Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Pictures!

I took some pictures when we were in BC, up at Paul's shop. Friday was a very overcast day, full of new snow. The falling snowflakes coated our hair and boots and coats ... and my camera! 


This is a shot from the top of the driveway, looking down towards the trailer. I liked the unevenness of the trees and how the snow broke up the solidness of the green and red. 


On the trailer, we had ice cycles hanging... ready for smashing. Jesse took full advantage of the situation.  


They are so stark against the white. When I was a kid, we called them Fake Tobacco and had many wars with the uprooted stalks. A whack from one of those hurt like crazy. Haha. My memory recalls the fact that  they're very difficult to uproot... or at least they were for a ten year old girl! 


When I saw this tree, I exclaimed and immediately began snapping pictures. Jesse said, "A dead tree?" :-) It was the color contrast that first caught my eye. Then I began thinking about the significance of the seemingly premature death. Even in death, it is possible to find beauty. 


My dearest. I love you! (He is most definitely the most wonderful man.)


I love old buildings. Again, it was the very distinct colors that grabbed my attention. I love the zoom on my camera!



Texture...!


 I always laugh to myself when we come around the corner and THERE is the purple door. I love purple doors... on shops; it is so unexpected!

Monday, February 27, 2012

Of Hackers and Mountain Tops

Post Whitney Houston's death, a friend of mine posted a complaint about people in general. She asked why the public cares more about Whitney Houston than the fact of our freedom of speech rights are being taken away. I understand her criticism and I understand people's reactions. However, she made her point and it did make me think about this new bill that is being passed.

I don't agree with premise of the bill.

I don't agree that our freedom should be limited. I don't like it at all that the government will now legally be able to hack into our computers and phones. (Btw, if it's legal, does the word 'hack' still apply? They're taking all the fun out it!) But honestly, don't kid yourself: our computers and phones haven't been private since they were invented. I am not claiming that there is someone looking or listening 24/7 but they have the capabilities to do so.

My thoughts are numerous on the subject but that is all I am going to post for now... simply because I haven't researched enough to even make casual remarks. Which is what I just did. Lol.

And about Whitney's death? Death so young and at the hands of overdosed fame. It has happened before and it will happen again. That does not make it any less tragic. I truly hope she is finally at peace. Death and life deserve our respect, regardless of other things that distract us. She was a true artist; her voice was a gift that not many people are given.

On a brighter note, Jesse and I recently arrived home from our ski trip to BC. It was a great year for skiing. The conditions were just right. One day, it did rain at the base of the mountain but when Jesse and Sam went to the top, they said it was all powder.

There is a sense of paralyzing fear when I'm standing on a mountain, looking straight down and wondering how I am ever going to make it down without killing myself. That is me every single time. I keep wishing for the time when my confidence will trump the frightened part of me. I am glad for the experience because it forces me to face my fears and do what I am afraid of most. Ironically, I am not afraid when I am careening down the mountain at top speed; it's the turns that scare me. The fear seems irrational to me, even at the time... but that doesn't stop me from being terrified. :-)

My husband was with me every step of the way. He has been on the mountain since he was pretty young and is an amazing skier. He likes skiing stuff like black runs and moguls. But when I was on hills, he was with me. He never left my side. He never stopped encouraging me, either. When I would do something he thought was excellent, he'd tell me. All in all, he is pretty much the perfect husband. ;-) I love him so much. On a note of people who stuck with  me, Sam was pretty decent too. :-) She went and skied by herself as well but she skied a lot with us and we enjoyed her company.

One accident: it was due to my lack of confidence. I managed to land awkwardly and twisted my knee pretty badly. It actually hasn't hurt with that much intensity since before I had surgery. I felt something pop and twist and grind and oh boy, was I hollering. Jesse and Sam got me untangled pretty quickly. Because it only takes a little twist or landing the wrong way to make my knee into a walking watermelon, I was sure I was going to be incapacitated for the rest of our trip. We were way up the mountain when this happened and I wasn't sure if I could even stand, let alone get all the way down. Sam said she'd get someone to come get me if I couldn't get down. But I decided to give it a shot and we made it back to base with me still on my feet. The most amazing thing is that after that, my leg didn't swell much and it felt completely normal after two days. Yes!

Sam is so not a PDF person. She prefers a distinct lack of feelings. We know this very well indeed. She's also Jesse's younger sister, so of course, we like to torment her. How do we torment her? Oh. The normal ways. Make sure she's looking when we hold hands and stare dreamily into each other's eyes. And there's the loud comments... "I misssssseeedddd you!" "Can we cuddle now?" And we kiss. A lot. (We always kiss a lot but we make sure to kiss especially a lot when she's in the room.) Poor Sam! Hehe.

Well, it's getting closer to suppertime and the chicken is smelling awesome. I love chicken. :-) Btw, we had the most divine bison burgers the other day. Yum.

Friday, February 17, 2012

Because I Can

there is hope

Someday
somehow
 the writer in me will be able to write exactly what it means to say. 

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Belief creates the actual fact. -- William James

Change your thoughts and you change your world. -- Norman Vincent Peale

Give light and people will find the way. -- Ella Baker

God always give his best to those who leave the choice to him. -- Jim Elliot

Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present. -- Jim Rohn

Hope is some extrodinary spiritual grace that God gives us to control our fears, not to oust them. -- Vincent McNabb  

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

The Worst of Nightmares...

... happens when, in your subconscious state, your mind has created a brilliant piece of work. You wake up, fully intending to write it down for the world to see. But in your first fully conscious moment, your mind goes blank and stares haughtily at you from some unreachable place.

It's at this moment that you kiss your marvelous husband good morning as he goes to work and eat french toast with Nutella for breakfast.

Happy Day for Dearest Loves! Jesse, I love you ... every single moment of every day.

P.S. This is truth. I have been writing an article for the past two weeks. Several times, my dreams have dictated some cleverness that I wanted to write but to no avail. Today I painfully managed to complete a first draft. Deadline = tomorrow. :-P

God's way of keeping me humble, I think.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Commenting Issues

My blog has gone through phases. When I first started, people had trouble trying to comment. Towards the middle, for about two years, people had fewer issues trying to comment. But recently, it's been acting up again. I have no idea why blogger won't allow comments on my blog right now but I have been trying to fix the issue.

I changed the comments from embedded (my favorite) to a pop-up window. I hope that this helps solve some of the issues. If you can comment, please let me know. If you can't, email me: naomi dot holter at gmail dot com. Let me know what comes up on your screen or if it freezes, etc. I am trying to establish what the "symptoms" are so I can contact Blogger.

Thanks so much. :-)

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Grandma Irene



Last January, Jesse took me to visit his Grandma. My first impression of her was the quiet voice... wrinkles... blue veined hands...  many years lived. She was 95 years old and very frail looking. Her husband of many decades had passed away several months before, leaving her a widow. I felt it must have been hard being alone for the first time in so many years. But as each person greeted her, she looked so very pleased and happy to see us. When Jesse introduced me as his girlfriend, Irene looked up at me kindly and smiled. Then she gave me a hug as she welcomed me.

It was a delight that her fragility of body never extended to her mind. I listened to her infrequent comments to Paul and the others... each word was purposed; she never spoke sharply or out of turn. In fact, watching the others react to her, and to each other, in her presence, I began to see where my boyfriend's gentle, loving nature had stemmed from. "Ma" was queen of her home and her law was kindness; everyone felt it and everyone obeyed it.

The visit lasted a couple hours, then we donned on our heavy winter coats and shoes and got ready take our leave. Irene bade each of us farewell: as she stood by her door with her walker, she grasped my hand and pulled me to her. She gave me another hug and looked into my eyes. She asked very quietly, "Are you happy?" 

The concern and .... love? ... for me caught me by surprise.. This woman had just met me and she knew only a little bit about me. But I know now that she had been observing me all evening, trying get an idea of what kind of a girl her grandson had chosen to be his girlfriend. And her only question? "Are you happy?" 

It was that way the entire time I knew Irene. She was always kind, always thoughtful. My only wish is that I could have known her a little better. 

January 26th, 2012: Jesse woke me up saying that he had just gotten a phone call. Grandma was not doing well. As soon as I out of bed and dressed, we picked up Jesse's dad from the shop and headed down to Oxbow. As soon as I walked into the room, I felt the vibrancy of her spirit... missing. She lay there, a tiny form on the bed, her raspy breathing filling the room, eyes closed to the world. I don't know how much she was aware of as her three sons and loved ones sat around her. I don't know if she could hear our voices or see us when she half opened her eyes. I think she could sense the love that flowed from us all towards her. I hope she took comfort in it. 

When she passed away, late Saturday evening, there was mourning. We all felt a sense of loss and finality. But there also was a feeling of gratefulness that she was no longer suffering. The woman who loved is experiencing the great mystery of eternal life... eternal existence. We don't know exactly what she is knowing... living... having... right now. But we do know that the world was brightened by Irene Twietmeyer in those 96 years that she walked the earth. 

Thank you, Irene. 

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Hip, Hip, Hurrah! (x3)

Today I received a letter from the Government informing me that I did not owe them any money.

It's kind of like getting a clean bill of health.