5" snow...35º

Winter Art

Lovely snowstorm yesterday late afternoon/evening...A winter wonderland is at our doorstep...I went out for fresh air about 6pm, used the broom then the shovel...It was still snowing when I finished the walks, steps and most of the deck...It is waiting for me again this morning and that is okay...I would rather do it twice than wait until the last snow flake falls and then do it...Much easier for me.

Our house was filled with the pungent fragrance of onions roasting in the afternoon...Sharon (at pinochle) said she still had onions from her garden stored in their basement and she was sure they were all going bad...Did we want some to take home?..Donna had already dried a bunch that she got earlier but Marsha and I said sure we could use some....I came home with about 20# of big, really big onions...I threw only one of them away and small parts of of some others but for the most part they are big and solid...I quickly peeled (very few tears) and chunked, dumping them on cookie sheets with olive oil, sprinkled with butter, course salt and fresh ground pepper...Put them in a 400º oven, stirred every half hour, turned the heat down to 300º after an hour...They turned sweet as honey, we enjoyed some with our dinner and the rest I put in baggies to freeze and use for the rest of the winter.

Speaking of tears, I shed a few as I write this morning...My brother-in-law Jim Stephens (Bobbies husband) died yesterday morning at home with Bobbie, son Alan and his wife Gail at his side...I talked to Bobbie minutes after his death and she said, "It's hard but he looks so peaceful, not in pain anymore, I will miss him so much." As we all will, Jim was a giant of a man, kind and gentle...His dry sense of humor and the twinkle in his eye always comes to my mind when I think of him...He called me "Little Sister" and enveloped me in hugs whenever we visited...In his lifetime he worked construction and for many years he drove bus for Greyhound in California driving over the Golden Gate Bridge every day into downtown San Francisco, for many years...Next he drove a run into Lake Tahoe taking gamblers to the casinos and then a move to Fresno and on to Albuquerque, NewMexico for a different run...The company retired him early with a heart problem, so he and Bobbie retired to his home state of Oklahoma where they bought acreage on a lake to live the rest of their lives...Jim started his own business of mowing lawns...Jim was very mechanical always working and restoring cars...They bought an Airstream trailer and spent many happy years traveling in the US, visiting parks or just camping in the great outdoors...He had a wood shop where he made bird houses, benches, frames just to mention a few...Many of us treasure these gifts made by his hands...As the years added up, their trailer was sold and they spent time at there lovely home on the lake turning it into its own little paradise...In springtime is was a riot of blooms that continued through summer and fall...He loved to read, mostly non fiction and did his daily crossword puzzle...He was a slow talker, but commanded your attention and had great stories to tell...He loved life, his family and in return was loved by those who knew him...Hugs To All...OWAV