i heart

I'm probably the "Dwight Schrute" of snow shovelling. In other words, I'm a big dork about it. I have a "strategy" for how best and most efficiently to shovel. I time myself. I don't take my water bottle with me, thinking of myself as a sort of survivalist snow shoveller who sustains herself by eating... snow. I have a whole get-up: my new Helly Hansen long underwear, a pair of cheap splash pants (that conveniently have buttons down the sides so if I'm in the middle of a heavy session I can just rip them off - very "athletic"), a sports bra, and my usual workout gear on top.

And thankfully, we've been getting some snow to shovel. December was all about rain and it was really dreary. Now there is snow on the ground, snow storms on the forecast and snow shovels at the ready - well, actually a big snow scoop, which I find a lot easier on the back and neck.

On top there is a heart made of buttons. We've been purging our house of excess stuff, which coincides nicely with the New Year. (As a symbol, it's one of my favorites.) I found a squirrely stash of the little baggies you get with a new shirt, the ones that have a button and a piece of thread in them, that I'd been keeping for several years. Since I just got rid of a lot of clothes, too, and since I've never once had to turn to this stash to replace a button, I figured it was time to free the buttons from their baggies. It's also time for them to join the bigger stash of buttons in the sewing basket. First, though, I arranged them in a heart shape. Because as shapes go, it's one of my favorites.

Plus: one month from today is Valentine's Day!

(Where is the year going?)