Shhhh ....

Saranac Lake NY

 Sometimes I just want to take a walk  .... and enjoy the quiet solitude.

 

And, to simply contemplate the virgin snow. It rests peacefully and beautifully. It simply is.























Happily, I get back on the trail and follow the path.

Shhhhh ..... can you hear your heartbeat?

The Saranac Lake Winter Carnival Ice Palace ... by day!

By day, it's as interesting as by night.
The colors and textures and details are right there to be experienced.

      I love how the  grass and weeds are frozen in the huge blocks of ice ... eerily suspended.  In the past, there were even fish frozen into the blocks. 

 And, how about this unicorn.  It seems that several times that we passed by, that horn was missing.  Then mysteriously, it was there. Repaired or optical illusions, who knows. Got to love that tiara though!

                                                      I simply love the flags.

 Love the chairs.... and the 15 foot dragon.

It's not often I get in a picture ... but, I couldn't resist sitting on that beautifully carved seat.

Love being back to my roots.

Ice lights!

Saranac Lake NY Winter Carnival Ice Palace

OK, we missed the Winter Carnival events.

But, the Ice Palace was all aglow one week later.

Both day and night, people were wandering through it ... us included.

The ice chairs  were so interesting ... translucent and lovely with their lights.

The ice maze was fun to wander through, the dragon and the unicorn were major draws.

What a great view from our dinner table.

You Saranac Lakers should be proud! I know I am ... proud of my roots.

Different angles...

Absolutely Adirondacks ... Saranac Lake NY

 I had to play ... same view ....

 OK, so I got a little distracted! :)

Big pane, little pane .... pane with distraction?  Count me in!

A most familair view .... from Mt Pisgah

View from Mt Pisgah Rd, Saranac lake, NY

There are some things in life that you can never grow tired of ..... like this view!

Growing up, I would ride my bike up Trudeau Rd just so I could look out over the mountain range. During the winter, we would get to the top of Pisgah, ski down off the T-bar exit slope, and stand to the right (on the top of the "steep" side), to see what we could of the mountains.

And, as I left Saranac Lake this past weekend, I said to everyone in the car, just give me 5 more minutes of your time before we leave town .... I have something to show you.

Ahhhh ...... thank God it doesn't change.

Do you see it?

Moody Pond, Saranac Lake NY

OK, so I love to imagine what cloud formations could be.

And, I love to see forms in other unusual situations too.

Take this little pine tree just filled with snow.

What do I see?

I see a stooped over being, with a fox like head with his right arm and shoulder created by the snow on the left side of the picture. 

Do you?

:)

Another piece of my heart.

Moody Pond, Saranac Lake, NY

 Today I left another piece of my heart behind.

It's not a sad thing. It's actually a pretty cool thing.

After a fabulous weekend traveling and visiting with family and friends, giving the guided tour, reminiscing and discovering so much more about personal lives, lives of the community and the intertwining of both ....

I left a happy, little warm piece of my heart ... nestled in the mountains, the trees, the lakes ... and I will return to recharge and leave a little more... piece by piece ......

Glass half full!

Sheila's Place

For me, my glass is always half full!

Well, perhaps I would say it's full.

Next question, what does your glass look like?

Magic moment!

I love to play with light and texture and variations of color.

My moment of inspiration came while rumaging through my shelves for something silver.

And, what did I find, but my mother-in-law's very aged silver; tarnished and begging to be cleaned up and put on display!

I flipped over the bowls to give my trees more height and to contrast the materials. 

 

 

Combine that with my favorite Simon Pearce crystal trees from Vermont ... and .... 

.... my new favorite flame-less candles ( from Kittleberger's of course) .. and .... I think  I found a magic moment!

 

Hope you enjoyed my mantel!

Amaryllis... lady in red!

It's her vision to be dressed in all her glory.

But, she starts off pretty simply.  Lovely in green.

And, then she emerges...... 

.... standing proud and dignified.

Slowly and gracefully, she begins to unfold.

She smiles and opens her arms.

She's simply breathtaking.

And, what's this?  A twin!

Well, now it looks like a family, with each one being so very beautiful. Both the young and the old are distinguished.

 

And, now there is promises of more ... ladies dressed in red.  

What a lovely way to end an especially wintery day.