Snow, Snow, and More Snow

Snowy Trees by the Ocean

I love snow...I used to live back east and really enjoyed the winters there, although it sounds like they're really getting blasted this year. After a very mild winter here on the Sunshine Coast, it started snowing and didn't stop for two days. The whole area turned into a winter wonderland.The power went out several times but luckily it didn't stay off for long.There was no way we could drive up our hill so after walking the dogs, we walked past a couple of cars in the ditch and made our way to town to buy groceries. Then I went down to the water to take some pictures and also made a point of feeding some peanuts to the chickadees that eat from my hand...they find me no matter where I am, and fly in for a treat. 

It was a perfect couple of days for me but now I can hear the snow melting and crashing onto our roof. So I guess it's back to normal until next time when time slows down because of the weather. I'm happy to see that there's more snow in the forecast later this week!

snowy trees art

Happy Valentine's Day!

Squirrels in Love 

I don't know why, but this old Donovan song has been going through my head. It's such a cheerful little song and beautiful in its simplicity: Happiness Runs.

Whether you have a sweetie or not, I hope today is a good day for you!

squirrels art

Foggy Forest Hikes

Another Foggy Morning on the Sunshine Coast

As I said in a recent post, I've been going for two- to three-hour hikes every other day, mostly along our fantastic Suncoaster Trail, which stretches for 37 kilometres here on the Sunshine Coast. I actually hike every day but every other day it's my turn to walk the dogs and we don't go as far as my hikes when I'm alone.

Fog on the Trail Through the Woods

We've had it pretty good this winter, with mild temperatures (unlike the rest of Canada) and only one snowfall (also unlike the rest of Canada). One thing we do get a lot of here in the Pacific Northwest is fog. I love a good misty morning walk though...fog always makes things more mysterious and appealing, don't you think?

fog art

Will It Snow?

 Snow in the Harbor

Our weather has been so mild lately that we actually have fruit flies in the house and can't seem to get rid of them. I've discovered that fruit flies don't just like fruit. They also like vegetables. They like water a lot too, so besides banning fruit and vegetables to outside the house, I've also taken to drying the kitchen sink all the time in an effort to get rid of the pesky little beggars.

There's a small chance it'll snow tomorrow. Bring it on, I say! Maybe that'll send the fruit flies packing, or flying, or whatever. And besides, when it snows I get to play outside and take pretty pictures. We've only had one snowfall this year and I think we deserve at least one more.
snow art

Roosevelt Elk

Roosevelt Elk Cows

I saw four elk cows on my morning hike a couple of days ago. It was so good to see them again finally! Two dozen elk were trapped and relocated to another area of British Columbia earlier this month. I talked to the biologist who was involved with baiting and trapping the elk, and he told me they were trying to keep the herd here on the coast to 200 because they become "a problem" otherwise.

I hadn't seen hide nor hair of the elk since the two dozen were relocated. Actually, I haven't seen nearly as many elk overall in the past year as I used to see. They're like old friends that I like to stay in touch with. Anyway, when I spotted them as I came out of the wood, we stood and stared at each other for awhile and I took some pictures (not the one above), and then they calmly walked into the forest. I hope they stay in touch.

Forest Bathing aka Shinrin-yoku

A Walk in the Forest

I've always taken my two dogs for long walks through the forests. There are endless logging roads where I live, and it's also possible to walk along the power lines forever. 

But lately I've been going for two to three-hour walks on my own every other day. I read a few articles on Shinrin-yoku, Japanese for a practice called forest bathing, that kind of spurred me on. Studies show that walking or just enjoying time in the forest reduces stress and increases your immunity. Apparently walking in the forest increases the activity of our natural killer (NK) cells, which are components of our immune systems that fight cancer. It is speculated that breathing in air containing antimicrobial wood essential oils that protect trees from rot and insects could be responsible for the positive effect on our health.

No, I don't have cancer but like everybody else, I deal with stress. And all I know is, I feel amazing after a walk in the woods. Sometimes I'm lost in thought and come up with creative ideas, but other times I try to stay in the now and take everything in...the sounds, the smells, the way a tree feels (yes, I've been known to hug a few trees!) I've even made my peace with the almost constant rain we get here in the Pacific Northwest. Rain used to kind of depress me and I'd avoid walking in it when I could. Now I've embraced it because let's face it, it's almost always raining in the winter here! Now I find a walk in the rain refreshes me.

I recommend you give it a try and maybe even make forest bathing a regular practice. Here's an article about Shinrin-yoku and some of the studies that have been done.

breathing in air containing phytoncide (wood essential oils) like α-pinene and limonene, which are antimicrobial volatile organic compounds emitted from trees to protect them from rotting and insects. - See more at: http://www.hphpcentral.com/article/forest-bathing#sthash.jQIFIq1y.dpuf

NK activity partly to breathing in air containing phytoncide (wood essential oils) like α-pinene and limonene, which are antimicrobial volatile organic compounds emitted from trees to protect them from rotting and insects. - See more at: http://www.hphpcentral.com/article/forest-bathing#sthash.jQIFIq1y.dpuf

Dr Li attributes the increase in NK activity partly to breathing in air containing phytoncide (wood essential oils) like α-pinene and limonene, which are antimicrobial volatile organic compounds emitted from trees to protect them from rotting and insects. - See more at: http://www.hphpcentral.com/article/forest-bathing#sthash.jQIFIq1y.dpuf

Dr Li attributes the increase in NK activity partly to breathing in air containing phytoncide (wood essential oils) like α-pinene and limonene, which are antimicrobial volatile organic compounds emitted from trees to protect them from rotting and insects. - See more at: http://www.hphpcentral.com/article/forest-bathing#sthash.jQIFIq1y.dpuf

forest bathing art

Happy New Year from Me and Frosty

Frosty the Snowman

Happy New Year! I hope 2014 is everything you want it to be and more. 

I want to have more fun in the new year. I felt just like a kid when I was building the snowman you see pictured above, and I'd like to have more of that feeling in 2014 and in the years beyond. Getting old kinda sucks a lot of times but I really do believe that we don't have to feel old as we age. Attitude is everything.

So let me tell you about my adventure while building this snowman. I'd grabbed one of my scarves and borrowed one of my husband's hats (he's something of a collector) and headed down to a spot that overlooks the ocean and is surrounded by lovely big evergreen trees that were looking pretty spectacular with the new snow. This was just before Christmas.

The snow was perfect for building a snowman and I made him pretty quickly. To tell you the truth, I was maybe more concerned with getting a fun photo of a snowman than I was about making Frosty structurally sound. So I didn't build up his backside very well, thinking it didn't matter because you wouldn't be able to see that in the final photograph.

First I wrapped my scarf around the snowman, then I added my husband's funky hat, a colorful knitted one given to him by a female friend of ours. Next I tried to jam his carrot nose in, but for some reason it wasn't going in easily. I tried a couple of times, and then I really jammed it in, and that's when disaster struck: Frosty's head and torso tumbled off his bottom half and plummeted down the rocky cliff. I couldn't help but laugh at the same time I yelled, "Oh no!" I managed to catch my scarf before it slid down the cliff but my husband's hat was a goner. Some inaccessible bush or boulder is now wearing a very cool hat. Merry Christmas!

So this picture of Frosty is actually a picture of Frosty 2, with another hat (also borrowed from my husband, hee hee). But this time I was more careful and built my snowman carefully.

Anyway, it helps not to take these things too seriously (oh yeah, easy for me to say that, it wasn't my hat!) but in the end, things like your hat going off the side of a cliff are really small potatoes. I want to be in the moment, like a child playing, and not worry about the future and the not-fun things that can happen. If I have a new year's resolution, that's it...be in the moment. Savor it. Today is the day!
snowman art