Make that a rice bowl to go please.

Highs in the 70s, one day, blizzard the next.
That's the way it's been this Spring in much of the U.S.

Winter Window

Someone painted pictures on my

Windowpane last night --

Willow trees with trailing boughs

And flowers, frosty white,

And lovely crystal butterflies;

But when the morning sun

Touched them with its golden beams,

They vanished one by one.

~ Helen Bayley Davis, Jack Frost

Winter in Big Bear

Winter came down to our home one night 

Quietly pirouetting in on silvery-toed slippers of snow,

And we, we were children once again. 

~ Bill Morgan, Jr.

Serendipity

Find something good without looking for it!

 

Snowmen fall from heaven... unassembled.

A merry Christmas to everybody!
       A happy New Year to all the world! 

A Magical Thing

I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December
A magical thing
And sweet to remember.

We are nearer to Spring
Than we were in September,
I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December.
~ Oliver Herford

A Winter to Remember

It's been quite a while since I've posted on this blog. Believe me, my intentions were never to be this neglectful. Computer problems and uncooperative quirks on this blog have kept me from posting as I would have liked. So now, home again in Huntington Beach and typing on my IMac, I'm playing catch up.

On February 14th, the weather prediction for the next day, was to be the "storm of the season." As a native Southern Californian, I never want to miss the chance to enjoy a few days of REAL winter. So my husband and I packed up both our cars, loaded up the dogs, and headed for the mountains...our cabin in Big Bear Lake, to be exact.

During the twenty years we're owned this cabin, such predictions are oftentimes disappointing but this was certainly NOT one of them, as the following images will show. This will be a long post as I am including images from nearly everyday I was up there.

We're here...well almost.
The driveway will need a bit of plowing before we can get the cars in.
I didn't realize the area had gotten so much snow since the last time we were here, in December.
Also, time to take down the Christmas lights.

The next morning, this was the view from the front door.

Driving to town for breakfast. We were so glad our Suburban has 4-wheel drive.

Breakfast at the Lumberjack Cafe.

This is the view of the lake from Stanfield Cutoff. Well, it's there...somewhere.

I had to take these photos through the car window to keep the snow off the camera.

Nothing is more beautiful than
a fresh coat of new snow.

Somebody's not going anywhere for quite a while.

This is what big Bear Lake looks like after a big snow storm.

First thing the next morning, we found these footprints by the front porch. They are much larger than Wiley's, our Bouvier, who weighs 130 pounds. Hmmm...what do you suppose?

Driveway and street are plowed.
It's time to check out the neighborhood.

This is why I love to come to the mountains in the winter...when there's snow.

As the days warm up, the ice on the lake breaks up.

My last evening at the lake was, for a photographer, like being a kid in a candy store.

Time to say so long...until Spring.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

May we all have a vision now and then
Of a world where every neighbour is a friend.
--Abba

Big Bear Snow Day Number 2

The snow we got on Monday seemed like enough to last through Christmas but it snowed again yesterday...all day. I've been coming up here for 20 years and this is the most snow I've even seen. Any local skiers reading this take note...it's going to be a terrific weekend for playing in all this white stuff!

I got my Blazer dug out on Tuesday but along comes the

snow plow again yesterday and now it's buried deeper than ever.

A walk up and down our street reveals lots of icicles, drooping trees and cabins hiding behind massive snow berms.

Yea...Snow Day!!

Greetings from Big Bear Lake, California. It snowed all day yesterday.

We got about two feet which is pretty good for this early in the season.

This is the view from our street...Willow Avenue in Big Bear Lake, California.

Just across the street from our cabin is the National Forest.

This is our little cabin. I have a big job ahead of me...digging my Blazer out of the snow.

Here are the views from inside the cabin.

I went for a walk in the forest but didn't get very far.
Even in snowshoes I sunk in up to my knees.
Hopefully, I will do better tomorrow.