2010

Happy New Year!

The picture is out of my art journal. While it looks like it is a Zentangle, it is only in a similar style to one. I've been doing these types of drawings for many years, they help me to relax my mind.

About the drawing, I'd done the page with a wash of watercolor awhile back, then I put a coat of white gesso over it and sanded it just a little so I could draw with my black, ultra-fine tip marker. Occasionally, I used a couple of other colored fine-tip markers as well. :)
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So this is the start of a brand new year! I've been working on a totally new idea that I'm Very Excited about and can't wait to unveil it! I'm hoping to unveil it at the end of next week. That's all I will say for now. ;)

One of my resolutions for this year is to blog at least three times a week...daily would be better, but I have a better chance of keeping that promise of three times per week. lol I'm going to give it my best shot.

Must get back in the studio now...Happy New Year!

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Holidays, Ornaments, and Food, Oh My!

This ornament above is the next in the custom order I mentioned yesterday. Unfortunately, I didn't check the photos before shipping it out and they didn't turn out right. Wish I would have checked them first so I could have retaken them. This one has a paisley design with one heart.

I'll be showing the third one in tomorrow's post.

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Last night for dinner I made a Cranberry Glazed Pork Roast in my slow cooker and it was fabulous! I didn't get a picture of it before it was attacked, but I will share the recipe with you so you can give it a try. :) My daughter, who is not very fond of Cranberries, absolutely LOVED it!

Ingredients:

• 1 (16 oz.) can jellied cranberry sauce
• 1 (16 oz.) can whole cranberry sauce
  
• 1/2 C. white sugar
• 1/4 C. Dark Brown Sugar
  
• 1/2 C. cranberry juice
• 1 t. mustard powder
• 1/2 t. Rosemary
  
• 1/4 t. ground cloves
• 4-5 lb. Boneless Pork Blade Roast (or other cut)
  
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• salt to taste

1. Combine cranberry sauces with a fork, mix well. Stir in sugar, cranberry juice, mustard, Rosemary, and cloves.
   
2. Place pork roast in slow cooker. Pour cranberry sauce mixture over the roast.
3. Cover and cook on high for 6 to 8 hours.
   
4. Using a ladle, scoop out about 2 Cups of the liquid and put into a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Blend cornstarch and cold water and add gradually into boiling liquid stirring constantly. Continue cooking(and stirring constantly), until mixture thickens. Add salt to taste. Serve with the roast.

Enjoy! I'm going to use this same glaze on our Ham for Christmas this year too.

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New things about to come out of my studio! I'm so excited! I've been working on a couple of secret projects lately and can't wait to share them with all of you! I will be announcing their unveiling here in the blog, so be sure to check back here.

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For those of you waiting to see before and after pics of my studio organziation...It is still unorganized, but it is getting there. While I was working on it, the ideas started to flow in my head which has led to the secret projects I mentioned above. You know how it is, you get a great idea and before you know it, you are happily working on it every chance you get. :)

Right now, I must get to the kitchen and start the preparations for tomorrow's feast! My Son and his family will be joining us tomorrow for a day of fun and food!

'Till later...Have a great day!

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Staying on Track

Staying on track, course, or the right path is sometimes one of the most difficult things that we creatives are faced with.


We see, we read, and therefore we are like Blackbirds, drawn to the next shiny thing that catches our eye...and we most often hoard our finds, sometimes forgetting that we ever bought them in the first place and better yet, we've most likely forgotten what on earth we were going to do with them once we had them.


Also, dare I mention that along with those piles of forgotten new supplies, are even more cubbies filled with projects that are in various stages of completion?


As I've been working on re-organizing my shop, I've found things that I swear I never bought! It's kind of like Christmas! However, being faced with the realization that I've either bought or found, stashed, and forgot about these things is a little bit frightening.


Have you ever seen the show "Clean House" on the Style channel? I wonder if they ever had to deal with an artist or other similar creative type? I can tell you this, if Niecy and her team had to come here and deal with me, they'd be at their wits end. At this point, I'm happy to say I don't live anywhere near L.A. (they only work in the L.A. area), because I'm sure at least one of my kids would be making me an appointment.


So, how to combat this affliction of our most ardent affection of new supplies?


How do you stick with a project till the very end? I think I find it to be most difficult to stick with one because as I'm working, the colors, shapes, and even the tools I use seem to trigger new thoughts and ideas for future projects. I think what happens is that sometimes the thoughts are so strong I have to drop what I'm doing to start the new thing before I forget it.


How about you, what do you do?


Well, I'm off to weed through more! 'Till later...

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Enhancing my Creative Space

This week, in between working on custom orders, I'll be remaking my creative space! I really need to brighten up my space to lift my spirit again.

Like a lot of other artists, I've always loved peeking into other artists' creative spaces. They are all so inspiring!

So, I'm going to be repainting some of the walls in mine and adding more to the funky mural I started awhile back.

I also am hoping that I'll be able to move some things around, like my two large work areas/benches. I'm really tired of where they are and I really don't like to work with my back to the door. Especially when I have my air compressor going and music blaring. The way it is now, if someone walks up behind me and I don't hear them...well, I jump out of my skin if they tap me on the shoulder, or if I turn and they are standing right there! So, that definitely has to be changed for all of our health.

I've always been a fairly disorganized person, especially when it comes to keeping track of my supplies. So, I'm ready to pick myself up and continue my journey from disorganized to organized. I'll be sure to share pictures!

Wish me luck! 'Till later... =)

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Creative Inspiration and The Hoff!

My contribution to Music Monday on Twitter, This is the funniest song that I've heard in a long, long time! Enjoy!

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Maternal Instinct?

You've heard of a mother dog taking care of a stray kitten, or a cow taking care of a fawn. Now you will be able to say you've heard of a White Pine mothering a Mountain Ash.

This is a photo of the largest White Pine in my yard. This tree towers over my house. My house is about 30 ft. tall (I'm guessing). It is the home of a few different species of birds and a couple of squirrels.

The tree looks like it is two times the size of my house. It's huge! Last year I noticed that a Mountain Ash tree (follow the arrow) started growing where the trunk of the White Pine splits into two. I never would have guessed that the little guy would still be there this year--and not only that, but so healthy!

Where the little tree is growing, I cannot reach without a ladder. I think it is about 7 - 8 feet off the ground (at least).

Two of my neighbors have beautiful Mountain Ash trees that get berries every year. Birds love these berries and apparently love to eat them while they are sitting in my White Pine. I figure a berry got away from one of the birds and landed in that split area and started to grow. This tiny, little tree is so beautiful and so amazing.

The large White Pine seems almost like it is mothering the little tree, protecting it from the harshest of storms, keeping it cozy and warm in the winter, and sheltered from the sun and heat in the summer.

I'm not sure how long that little tree is going to be able to grow there. It's little roots must be bonding within that huge pine by now, so I think if I were to remove it from the pine it might kill the little tree. I'm just going to keep my eye on it, and if it starts to look as though it may die, I'll try to transplant it. For now, it will grow and continue to be nurtured by my beautiful White Pine.

(It was very windy the day I took this photo, which made it difficult to get a still shot)

Hope you all have a wonderful day!

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Music. My Best Source of Inspiration

Music is my best source of inspiration, always has been. The songs I've loved since the 60s have laid the foundation for many of my drawings and paintings. The song I'm sharing with you all today is one that has provided the foundation for many of my paintings over the years. Listen to it and read along...you'll see what I mean. ;) Enjoy!

"A Whiter Shade Of Pale" - Procol Harum

We skipped the light fandango
Turned cartwheels cross the floor
I was feeling kinda seasick
But the crowd called out for more
The room was humming harder
As the ceiling flew away
When we called out for another drink
The waiter brought a tray

And so it was that later
As the miller told his tale
That her face, at first just ghostly,
Turned a whiter shade of pale
She said, there is no reason
And the truth is plain to see.
But I wandered through my playing cards
And would not let her be
One of sixteen vestal virgins
Who were leaving for the coast
And although my eyes were open
They might have just as wellve been closed
She said, Im home on shore leave,
Though in truth we were at sea
So I took her by the looking glass
And forced her to agree
Saying, you must be the mermaid
Who took neptune for a ride.
But she smiled at me so sadly
That my anger straightway died

If music be the food of love
Then laughter is its queen
And likewise if behind is in front
Then dirt in truth is clean
My mouth by then like cardboard
Seemed to slip straight through my head
So we crash-dived straightway quickly
And attacked the ocean bed

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"Handmade News" Needs You!

Would you like to be paid for your expertise by becoming a columnist for the new "Handmade News Publication" http://handmadenews.org ?

Right now we have two openings for columnists in the "Guilds and Teams Dept." ( http://www.handmadenews.org/department/index.php?did=14 )!

"Handmadenews.org is a vibrant collaboration and central repository for information and articles pertaining to all things handmade. With craft, indie, and modern cottage industry related information and articles to help keep you in the know. We are always seeking new Contributors, Columnists, and Editors and welcome fresh perspectives from bright voices."

Here is the link to more information and application:
http://www.handmadenews.org/home/application.php

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Your Creative Spirit

"Discover & Recover Your Creative Self"

I've dusted off my book and am about to go through "The Artist's Way" and would like for all of you to join me!

Julia Cameron, author of "The Artist's Way", "Vein of Gold", and "Finding Water" (to name a few) suggests that in order for us to learn more about ourselves and our world, we should start our own creative cluster and go through the book together. The book leads us to explore and face our dreams, fears, blocks, and personal challenges. The Creative Cluster is not a critique group, rather it is a place to gain creative confidence and courage. The cluster will help us cultivate our ability to be bold in whatever we do by offering group support and encouragement.

To accomplish this, I've set up a Creative Cluster Clubhouse here on ByHand.me. As the book suggests, we would cover one chapter per week in the order the book is laid out. We will use the CCC as a way to record our journeys, share ideas, and encourage and support other members with theirs.

If you don't have a copy of this book already and you'd like to join in, you can get the book for as little as $3.25 from Amazon. Click Here to view this book and select pages on Amazon.

This book is for everyone and all creative types: Writers, painters, crafters, actors, musicians, visual artists, jewelry artisans, etc..

Please join us and take part in this journey. Our start date will be May 10, 2009. This will allow some time for those who need to get a copy of the book and notebooks for our morning pages and other exercizes.

Once we complete The Artist's Way, we will be moving on to other inspirational and motivating books.

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Despite the Warnings...

Here are the lyrics of this song:


What about sunrise
What about rain
What about all the things
That you said we were to gain.. .
What about killing fields
Is there a time
What about all the things
That you said was yours and mine...
Did you ever stop to notice
All the blood we've shed before
Did you ever stop to notice
The crying Earth the weeping shores?

Aaaaaaaaaah Aaaaaaaaaah

What have we done to the world
Look what we've done
What about all the peace
That you pledge your only son...
What about flowering fields
Is there a time
What about all the dreams
That you said was yours and mine...
Did you ever stop to notice
All the children dead from war
Did you ever stop to notice
The crying Earth the weeping shores

Aaaaaaaaaaah Aaaaaaaaaaah

I used to dream
I used to glance beyond the stars
Now I don't know where we are
Although I know we've drifted far

Aaaaaaaaaaah Aaaaaaaaaaaah
Aaaaaaaaaaah Aaaaaaaaaaaah

Hey, what about yesterday
(What about us)
What about the seas
(What about us)
The heavens are falling down
(What about us)
I can't even breathe
(What about us)
What about the bleeding Earth
(What about us)
Can't we feel its wounds
(What about us)
What about nature's worth
(ooo,ooo)
It's our planet's womb
(What about us)
What about animals
(What about it)
We've turned kingdoms to dust
(What about us)
What about elephants
(What about us)
Have we lost their trust
(What about us)
What about crying whales
(What about us)
We're ravaging the seas
(What about us)
What about forest trails
(ooo, ooo)
Burnt despite our pleas
(What about us)
What about the holy land
(What about it)
Torn apart by creed
(What about us)
What about the common man
(What about us)
Can't we set him free
(What about us)
What about children dying
(What about us)
Can't you hear them cry
(What about us)
Where did we go wrong
(ooo, ooo)
Someone tell me why
(What about us)
What about babies
(What about it)
What about the days
(What about us)
What about all their joy
(What about us)
What about the man
(What about us)
What about the crying man
(What about us)
What about Abraham
(What was us)
What about death again
(ooo, ooo)
Do we give a damn
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Follow Your Dream!

Do you LOVE what you do?

This picture shows my most favorite place in my house! :D

We must love what we do in life to keep the passion in our lives! When I wake up in the morning, the first thing that crosses my mind is “what will I create today”! I cannot tell you how much happier I have been since I decided to follow my dream. I only wish I would have done this a lot sooner…but as they say, “better late than never”. Every time I create something new hundreds of new, inspiring ideas crowd my mind. I’m having the time of my life!

If you have a dream, don’t keep putting it off….Just do it! The longer you keep putting it off, the less time you will have to enjoy it when and if you finally take that step.

What is your passion???

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I'm happy to announce that I've started up the weekly polls that I ran on my old WP blog! The first poll is listed above. I've set it so that you may check more than one answer. Also, if you check other, or just want to comment on the poll, please use the comment area for this post. :-)

Have a wonderful weekend!

“For the warrior, there is no “better” or “worse”; everyone has the necessary gifts for his particular path.”~~Paul Coelho

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How to Select Keywords for Search Engine Optimization

I've been looking into different ways to drive traffic to my website because at the end of this week I will no longer be a member of Entrecard. Entrecard was fun, I did find a lot of unusual and very interesting blogs to read. Although it was fun and it did drive a lot of traffic to my blog, the bounce rate is/was very high.

I came across this interesting article on Search Engine Optimization that I think you might find helpful for your sites too. Leave a comment below and let me know what you think!

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How To Select Keywords For Search Engine Optimization

By: Evelyn Lim

Selecting the correct keywords can make or break your website. Potential customers search the web for desired sites, and if your website doesn't have the keywords they're looking for, they'll miss you.

Determining keywords is an art; it's best to work backwards. What would a customer search for if they were looking for your site? You literally have to put yourself in the consumer's place and let go of your preconceived notions about what you think your keywords are. You should remember when writing your site that you need to use words that are not only related to your content, but are popular search words as well. This is called keyword optimization, or choosing the most searched keywords related to your content.

Spend some time listing all of the words and phrases that are related to your website content. Get ideas from everyone you can think of and list them all. Visit competitors' sites and see what meta tags they use. After this research, you are ready to develop your own keyword phrases.

There are several sites designed to assist you in keyword optimization. Here are a few of the free ones:-

The Overture Keyword Tool (http://www.inventory.overture.com ) lists searches related to the keyword you provide. This took is great for expanding your list.

Wordtracker (http://www.wordtracker.com) helps identify keywords that will help your ranking on search engines. Wordtracker also gives you other keyword combinations that you may have overlooked.

The Keyword Tumbler (http://www.keywordtumbler.com) takes your existing keyword phrases and mixes it up to form new phrases and variations that you can include in your meta tags.

A great website is not so great if no one finds it. Remember to research your keywords carefully from the consumer's viewpoint and then sit back and watch the traffic roll in!

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Evelyn Lim is a publisher of the popular newsletter "Mapping You to Success" aimed at the aspiring home based internet business owner. She also hopes to educate her readers on acquiring multiple sources of online income

. Please visit her site at http://www.e-BizMap.com for more information.

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Freeze Frame!

Here are two more of my dance paintings, also of Michael Jackson. The first one, above, is my absolute favorite so far.

I love the way they all turned out so far. These too, are both from the video "Smooth Criminal (live)" which I have included in this post. :)

I love the stick figures because, first of all you can tell it is Michael, and secondly, because they show the energy behind the dance.

These canvas boards will be mounted on blocks of wood, and not framed, so that when they are hung, they will appear to be floating on the wall.
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It's the usual Sunday routine so far, plus I hope to be spiffing up my studio a bit later. It has to have it's picture taken this week and no way will I take pictures of it in its current state. lol ;) I know a lot of you have a studio like mine and understand what I'm talking about.

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Music + Dance = Color

It's Thursday and that means it is time to share what I created for the "Dreaming in Color" challenge put out by "Thursday Sweet Treat"!

This is the first time I've taken part in one of Natasha's challenges and I had a blast!

I entered two of the four paintings that I created for this challenge. This first one (above) is an abstract/line drawing of Michael Jackson caught in one of his steps in "Smooth Criminal".

Here's a video of "Smooth Criminal" (Incidently, the photo of MJ at top of the page is from a different video than the one I used.)

[note: when I made my submission, I had put that it was from "Dangerous", it should have been from "Smooth Criminal"] I created three of these types of paintings of him, all in different poses from 3 of his songs. I am only showing the one here for now. I have three more in progress. :)

The second submission I call "Musical Dreams". This symphony of color is in constant motion. Listen to it, enjoy the dance. :)

These paintings were done with acrylics on canvas board.

All for now! Have a great day!

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Stretching My Creative Muscle

I'm so inspired and so ready for this! Last week, I found this blog, "Thursday Sweet Treat", by way of a message board on ArtFire.

A themed challenge is posted on the blog once a week, on Fridays. If you choose to take part in the current challenge, you need to have your piece ready and submitted by the end of the day, the following Wednesday. All works that are submitted will be posted to the blog on Thursday. :D

The current theme (#6) is "Dreaming in Color". Go there now to get the full details.

I am really excited and looking forward to this! I'm going to try to take part every week possible too.

When I get my entry done for this one, I'll let you know ;). Right now though, I'm going to go and work a bit more on it. :)

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Quest for the Bear's Den

Deep woods, originally uploaded by avision4.

Went out into the woods during Rifle season, which started November 15 - end of the month, to get pictures of the forest & an amazing bear's den.Unfortunately, two hunters had blocked off the road to the den on both ends, and I wasn't about to walk into the area armed with only a camera. This time of year, bears are not totally asleep, they are only groggy and can attack if they are aware of you.
Will be going back out sometime this coming week to get that picture!

So here are some of the photos I took while we were riding the dirt roads. It is such a beautiful forest and is full of wildlife! Not just Whitetail Deer, but also Black Bears, Wolves, Fox, Coyote, and many more smaller animals.

I do a lot of paintings and drawings that include trees & forest so I will be using these photos for reference in the future.

If you would like to use some of my forest pictures as reference for your own work, that is okay. You will find more of my forest photos in my Flickr account under Misc.

Remember to keep an eye on my Etsy shop this weekend as I will be adding more new items!

Right now, I must get back to the studio! Have a wonderful day!

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Last Minute Costume Ideas

While I was in the store this afternoon, I couldn't believe how many people there were rushing around trying to get costumes. They weren't so much for children though, they were for themselves. Maybe there are some Halloween parties to attend this weekend or they just want to dress up for when the little ones go "trick or treating".

If you are one of the people who are scrambling for an idea for Halloween, try this site: http://www.costumeideazone.com/ ! There are hundreds of great ideas listed there and a good majority of them you can probably create with things that you already own.

One idea that I think is pretty funny is dressing up as a "Chick Magnet" bottom of this page . There are many, many more! If you don't dress up and go out on the town, you'll definitely get a few good laughs when you read about the many different costume ideas.

Me? I'll be sitting here at home with my daughter, with a large bag of Lay's Potato Chips and a 2-liter of ice-cold rootbeer, and the TV tuned to the 7 hour Ghost Hunters Special on Sci-Fi! It's going to be a great nite!

Enjoy and Have a Happy Halloween!

Here I am in one of my many handmade Halloween costumes!

A rare shot of me a few years back on Halloween. Hard to see all of the costume's features, including the finishing touch-- my hair was wrapped around a huge, bleached Ham Bone!
I made this costume myself out of many old fur coats from the thrift store (I removed all fur from the coats to create the dress), a pair of blue slippers were the base to create the fur boots that were laced up with leather strips. On my right arm is a fur band with criss-crossed, bleached, chicken wing bones sewn in place. There is a long piece of thin leather that ties around my waist and on that is a small medicine bag that I made out of thin leather also. My necklace and earrings were made of a variety of bleached chicken bones and leather.
Oh, I also won second place that year. :)

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Remember to follow me on Twitter too: Add me-->Airbrshldy

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Gimme Steam (80s Flashback)

I've been so into listening to Peter Gabriel and watching his videos again. Boy, it's been awhile! I would love to meet the art director behind his videos someday, they are fabulous!

Anyway, on the subject of Steam...

Day 2 Steampunk gourd, originally uploaded by avision4.

I will be picking up where I left off on this gourd over the weekend. In my flickr album, you can see the progress shots up to this point here. After Sunday, I will post a couple more to show how much I got done this weekend.

Hope you enjoy the video as much as I do :)

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Sneak Peek!

flower gourd, originally uploaded by avision4.

This pretty flower is made of a small gourd and a piece of driftwood that I found on the river. It is just about finished too and I couldn't wait to show it off.

This flower was sort of an experiment to see if I could try and mimic some art glass done by Dale Chihuly. His work is so spectacular and I love how he gets the colored glass to do what he wants it to. I will never be a glass blower, but I do enjoy admiring glass artist's creations.

For this piece, I wanted to try and get a totally different look for the inside of a gourd by using a variety of color instead of painting it one solid color such as black. It was a success! Once it is totally finished, you will be able to see many different views of it here.

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Peace!

The theme at Inspire Me Thursday is currently "Peace". This universal sign of peace turns 50 years old this year!

Growing up I drew many variations of the Peace symbol on just about everything around me. Recently, I created this necklace with a shard of gourd and burned the Peace symbol onto it. It sure brought back memories.

I grew up with the Peace symbol all around me. After all, I am a babyboomer. There were peace signs on everything you can imagine; vans, cars, necklaces, bracelets, watchbands (those fabulous wide leather bands), posters, beach blankets, jackets, shirts, and more! They were a prominent piece of art during the Vietnam war that silently showed your hope for the war to end and bring our loved ones home safely.

This is another necklace that I created using a piece of gourd and my woodburner.

You can find both of these necklaces in my Etsy shop, simply click on the photos to go there now.

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Since the last time I posted about a winter storm here, we have had a second one and today we are under a winter storm warning again (for the third time)! If it was the middle of winter, we'd have well over 3 feet of snow by now on the ground. This new storm, destined to hit tonight, will be bringing upwards of a foot of new snow plus ice to give it that extra nice touch. :/

All for now, have a wonderful day!

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