What a Hoot!

Christmas Day was full of surprises. The winter storm had settled down, the roads were cleared and the sun actually came out..so, my brother Ted was able to drive out of the city to spend the day with me. 

Rather than sit all afternoon on our butts munching on Christmas calories, I decided to take him down to the lake for a wee walk in the cold...to get some fresh air and see what was happening down there. Well, it was colder than we had thought...it always is down by the water...  and my brother was not really dressed for it..so, I figured that our wee walk would be a very wee one...

To start with, on the path from the parking lot, we encountered some deer.. some very tame deer and Ted was enthralled with them..as they apparently were with him!  And it wasn't all that cold yet as we were still in the woods...Things were looking good, but when we got to the beach? Yikes...and tried to take photos there? Ouch. Hands with no gloves on? Not a good idea...but we loved the ice sculptures forming and were determined to get some photos, but we had to make it quick! (extras)

Ted was particularly cold - being as "not prepared for cold "as he was - so we were hastening back to the car to warm up, when...lo and behold! A Barred Owl dozing away up in the trees! Well... how special is that? So, cold or not, we hung out there for quite a while, thrilled just to be in the presence of such a wonderful creature, and chatting with other walkers who happened to pass by and who, just like us, stopped in their tracks to enjoy the moment.. Eventually, we did get back to the car and hurried home for a hot apple cider by the fire..and oh yes, some of those Christmas calories too...

So, our most vivid memories of Christmas day, 2022,  the day when all our best laid plans with friends had been thrown into disarray, will not be of turkey dinners with friends and presents and egg nog and party treats; they will be of that inscrutable owl up in his tree, oblivious to our presence, a couple of friendly deer and some pretty impressive ice sculptures forming along the shore...and also, for me, a special day spent with my brother....