putting away summer clothes and getting out the winter clothes, cooking more stuff in a crock pot than on the grill (well, I pride myself in using the grill throughout the year if I can!), changing out my header image on use real butter, tuning up our tele gear, getting our winter skin back. The past couple of weeks have felt like true winter because of the snow and the darkness and the frigid temperatures – but it was all autumn.

I look forward to the solstice because our days get longer from there until summer solstice. It’s a hopeful time to me and I love winter – especially the night sky in winter. Plus, the chilly temps make for great cuddling with Kaweah, the mobile furnace. I am especially jolly this solstice since Jeremy returned from travel on Friday. We managed to squeak in a lunch at Sushi Tora in Boulder before he had to rush off to a last minute meeting.

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Recipe: house dressing

I hope everyone had a good weekend. We went for a little road trip to New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment. I used to half-snort at New Mexico whenever we visited because I didn’t think much of Albuquerque. I mean, it’s a fine place, but it didn’t stir any deep emotions within me other than the fact that my dear Jeremy is a native son of the town. I always called it Dirt City because I grew up in verdant, lush Virginia. I have now lived in the American West for a total of 13+ years and I love it here.

Perhaps my time in the West has helped me to appreciate New Mexico more? Let’s face it, Colorado is *easy* to fall in love with (at least the western half of the state…), I think New Mexico had to grow on me. Or maybe I just like northern New Mexico and still don’t care much for Albuquerque. Yes, I think it is the latter.

We drove our two cars across the state border, heading south down the San Luis Valley (a high alpine valley atop the Rio Grande Rift) and from the lonely two-lane road, I watched the sun set to my right over the Colorado Plateau. As it dropped behind the mountains, the clouds and sky exploded in a palette of colors that changed and deepened over the next two hours. To my left, I witnessed equally dramatic colors splashed across sky, the Sangre de Cristos, and the valleys and plains. This was New Mexico as I had never witnessed her before – big sky, endless landscapes, achingly beautiful colors. I understood at last what they meant by Land of Enchantment as stars and Venus began to sparkle at me from a velvety purple-blue dusk.

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Recipe: chicken diablo sandwich

I feel like I’m in pole position, revving my engine, ready to bolt across the starting line. I began to sense a slight increase in energy this afternoon and endeavored to take a short 2-mile jaunt on one of our backyard hikes. The smells of pine forests and damp earth (the snow is melting out in earnest) trigger the urge to run for me. I like the soft feel of the pine litter under my feet as my eyes search for what is around the next turn. That’s the beauty of trail running for me – I don’t get bored. But my body wasn’t ready for that today, so we hiked and had time to spy the very earliest of our local high-elevation wildflowers like the lavender-colored pasque, violet astragalus, and pretty white draba. I have a hard time running with my camera (unless I want to take out several ribs in the process), so it was just as well :)

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