The Winter Solstice

The only real celebration I observe for the Winter Solstice is letting out a huge sigh of relief. The days will start getting longer now…by imperceptible increments…until some day a few weeks from now we’ll notice it’s not dark all the time. I am a craver of light. My father walked along behind me turning off the lights in the house. I wanted MORE lights! My former husbands did the same thing. When I finally bought my own home after Hubby #2 and I split up, I didn’t put one curtain up…much to my neighbors chagrin, I imagine. I just couldn’t stand to not catch every moment of light possible. When Mr. Virgo came along, unfortunately TV and window curtains came with him. Small price to pay, but still…I hated both.

Mr. FixIt and I live out on five acres with no close neighbors. There is, however, a large picture window on the end of the house facing our dirt road and when the lights are on, there’s no way to hide in there. When I first moved in here with my sweetheart, there were heavy, dark, blackout curtains on the windows and the bottom half of the room was painted very deep, dark green. It was a cave and I couldn’t breathe! The first thing I did was rip the curtains off the windows and throw them away. They were old and the gas from the heat had deteriorated the stitching.

That helped a great deal. But there was still not enough light, so within a week of moving in, we painted the walls a very soft blue/grey that was bright enough to not be garish, yet soothing enough to make you sit down and sigh. I love that room. We have a 58” television on the end opposite the window. If I’m home alone, I often turn on the “fireplace channel” and sit there knitting and rocking in my chair. It’s so soothing. However, the other day, I took the trash out and when I turned around, I caught the view through the full glass storm door and it honestly looked like the living room was on fire! I feel bad for my neighbors when they drive by…I’m sure they’ve done a number of double takes as they drive by.

I mean, it’s not like we’re running around “au buffo” or anything. At first, this was a totally new thing for Mr. FixIt…no curtains??? I swear he went along with it because we were so newly in love, he would have crawled through ground glass to make me happy. By now he’s used to it. I bought him a clear acrylic bird feeder that sticks onto the picture window with suction cups so we can watch the birds sweep in and eat just inches from us.

Oh…speaking of birds. I saw a picture the other day doing the rounds on Facebook. It showed an iron skillet with fat in it from having cooked bacon probably. It suggested you put oats in the fat to absorb it and put it out for the birds. Well, before I do ANYTHING regarding birds, I consult my local bird expert, Julie Zickefoose. I sent her the picture and asked if it was ok to do. She answered with a resounding ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! Salt and nitrates are horrible for birds so DON’T DO THAT! If you see it floating around, please share that warning with the person who posts it. Thanks! We love our birds and we want to do what’s best for them!

We saw our family doctor for the last time…he’s retiring and yesterday was his last day. Hubby #2 is also a retired physician and we have had some discussion about the emotional lability involved with such a major change. Some people think they’re not going to have a bit of trouble transitioning to retirement, then they find there are a lot more emotions involved in it that they expected. I warned our doctor of that. He looked at me like maybe I had gone round the bend. Then he said, “You know…you’re probably right.” Some people take to retirement like a duck to water. That’s how I was. But to others, there’s a lot of their “self” wrapped up in their career. I just wanted to give him a head’s up so he wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what happened.

We went to Sam’s to get scallops for Christmas Dinner. My sweet, frugal husband looked at the bag and put them back. “Oh, I don’t really need them that bad.” I marched right passed him, picked up that bag of frozen scallops and said, “It’s Christmas and you work hard. You’re having these!” He just smiled sheepishly. Then I went over to the meat department and picked out the most extravagant yet reasonably priced delicacy I could find and chose a lovely package of lamb chops. Mr. Virgo taught me how to make them grilled with a marinade of orange juice and maple syrup with a touch of rosemary. They are the BEST!

We helped a friend jump start his car. We picked up the two new sets of pots and pans he bought for us with his friends and family discount. We delivered the former Mrs. FixIt her set. Then we went to the grandkid’s farm to see the new puppy. When we got home, I baked two batches of chocolate chip cookies and that was it for me for the day. Today I’ll bake more, then we can deliver cookies to the neighbors on Christmas Eve.

The days will slowly grow longer now. But as they do, there will be knitting and baking and other projects to be done around the house. Lots of birds to watch. Lots of sunsets and life moments to catch with my camera. Lots of words to write. Make some memories this week, people. I’ve again been reminded how quickly life is gone.

❄️