January and Winter

Snow and sunshine

January is nearly over. Winter returned with rain, snow and below zero after a brief warm spell. January is a condition in the North. It's not noticing the dust in your house, looking in the refrigerator with no clue for dinner and making the bed in the morning, looking forward to crawling back into the flannel sheets as soon as possible. Fortunately, one day Emily drove down in ice and snow from her north woods for lunch with the WT's. That was a bright spot.

The big event in January is the Pepsi Challenge cross country ski race at our local ski area. The Saturday event included heavy rain, which was a new experience for the skiers. Some of the WT's worked as volunteers during the race.

Dorothy is enjoying a break with her husband in a retirement apartment, near their daughter, in Ohio. Three meals, cleaning and many activities included, sounds like a vacation to us. Joan is planning to come home for three months. We look forward to seeing her. Laurie and her husband were in Florida. They volunteered at the Disney Marathon Race. Helen has been with her children for a few months.

We were sorry to learn that our local theater has closed. It was an asset to our small town. We were able to see first run movies with a wonderful sound system.

There are activities to keep us busy. There is an ice fishing contest coming up in our area. Substantial prizes will be given for the largest walleye and northern. There is a cluster of ice fishing houses on the lake.

The libraries are running their adult winter reading programs--"Hot Reads-Cold Nights" from January 19 through March 12. If you read five books or more, you will be eligible for prizes.

The Senior Center is advertising a Pot Luck Super Bowl Party. There will be door prizes and drawings. The WT's aren't enthused about pot lucks since they aren't very interested in cooking.

February is around the corner. Brighter days are ahead and Valentine's Day with promises of chocolate.