ThunderSnow.us

I have the pattern and yarn for these mittens:

If you don’t see me for a few days, I apologize.

Yesterday, Odiorne Point had a slightly unusual visitor.

A smallish harbor seal (I’m pretty sure it was a harbor seal. They’re common. And we weren’t getting close enough to be any more certain than that.) was chilling out on the snowy lawn. Sorry about the semi-crappy pictures - we were staying pretty far away from him and my camera doesn’t have enough zoom.

People kept asking if he was okay, if this was normal, if he was a regular to the park, and so I give you Abby’s Quick-and-Dirty Guide to Seals on Land.

1. Is it moving?
2. Does it appear to be alert?
3. Is it doing the “banana pose” (head and tail up)

These are all good signs. Harbor seals, especially young ones, frequently haul out onto shore to take a break from swimming. When they get hungry (or scared), they’ll scoot back into the water. If you see a seal that does /not/ appear healthy and alert, call someone (local police are a good bet; they don’t often have the training to care for these animals, but they usually know who does). Otherwise, stay 50-100 yards away from the seal, don’t make loud noises, don’t bring your dog (some people have no goddamn clue), and watch until you get bored.

The seal we were watching yesterday was spinning in funny little pirouettes.
(Check out that banana pose.)

He seemed to be napping for much of the day - picking his head up to look at the people watching him, and then laying it down again.

He was still there when we left last night.

At our couch:

ABBY: Hey, sleepy, your alarm went off like an hour ago. Are you getting up?
DAN: I’m awake, I’m awake. I couldn’t do the engine swap cause one of the mounts was missing.
ABBY: You’re so asleep.
DAN: No, I’m awake. I’m telling you why I couldn’t do it.
ABBY: Mmhmm, why not?
DAN: Cause one of the mounts wasn’t released yet.
ABBY: What was it you were trying to do?
DAN: Replacing the brakes!
ABBY, laughing: You are so asleep!
DAN: No no, I’m awake!
ABBY: ‘Couldn’t do the engine swap cause one of the mounts was missing’?
DAN: Is that what I just said?

Ah, Nesmith. This sign is in all the stairwells, several of the hallways, and next to the (two) women’s bathrooms. The hallways and stairwells also sport the counterpart.

Please, please, can we do something about this building?

More photos here

I’m not sure where tulips in January come from, but they’re pretty and colorful and I’m not asking too many questions.

Sunday night it freezing rained. Monday it snowed and sleeted and then freezing rained some more.

Tuesday morning it took me 30 minutes (not exaggerating) to get enough ice off my car that I could go for groceries. After hacking at it for a while, I gave up and let the car idle with the defroster on until it warmed up enough to melt the bottom bit of ice. It takes a diesel a long time to warm up at idle.

While waiting for it to warm up, I wandered around and took pictures of the ice coating everything - it’s really quite pretty.

Today is cold. There’s still ice on everything. Our parking lot is almost the same color as the snow from all the salt on it. Hurrying to catch the bus, I fell on an icy bit in our parking lot - two days in a row. It’s pretty and all, and it’s nice to look out the window and see it look like January, but it’s getting old. Tomorrow’s forecast high is 29F, and that sounds downright balmy.

Amtrak Downeaster, southbound, 8-ish Friday morning, by the UNH co-gen plant.

I’m not (as much of) a train geek, but I really like this photo.

Now that we have a more portable camera (a Canon SD630), there are more photos being taken of, well, everything. This batch is from the two weeks surrounding Christmas.

For a few days in December there it was actually cold (hard as that may be to believe this week), and there was crazy frost on the cars in the morning. Ice crystals forming make such nifty patterns.

At Dan’s folks’ annual party we saw all sorts of folks, including Abi and Claudia.

I mysteriously ended up imitating Bartholomew Cubbins while caroling. (And Jon, you owe me a dollar!)

And there was much rocking out back at the house after caroling.

Christmas Day, Dad and Mom and Molly ended up in frighteningly coordinated outfits.

Gennie opened the perfect Christmas present.

Gennie and Molly and I went on a mission to Davids Bridal. It was, ah, entertaining. (No, we did not purchase anything.)

Dan found some hard-core shants while cleaning up the bedroom (and seems to have remarkable powers of levitation).

On the 30th it snowed, and on the 31st, on our way home from snowboarding for a couple of days, we stopped at Pinkham Notch to take some pictures of the winter prettiness.

I’m so sorry. I should have known better. I don’t know what I was thinking.

I just wanted a nice winter coat, something that would keep me warm when it’s 10F and windy. Something that wasn’t the goofy blue parka I’ve had since I was a high school sophomore. I wanted it, and I failed to consider the consequences of my actions.

The temperature yesterday was in the sixties. In New Hampshire. In January. And the only conclusion I can draw is that, much like it doesn’t rain if you only remember to bring an umbrella, my purchase of a winter coat has jinxed our chance for proper winter weather.

I am so sorry.