A Moonlight Night and the Approach of Spring

Hi,

I left at 11:30 tonight and went walking along the
old mines road. The temperature was a frosty -3
degrees -- just right for walking. The thin ice that
covered a portion of the road snapped and cracked
under my feet, as I walked along the road.

Even though it was frosty, I could sense the early
evidence of approaching spring! There were subtle
things like the colour of exposed road surface that
had thawed during the day and was now freshly
frozen again. It has a dark colour that long term
frozen ground doesn't have.

Then, there was a feeling in the air, and a slight
change in the contrast of objects that is different
from early or mid-winter moonlight nights. It's fun
to be aware and to observe such things. It makes
this time of year quite wonderful!

Have a good night . . . it's time that I get some
sleep!

Good medicine always,
Laurie

I Went Skating on the Lake

Yes, I went skating last Monday for the second
time this winter! It was quite nice. The temperature
was a comfortable -3 Celsuis.

The ice was fairly smooth, although there were
lots of rough areas, including small cracks in
the surface that I had to avoid. Those small
cracks in the ice can send you for a nasty
spill:(

I remember going skating one day many years
ago, and having a grand ol' time speeding along
the ice until I got a blade in one of those cracks.
Well, I went flying head-long through the air for
what seemed like an eternity . . . . I finally landed
on the ice, and went sliding along for another
fifteen feet or so, before coming to a stop and
laughing myself silly:)) Talk about a spill!

Fearlessness is the key to skating and having a
good time on the ice. Once you start to fear the
ice, and fear falling, you've had it! You might as
well pack your bags and head for the bar . . . or,
the coffee/tea shop:)

Anyhow, the skating adventure on Monday was a
lot of fun -- I fell once, when I attempted to skate
backwards. Darn it, I hit a rough section of ice:)

Well, so long for this time. I'll be back soon with
another post.

All the best,
Laurie

p.s. I hope you like the clock that I placed on the
blog. Now, you'll be able to compare Nova Scotia
time with your time, wherever you are in the world.

My Latest Approach to Writing Short Stories

Hi,

There are a number of ways to pull off a short
shory. Lately, I've been experimenting with the
notion of having two or more parallel sub-stories
running at the same time. I call them "sub-stories,"
because, together, they compose the short story
that I'm writing.

I try to make the relationship subtle so that the
reader has to figure out just how they relate to
each other. This approach is especially evident in
mystery novels and in other types of novels as
well.

It's not so evident in short stories.

I've just finished a story where this relationship is
never fully explained. The sub-stories are clearly
distinct, yet, if you think about it, you'll discover
that they deeply influence each other. It's left to
the reader to discern the extent of the relationship.

I know, but I'm not talking;)

In any event, this is an approach you might want
to try with your own writing.

All the best!
Laurie

Walking the Bog

I returned to the bog yesterday afternoon
and, this time, with the aid of a walking
stick, managed to get out on it without
falling through the ice! In my previous post,
I mentioned falling through and soaking my
feet in the cold, icey water.

This time, I used a walking stick to poke at
the ice ahead of me. I moved carefully and
was able to go along without any difficulty.
I was able to examine some of the black
spruce trees that grow on small islands in the
bog. Those trees are dwarfted because of
growing conditions, and have quite rough
textured bark. I think they are very old.

I was excited and pleased to see the many
rabbits tracks and trails in the snow, as well
as fox and coyote tracks.

In fact, on my return, as I came out from the
bushes onto the mines road a short distance
from where I live, I saw a fox trotting along the
road towards me. We saw each other at the
same time. The fox was about seventy yards
from me. It sat and looked at me. I stood and
looked back at it. Finally, I moved to walk back
to my home. When I did this, the fox turned on
its heels and high-tailed it away from me.

It was an interesting outing. I didn't see any
chick-a-dees amongst the alder bushes in the
bog. it was probably the wrong time of day for
that -- I'll have to go back there on a sunny
morning.

Bye for this time,
Laurie

I Soaked my Feet:)

Hi,

Well, it continues to be cold here in Nova
Scotia, but I'm hoping that things will change
in another week or so -- in fact, the maple
sap should start running in about a month.
I enjoy maple sap weather when the temperature
rises during the day and dips below freezing
at night.

Yesterday afternoon, I decided to walk back
through the forest to a frozen bog, because I
like to listen to the chickadees chirping in
among the thick alder bushes that grow there.

Anyhow, I decided to walk out on the bog,
thinking the ice had to be thick or well frozen.
To my surprise, I fell through and got both feet
soaked! So, there I was with soaking wet feet
on a cold winter day. Fortunately, I live less than
half a mile from the bog, so that I was able to
quickly return home.

I'll tell you one thing -- I walked fast, and was
surprised to find that my feet actually felt warm
by the time I got back home. However, I removed
my wet things, and put on dry socks and slippers.

I'm still amazed that I fell through the ice! I know
there isn't a stream or moving water in that place.
It should be frozen solid. I plan to return and try
again over the weekend:)

Bye for now,
Laurie

My Latest Website!

Hi,

This is a quick note to invite everyone to
view my latest website, at the following
URL: http://www.thewayofthecrow.com.

I plan to use this site to launch my eBook,
The Way of the Crow, on March 21st, in
celebration of Spring!

Have a good weekend everybody.

All the best,
Laurie