Life in the Bristolwood

Michelle really enjoyed fencing last semester and was excited when she discovered some classmates had started a fencing club.  The kids met late Wednesday afternoon to discuss the club and so we took Michelle.

After dropping Michelle at school,  Mark asked if I wanted to go to the City Pier. (yet again!)  I groaned,  but since the sun was shining and it was a beautiful afternoon,  I didn’t complain.

Mark drove on down the pier and then began back toward the city.  Then he pulled over and told me there were a lot of ducks sitting in the water below. Once again (should I admit it?) I groaned.  I have taken sooo many photos of Mallard Ducks,  Everyone must be tired of seeing Mallards! I sat in the back seat as a form of protest, but, well,  my trigger finger began to itch and after all, I do carry around a small bucket of cracked corn for my little waterfowl friends.

I hopped out of the truck and within a few minutes,  I found myself totally absorbed in the little flock.  They ate the corn with such gusto….how could I ever think of not feeding these cute little ones, anyway?

I felt somewhat greatly rewarded by getting a photo of a Mallard Duck drake in the snow….don’t see that too often. I had dropped some corn in the snow and he was jus tidying up!  It was interesting just how close these ducks moved in by my feet.  They are ususally fairly shy, but they came in very close that afternoon. I think they were very hungry for some grain!

After feeding the ducks,  we sat in the truck for a time….it was beautifully sunshiney, but the brisk wind was very chilling!  As the sun began to set, the scenery with the ducks was just awesome!

I did happen to catch the sunset one more time from another location….

Who ever would have thought that feeding the ducks yet another time would render some great new shots?

I know no one wants to hear about weather. Particularly messy weather!  Too bad, because that is precisely what we had today!

I decided I really needed to replenish groceries so I was going out today, weather or not!  I did wait until it warmed up a little as I am not too wild about driving on slippery roads when the gunk they use doesn’t work!  When the temperature warms up some, the stuff begins working better!

Here are my new tires which got some pretty good ratings when we looked them up on the internet….

Here is the tread….

I thought about the route I would take to Canandaigua and decided on the lake road.  Yay! It paid off! As I drove up the lake, I kept my eye out and saw lots and lots of Canada Geese.  I didn’t see the Swans I had spotted previously but as I looked out over the lake,  I did see something Iwasn’t sure about!  I had to turn around as I had gone too far to stop.

Even after getting out and taking photos, I couldn’t tell exactly what I was looking at!  Only after uploading my photos was I about to see a group of Readhead Ducks.

A little farther out on the lake behind the Redheads were a few Common Goldeneye Ducks.  (also called Whistlers)  I had never seen these before, so it was pretty cool seeing them!

I need to explain that although my photos appear a little out of focus,  they really aren’t!  It snowed a very fine snow all day long!  It added up to probably about four inches!  I was so glad I brought my camera along with me, as I had originally opted to leave it home.  I figured trying to take photos in the precipitation would be futile.

After my little duck sighting, I was once again on my way. I decided to take a slight detour and take a quick cruise out onto the City Pier. Wow! Doesn’t this look like fun?

I wondered what he had on his feet to travel along.  When I looked at the photo full-size, I could see he had some short skis strapped on his feet.

A flock of Canada Geese flew overhead…..

It would now be possible to walk right over to Squaw Island!

And on and on he sailed….

As I was about to pop back into the Explorer,  my eye lighted on a few gulls.  They are attracted to the pier….even in inclimate weather!….because many people sit there to eat their lunch in their vehicles.  I had meant to focus on the gulls themselves, but with the snow,  the camera had a bot of trouble focusing.  I snapped the photo anyway and I really like the fact that the bench is in focus in front of the gulls.

I had spent enough time photographing and it was now time to get to the task at hand.  I did my shopping and began to head homeward.  I did stop along the road for one more photo….

I really like the way this photo looks almost edited!  Everything appears nearly black and white, with the American flag colored.  Well, no,  I didn’t edit the photo…..the snow did!

So, there you have it.  We ***can*** have some camera fun even on a snowy day!

We were off to an early start today.  It is Ben’s birthday, but we had lots of running around to accomplish.

While Mark headed off with Michelle  to drop her off, Ben and I headed to Kost Tire where I was to get new tires, an inspection,  an oil change, and an alignment on the Explorer.  I had forgotten to mention that Mark got the window all fixed this past weekend.  He had to replace a part called the regulator.   When I saw the door hanging open and parts sitting all over the garage,  my heart nearly sank, but I have seen Mark take things apart before and I knew all would end well! And so it did!

Before leaving the house, I wanted to get a photo of the little congregation of Goldfinches outside the bedroom window….

That photo is a funky color and that is okay because I took it well before the day had broken this morning and there was a fine snow falling.

After dropping the Explorer off for its work,  Ben and I climbed into the truck and we began making our way to Mark’s mom’s house.  We made a few stops along the way.  An interesting thing happened along the way, though….the blower fan on the truck quit working! Meaning, we spent the rest of the time in the truck freezing!  Although the temperature outside was right at the freezing mark,  it got so cold in the truck!  Time for another repair job!

We made it to “Grandma Cookie’s” house.  Yes, that is what Mark calls his mom and in so doing,  he nearly causes Angus to go ballistic!  Angus adores Grandma Cookie, after all!

While we chatted with Mark’s mom,  Ben tried to teach Murphy how to exercise on the treadmill….

Yup, as long as I held a carrot treat in front of Murphy’s nose, he would stride along on the treadmill for several steps! It was pretty funny!

Now, Scotties are known for their Braveheart disposition.  I would say on a scale of 1-10, my boys rate about 1.5 in the Braveheart category!  Particularly Angus who hightails it whenever he hears any device that makes a vibrating noise! Thus, the treadmill caused him to panic, so he jumped up on Grandma Cookie’s chair and watched a Western on television instead!

And just for Angus’s good name, he did dutifully bark those wild horses when they got out of control and began running!

Here is a natural ice sculpture outside my mother-in-law’s house…

We visited for a few hours, then it was time to go.  Back we went into the cold pickup truck.  We went to Henrietta, where Ben and Mark went into the Guitar Center to look at “stuff”.  Mark ordered Ben a bass guitar for his birthday but it will arrive tomorrow.  Bummer for Ben, but he was okay with it.  Ben has been having so much fun learning guitar and he wanted to learn bass as well so Mark figured we should let him learn as long as he is so willing.

We left and went back to Canandaigua so I could pick up the Explorer.  Mark dropped me off and he and Ben picked Michelle up at school.  I had a few minutes before meeting them at a restaurant for dinner, so I took the Explorer for a spin up the road.  Oh my! I had been driving on “slicks” so long,  I forgot that tires actually “bite” the snow!

We met up for dinner, then came home.  The fire in the woodstove had gone out and I quickly rebuilt a fire!  Now, I am finally warm for the first time today! Ah, it does feel good.  No more freezing toes!

I think Ben enjoyed his birthday and although the day was long, we had fun too!

Happy Birthday, Ben!

Ack! Today I felt like a tennis ball! Boing….boing……booooiiiiinnnngggg……..

I really enjoy running around, especially when I am by myself so I can pull off the road and take photos!  And that is just what I did today!

I got up at five and started doing my tasks for the morning.  Michelle wasn’t up by six, so I had to get her up.  She said her throat was sore and she wasn’t feeling great, but she got up and ready for school anyway. We were off  to Canandaigua by seven-fifteen.

After dropping Michelle off at school,  I drove east to Geneva.  Unfortunately, the seemingly “simple” fix for the window on my Explorer wasn’t quite so simple!  Last week,  Mark and Michelle went out to the garage and completely disassembled the front passenger door.  They had to remove rivets so the glass could be freed up, then they taped the window in the up position.  Mark realized an entire assembly was in need of replacement.  Thus, I went to the auto supply store in Geneva to pick up the part this morning.

Since I was so close to Seneca Lake, it would have been a shame not to stop by for a quick look.

I hadn’t remembered seeing this memorial before.

Walking back to the truck,  I looked up and saw all the houses on the hill in uptown Geneva.  Have you ever seen so many windows?

Yup, all those windows overlook beautiful Seneca Lake.

I started back toward Canandaigua,  but thought I would stop at BJ’s to pick up just a few items we needed.  And as I left BJ’s,  I noticed that the store next door had Yancy’s Fancy Cheese on sale.  Every time Mark watches the Sabres games on television,  one of the announcers advertises this cheese.  They had so many varieties, but I settled for Buffalo Wing, thinking Mark ought to like that!

Back in the truck and homeward bound.

Had to stop roadside for this shot of a little barn filled with hay…..

I stopped at WalMart in Canandaigua to grab a couple things.  As I was coming out of the store, I saw what I believe to be an Old Order Mennonite woman placing a big bag into a small basket on the front of a bicycle.  I thought that would be a fantastic photo op,  but I had several more things to do.

I passed by Aldi on my way to JoAnn Fabics to pick up some oil for my wonderful old sewing machine.  I passed this horse patiently waiting for its family to come out.

I had to stop by the dollar store and as I parked,  I spotted the Mennonite woman’s bike parked outside Penney’s.

I grabbed a couple of things I came for, and as I stepped out the door, I couldn’t believe I was running into the Mennonite woman once again! Now, this woman was no spring chicken….she looked to be well into her 60’s!  But she boogied on that bike like nobody’s business!

Although the temperature was parked right at about freezing,  the wind was chilly and I couldn’t help but be very thankful for a warm truck with a working heater!  I still had to stop at Wegman’s, and guess who pulled in right behind me?  I was shocked until  I saw the little lady go into the post office parking lot.  I did a little research and as I hopped out of the truck, the Mennonite lady passed by once again, parking in front of Wegman’s.  As I passed by her bike on the way into the store,  I saw that the large bag was cat food! She went into the store right behind me.  I was surprised as I don’t think I have seen Amish or Mennonites shopping there!

As I came out of Wegman’s,  the lady was getting on her bike once again!  Gads, I felt like a stalker!  Anyway, I had one more stop at the YMCA and I was pretty sure the Mennonite lady was NOT going there!  As I watched her ride off, it looked like she was going over to Michael’s Craft Store.

I finally arrived back home at about twelve-forty-five.  Just long enough to put stuff away, fix a salad, eat, and get ready to leave once again at four-fifteen to retrieve Michelle from school! When I walked into the house, Mark told me he wasn’t feeling well either!

Sleep cannot come soon enough tonight! And tomorrow…well, we are expecting “a few inches” of snow!

Egads! I took Michelle to college today and as we were going along, the snow, which had just begun, began coming down harder and harder! After dropping Michelle off, I went to WalMart for a few minutes, then decided to go to the City Pier.

I giggled out loud as I noted two huge trucks parked roadside, with new toys boats for he 2010 boating season. (Not looking so probable at the moment!!!)

Once I got back on the roads to drive home, conditions degraded as I drove!

This is the road I turned on to head up our hill!

I have to admit that I was ready to bend down and kiss the ground upon arriving safely home!  I haven’t driven in such poor conditions in years!  Since the snow came so rapidly,  the plows weren’t really able to clean the roads fast enough!

Yesterday, I was thinking about how unusual it is that we had no snow!  Just a couple of days ago, we had rain, rain, and more rain!  Now, the weather forecast is calling for blasts of Arctic air and snow.

When I got home, the snow stopped after awhile and the sun even poked out.  I got to thinking the worst was now behind us.  Then, as I began writing this entry, this….

Oh, hibernation sounds sooo enticing right now.  But realistically, our Michelle is sixteen miles from home, and someone will have to pick her up in a few hours!

Run, Katya, run!

Argh….I am by no stretch of the imagination “lazy”,  but there are times when I wish that I had a house that, when cleaned,  stayed that way!  Having a husband and kids home 24/7 with me is sometimes overwhelming!  Well, it isn’t quite that bad, perhaps, but every time I walk into the kitchen, it seems the counters are actually growing dirty dishes!

Okay, I’ll stop the kvetching!

Michelle’s college studies resumed today and we were off early this morning. Yesterday’s temperatures rose well above freezing, melting all the snow we had on the ground.  This would have been serious enough to cause flooding in low-lying areas, but add to that a driving rain and flooding did indeed become the big headlines across New York and Pennsylvania today.  When we left this morning, however, it was snowing somewhat briskly and the roads were not in very good condition!

I drove up our road and it had been narrowly plowed with a small plow on a pickup truck…I found myself gripping the steering wheel tightly.  I thought that the county and state roads would be in better condition, but they were snow covered and I was concerned about black ice.  Fortunately, as we came nearer to Canandaigua, the roads were in much better shape.

Since I was in no rush to head back toward home with the roads in less than good shape,  I took a little drive, then filled the gas tank.  After that,  I headed to Wegman’s and bought groceries.  While I was driving,  I came upon a lovely farm and the sun was trying to poke through the seemingly endless cloud cover…

By the time I started back home at about 9:00, the roads were greatly improved.  I got home, took all the groceries in the house, put them away, did four loads of laundry including drying and folding and putting away,  then made some great soup for dinner.  By the time I finished making the soup, it was nearly 4:30 and time to run back to Canandaigua once again!

I left late to get Michelle, but that didn’t stop me from taking a photo along the way….the sunset was impressive! (too bad I wasn’t near the WalMart parking lot as I think this would have been so pretty)

I was late picking Michelle up, but only by a few minutes and she was with her friends, Jacob and Jeffrey.  After picking her up, we headed over to WalMart and grabbed a fresh loaf of Italian bread.  We got back home and ate….the soup and bread were a real hit and when Michelle brought out the football-shaped Snickers ice cream cake we found at WalMart, everyone was thrilled!

I forgot to mention a text message I got from Michelle this morning….she explained her statistics professor was from India and has “quite an accent”.   She went out to say that when the professor said “checks and balances”, all she heard was “chicken bottoms”…..she hoped the professor wasn’t upset with her giggling!  Oh my…perhaps this semester will offer a bit more of a challenge to the girl, eh?

Chicken bottoms, indeed!  And Michelle? She was sprawled out and sound asleep by 8 pm!

Mark and I went out to do some last minute shopping in Canandaigua late this afternoon.  As we drove into town, Mark inquired what I wanted to do first.  Why, head down to the City Pier, of course!  After all, I had some cracked corn to feed my web-footed friends. 

As soon as we stopped the truck, this little fellow looked as though he was running toward me! How did he know?

He was not alone, after all….

Awesome little duckprints!!!

The building that is boarded over was a good Italian restaurant. Behind it was a rather run down, dismal trailer park.  Both restaurant and trailer park have been vacated as new buildings will be going up there.  As I recall,  I think they are going to be either apartments or condos with upscale stores on ground level.  Should be interesting to see how this all plays out!

After enjoying watching the ducks eat,  we headed over to Wegman’s where the parking lot was full to overflowing.  Mark finally found a spot far away from the store and I walked. And walked. And walked some more!  Fearful of what I might face upon entering the store,  I was pleasantly surprised to see that not only was shopping less than stressful,  but getting through the checkout was a snap!  Kudos to Wegman’s for a job well done! I must comment, however,  I have never seen so many employees in the store at one time!

After Wegman’s, we hopped over to WalMart for a few items.  What came as a total surprise was seeing the parking lot with spaces open!  Once again, many employees working made for a smooth and painless passage through the store. The big difference between Wegman’s and WalMart  was the fact that Wegman’s was restocking and WalMart looked as though the store had been ransacked!

Another stop at Lowe’s and we were done! We picked up some food for the kids and were on our way when I told Mark I would like to stop for a few minutes in downown Canandaigua to take a few photos.  This is your lucky day as I shall now bore you to tears with photos of Canandaigua late afternoon, early evening! Enjoy!

This is certainly not an all-inclusive look at city businesses.  I merely walked around Main Street a bit, snapping some of the *blingiest* windows.  There were many others!

The dome building in the next photo is the Ontario County Courthouse, as Canandaigua is the county seat.

As you can see, there were many vehicles on the road….shoppers rushing home with their treasures, just like the song Silver Bells portrays!

Okay, so we *did* have a bit of a Chinese Fire Drill the other day when I awakened my kids early Monday morning for their early morning dental cleaning….only to drive the seven miles to the dentist to discover the appointment was today!  The gentle receptionist did take mercy on me, not laughing at me at all. 

So, this morning, we wre up and at it early again!  This time, we arrived and I parked the truck.  After getting out and beginning to walk toward the dentist’s office, I noticed I needed to pull the truck forward.  I told the kids to go on in the office and I would be right in.  As I walked toward the truck,  I noticed something stuck in the grill on the front. Drat…a little Chickadee.  I had to pull it out and that kind of threw me over the edge!  The other day,  when we removed the back of the woodstove,  Mark wondered what the “blue thing” back in the corner of the stove might be.  I could barely believe my eyes as I removed a perfect little male Bluebird. He must have come down the chimney and been unable to escape.  It must have happened a few months ago while we weren’t home….the bird weighed nothing, but was in perfect condition. 

So, to relieve my stress,  I decided to take a little walk down Main Street and take photos of some of the businesses since they are decked out for Christmas! Of course, the snow falling around me added a little “something” to the atmosphere….

Michelle had her last fencing class of this semester today so I dropped her off and did some shopping.  When I went to pick her up,  the day was slowly drawing to a close and the skies filled with honking as hundreds of thousands of Canada Geese moved toward the lake!

Grumble….grumble….complain!  Yeah, that was me late this afternoon as I had to drive to Canandaigua to retrieve our Michelle.  There was a little snow in the air and it just seemed so hard to go out….

I did indeed go out, however.  Now, I don’t think I’ve mentioned it here, but my lovely Jotul stove is lying about the house in pieces!  Yes!  That stove that so quietly heats the house without complaint had some problems when we inspected it this heating season. Mark has ordered new parts and hopefully, they will soon be here.  In the meantime, we sure have a lot of firewood waiting to be consumed!

But, I digress….

I went to several stores in Canandaigua to look for some minor things we needed for the stove.  The last stop on my little list was WalMart.  I parked the Explorer and was about to walk to the door when I spotted an awesome sight.

Quick, Ben! Grab my camera!

Ben delivered my camera to me, then raced off to the store, possibly being humiliated by his mother’s nonsense! I did hear him murmur something about needing to check my camera bag in at cutomer service, though.

I nonchalantly walked along the parking lot, nearly becoming one with the pavement when a car came a little too close for comfort!  That’s okay, though, as my photos shot in darkness with snow falling like crazy turned out pretty well!

Now, it wasn’t late at night, but man, oh MAN! I wouldn’t want to be driving a horse and buggy on the big highway in Canandaigua in a snowstorm on a cold night!  I really was shocked!

I went inside the store.  When the greeter looked toward my camera bag, I pulled the cover back, revealing my camera.  I merely smiled and told her I didn’t want to leave it in the car.  She nodded and said she wouldn’t leave it, either!

I picked up all the things I needed and went to the checkout.  I couldn’t believe it when I saw a young couple with a wee baby heading towards the horse and buggy.  It was unclear to me if they were Plain Mennonite or Amish, but boy did they boogie on out of the parking lot quickly!

So, what did I learn?  Well, shame on me for grumbling about going out today. After all, I don’t have to hitch up a horse and buggy!!! I have a warm vehicle with heat and lights and all the conveniences I need!  We won’t talk about the little ABS light that beamed at me as we basically SLID down the hill and into our driveway, making it home safe and sound, though…..

This morning,  we awakened to snow. It was still dark when I took the Scottie boys out and as I stood outside with them,  the snow switched over to rain.  Yuck. 

Michelle had a class this afternoon, so I got ready to take her.  As the Explorer slithered down the driveway, it was more like a ride on a sled than a vehicle with tires.  We slid our way down, ABS brakes pulsating all the way!

As soon as we were down off the driveway, things were looking up.  The roads were clear and fine for travel.  I dropped Michelle at college, then went for a little ride in the country.

I love the little snowman outside the Mennonite school…..

I decided to just sit and relax for a little while, so I drove back to Canandaigua and parked at a plaza.  As I sat there feeling warm and cozy in the Explorer,  the rain came down in torrents!

Just a little later, the sun tried so hard to poke through the clouds…..

I picked Michelle up from her class and then we headed over to Taco Bell, as she had a hankering for a potato burrito. As I stopped at the light,  I decided to try to photograph the Canandaigua Federal Credit Union’s display of lights.  They always have the most colorful display of all!

Not too shabby for being taken through the windshield!

I am truly loving the Nikon D-90.  What more can I say? 

Michelle had to make a trip to the library to return some materials she borrowed.  We drove across town and she returned her stuff.  As we began our trip home,  I pulled over at one of the churches downtown.  I just love their Good Shepherd stained glass window, and you have no idea how thrilled I was to get a fairly good capture!

A rather diverse collection of photos today!