Saturday, December 12, 2009

My Words have Frozen to the Windows

This morning I awoke to temperatures of -31 ºC (-23.8 ºF), and it is supposed to get colder. I will be snuggling into my faux fur throw today and making my hot Ovaltine cocoa drink (the secret is the allspice!), eating stinky cheeses and listening to Vince Guaraldi's Charlie Brown Christmas CD.

[photo taken November 22, 2009, when winter was merely frosty]

I wasn't going to leave the house at all, except, a colleague surprised me by announcing he is conducting a Christmas concert this evening at a church very near my home, and I would so love to go. You would think I would be content after hearing Handel's Messiah at the Winspear last weekend, but I just love Christmas music (not of the Dept store variety), and particularly choral music. So, I may slip out and brave the weather and hope my eyelashes don't freeze should the music move me to tears.

I'll leave you to enjoy the warmth of your cosy homes with this quote I found a few years ago that feels very apropo to these crystalline days:

"Antisthenes says that in a certain faraway land the cold is so intense that words freeze as soon as they are uttered, and after some time then thaw and become audible, so that words spoken in winter go unheard until the next summer."
~ From Plutarch's Moralia

Hope you are finding ways to keep your spirit warm!

12 comments:

The Giraffe Head Tree said...

Ah, I love Christmas music, too. I've been known to listen to it for months leading up to the holiday and months afterward, and even sometimes in the summer, it's so comforting. I adore your photo! Enjoy tonight's Christmas concert!

Deborah at Kilbourne Grove said...

It sounds like you had a wonderful day planned and a great night too! Keep warm

Anna said...

I can't begin to imagine temperatures that cold and want to wrap myself up just reading your words. What a great quote.

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Hello there Ms S
Now that is truly cold .. and we have been there with our winters too !
I love that quote .. I some how believe it could very well be true : )
YES ! what wonderful music .. I too love the music if Charlie brown's Christmas .. in fact .. I have Charlie Brown's Xmas tree in my very own back garden .. an Austrian Pine (a normally HUGE tree) captured in a pot .. held prisoner to stay small and be Charlie's tree for us : )

RURAL said...

Brrr, you are going to have such a great time tonight, just remember to keep the car running while you are at the concert. LOL.

That is very, very cold.

What a beautiful quote.

Jen

Rebecca @ In The Garden said...

What an exquisitely beautiful quote, thank you for sharing it with us. I thought of you this morning while flipping through the Sears catalogue, there is a 3 pc childrens dish set of 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar', by Rob McIntosh, it's very cute and I rememeber that your little guy is a fan. I can't find it on their website, but here's a link to the same product: http://www.alwaysporcelain.com/acatalog/info_VHC76600_x.html

:) Rebecca

Northern Beauty Seeker said...

GHT: I confess, I will listen to Christmas music anytime! (And I did enjoy the concert – tremendously!)

Deborah: This deep freeze gives me the perfect excuse to not be super-busy this weekend. I’ve already picked up my most recent book from the library so I am settled in!

Anna: I love the poetic nature of that quote. I think I might do a little baking today to keep even warmer :)

GardenJoy: I love the idea of your own Charlie Brown tree. That is so cute. I am going to have to watch the TV listings to make sure I don’t miss the special on television this year.

Jen: Glad you liked the quote. It really captured how I felt looking out the windows :)

Rebecca: Thanks for the link! That set of dishes is amazing. We may have to look into this - he would love them!

Naturegirl said...

Brrrr...it's (((cold))) outside as you show in the image above! Hot chocolate under a faux throw sounds wonderful!! Stay warm.

Barry said...

My fristy friend:
I have nothing to complain about..... yet! Lets hope the temperatures rise for you before the 25th. Bundle up and think glowing green thoughts about the garden next Spring to stay warm!

Northern Beauty Seeker said...

Naturegirl: I had the cosiest weekend in ages. Sometimes it's very nice to have a reason to stay in :)

Teza: You have probably heard by now that we broke all kinds of records for cold this weekend - the only place colder than Edmonton was Siberia. Thank goodness for Siberia! *hee hee* :)

OF SPRING AND SUMMER said...

Stay warm by the fire and light lots of candles!! Varm regards from the not so chilly London!

sweetbay said...

-24 -- so cold!! The coldest weather I have ever experienced is -22 with a wind chill of -45 when we lived in Pennsylvania, and that was just one night. Such cold literally takes your breath away.

I love those songs from Charlie Brown's Christmas too! They're great.