The Snowy Day

Or snowy week, really. It has snowed, and then it has snowed again some, with very little melting in between. This is what our driveway looks like right now.

With thanks to Peter and Brian for some excellent shovel-work.

Where the snow has not been shoveled, it is deep and slippery - hard work to walk through. I tried following in Stephen's steps, but his stride is about a foot longer than mine, so it did not work very well. I was better off cutting my own trail.

The snow and bright sunlight made pretty vignettes everywhere we looked.

The fence around the ice rink - which has not yet been poured.

Evergreen boughs sagged heavily under the mounded snow. We need a good, strong wind to blow it off.

We stepped in out of the cold, cold winter into a house aromatic with the smell of turkey roasting: sage, thyme, onion, and butter. Mmmmmm.

Almost done.

Then, Peter lit a fire for us.

Peter still had hat head from shoveling the driveway.

So, it's been a perfect day. And it's not over yet! This evening, both my girls will be home, to share that turkey, and for Emily's birthday cake. I can't promise that I'll take pictures, but it does seem likely, doesn't it?

The Year that Was

I am temporarily disabled - my left wrist encased in an orthopedic contraption because it hurts. Possibly caused by arthritis (it's been stiff and painful in the mornings, lately) or possibly a sprain, though I don't recall any accidents.

In any case, I'm glad I won't be going to the office until Wednesday; I hope to be better by then.

In the meantime, what better time to look back at 2012 and share some of my favourite highlights?

In January, Steve and I went to Vegas for his birthday weekend - from blizzard to desert and back again.

In February, I discovered that my diabetes, which had been "controlled" by diet and exercise was, in fact, out of control.

In March, I shared my mother's recipe for Seven Minute Frosting - the secret to my favourite birthday cakes.

After our Easter celebration in April, I wrote up some of my favourite tips for entertaining.

In May, I started taking medication for my diabetes and noticed an interesting decrease in my appetite.

In June, I celebrated my fiftieth birthday!

July's posts focused on food, including my recipe for Frank's Home-Fried Potatoes, as I've been slowly, and obsessively working on a family cookbook.

For the first three weeks in August, I thought all my Facebook friends were ignoring me. :(

In September, we slipped away to Gananoque (near Kingston).

In October, I survived a flu shot. Ugh.

In November, I reflected on the eternal surprise of my menstrual cycle.

This month, I shared some of our holiday preparations, including these Kit Kat houses (yummy!).

Well, that sums up a lot of my year. Misses a few things as well, of course. Can't wait to see what 2013 has in store!

My favourite things about Christmas presents.

Christmas morning, sorting the presents!

When I was a kid, I could barely contain the excitement of Christmas morning.

Along with my four brothers and two sisters, I woke before dawn and threw myself upon my Christmas stocking. I honestly do not remember what order (order?) we followed to unwrap gifts, but I remember the absolute glee of the feast of presents.

Fireplace, continued

More than a year ago, Steve and I decided to upgrade our fireplace, from a drafty, wood-burning hole into something more beautiful and functional. Most of that long, drawn-out story is here.

With one thing and another, we've been a little lazy busy, but we finally decided to take the final steps necessary to bring our fireplace up to code, so we could light a fire. Frankly, I would've been embarrassed if we hadn't been able to light a fire this Christmas.

That final step involved extending the non-flammable flooring a further distance from the front of the insert's doors. We had several choices:

1. A hearth extension

This would sit on top of the hardwood floor.
They do not come in widths to match our overall hearth.

2. Lay tile on top of the existing hardwood

Neither Steve nor I liked this idea, as it would have looked like an afterthought and would have been a tripping hazard. (The woodstove itself gets quite hot. I wouldn't want someone to trip on the raised tiles and put his hand out to stop the fall, only to be burned when the hand lands on the stove.)

3. Carefully rip out the hardwood and install a decorative, coordinated tile inlay.

That would make the whole thing look more integrated and planned, but it would also be a LOT more work. Needless to say, this is the option we chose, though that first option sure looked sweet at times.

So now you know why we procrastinated. Part of the difficulty was in choosing the tile. At one point, we considered using faux-wood ceramic, so that it would really blend in with the hardwood. But I'm happy with the treatment we settled on: a field of tan tiles that match the stone used on the hearth and mantel, ornamented with mosaic insets that bring in the colours of the wood grain and the stones.

The toolbox is a reflection.

As you can see, we need to replace a good bit of mortar beneath the bricks.

There was not a lot of tile to lay, and it went quite quickly, especially as there was no need to cut any tiles. I was however, just a tad obsessive about lining up those seems. I joked to Steve that I was trying to do it so that it would meet our friend Paul's inspection. You can't tell, unless you look closely (Paul), but I haven't done the grout yet.

Still, we felt sufficiently close to fire code that we could crank her up. The instructions specified that we had to start with a very low fire.

After the short-lived fire died down, Elly investigated.

She was fascinated by the scents coming from beneath the bricks.

But in this picture you can also see something else.

Here's a closer look.

A crack. Dang.

The larger circled area shows the crack, which appears to go all the way through the stone. It was not there when it was installed -- I went back and checked earlier photos. It's not large or extremely noticeable; we didn't even notice it while we were working on the tile yesterday.

The smaller circle shows a slightly offset linear depression that appears to have been filled with same-coloured putty. That is to say, it was likely there at the time of installation. (Steve and I have not done anything to the hearth.)

So it looks like I will have to contact the manufacturer. The installation company had not dealt with this manufacturer before and was very hesitant to offer the product, but I was sold on the colour and texture (it really is very stonelike). I believe that we agreed that the installer would not be held responsible for any product defects, but that does not absolve the manufacturer.

Yay! I get to talk to customer service! Isn't that everyone's favourite thing to do?

But I won't end on a sad note! I am absolutely delighted with the fireplace. I really like how the tiling turned out and am especially pleased to have it all in working order by Christmas.

Premature Aging

How old is she really?

According to our veterinary records (based on exams when she was first adopted in 2007), Elly's estimated date of birth is May 2006, which pegs her at six-and-a-half years old. Her body, however, seems to think it's much older than that. I offer as evidence:

• gum disease and dental decay (feline stomatitis)
• bone spurs (arthritic hips and spine)
• kidney failure

Poor thing. 

I sympathize with her. 

A year ago, I remarked that I felt I was "time expired." That post was well before I realized my diabetes was out of control and that migraines would become a routine event. Before I turned 50.

Which brings us to last week: I went for CT scan to see if my frequent migraines were a harbinger of something more sinister, like strokes or a tumour [gasp!] pressing on the optic nerve. [What? Are you saying you wouldn't have googled it?]

Imagine my surprise when my doctor's office called me on Monday and said the doctor wanted to go over the results of said scan with me. 

Bad news. It is never, ever a good thing when the doctor wants to see you, rather than the other way around.

Short story: I'm old.

Long story: the CT scan showed "micro-vascular changes." The blood vessels in my brain are on a weight-loss diet, which would be great, except that it means they aren't able to carry so much oxygen to the brain. My doctor, who is in her early thirties, said, "We wouldn't expect to see this kind of thing until you're about 70."

Seventy? 

She went on to say that this is likely because of my diabetes, which causes all sorts of systemic failure . . . in the heart, the kidneys, the nerves, the retinas. Especially if said diabetes is uncontrolled, as mine was for about a year. 

A year, folks, not a decade. And I've been quite conscientious about taking care of myself (as long as, you know, exercise isn't involved ).

The doctor says no follow-up is required, in the way of testing. But you know, and I know, that the only way to increase vascularization (blood flow) is exercise. It would appear that I have a 20-year deficit. Damn. I may have to start taking the bus to work.