Belated Christmas greetings...

 the light was just so amazing the other day out in the bog.  went there the past few days between shifts.  well today wasn't between shifts, i just slept until 3pm today and the sun was already set so i went there in the waning light so the dogs would get a walk in.

 these first ones are from a walk i took with the dogs out in north bivouac trails on Christmas eve.  we had a pretty cold Christmas.  i'd say it was about -15F so i had bundled up Rio Catalina.  i know it loaded sideways, but she is pretty dang cute.  i encouraged her to go along despite her protests. i can be that way from time to time.  i knew we were hitting the petsmart after and she always loves it there.  got them treats for Christmas...thanks Karen!!

 i had put a hole in her neck scruff and it worked great. kept her big ears nice and toasty!!

 beautiful blue skies equals cold,cold weather.

 i moved around a bit at work for Christmas.  i also got to go home a few hours early 2 out of the 3 nights, which was a lovely Christmas gift!! my first night was in  the ER, i had a great partner in the area i was in.  it is nice being in the float pool and meeting and getting to know so many more people.  we had a busy time, but overall it was pretty sweet night down there. lots of us showed up in santa hats and there were nice toys available to hand out to any kid unlucky enough to find themselves in the ER that night.  

 was actually trying to get  a selfie that included both dogs, but that didn't happen so i did seperate dog and me selfies.

 my next night, which was Christmas day i started out in the PCU.  i only lasted there until about 10 pm when they had be hand over my patients and move on up to 5neuro to help them out up there.  they had a few heavier assignments so basically i was working as their pct for the night.  they seemed extremely grateful to have my help and abilities up there.  the nice thing too about that night was that both units had nice spreads which they generously shared.  the cafeteria wasn't open Christmas night so lots of nurses and staff do pot lucks.  the night before the hospital opened up the cafeteria for free food.  free is always a nice treat!!

 my last night was in the CCU.  kept busy. nothing horrible, just steady.  lots of time to chat with my sweet elderly patients.  love to chat with these folks who have lived in Alaska for decades. they have great stories if you just sit down and ask them a few questions.  my patients were all super nice last night.  bites to be hospitalized over the holidays.

 blossom is happy to get out.

 we headed out to the big pond thing in the middle of the bog.  it's always treated as an unofficial off leash area to play with the dogs.  years ago a jogger who wasn't happy with me having dogs off leash even said that if i wanted to have them off leash to just go to the middle.  i've been actually pretty good at just doing that now.  my dogs really don't mind being on leash.  i do like to let blossom play fetch for a bit of each walk.  now she's older though and doesn't require as much play time.

 as i got on the actual pond there were a few people and dogs on the opposite shore heading my direction.  at first i figured those dogs were off leash as well.  they seemed to be running all over the place.  as they passed me on the opposite side i saw they were at the end of retractable leashes.  blossom was just chasing her toy in front of me  and we were never closer than a few hundred feet.  his dogs were jumping all over on their leash.  blossom never made a move towards the dogs.  they passed me by and i didn't think anything of it.

 right before they left the pond i heard the guy yelling at his dogs. soon after that he yelled at me as he left the pond, "you know this is a leashed area" or something like that.  then he disappeared into the woods.  chicken shit.  people are strange.  in my opinion he lashed out at me and my dog because he and his dogs were not in control.  i really don't think having blossom on a leash over a hundred feet away would have improved their dogs behaviour, but he needed a scape goat and there i was.  chill out and train your dogs.  you can't control dogs when they are at the end of a retractable leash.

 we carried on and i never saw those folks again.

 clearly the spirit of the season has left as quickly as it arrived.  i suspect they had hyper dogs that no doubt missed several days walks due to the holidays and the very cold weather.

 i worked but i have a lovely Christmas.  people were very generous and kind to me...thanks everyone!!

 i still have a few boxes to get sent off.  hopefully i will do that monday.  i have several calendars and hardly anyone has requested to be in the raffle, haven't really advertised it much this year. oh well.  i do laugh when people tell me i should try to sell my pictures i just thing about those few extra calendars i have each year and how difficult it can be to get folks to sign up to even get a free one.  haha!!

 rio opted out for this first bog walk probably due to the cold walk the day before...oh well.  she joined us today.

 i think we are expecting a wee bit more snow this weekend.  better get out and pick up the frozen poops in the yard.  get em while they are hard...haha!!

 the tree is wrapped in plastic and out on the front porch.  chatted with quinton and he suggested i put it on a sled to drag it.  can't believe that has never occurred to me.  what a ditz.  :-)  the thing was so dry i decided it was time.  i do love having the tree up in the house. the smell is great and the lights are so pretty.  so always a bit sad taking all the decorations down. put some Christmas music on and did the deed.

 there are some good movies out now too.  anyone want to see that walter smitty one this week?  looks really good and i'm hearing good reviews.

 she does look like a ferocious beast sitting there in the snow.

 thawed out some halibut tonight for dinner.  so tasty!!  nice to have a freezer full.  will have to do that more often.

 long shadows of winter!

 spoke to a few siblings/family Christmas day.   lets see...Jeff, Linda, Claire and then Ross. always fun to catch up with everyone.

 looked foggy this morning.  i love fog, but i totally slept like a rock so i pretty much missed the day.

 did get lots of tasky things done at home.  laundry and dishes...the never ending chores.

 chatted with gnat tonight.  she's still laughing that i opened my gift early.  gnat recycles everything and the box she shipped my stuff in had writing on it which said, "open now".  apparently those notes were on the box when it had originally come to her house...i was supposed to know that those instructions weren't for me.  we got a good laugh out of it.

 don't think i'm even up on the latest news.  i know that for a period of time yesterday Delta air had some glitch and their flights were going for less than $50 bucks.  they are going to honor those tickets accidently sold at the low rate.  why don't i ever get lucky like that.  bummer...i'm sure there are some super excited folks out there.

 i had bought a gift card on a regular credit card over at Target in the time frame that they had someone hack their cards.  so far no ill effects. i did call the company to have them watch for irregular activity, which for that card is basically any activity.

 we are always having to keep up with the criminals of the world.  i got nervous as some collection place was leaving messages at my house and i have no issues.  when i did speak to them briefly they just asked if i was this other name and when i said no they apologized and hung up...i'm always nervous that it's a scam even though i personally gave out zero information about myself.  you have to be very careful who you trust, especially over the phone.

 there is a small cruise ship stuck in the ice in the waters around Antarctica.  the passengers seemed jolly though that is a situation that can get ugly fast.  that ice has cracked hulls before.  hopefully, that all ends well for everyone and it's just a great story for them to tell.

 not sure how i can be still tired after sleeping so much today.  perhaps it's from working to get that big tree out of the house. that extra foot really did make a difference!!  it was big!!

 great light above shot

 these were kinda fun as well.

 this one if from today.  not many taken out there as the light was going fast.  same place, different light, different look.

 this loaded sideways as well...  as i cleaned up the fallen needles i began to do Christmas Tree needle art.  this is a heart. i also formed a snowman out of the next sweep...yes, i have no life...i admit it!!

 my sister totally surprised me with this quilt for Christmas.  when i was still a teenager one summer i had put together the patches for two bigger quilts. i think my original plan was that one would be a blue theme and one a brown theme and these quilts would be in my, as we called it back them, "hopeless chest".  i completed the blue themed one and never finished this one.  i had all the rows together but it needed the outsides, the backing and then all the work to  get to from start to finished.  a few years back i sent the top to her figuring she could finish it or do what she wanted with it.  she sews way more than i do.

 it was a brilliant surprise and turned out quite beautiful!!  so happy with my new quilt.  even better that over a span of 20-30 years we have now created this one together as it were, tied in is that the materials were all from my mom's fabric closet.  so that ties mom in  to it as well.  thanks linda...i know this was a labour of love and i'm very grateful to you for it!!

 laid it out on the pool table to get the picture..the only place i have room.

 the kitty cat fabric was material i selected with my mom and i used it in my sewing class in Jr High to make a skirt/vest outfit for myself.

i am sleepy and i do hope to get out before the sun goes down tomorrow.  enjoy your day, wherever you are!!