Another February Already!

"One month is past, another is begun,

Since merry bells rang out the dying year,

And buds of rarest green begin to peer,

As if impatient for a warmer sun;

And though the distant hills are bleak and dun,

The virgin snowdrop, like a lambent fire,

Pierces the cold earth with its green-streaked spire

And in dark woods, the wandering little one

May find a primrose."

February 1st. 1842 ~ Hartley Coleridge 

Mockingbird

Eastern Grey Squirrel

Male House finch

Today I enjoyed the birds, baked pistachio muffins (shared with my neighbor

 who shared his excellent seafood stew with us), and did some

 much-needed paperwork. I feel as if I'm in hibernation . . . . . . it would

 be so easy just to be lazy.  February is never my favorite month. 

Thank goodness for Valentine's Day in the middle. It does lift the spirit

 somewhat with all those red hearts popping up, and makes me want

to write pretty cards . . . . . . and eat a little chocolate!

Memoirs - RMS Queen Mary and Me!

News over the weekend included a story of the 'rescue' 

of this beautiful and historic ocean liner which is dear

 to my own heart.

RMS Queen Mary - docked in Long Beach, California

"The landmark Queen Mary ocean liner, owned by the City of Long Beach and a popular tourist attraction and hotel, will be closed to the public for much of 2022 as it undergoes $5 million in “critical repairs.” 

This is good news for fans of the historic ship. After the city took control of the rundown vessel from a financially strapped leaseholder last year, one option under consideration was sinking the ship. The 88-year-old Art Deco-style ocean liner, which has been permanently docked in Long Beach since 1967, has been closed since May 2020 due to COVID-19. The repairs are expected to begin in February, with the plan to reopen Queen Mary to visitors by the end of the year.  A first step in the repair, and expected to be a two-week project, will be removing deteriorating lifeboats. "The lifeboats exert stress on the side shell of the ship which has created severe cracks in the support system,” the city said in its statement. “Removing the deteriorated lifeboats will enhance the structural stability of the ship."  Since the lifeboats are historic objects, Long Beach plans to preserve two for future display and to temporarily store 13 others, while seeing if there is interest from museums or other non-profits that want to preserve the boats.  Other projects include the installation of new permanent bilge pumps to discharge water in the event of an emergency, with additional repairs to follow.  The Queen Mary is a popular filming location, and during the repair period the city still plans to welcome film crews, a move that officials said would help “generate revenue to support the ship operations.”      via The Points Guy website

RMS Queen Mary in her heyday, sailing out of New York and headed to Southampton, England.

The RMS Queen Mary, built during the height of transatlantic ocean travel, sailed more than a million miles and transported over 2 million guests over a career spanning 30 years.  Built by Cunard as a the bigger and more powerful of two ships, the luxury liners and sometimes cruise ships, the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth reigned as a pair providing weekly express transatlantic service.  

February 25, 2006 - the two Queen Marys met for the first time!

This is yours truly just after boarding RMS Queen Mary for my

first transatlantic sea crossing home to England from New York to 

spend Christmas 1964 with my family. Two years earlier I came

 to the USA by air to work in Washington, D.C.

Since then I have sailed on many ships and had many adventures

at sea, but this first memory of crossing an ocean in the bitter

 cold of winter has definitely stayed with me.

The ship was taken out of service in 1967 and has been docked

 in Long Beach ever since.

Today I decided to treat myself to this book.

It's an older book and hard to find at an affordable price - today I

 was lucky and have found a used one online, hardcover, and

supposedly in 'good condition' - I've had it on my 'wish list' for

 several years.  Reviews are awesome - I'll let you know when

it arrives, I'm excited.

I'm missing ships and sailing so reading about them will fill the

 void for now.

 

Flying, folding and food!

One of our resident Carolina wrens is very chatty today. 

Perhaps it knows more about the weather than 

the local meteorologists! I've noticed how the garden birds

 act differently when inclement weather is on the way or has

 arrived. . . . . . . . . . . . . .especially snow!

Yes, our third weekend in a row with snow which started 

at midnight Friday. At 7 AM yesterday I awoke to just a dusting, 

nothing like they are experiencing north of us!

Stay safe all of you who live in the New York-Boston-New England

areas where unbelievable snow accumulation is breaking records!

Meanwhile, books of all types seem to be central to my life

this weekend, especially cook books - searching for new recipes to 

try on the cold days, such as 19F here this morning, and more

 very cold nights expected through the coming days.

Soups and veggie stews are best.

I prefer bright crinkled Savoy cabbage when making a soup

and, although you can't see them here, the carrots had their lovely

green feathery leaves attached. I usually add at least some of

 them for added nutrients - Vitamins C & K and Potassium.

It turned out well with layers of flavor not usual in a vegetable

soup, such as a splash of unfiltered apple cider vinegar to wake up

 and enhance the other flavors, a piece of Parmesan cheese rind

 to enrich the vegetable broth, (always keep those when you cut them 

off your wedge of cheese as they are very useful - just seal in a bag

 and keep in the fridge, or freezer). 

Cold nights - hot soup - a blazing fire on the hearth.

While doing a little dusting - and oh how dusty it gets in these

 winter months when burning wood in an open hearth - other books

 I've been observing are these that I 'folded' some years ago.

I enjoyed doing that with old hardcover books picked up for a

 dollar or so at thrift shops and used book stores.

 

This morning was bitter early on but the sun is out now and it going to warm 

up to 44F.  A few patches of snow remain and the birds are still hungry. 

Many are coming to feed and drink.The sweet female Eastern bluebird

visited the front porch, and and male Northern flicker spent at least 10 minutes

 on the suet block - his first visit to the garden in quite a while.

Hope everyone is safe during the stormy weather.

Stay warm and here's hoping February will be a better month!