winter, revised.

i'll go ahead and add "heal a fractured fibula" to my list of winter good times.

there's no quicker way to go crazy than to remove all physical activity from your life.

saltlake-sunvalley-portland-rockaway-hoquiam-seattle-boise-saltlake

the pacific northwest is easy to love.

birds identified on this trip:

red-breasted merganser (first time!)
hooded merganser
barrow's goldeneye (first time!)
bufflehead
mallard
american wigeon
great blue heron
bald eagle
swainson's hawk
red-tailed hawk
northern harrier
american kestrel
raven
eared grebe
fulmar or petrel? (ah, seabirds i don't know! it had a sad petrel eye, and was floating alone)
black-billed magpie
rough-legged hawk
flocks of finches and starlings

also saw a chaos coyote in sun valley on a misty river morning.

i don't think i would have been able to identify half of these animals if it weren't for holiday binoculars from my boy and my copy of sibley's from my parents.

we are Bothwell.

Snoqualmie anymore.

Toppenish morning to you.

gusts of birds.

farmington bay, december 3, 2011

American Kestrel
Pie-billed Grebe
White-faced Ibis
Golden Eagle
Northern Pintail
Northern Harrier
Marsh Wren
California Gull
Canvasback
American Coot
American White Pelican
Willet
Northern Shoveler
Lesser Yellowlegs
American Wigeon

a beautiful day with a dear friend.

sloping.

i downhill skied for the first time today. i fell, i cried, i swore. i had a patient teacher. it was fun and i can't wait to do it again.

that's why you always leave a note.

the last few weeks are blurry whirly. i should write in a journal. or on this blog.

terrariyums.

reading about seasonal affective disorder will cause you to have it. if you are careful, then you didn't read the preceding sentence, out of preventative principle.

whatever, i have a load of a list of things that are going to keep me from getting the wintertime blues.

building a terrarium with caitie is on the list, as is a thanksgiving land art project with amy.

if i posted the whole list here i would be embarrassed. no. i'll do it, for the record.

in no particular order:

watercolors, learn to knit, knit a big blanket, crochet the ongoing blanket, cook soups, quiche, tarts, snowshoeing, cross country skiing, birding, wishes project, thanksgiving art with amy, seattle, yoga, gym, homemade yogurt, honey, movies, madmen, the wire, breaking bad, tim and eric, duck club, the cabin, hot springs--diamond fork and meadow, yurt, lots of yoga, craft niche, cookies!, strength training, terrariums with caitie, succulent garden, cooking class, opera, ballet, telemark skiing (jord's going to teach me!!), hiking up neff's to find moss.

i'll add to this.

happening.

pardon me for seeming sowft.

i found this in the dustbin of blog drafts.

dear miss caitie,

you may not recall my gorgan(zola), but i met you at the snarly cocktail party given by our ripe friend, spencer. we had a hipstery talk about brazen mustachios dot coms, and i was impressed by your arabic conversation and your grasp of the manufactured situation. also, i was very much attracted by your oily eyes, your dusty little chin, and your racy teeth. if you'll pardon me for seeming sowft, i was fascinated by your blue walk and by your gregarious figure.

i hope i made a demonstrative impression, and that we can get together for a nice arbiter next week.

mysteriously yours,

tyler

to love the west

i've created another internet diversion!

this time, it highlights things to be loved about the west, especially my home state, utah.

here it is:

heartwest

no more pharting around.

most of last week sucked. i was too busy to be happy.

points of brightness, of course, were my boy, my family, my friends and zim.