lizziebelle

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Today is the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year. It was the perfect day to go on an Urban Nature walk, led by

urbpan. I had suggested we go to the Blue Hills Reservation at Great Blue Hill, a place I used to go all the time when I lived near there. There was a little snow overnight, so it was really pretty and winter-like, but not so much that it would have made hiking difficult.

We met at the Trailside Museum, behind which is a small zoo. There are birds of prey, foxes, deer, and an otter!

( Up the hill... )

It was the perfect way to celebrate the Solstice. The snow has been coming down lightly since I got home. We won't have a white Christmas, but we had a lovely white Yule.

tracks in the snow, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

It's been a mostly interesting few days. Interesting in a mostly good way. I had a good week at work, making five sales for the first time in a while. Made it through two snowstorms with little trouble. It got warm at the end of the week and much of the snow melted. Friday was our company holiday luncheon; they took us to a Japanese steakhouse, which was fun. I'd never been to one before. Unfortunately, we got the one chef who decided to cook on just the one grill (there were two for each table) and of course it was the one on the other side from me. My boss, who was sitting next to me, was not happy about that. But our CEO gave us each a card with two movie tickets in it, so I wasn't too upset.

My Solstice day was quiet and nice. I took a walk along the rail trail, pictured above. It was nice to see the sun. I'm looking forward to the lengthening days ahead.

I went to see the Hobbit movie with friends this afternoon, and then we went to Bertucci's for some lovely mushroom & asiago pizza. Yum. I liked this film better than the first one, and even though it diverges quite wildly from the book, it was entertaining. The dragon is incredible, and of course has the voice of one of my favorite actors (Benedict Cumberbatch). It could have used more Martin Freeman/Bilbo, though. It is his story, after all.

It's going to be a mixed-up week, with Christmas falling smack in the middle, but somehow I'll muddle through. Right now, I must bake shortbread and wrap up my boss' gift. Happy Solstice, Festivus, Christmas, holiday-of-your-choice!

We had our first big snowstorm this weekend. I'm not sure of the exact amount, but it looked like about 8" give or take. Fortunately I had nowhere I had to be, so I stayed snug at home for the duration.

Immediately after digging out this morning, the sidewalk plow left a huge hump right in front of my car. After thawing out with a cup of hot chocolate, I went back out to shovel it, but it proved to be too much for that so I just shoveled over a bit and moved the car.

I had remembered to get my Yule tree and ornaments out of the basement before the door got buried in snow, so this afternoon I put it up. I really haven't been in much of a holiday mood, but it's nice to see my old ornaments again. I have some fun ones, including a few Star Trek Hallmark ornaments. I lost two glass ornaments; one broke in storage, and the other I knocked off the tree with my elbow. Oops.

I don't make a big deal out of Christmas/Yule anymore, but it's nice to have the tree up. We've already passed the earliest sunset of the year, and in a couple weeks the days will start getting longer again. Light will triumph over darkness once again. That's definitely worth celebrating.

flame, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

Tonight is the longest night. In a couple of hours, the Solstice will occur, and the days will start getting longer again.

Happy Yule to you all! May the returning light bring blessings to you and yours.

mmmmmm, shrimp, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

Today was free food day at work. The boss bought us pizza for lunch, and lots of people brought in other stuff, like this shrimp cocktail. And of course there were cookies. Nom.

I went for a long walk at lunch, to walk off some of that food. There were people playing hockey on the pond; it seems like only yesterday that it was just starting to freeze over. Of course, it feels like only last month that there were goslings and ducklings paddling around on it, too. This year flew by.

I woke up around 3:30 this morning, so I threw on some shoes and a coat and went out to see the eclipse. It was cloudy, of course. desert_sparrow got some really nice shots of it, though. Go check them out!

It felt like Wednesday all day, and I just figured out why: we're closed on Friday, so it is sort of our Wednesday. We're closed on Monday too, and I have a few hours I have to use up or lose, so I'm only working a day and a half next week. Woo. If we get that snow this weekend, I might get some nice winter pictures at last. The storm this week stayed on the coast, and all we got were flurries.

The Solstice just passed, so happy Midwinter/Yule to you! Go out and look at the moon, she's beautiful tonight.

mmmmmm, shrimp, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

radiate, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

As I thought it might, this cold weather has produced some fabulous ice.

( frozen )

It was quite cold out there, and windy too. I saw a few snowflakes drifting by, even though the sun was out. Even though official winter is just over two weeks away, it sure feels like it now. I'm a little surprised we haven't had snow yet; the pattern the past few years is to get snow in the first week of December.

Last night was the annual Yule party in Malden, and I made the trek even though I didn't really feel like driving across the state. I'm really glad I did, as there were lots of friends there, many of whom I haven't seen in a while. It was really great to see everyone.

( The key that hath no door )

I think hot soup and an early bedtime are in order for tonight. How was your weekend?

radiate, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

As I thought it might, this cold weather has produced some fabulous ice.

( frozen )

peaceful, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

Happy Solstice/Yule! Today is the shortest day, after the longest night. From now until Midsummer, the days grow longer and the light returns.

sea_dark_wine sent me a poem that she said I had written a long time ago about the solstice. I don't remember it at all, so it must have been a *very* long time ago! Here it is:

The geese fly high
this Solstice morn.
The woods are bare,
the snow is deep.
We wait for Herne
to sound His horn,
to wake His children
up from sleep
To celebrate this happy night,
When Winter may be put to flight

peaceful, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

pattern, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

I've been reading friends' reports from Baltimore, D.C., and Virginia all day about the massive amounts of snow they've gotten, but it has yet to start here. I went out for a walk this afternoon, but it was bitterly cold and windy, so I didn't get very far. I took pix of the lacy ice along the sidewalk, then came back home for some hot chocolate. I keep peeking out the window, but all is quiet for now. The Weather Channel and NECN keep telling me that we're going to get a lot of snow; I'm getting impatient for it now, especially since I have nowhere to go.

Several other people have decided to not go to Yule tonight, so I don't feel quite so left out. I suggested that we all meet on the astral and join the revelers at the covenstead. We'll be meeting around 8:30 if you'd like to join us. :)

I hope you're all safe and warm this cold (almost) winter's night!

pattern, originally uploaded by Lizzie~Belle.

Like most everyone on the east coast, I am anticipating a snowy weekend. It hasn't quite made it to New England yet, and they don't expect it to start until late this afternoon, but they do expect it to come. Westfield is right on the border between 'winter storm watch' and 'winter storm warning' on the weather map. We're also squarely in the 6-10" range. Eeep. I guess we are going to have a white Christmas.

Unfortunately, tonight is the coven Yule, which means that I will miss it for the second year in a row due to snow. It's not like the days when we all lived in the same town, and even a snowstorm couldn't stop us. Now we are all far-flung, and Mother Nature can more easily keep us apart.

Fortunately, Westfield is still having its Solstice celebration on Monday, SnowFire. Hopefully it won't be too cold.

How are you all faring with the storm? If you don't live in the East, aren't you glad? *g*

Current Mood: disappointed
Current Location: the batcave

Current Mood: disappointed
Current Location: the batcave

I should be arriving at the covenstead right about now, but due to the snow, I thought it best to sit this one out. I believe this is the first time I've missed Yule, which makes Samhain (I think) the only sabbat I have never missed with the coven. It has been snowing lightly all day, and the roads are not great, so I'm glad to not be on the road.

Our Yule ritual is joyful, celebrating the birth of the young god who will grow up to be the Harvest Lord. Everyone then follows him through the increasingly long birth canal formed by the legs of those who have gone through, with the danger of rugburn and sore knees also increasing exponentially. *g*

We also have a tradition of gathering the next morning for brunch, and the annual reading of A Child's Christmas in Wales by

justjanus. I will miss that as much as the ritual.

Have a wonderful Yule! Oh, and happy birthday to

resourceress! I hope you're having a wonderful time on your trip.

justjanus. I will miss that as much as the ritual.

Have a wonderful Yule! Oh, and happy birthday to

resourceress! I hope you're having a wonderful time on your trip.

No snow yet, but they're calling for up to 12" today and tonight, and there's a definite feeling of anticipation in the air. Most of the schools in the area are closed today (some of them are *still* closed after last week's ice storm up in the hills), and state workers were told to stay home. Of course, the paper must get out, so we're all here today. Two of my coworkers have their kids with them (one each) because of the school cancellation.

My mom called me this morning, wondering if I was going in today. Well, it's not snowing yet, so it would look pretty silly to call in for snow. I'll probably leave early; it's really not busy today, being the slow season and all. If people are out today, they're buying bread, milk, and rock salt, not classified ads. I told her I'll call when I get home.

It's looking unlikely that I'll make it to the coven Yule tomorrow night; on top of the foot of snow today, they're predicting more for Sunday. A snow sandwich. So I'll probably be spending the weekend cleaning up the kitchen and making Yule gifts. Not sure what I'll make this year... shortbread? Bath salts? Truffles? Maybe something else, if I get a burst of inspiration. I have a new book from the library (Solstice Wood by Patricia McKillip, recommended by

capriuni) and disc one of season 4 of Lost from Netflix to keep me entertained. Plus, lots of pretty snow to take pictures of. :)

I finally got into the holiday spirit last night as I was driving to the coven Yule. Downtown Westfield looks very pretty, with all the buildings outlined in white lights, and the trees on the common all covered in white and multicolored lights. I was listening to the audiobook for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and when the tape finished I listened to A Prairie Home Companion instead of popping in the next tape. They did a fabulous version of the Powdermilk Biscuits song with the carol "Gloria" in the middle (and I had a flashback of our choir director telling us to pronounce it like 'eggshells'), and I realized that the only thing I really miss about being a Christian is Christmas Eve midnight mass. I really loved when we'd pass the flame on our candles down the pews, they'd dim the lights, and we'd sing "Silent Night" a capella. We really need to do something like that for Pagans at Yule, you know?

Anyhoo, the ritual was very nice, and we had a larger crowd than usual. We had too many desserts and not enough main/ side dishes (I'm glad I didn't bring dessert!), but everything was yummy, and we had leftovers for brunch this morning, including french toast made from the leftover baguettes. I got to see a couple of folks I haven't seen in a while, and I managed not to get rugburn too badly on my knees. That's not nearly as naughty as you think, and neither is the fact that I haven't had that many people between my legs since, oh, last Yule. Hee! I'll give you a hint: Solstice is about the rebirth of the sun.

I managed to fill a large shopping bag to overflowing with clothes I don't wear anymore for my donation, and I could probably fill another. There's a new Goodwill store here in town, which will be getting a donation from me hopefully soon. Since I have another four-day weekend next week, I plan to do copious amounts of laundry and sorting. Must remember to get quarters this week!

Current Mood: tired
Current Location: the batcave

Current Mood: tired
Current Location: the batcave

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lizziebelle

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May 2019

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Entries tagged with yule

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Sosltice Urban Nature Walk

holidaze

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Solstice

nom

nom

weekend's end

weekend's end

Solstice

Solstice

still waiting

still waiting

the snowpocalypse approaches

the snowpocalypse approaches

Happy Solstice, Blessed Yule!

Happy Solstice, Blessed Yule!

hunkering down

hunkering down

Yule accomplished

Yule accomplished

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May 2019

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