We’ve had about a foot and a half of snow in the last few days, and no one was very excited about it… not the people, not the deer, not the ducks. In Durango, the official tally is approaching 100 inches of snow, and we’ve had more in the county.
In celebration of the additional snowpack, Bob dug a path to the fire pit. It’s the first time in months that we’ve been in the garden, and we sat and watched the fire from its bold start to quiet embers.
As the fire burned down, the walls of the pit revealed, layer upon layer, the history of our winter storms,
and the fire-lit snow looked molten.
(The next morning, that incandescent orange could have been a dream.)
P.S. Here’s a map of the magpie’s range:
Purgatory opened new terrain this year that is truly breathtaking. It comes with it’s own set of suggestions.
Bob doesn’t like it. His initial stance was that I not do it alone; we agreed instead that he knows where to look if I don’t come back from skiing (already covered by Suggestion #2, Ski with a friend and Suggestion #4, If you are injured in this area, rescue times might be greatly increased.)
It’s addictive. The trick is not to look at the trees, but at the spaces between them.
In real life, you can choose a path by avoiding obstacles. But in steep snow and trees you have to let the opportunities determine your path, not the obstacles. You have to rely on your choices, not your fears.
You see the space when you’re skiing, and the trees when you stop…
at 10,000 feet, where the boughs are decked with mermaid hair,
too beautiful to be believed.
Published by Alice on February 10, 2010
in dogs.
At a party in mid-December, a neighbor whose dog died this fall told me that he wasn’t getting another one; he’d rather not break his heart again. As soon as I got home, I searched online for kennels within 300 miles of Durango that bred mid- to large size rough-coated Berners. I called High Country Kennels next morning, and reserved a little girl.
Cookie was bred to Tank, and three weeks ago she had 7 puppies; one of them is mine.
From the photos, I’d choose Miss Cuteness #3… but that’s just on looks.
The kennel is an hour north of Denver, so Sam will drive up to pick out the puppy at five weeks, when their personalities become evident. Bob wants the alpha female, so Sam will be choosing our dog with the breeder’s help. And we’ll take her home on March 17, at eight weeks old.
Let the games begin!
Published by Alice on February 5, 2010
in deer.
It snowed all week, with three storms in a row dropping foot after foot of powder. A few hours of rain between storms left a heavy blanket behind, and digging out was a major task. There was too much snow to be measured in inches. The piles in town were eight and ten feet tall, and a few neighbors on our county road have their windows blocked by snow that slid off the roof.
It wasn’t just people who were snowed in; the deer were immobilized too, and spent days sleeping in the tree wells.
Eight deer spent the day in a fairy circle around this pine,
and then I started seeing deer under more and more trees.
I couldn’t count how many deer were lying down here, so I called out
and all four stood up.
There were four under this tree,
and my favorite mom with two yearlings spent all day dozing under a tree near my office.
Dear little deer.
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