Winter definitely not done with us!

   We are being hit by another major weather event and I know it's going to be bad as my dance group was cancelled tonight - it practically never is!

  It started snowing around dusk and looks to continue overnight and well into tomorrow morning so who knows how much of an accumulation we will get. Luckily, I have nothing planned until noon tomorrow so have the morning to dig out. 

    Today I was up and out early as I had one errand to run before being due at the Calabria Bakery at 9:30 for our Hava Java coffee social. We had a great turnout, the best since resuming after lockdown put an end to gatherings. On the way home I dropped into the library to scout out a book I had found online and, luckily, there it was on the shelf. For the first time in ages I was without anything to read. It was a book in the Detective Montalbano series by Andrea Camilleri. I also picked up Ian McEwens' latest book "Lessons", which looks to be a corker - early days yet but I am sure I will like it! It was on the "Best Buys" shelf and probably has a long wait list so a good find. At least I am well stocked up if we are, in fact, snowed in!

Big Storm Headed Our Way

    We have been warned! Seemingly tonight and tomorrow Mother Nature is throwing some nasty weather our way. The car is put away for the duration of the storm and I will charge the lithium battery for snowblower overnight. I may just skip Yoga at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow if I have to do some snow clearing. Stay tuned for the latest news and photos - supposed to 10 - 15 cms.

Shrove Tuesday

      Although I am not religious, I still observe this custom as it gives me an opportunity to re-assess some of my bad eating choices by cutting out certain items (i.e. chocolate and alcohol) for a few weeks. So, I will be "dry" until Easter  and may even save some money into the bargain!  

   I was all set to attend a Pancake Breakfast at the Community Centre - had my $5 ticket - then realized it was the same day as the Retired Women Teachers lunch, which I had already paid for! No contest which one to choose and I managed to unload the $5 ticket to a friend. I'm sure she enjoyed the camaraderie of a shared breakfast with friends.

   The lunch, at our local country club (Tam Heather, Google it), was quite delicious although we had to share a space with the curlers who were out in force. Seemingly there was a Bonspiel in progress and much jollity when it finished. No matter, by that time we were well fed (lovely salad and the most tender stuffed chicken, plus cake and coffee) and our speaker had a loud voice!

    So now it's a time of abstinence and mindfulness, to refresh my body and my spirits with a little self-control. Wish me luck!

A Fristy-frosty Morning

    We had first rain, then freezing rain and finally light snow overnight so this morning was an icy start to the day. Luckily I put the car in the garage so didn't have to scrape it off this morning. The ice is still on some of the trees but the roads and sidewalks are fairly dry. The sun came out this afternoon which was fortunate.

      Lunch out yesterday with friends from my Probus club after the meeting. We went to "Rosemary and Thyme" and had a convivial meal around a big table. We will likely go back there for another lunch some time as everyone agreed it was a pleasant and tasty meal. This is one club that I attend that is not teacher related and has both male and female members, so we were an eclectic mix of genders and professions. This and the round table made for more interesting and far-reaching conversations. 

Of Marmalade, Chocolate and Cabbage

 Regarding Marmalade:  I go through a lot of marmalade! I like a fairly thick dose on my breakfast toast. The jar I am currently using was a Christmas gift from my daughter (her "Best in Show" from the food division of Markham Fair and it is yummy). But it is coming to an end so, today, I decided to make my own.

   I haven't seen the Seville oranges in the stores yet but I had a lemon and a tangelo orange which would do. I also didn't have any pectin but used the "setting point" method to determine when it was ready to jar. It came out beautifully! It was a doddle to make and although just two jars, will last me until my next grocery shop.

Regarding chocolate:  I have expunged (i.e.eaten) all chocolate from the house (that includes choc. chips from the baking cupboard) and won't buy any until after St. Valentine's Day when there will probably be some bargains. Then comes the long haul from Shrove Tuesday (Feb. 21st. I think) until Easter when I will abstain from chocolate and alcohol for Lent. At the moment I am down to just a couple of drinks a week which is a good start. Easter lunch will no doubt be celebratory!

Regarding cabbage: Feeling in the need for something green, and lettuce and broccolli being a ridiculous price, I bought a small cabbage almost two weeks ago. Despite having made two casseroles and eaten some at almost every meal, there is still a fair portion of it left! It's still quite fresh so I will munch away until it is gone and by then I will be well and truly sick of it. The casseroles were the best way to use it up and several portions of each are in the freezer.

    Since it was wet almost all day today (very unusual for February here) I got yogurt started in my Instapot. I haven't bought yogurt since January as I am using half a cup of each batch to start the next one. I don't think I am saving much money but I am cutting back on plastic by using the original container for each new batch. Yay to me for helping the environment!

   We had two new people at Knitters group this morning and some lovely treats. We have produced (not me personally, I am very slow) quite an accumulation of Twiddlemuffs but I managed to distribute some of our other creations (again, not me personally) to a Veteran's hospital. Now the job is to get into some Long Term Care homes with the Twiddlemuffs. 

    After the meeting 5 of us went for lunch. I had a Caesar salad which was very good and just the amount I wanted. Dinner tonight will be leftover chicken thighs and cabbage so not much preparation needed. Then I am off the Dance group where Nigel has promised us a very tricky dance, "The Glasgow Highlanders". Stay tuned to hear whether we mastered it or not!