I stand corrected: winter came back last night. We got maybe 4 inches, but other parts of our extended area got up to 12″ or even 18″. The snowfall totals didn’t really follow a set pattern either; they were almost random, maybe a bit heavier south and east of us. (It was the same in NJ: my mom’s town got 6 inches while nearby Freehold got 19″.)
We were out in the storm last night. Joe’s Tavern (our usual Sunday night spot) was closed, but we met Joe & Laura and Sarah at Red Stag. The snow was really beautiful, on all the trees and falling from the sky.
Last post was January 7th, and here it is late February already!
Not much to say here right now: we are super busy with family stuff — some good news, some not so good, but none of them are my stories to tell. I’ve picked up the cello again, and we got our quartet going again, so I have some music to work on. I’ve read a few books, and maybe I’ll write about them here eventually. My mom is back from Florida, and I’m visiting her again (now that the snow is not so bad) to help with finances etc. Iris is growing and thriving — I sometimes miss when she was a baby, but I absolutely adore the little girl she is becoming.
The world is still mostly grey/white, but the days are longer and you can feel things getting ready for spring.
I knew him from grade school, and high school, and years of early adult friendship. We called him Henry because he and my brother Kevin were inseparable, and my brother’s girlfriend at the time thought two Kevin’s were one too many, and he “looked like a Henry,” and… there may be more to the story but it’s now lost in the mists of time. He lived in Florida for a decade or so, moved back to New Jersey and our paths crossed occasionally. The last time I saw him was when he came to my Dad’s funeral.
Kevin passed away yesterday, peacefully as far as I know. He’d hit his head in a fall earlier in the day (or maybe the day before — I’m getting the story second-hand). He went to bed, and his girlfriend found him unresponsive in the morning. He died of cardiac arrest in the hospital.
Wake and funeral early next week. I think I’ll go out and down a bottle of Budweiser for my friend Kevin tonight.
We had a small party last night, a bunch from Anne’s knitter crowd, and at midnight we walked over to (or under, for most of the crowd) the Broad Street Bridge, where Anne and I lowered a — well, not a Peep, but a large knitted chick named “Confetti” over the side and down to the waiting crowd below, as they counted down to the new year.
Anne’s been meaning to do this for a few years, ever since the traditional “lowering of the Peep” in our town was moved from the correct and proper midnight to the lame and family-friendly 6:00. Well friends, it finally happened, and it was good. I didn’t take any pictures (I was busy, and couldn’t really see much anyway), but pictures and video were taken, maybe I’ll post some here if I get a my hands on any.
We just relaxed for most of the day today, hanging with Iris and letting the traditional pork & sauerkraut cook. Jennie took off this morning to visit her folks in LA, but Ben and Emmi & Kyle came over for dinner tonight. Almost immediately after dinner Anne and I drove across the river to meet friends and watch Jack Murray and the Blue Tarp Wranglers do their annual tribute to Hank Williams at Godfrey Daniels.
Tomorrow is a hike in Jim Thorpe along with a visit to some family up there, and I may post my resolutions in the next day or so but for now I’m going to bed.
Here it is, the last post of 2025! Not gonna lie, I’ll be glad to see this year gone, though I don’t really expect much better for next year.
Anyway, we’re getting ready for our New Year’s Eve shenanigans, and Anne and I went out and got our costumes for Saturday’s big (and themed, by decade) family party.
Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Almost the end of the year, not many more opportunities to post, but here are some things…
New Toy
It’s not really a new toy, not even new to me, but I’ve been playing a lot with GnuCash (an open-source accounting program) lately. I’ve been using it to help with my mom’s finances. It’s been a real learning curve, but it’s also been fun and I finally get how the program works.
The Anthracite
Anne got me a book for Christmas — Telling of the Anthracite: A Pennsylvania Posthistory, by Phillip Moseley. I’m not much past the introduction, but it’s already fascinating.
The Arm
My shoulder is now to the point where it has no pain or twinges, I think I am finally healed.
The Season
The holiday season has been a whirlwind — we’ve been getting together to watch Christmas movies; we went to the Christmas Eve bonfire at Jeff & Kristen’s farm; celebrated Christmas here with Ben & Jenny, Joe & Laura and Rick & Shari (Emmi & family were in Peoria visiting Kyle’s mom); Boxing Day was at my Mom’s, with my brother & family and my Uncle Pat; and this morning we’ll be doing a small gift exchange with Emmi, Kyle & Iris. New Year’s Eve is coming up, and finally the big Christmas shindig next week. Yikes!
So CAT is moving to their new headquarters early next month, and part of the preparation is to get all the donated bikes, about 400 of them in (mostly) walkable condition, from their basement home in the current headquarters to storage at the future one.
That move happened yesterday. The “bike train” was about 100 or so volunteers walking the bikes about two miles, from the place on West Broad Street to the newly-built Walnut Street parking garage, where the new headquarters will be. We went over a little early so Anne could take up her position as a crossing guard along the route, then Joe & Laura and I joined the train in basically the first wave.
It was pretty easy and quite fun, and though Joe & Laura made for home after that trip, I went back for more. The walk back was, if anything, even more fun, as I got to greet so many of my friends doing their part.
For the first trip I took just one bike; I thought that walking two might be easy enough for the first few hundred yards but two miles might be a bit much. The walk was easy enough though, so for the second trip I did take two. That was fine, except for the very last block when one rear wheel locked up — I carried that bike to the finish line.
So two trips, three bikes and eight miles walked, and I hear that all 400 bikes got moved. Hurray!
These were our last few days in Scotland. We got in one more hike along the coast, I walked about town one last time taking pictures, and we spent some time at John & Donna’s new place. Then it was finally, officially time to head home.
The Moray Coast Trail
This was a section of coast to the west of Banff, between the towns of Portnockie and Cullen, with some picturesque rocks (and scary surf) just offshore. The main trail was a fairly mellow path, but you could also go exploring the rougher terrain if you wanted.
Walking to Bow Fiddle RockJohn On The PathMoray Coast RocksJohn & DonnaRocks In The WaterBow Fiddle RockCoastal FloraCoastal FloraLooking Towards CullenCullen Across The BayNorth Sea RocksAnne On The Moray Coast Trail
Last Walkabouts
These are some shots I took while walking around town. The first photo was from a walk between Gardenstown and Crovie, of some rocks that made cool sounds banging together in the surf, and the others were from a walk down and onto the harbour.
Beach Rocks On The Way To CrovieThe Harbour From AboveBay and Harbour From The GreenLobster TrapsAn Unusual Harbour SignRules Are RulesOn The BreakwaterGardenstown BoatsWelcome to The HarbourThe Story of SeatownGardenstown From The HarbourCrovie From The HarbourSeatown From The HarbourThe Rock In The Water
More Stately Mansions
I took a few interior photos of our cottage, and some external shots of John & Donna’s new house.
Inside Our CottageInside Our CottageOutdoor Space at the New PlaceChez John & Donna
Parting Shots
And finally it was time to go. This first photo is on a touristy, decorated old fishing boat in town, planted with flowers and festooned with local kitsch — the little saying on the fish decoration is (supposedly) an example of Doric, a local Scots dialect. We passed this boat every day, and I took this on on our last night in town.
The seagull photo was the last one I took in Scotland; we were waiting for our ride and I couldn’t resist when the bird just landed outside our cottage.
We had a small Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, just us and Ben & Jenny — they came over late morning, with some waffle batter, to cook brunch and help with the big meal. (Jan & Marty also stopped by but didn’t stay for dinner.) Dinner was the usual: turkey (no stuffing), mashed potatoes & gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, and for dessert a pumpkin roll stuffed with cranberry-orange cream cheese.
We worked it off with a Friday morning ride in Lancaster, the “Hush Money Fall Fuckaround,” which was listed as a gravel ride and a Gran Fondo, but we did the short (39 mile) road option. Several of our friends also did the ride, as well as Anne’s brother Joe, but we didn’t see much of them after the start, and we also bagged much of the ride, short-cutting the ride loop and ending with about 18 miles. Windy day! Anne actually got blown off the road into a field, where we looked up to see two bald eagles flying around.
Joe & Laura came over last night with Ben & Jenny and Alex too, and we played pinochle and a game called “Neanderthal Poetry,” which was a hoot.
And now we are waiting for people to come over for leftover turkey sandwiches; dessert will be at Joe & Laura’s.
