An Old Fashioned Tree

The One Size Fits All Sing for Your Supper Winter Solstice Party

My Annual One Size Fits All Sing for Your Supper Winter Solstice Party began decades ago in another house. It  went on for almost ten years.  I can't remember exactly why it stopped.  It might have been that I was away from home that Christmas season.  Was it the time I house sat in Colorado?  Was it the year I was preparing to go to New Zealand and didn't have time to decorate for a gathering?

Last night, we revived the tradition.  The rule is simple:  attendees must bring something to eat or perform.  So besides the bounty of food, we were entertained.  Wade and I each read short stories.  Doris read poems. From her newspaper column, Darlene read a story about her husband's youth.  He in turn told a story about driving a team of horses when he was seven years old.  Colette shared computer creations that won her a prize.  Bridget's nature photography is on a YouTube video so we watched that.  (Many of the photos were snapped at the places I will visit in 2011.) Susan told funny stories about her grandson, who is a real character.  

Kim "Skyped" in from Ogden, Utah. I'm afraid Wade and I ate snickerdoodles in front of the computer's camera as we talked.  Snickerdoodles are Kim's favorite cookies and she had none. I'll see her in person in July but I'll have no way to carry cookies that far.

I found offering from the first solstice gathering in my files.  It was humorous parody  of "A Visit from St. Nicolas" from Betty who now lives near Denver, Colorado.  She typed it 25 years ago in pre-computer days, but it still holds up and had us all laughing.  I'll see her in July, too.

Nature joined in the festivities with a northern lights display, putting us all to shame.  How can anyone beat that?

And oh the food!  There was far too much for us to finish, and most of it was left behind.  What shall I do with the cookies, the candy, the chips, the ham, the shrimp, etc.?  Gain weight, I'm afraid.

The guests voted to come back and do it again next year.  Happy Solstice everyone.

Shopping

I finished my Christmas shopping yesterday.  I started yesterday, too.

When my son was little, I decreed that Christmas shopping would last exactly two hours.  It worked out and I've stuck with that.  I make a solid list that takes me to three or four stores on a specified morning when they are just opening.  (Not Black Friday though. I would rather wait for a natural disaster and go out and loot.)  A book store is one of the stops.

I don't search for the "in" thing.  Often, I buy the same thing for everyone in the extended family.  One year, everyone got a cup with a funny inscription.  Another year, everybody got matching t-shirts.  Everyone's favorite year was the time I found cookie jars at thrift stores and filled them with homemade goodies.

Each year, I talk more people into forgetting the gift thing entirely.

After two hours, my shopping is done with one last stop at a discount giant that has gift cards from various stores and restaurants.  Those last hard-to-shop-for people get the cards.  Then it is time to quit and go to out for lunch at a Chinese restaurant.

Do I save anything by shopping this way?  Absolutely. I save my sanity.

Places I never miss

I've been to Arizona twice yet have never seen the Grand Canyon.  I've visited Las Vegas, but did not have time to see Hoover Dam.  I drove through Seattle on my way to Bellingham to catch a ferry to Alaska and never even stopped to drink cappuccino at a Starbucks.

That is the sad truth about being a touring artist.  We rush from place to place to make our performances and pass by scenic wonders.   That is why I have stopped setting up work after 23 performances.  During those five weeks,  I will make it a point to stop at Zion National Park to look at the canyons.  I've rushed past Theodore Roosevelt National Park four times while driving through North Dakota. This time I intend to stop.   

I want to see the California redwoods. Oddly, I once visited redwoods, but in Christchurch, New Zealand.  Because things grow at an astonishing rate because of volcanic soil, the Kiwi redwoods had gotten mighty big in the 80 years since they were planted in the botanical gardens, but I still expect to be amazed at the California trees.

While I'm at it, I want to visit a few old friends.  Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park in North Dakota has always been a favorite of mine.  I want to camp in the  Gallatin National Forest in Montana again.

Poring over the maps will be a pleasurable past time during a cold Wisconsin winter.  

Journalist on the road.

Now that the tour is well in hand, it's time to look for writing assignments, another way to make a trip profitable.  I expect to write a travel article or two, but there are other possibilities as well.  I once tracked down interesting log homes for a magazine. I even covered two log homes in New Zealand!  There are blogs that need input and newspapers that may want to have a running commentary during my travels.

One Wisconsin librarian asked if I would consider doing an adult program when I come back, complete with photos.  There should be a few libraries looking for programs in the winter of 2011-12.  

Today, I'll be making lists of possibilities.

Filling the calendar

Today I am filling in dates on my itinerary, trying to nail down performances in Idaho, Washington and California.  Where there are no libraries, I can usually find some nursing homes or day care centers.  I've told in prisons, so those are a possibility, too.  I am leaving some dates blank for exploration purposes.  There is no point in going on a tour like this without spending time hiking along beaches, through canyons, or on mountain trails.

Twenty three performances so far in five weeks. Three states I've never been in. Adventures, adventures, adventures!   I should come home with hundreds of photos and a few new friends.

Bread, Snickerdoodles, and Candles

We're in the middle of a full scale blizzard in Wisconsin.  Church has been cancelled, the grocery store closed. We aren't even shoveling yet because the wind pushes the snow right back at us. We'll wait until this afternoon for that.

We're going into the second day of being snowbound, so today is the day I start my Christmas baking.  First I'll start with bread, since we're running low, a nice flaxseed bran bread.  I'll make blueberry muffins, apple scones, snickerdoodles, and maybe some peanut butter cookies, too.  I'm missing a couple of ingredients for decorated Christmas cookies, so those will have to wait.  

Candles are burning in the living room, the stereo is playing the Messiah.   Nothing better for the spirit than a white Christmas and the smell of baked goods.