Snow and Cold

Gandalf loves the snow. I'm sure, given the chance (which he will not get), he'd be out there happily romping in the snow. But, he'll have to be content to watch it from inside; and try to catch snow flakes with his tongue from the other side of the window.

"This fluffy white stuff is so neat. Wow, look at that man across the street moving it around with that big spoon! Mom? What's he saying? I think he's saying bad words!"

I like what it looks like from inside.

As long as I don't have to shovel it.

Things look rather peaceful out there in the large back yard. But of late, things have been less than peaceful with my neighbour downstairs.

It's not that she's loud, or has funky smells coming from her apartment. I guess it's just the small things that add up to "time to move". Small things - her dog running around all over the back yard - nothing wrong with that - and her not cleaning up after her. If you get my drift. It's the lack of privacy on my deck. Hers extends further out than mine, so when she's out there, she can pretty much see all that goes on on mine. It's the boyfriend who seems to have moved in, and parks his car in the middle of the back yard. It's her allowing him to smoke in her bathroom, and having the smell waft up to my place. It's her "allowing" our next door neighbours' dog to run around in our yard. It's how everyone must adjust and live around her. It's the screaming matches she gets into with her sister (you know, the one who would toss away my mail). It's also how she scammed her way into paying far less for her apartment than I do mine, despite hers being much bigger (ok, that's a landlady thing...). Oh, and as she controls the heat - she feels it's perfectly OK to turn down the heat when she's warm enough, not taking into consideration that I may be cold. Which I frequently am - this is an old house with little to no insulation in some parts (it was built in 1892). And, depending on the direction of the wind... Yikes.

And speaking of the landlady - she's pretty unresponsive. I've had a list of things that need to be fixed here, which she still hasn't addressed. No laundry facilities is also starting to grate on my nerves, despite the fact she has more than enough space in the basement. When her parents still maintained the property, things were good. But, since she took over, she's pretty much treated this property as a cash-cow.

Oh yeah. I think the clincher is the uh, noises that can sometimes make their way into my apartment. I was getting ready to go meet the Captain for breakfast yesterday, and as I turned the radio off, and put my coat on, I uh...well...heard stuff. Coming from downstairs (her bedroom is below my living room).

"What kind of noises did you hear, Mom?"

"Nothing Mae."

"Oh, I know. Those noises... Hee hee, we hear them sometimes when you're at work!"

Ew. Ew. EW!!!!

So. Taken individually, they do seem like minor issues. However, as a whole they become difficult to deal with. I think my decision was sealed when I realized I was a bit anxious coming home. Not knowing what to expect - will I step on dog poop? Will she have her smoke butts littering the back yard? Will she be screaming at her sister again? And on and on. I've lived here nearly 11 years now, and it is my home. But, at some point, I stopped being it that way.

I'm aiming to be out of here by April 1st. I don't think I want to spend another summer not being able to enjoy what I should be able to, and used to.

*sigh*

Writing about it does make me feel much better - so thanks for reading!

But hey!

(That picture actually looks better than I thought it would.)

I have been doing knitting stuff! How could I not? When it has been -20C, you don't feel much like being outside. I've been working on Isobel of Mar. You know, despite the never-ending rows, I really enjoy working on her. She's very soothing, and I keep imagining how lovely she'll look when she's done. And the colour probably has something to do with it as well. Lovely blue with flecks of green in it (it's the Hebridean 3-ply "Summertide" shade)... Once I get past the bodice, it should be smooth-sailing. No patterning, just the double moss stitch. Oh wait. I forgot that there's a button band too. Well, regardless.

And I've been able to pick up my Windsor Waistcoat again! Ah, how wonderful... Although I didn't photograph it. I'm past the mid-way point of the body. Not bad, considering it's been at least a month since I've been able to work on it. Most of my knitting has been pretty slow though. This time of year, mainly due to central heating, I get icky dry skin and exzema on my right hand, so I have to be careful not to irritate it more than it needs to be.

Well, it sure reads like I'm whining a bit to much in this post - I hope I didn't bore you! Again, thanks for reading. As I said - being able to write about it helps me think things through.

And, as a parting gift, a gratuitous shot of Atticus.

"Dammit. Busted drinking out of the flowery pansy-bowl."