Funny what a difference a few days can make.  I went to orchestra practice the other night, for strings only.  I came out of there somewhat more confident that the music won't be impossible to tackle.  Inspired, I was able to practice 2 hours yesterday, and made it through the first movement, 6 pages, of Dvorak's New World Symphony.  If I can continue to practice at that pace, I may actually be able to contribute successfully to the 'sound' at our March concert.  I love the music we will be performing.......Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto, the soloist will be my former violin teacher and dear friend Stefan Xhori.....and the piece is one which Sarah used for all of her college auditions.  The other piece is Mendelssohn's Hebrides Overture, which we performed a few years ago, and I love.  I hope we can garner a good audience to hear these outstanding works.
  I finally got my violin in tune; one of the pegs wouldn't hold and the E string kept slipping, but I think that now that I have some WATER in the humidifier in the case, it's doing much better.
  The snow is melting, the temperature is at 43 F , and the sun is shining.  A great day outdoors for January, but they say another storm is lurking around the corner.  In my opinion, we have had the perfect amount of snow thus far......enough to keep the ground covered and looking like winter, but not so much as to make getting back and forth to the barns a challenge.  People that live around here that say they hate snow should just move to Florida.  Ya' think?
  I went over to say goodbye to Fancy, the gorgeous bay Arabian mare I bred and held for many years for my daughter Lisa.  She went for some training in September and is now being shipped to South Carolina to stay with Lisa.  I hope she has a safe trip and enjoys her new home,  I know Lisa is excited to finally have her 'home'.
  Well, off to make something to eat; I have boiled about a dozen eggs, some to make creamed eggs for 'brunch' with, and the others to make a batch of pickled eggs in beet juice.  So much to do, and I want to take time to start watercolor painting today.  I have been foraging through books to understand the concepts, have all of the necessary starter tools, and now just need to start practicing.  Should be fun!

Opening Message

Well, here I am, typing my first blog.  Haven't really given much thought to why I am doing this, but I think it may have some therapeutic properties.  I have been mostly living alone now for almost two years, except for the times my college aged daughter comes home on breaks.  Those are great times; don't always get much done, but I sure do love sitting around and catching up with her.  Or just having someone else in the house that understands and cares about me.  I lost my husband Dan to cancer in June 2009, and it seems like I have set out into the wild, on a trip, which I have no idea where I am going to or going to end up.  Just when you think life is good, you know who you are and what life means to you, something happens to change everything you know.  Losing a spouse, after helping them through a terminal illness, saying goodbye, and trying to be strong for them,  well, it is a challenge; a life changing event.  I have to wonder if it qualifies as a traumatic event.  Is there a name for what I am going through, other than grieving?  I have to admit that I do feel better than I did a year ago, but I am no where near where I want to be in this process.  More later.  It's time to fix 'dinner for one', another of those things I am trying to deal with, after years of cooking for a family.  Until next time, stay warm!