Winter Sort of/Kind of/Maybe

We finally got some snow- not that I was all antsy on the edge of my seat about the lack there of. (But Jules the Dog seems really happy today!) Some confluence of Climate Change coupled with a strong El Nino has manifested in our oddly benign weather to date. People keep posting all the plants that are growing (and even blooming) and the insects that are drawing winter blood. It is remarkable.
So the picture above illustrates the dusting of crusty white stuff that appeared this morning in the Blue Garden. I guess the end of year and the arrival of a small storm make me consider this year passing and the New Year approaching.
What are we remarking on this year? (Besides the weather).

1. The perfidy of creeps that poached my domain name and messed up my website... leave us poor artists alone for god's sake. Do something good for us: Buy our work. Or advertise us but don't fuck with us. There are plenty of other opportunities for that! So let's hope the New Year returns www.ritavalley.com to me! (It seems to be "down".)
2. Both Bob and I had really dynamite shows this year... and neither one of us sold a bloody thing. I guess we can claim to have had "positive experiences" and we "learned a lot" (but wouldn't it have been nice if the universe smiled that one bit more and caused filthy lucre to have been delivered to our bank accounts? I think so...) Let's hope the New Year brings art sales and splendid offers of shows and good reviews!
3. Bob and I had truly lousy motor vehicle experiences this year. The truck died (and it took a while to replace it) and then the Honda and my mother's elderly Subaru died. We're still dealing with the fallout of all this. Let's hope the New Year brings automotive joy!
4. I can't complain in the "health and happiness" department. We were (overall) healthy and happy. That's a good thing. Let's hope for a continuation of that, come the New Year.

I hope in the New Year that Bob and I accomplish even one of the household projects that we were laughing about with a friend yesterday. We all have long lists, I know, but even one thing (like the hallway shelves/sliding doors or the back terrace area or even my closet!) I'd be really happy with any of those!

Gates of Hell (Or some such place)

In an effort to keep the cold out of our house, we fashioned "curtains" from all kinds of fabric. The atmosphere changes dramatically from room to room. This particular shot officially proves there is a portal straight to Hell from our computer room. At least Hell is warm!
In keeping with the orange theme and in search for all things warm and southern, here's another color themed picture; our kitchen counter is sunny.

And it's also official that it has been a brutal and spectacularly awful month. I know I am not alone in expressing this. To whit, I am going to make a list of some of the dreadful items plaguing us this month, just for fun:
The weather (oh, did I already mention the weather?), taxes due (rendering Bob and I effectively penniless),
a number of health issues afflicting family and friends (from the minor and inconvenient to broken bones and cancer), the weather, car infirmities, snow, darkness... Enough already!
I am hereby declaring  January over! I don't care if I'm a day early. (I don't even think my sister Beatrice will complain if I eliminate the last day of January, despite it being her birthday.) Let's celebrate Groundhog's Day or Mardi Gras or something that alludes to the coming of Spring.