Outdoor Fire in Winter

There is nothing like a big outdoor fire on a calm winter night.  Last night was just perfect.  There was a full moon, no wind, and a comfortable (when dressed properly) temperature of -minus 3 Celsius. 

We all bundled up in our snowmobile clothes, hopped on the machines and went off for an evening in the great outdoors!! 

We went in on the back end of my niece and her husband's  property.  Rodney had gone in earlier in day and cut down some fallen trees and brought in patio chairs. All it needed was some people to fill the chairs and enjoy the great fire-----Beautiful!!

Cheers

:)

First Big Snowfall of 2016 in Flatrock, NL!!!

Last night was a "Snow Globe" night.  There was hardly a breath of wind, and the snowflakes were just floating downward...so pretty and calm. 


Here's how it looked this morning, from our living room window....

Hubby got to put that snowblower to good use, for sure.  Notice how high the snow is........

...and I guess we probably won't barbeque tonight...haha

Looking out the back door, from the kitchen, the greenhouse down in our back garden is starting to look very small.

Cheers

:)

 
         

A picture is worth a thousand words.......

 

Need I say more????????

January surfing, anyone??

There have been some big waves in these parts over the past couple of days!!!
Check here  for a CBC news article about the situation.

I got all geared up last night, mounted my camera on my new tripod that Santa
delivered, and made a plan to head out early this morning, to "catch some waves".
I am quite sure, however, that when you hear people say that, it usually means
something quite different that what I did.

Early rise-minus 7 Celsius, but with a huge travel mug filled with piping
hot coffee------off I went. to get a few shots.  First, I drove right over by the
ocean, here in Flatrock. It was really cold, and as I was driving the appoximately
1.5 km to the lookout point, I was hoping I wouldn't be disappointed--
---I wasn't! 

The thunderous roar of the waves was almost hypnotizing, and I wasn't
the first, or only one out taking pictures.

Wow, right about where these huge waves are crashing, is where I often sit 

during the summer, after one of my walks on the trail just up over the 

other side of these rocks.

 I took these two shots from another viewing point in Flatrock.  

The surf was crashing right in over the wharf.

After chatting with a few other brave souls, I decided to head on over to
Torbay, just a the other side of Flatrock.  There is a beautiful little Anglican
church there.  The church sits on the hillside,with a little graveyard just down
over the bank overlooking the ocean. 

 I wondered if I might get a nice shot from the church yard......
what do you think?  

By now I was getting pretty cold, and my coffee was all gone.  However, I
decided that since I was out, I may as well check out Middle Cove Beach.
It was only a few minutes away, but is quite a tourist attraction any time of year.
With the news of the big waves, I expected huge crowds, and thought
I would just do a drive-by.  I was pleasantly surprised--there was only about six
vehicles in the car park, so I parked, grabbed my camera and
headed to the beach area.

I didn't actually go down on the beach, as the waves were really coming in
there, but did manage to snap a couple of shots....

I came back home,sat in front of a roaring fire, and ate delicious left-over fish & brewis
with strong, hot coffee for my breakfast--just like mom used to make!!

Cheers

:)

The Mystery Birthday Gift

My very dear friend, Sharon, hails from a long line of practical jokers.  

In spite of that, she always manages to find that perfect gift for me every year.  

For my most recent birthday, she gave me a beautiful, and very unique gift.  

But...this years' gift remained quite a mystery for a little over a week---

I actually didn't know what it was!!!!!!   

Well, I knew what it was because it had a tag attached, 

but I wasn't sure how to use it--haha!!  

I found it amusing right from the get-go.  

It wasn't until the day after New Year's Day, 

when Sharon and Dave came for an overnight visit,

 that I found out exactly what the gift is for.  

The gift itself is fine piece of pottery by a local potter, Juanita Short, 

who is located in Glovertown, NL.  

The tag attached simply said "meat & cheese server".  

It even came with a lovely stainless cheese knife..........

I was thinking it was a lovely serving dish, with little great little indentations all 

around it to rest the knife!!???!! 

I did, however, ponder what that slot was for,but 

I couldn't wait to use the new meat/cheese server when the Sharon and Dave visited.   

Oh, how we laughed when I was about to use the dish -------upside down!!!!!!

I had even Googled "pottery meat & cheese server", 

a day or so after my birthday (Boxing Day).

All results showed images of dishes positioned like I was planning to use it!!!

What an awesome surprise (and I'm sure the subject of lots of jokes for many years to come), when Sharon turned it right side up and positioned the knife in the slot!!!!!!  

We laughed about it all night long.

Anyway, in my own defense, had I seen it on display in its upright position, with knife in slot---I'm sure this whole debacle would have been avoided.....but then it wouldn't have been nearly as much fun!!

Now, it's not over yet---Oh No!!

Me, being me, I just had to take this one step further.  

I tenderly wrapped my precious new prize in my softest dish towel and carefully

folded in the knife.  I took it to work!!!  

Throughout the day, and separately, I randomly polled 17 of my sweet, unsuspecting
co-workers. The results were hilarious!!!! 

I must confess that I presented the dish to each person with knife resting in it, 

wrong side up,  as in the first two photos above.  

The puzzled looks, as they each scrutinized this strange dish were priceless....but not as priceless as some of their conclusions after close examination and consideration. 

There were several who immediately blurted out that it must be an ashtray, 

with no consideration whatsoever for the cheese knife.  

A couple thought it might be a brie baker, but were very puzzled over the fact that 

the melted brie could run out of the slot, causing quite a mess.  

One suggested it could be a pasta strainer, while a couple thought the slot was put there 

on purpose to allow for drainage from juicy meats.  

Only three people, after much pondering, turned it right side up and inserted the 

knife in its slot.    We all had so much fun with it and when I told the whole story, there 

was lots of laughing  out loud -- which, by the way, feels so good.  

This is truly a gift that keeps on giving.  

Now, of course, every time I use this server, I will have a great story to tell.

Cheers

:)

Port de Grave Annual Boat Lighting

Newfoundland and Labrador is known for it's rich and unique heritage,culture and traditions.  We celebrate  Christmas with a vengeance.  There are so many awesome, and some very unusual, traditions.  Many people start decorating for Christmas by the end of November and leave everything in tact, including the Christmas tree, and all decorations and lights, until after Old Christmas Day, on January 6.

Well, the people of Port de Grave take Christmas and decorating for Christmas to a whole new level,  They hold an annual boat lighting, where the fishermen decorate all of their boats in the harbor with Christmas lights.  This past Christmas, the area celebrated it's 17th annual boat lighting.  To learn a little more about this tradition, click here.  

Port de Grave is actually a peninsula on Conception Bay in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.  It is about a 75 minute drive from St. John's.  Last week, we decided to take the drive out to see what all the fuss was about.  Wow!!!!!!!  We did not expect the treat that we got.  It is so picturesque, and the scene of the  harbor with all the boats covered in Christmas lights was simply magical. 

Have a look............

It was so cold, but we were dressed warmly and I was able to get a nice few shots from different viewpoints. Despite the minus 9 Celsius temperature, it was a spectacular site well worth the drive.  

My hat goes off to the organizers and the people of Port de Grave for starting, and 

continuing this tradition.  I can't imagine how cold it must be, climbing about on 

these boats and stringing hundreds of lights----

but I'm sure glad they do it!!!

Next December, if you are in the area, give yourself 

an unforgettable present--

go and enjoy the Port de Grave Annual Boat Lighting. 

Cheers

:)

Moose on the loose!!

Happy New Year to everyone!!!

It's just been busy, busy, busy, but fabulous!!

Here are a couple of snaps of two moose on our parking lot at work just before Christmas,  These aren't great because I snapped them through a 2nd floor window, but I thought some of you might enjoy. 

I'd much rather see them here than in my headlights while driving home from work!!

I didn't get the chance to post them until now................................

Have a great weekend!

Cheers :)