A Little Warm in My Heart.

I've just set up and decorated our tree; I feel ready for winter now.

Isn't it amazing how a little ritual can make such a big difference?

Here are a few more snapshots ...

Have a great Christmas, Hanukkah, Midwinter, Yule or whichever holiday(s) you celebrate!

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The colours of snow.

We're having an unusual amount of snow this December. Today it's been thawing, but we'll probably get more overnight.

Here are two views of our cherry tree, two nights ago. Both pictures were taken only seconds apart. For some reason, one turned out golden and one silver. Two very different settings, don't you think?

Which one do you like best? (And what does that tell about you? ;-) )

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(Inter)national Rumtopf Day!

I declare today... Rumtopf Day.

After six months of gathering, cutting, adding, pouring and most of all waiting, this is the day the rumtopf will be opened. A happy and much anticipated occasion indeed.

It's a bit too early in the day to have a go at it already, so it's still safely stacked away in its little corner in the cellar.

Stay tuned for more news about the Official Opening later today.

(Recipe and more pictures here.)

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Some snow fun...

Inspired by the much more entertaining: 'How to annoy people when it snows', I wanted to contribute my own bit of seasonal joy to the world.

So far, most adults don't seem to want to play. We need more snow!
(And I have to work on my shovel skills so I can get more creative.)

Thanks to my friend Ch. for sharing the video! :-)

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Life, Love and at least 21 Questions.

I'm usually not a list-making type of person, but every once and a while, when my life is at its most chaotic, I get a burst of that particular type of energy that makes me want to sort out stuff. And make lists.

Today has been one of those days.

After half a day of redecorating my hidey-hole / writer's den (pictures coming soon) and a few hours of overdue reading, there was a little energy left for something I'd been thinking about for a while but never really got round to doing: compiling a list of questions I want to ask myself on a regular basis.

And as with all questions, their real value lies in the answers we come up with. And the insights and changes that sprout and grow from there.

Anyway, here's my list:

1. What is the craziest thing I've done so far? How crazy is it?
2. Am I a nice person?
3. Who are the people I consider most important in my life? How much (quality) time do I actually spend with them?
4. How do I think people will remember me when I die? How would I want to be remembered?
5. Have I been the kind of friend I'd want to have as a friend?
6. Have I made a real difference in anyone's life?
7. Am I being a good friend to myself? Taking care of my body, heart, mind, soul or whatever part of me I consider important?
8. When's the last time my heart was beating fast out of excitement?
9. If I didn't know my own age, how old would I think I was?
10. If I were a superhero, what would my superpower be?
11. If I only had 3 more months to live, would I continue doing what I'm doing now?
12. Most of the time, when I wake up, do I feel like what I'm going to do that day matters?
13. Which are my most treasured skills? In how far am I using them to make a living?
14. What is my biggest fear?
15. Am I holding any grudges?
16. How much do I like my home? The village/town/city/country where I live?
17. What would my dream holiday look like? In what way is it different from my current daily life?
18. Am I spending most of my thoughts on the past, the present or the future?
19. Who are the people I'm surrounding myself with? What does that tell about me?
20. How far would I go to save the life of someone I love?
21. What am I most grateful for?

And as a nice surprise: going through my list made me feel quite good about my life. There's still plenty of room for improvement, but I'm happy where I am now. I'm grateful for the people in my life, for the luck, the good decisions ànd the not-so-good ones. They have possibly taught me more than anything else.

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A Toy for Dark and Rainy Days.

Two more weeks and we'll be going through the longest night of the year. We've entered the dark times and in spite (or because) of that, my writing's actually going pretty well.

I love this time of year, but still, when I look through the window, I miss the colours of spring, summer and autumn. Especially now the snow has thawed to a vile greyish-brown sorbet, I'm longing to see the world in vibrant tones again.

Until the first blooms in March, memories and pictures will have to do. And I've found just the right online tool for that: the Multicolr Search Lab.

It allows you to pick a combination of up to 10 colours, and then it finds you a bunch of matching Flickr images. It searches between the most 'interesting' pictures under Creative Commons license, based on how Flickr users and visitors click, comment or tag them.

A few more picks that lifted my spirits:

If you want to have a try: http://labs.ideeinc.com/multicolr. Be warned, though, it's strangely addictive!

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