Well, what did I do while being extremely busy with not blogging?
First of all: For a couple of days this newsholic did follow the advice of Mr Thoreau and ignore any news. No TV; no radio, no PC - ha ha, no! No laptop, either. - And: he did not smoke. Neither he consumed any alcohol. He drank and ate well, though, both of which gave him power to shovel snow.
What (else) did he do then?
Reading (details will / might follow), shovelling snow, writing, feeding the birds, reading, pondering, writing, listening, talking, watching black birds and sparrows, bull-, green- and gold finchs, blue- and great tits, a pair of spotted woodpeckers, a nuthatch, robins and, of course, Mr & Mrs Crow who do accept us to being their neighbours for the past 33 years, reading, writing, shovelling snow - by the way, shovelling with one 'l' or with two, Stan? :) - learning Blackbirdish, oh! and enjoying Fidelio, Carmen, La Traviata, Aida, Don Giovanni, Tosca, La Bohème, The Magic Flute.
Did I mention I was shovelling snow?
A fine set of activities, Sean! I'm sure the birds appreciated your kind attention — that amount of snow is more manageable to human hands than to wings and weak claws.
ReplyDeleteThe first photo is quite magical.
What a magnificent program! I'm mesmerisd by the sunray on the snow. I don't blame you one bit for immersing yourself fully into your own beautiful corner of the world.
ReplyDeleteHere, no need for a shovel, no birds on trees and in windows. But I do, now and again, disappear from contacts with the gray, busy universe, and plunge into reading, writing, music listening and staring...It clears my foggy thinking. I don't like the word "retreat". I call this "renewal". Getting in touch with one's inner self, and the reality of one's own life. Lovely when one can afford the time, and still keep the home fires burning.
Thank you for sharing. Nice to see you back, Sean.:)
Where can I book for that holiday experience, it sounds magical :-)
ReplyDeleteAlthough it is said I knew why the devil beat his grandmother (because she didn't find an excuse), I can't think of a good aexcuse right now.
ReplyDeleteI just forgot about answering some comments. :)
Stan,
yes, these were lovely days. And the birds: Amazing their relative confidingness. Meanwhile, often when this bi-ped arrives they would just wait within three, four metres until he disappears. :)
An episode, cut very short:
Once a neighbour said to my father-in-law: "Oh, so it is you who is feeding the crows."
Our father's reply (he knew what he was talking about): "Hunger is cruel."
Claudia,
the first photo, called 'magical' by Stan was taken but by my cellular, otherwise it might have become a bit more magic.
Feeling 'renewed' is probably the best what can hope for when retreating.
I'd not call a retreat, though, what I lived.
Now could this comment easily become one about 'time'. Being lazy- as you know, I shall again cut it short, by putting it in a way some people would call provocative: People who do always claim they have no time, are just not able to organise their time (properly). :)
Did I ever mention that one of the best compliments I got was when someone said: Sean, you are both an ingenious slob, and a chaotic genius. :)
CherryPie,
you don't even have to buy any (holiday-)ticket: just imagine you are living in the eye of the magic. :)