Thursday 13: A VERY Random Edition

Since we’ve had so much snow, and I’ve been staying inside so much (because I HATE snow), I don’t have much for a Thursday 13 this week.

So, it seems like a good time to share a very random assortment of pictures that I’m fairly sure I haven’t posted here before.

1.    Of course, I’m going to start off with a cat picture.  I think Mortimer looks adorable here.  

2. This was at a vacation rental that we stayed at in 2023.  I think these hand mirrors are antique (or at least vintage).  They were displayed on a wall in the bathroom, and I thought it was a great idea.  It seemed like a fun way to display a collection without really taking up space.

3.    I enjoy taking pictures of the sky, and I thought it was beautiful this particular evening.

4.    I’m not sure what these little white flowers are called, but I think they’re pretty.

5.   This hibiscus was at a vacation rental we stayed at in 2022.

6.  This was on vacation in 2021.  It was insanely humid that day, and the camera lens fogged, but I liked how it made the picture look kind of mysterious and moody.

7.  Theodore loves it when we get a suitcase out of the closet. 

8.    So does Mortimer.

9.    This was sunrise on Kiawah Island on our 2024 vacation.

10.  This was the first time I successfully built a cooking fire entirely on my own after Hurricane Helene.  I’m not the outdoorsy type, so it felt like a major accomplishment.

11.  This was when a possum stopped by the critter corner.

12.  This was one of the few beach pictures I took on vacation last year before we got sick.

13.  Finally, here's a flower picture that, according to the date stamp, I took on February 29, 2024. I'm trying to remind myself that the snow will melt and spring will eventually arrive! 

Are you also eagerly anticipating warmer weather? 

 

Maybe We’re Finally Thawing Out

Like most of you, we’ve had a lot of snow and ice lately.  I know “a lot” is relative when it comes to snow and ice.  But for here, where most of us panic at the mention of snow, and almost none of us can drive in it, what we’ve had is definitely a lot. 

From the first round.  It's mostly ice.  There are icicles on the bird feeders.

Last weekend (January 24^th -25^th), we had some snow, a lot of ice, and freezing rain.  There were widespread power outages.  We were some of the fortunate ones who didn’t lose power.  It flickered so much that we fully expected to lose it, but never did.  Nick’s office was closed for two days, and mine switched us all to telework.

Everything was coated in ice.

We had some warming and melting, but still had ice in several places by Friday.

This past weekend (January 31^st – February 1^st), we had snow and extreme cold.  I think we ended up with around six inches of snow in total.  It’s a little hard to tell because of the way the wind blew it around. 

From this past weekend.  We had more after I took this.  And there's ice from the week before underneath it in some places.

Again, we were fortunate and didn’t lose power.  It did get so cold, though, that the heater wasn’t able to keep up and was running around seven degrees colder than what it was set for. 

We did everything we could to keep the house warmer.  We hung blankets over the blinds in the windows to help insulate the house a little more.  I did some baking and made soups and chili.  We had neighbors over for soup and chili both weekends. 

My job has switched us all to telework again for at least the next day or two, which I’m happy about since I absolutely don’t drive in this kind of weather.   

Things are beginning to thaw out.  

There's still ice under some of this, so I don't trust it.

We are supposed to have highs ranging from 47 to 51 this weekend.  I’m so glad!  I haven’t left the house since January 23^rd, and I’m starting to go a little stir crazy.  I’m looking forward to getting out. 

I hate winter.  I really, really hate winter.  I started off in January trying to have a positive attitude about winter and trying to make the best of the cold, but at this point, I’m just over it.  I’m ready for spring! 

I would much rather be taking pictures of flowers than snow!

So, what about you?  Are you thawing out?  Ready for spring? 

I Have to Say This

I’ve been trying to write this post for a few days now. It’s a struggle to find the right words.

The words still aren’t right, and it’s rambly, but I have to say this.

Renee Good should still be alive.

Liam Ramos should be in preschool, not a detention center.

Alex Pretti should still be alive and caring for patients.

No one should be so terrified of being sent to a concentration camp that they cannot leave their house to go to work or the grocery store.

What’s happening in America is not okay.

If you are okay with what is happening, with mothers being murdered in the street, with children being used as bait, with ICU nurses being murdered for trying to help, then we’re not friends.  Not in real life, not online, not in any way. 

I’ve never considered myself a very political person.  I still don’t.  I would like to think I’m a decent person, though, and I cannot reconcile basic human decency with quietly ignoring what is happening. 

I’m not a political blogger.  I never have been.  Anytime I’ve had to classify my blog, I’ve clicked “lifestyle” because it’s mainly about the things in my life, the things that are important to me.  Most of those things are frivolous and silly, but they make me happy, so I share them. 

But, if you are murdered by your government, you cannot drink sweet tea, you cannot rescue cats, you cannot feed groundhogs, you cannot cook for the people you love, you will not see another spring, and you will miss out on so many things you should be there for. 

I am older than Renee Good and Alex Pretti were.  I’ve had years more to do and write about the things that matter to me and that make me happy.  And there’s still so much I want to do.  All of that was stolen from them. 

I don’t consider it “political” to say that it is not okay when what is essentially a masked army descends on a community and begins murdering citizens in the streets.  I call that basic human empathy. 

No one should live in fear because of the color of their skin or the accent they speak with.

No one should live in fear because of who they love.

No one should live in fear because of how they worship (or don’t worship).

No one should be murdered because they tried to be a good person and help their neighbors.

We are not okay.  What is happening in our country is not okay.

I don’t know how we got here, and I honestly don’t know how we come back from this.  But I am sure it is NOT by being silent. 

In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., “There comes a time when silence is betrayal.” 

I’m still not a political blogger, but I’m also not going to be silent about what is happening.  Silence isn’t going to fix this. 

Thursday 13: My First One in 2026

1.     As usual, a cat picture seems like a good way to start this Thursday 13.  This is a picture of my sister’s cat, Flitwick, that I took when we were there for Christmas.

 

2.    Speaking of starting things, we started 2026 off by attending a party our friends Dennis and James hosted on New Year’s Day.  They have two adorable Great Danes who think they’re lap dogs.  This picture is of Magnus.

 

3.    It would be nice if there’s any truth to the idea that what you do on January 1^st sets the tone for your year.  We had a great time at the party, met a lot of nice people, spent time with adorable and sweet pets, and enjoyed some delicious food.  Continuing that theme would make it a good year! 

4.    Another fun start to the year was doing an escape room for the first time.  We went with our friends Jen and Chuck.  The one we did was Clue themed (we had to figure out who, in what room, and what the weapon was, and we had an hour to do it). 

 

5.    It was the first time Nick and I did an escape room, and it was so much fun.  I definitely want to do one again! 

6.    I’ve set my reading goals for the year on The Storygraph.  

7.    My 2026 reading goal is 52 books, which is basically a book per week.  It seems reasonable.  I didn’t quite make it last year, but I think I would have if I hadn’t worked so much overtime in December.

 

8.    I’m technically one book behind already, but I’m very close to finishing a book and an audiobook, so I’m fairly sure I’ll catch up over the weekend. 

9.    Of those 52 books, I’ve set the goal for 26 of them to be audiobooks.  We have a backlog of purchased audiobooks we haven’t listened to yet, and there are so many available through the Libby app.  Since I have so many available and can listen to them while I do other things (I listened to an audiobook while I worked in the yard on Monday), it seems crazy not to make use of them. 

 

10. I’ve also set the goal for 12 of the 52 books to be non-fiction.  I mostly read fiction, and I don’t think that will ever change, but I would like to branch out and read a little more non-fiction.  Twelve a year is basically one a month, which seems like a good goal. 

 

11. If you’re on The Storygraph and want to be friends, my super-creative username is dlzecher. 

12. We downloaded camera pictures right before we left for my sister’s for Christmas, and I came across this one of Caroline that I like.  I think it shows off how pretty her face is. 

13. One more cat picture seems like a great way to end this.  Theodore has started tucking himself into bed sometimes, and it’s absolutely adorable. 

A Cold Hour in the Yard

Once Christmas is over, I am ready for winter to be over.  After the Christmas lights and decorations are (mostly) put away, it’s just cold and gray.  The winter blues really set in.

I know spending time outside in the sunlight, even when it’s cold, really helps, but I struggle to make myself spend time outside this time of year.

I really hate to be cold.

This year, though, to make spending time outside in the cold weather a little more pleasant, I’ve decided to focus on yard/garden chores I can do in the cold weather.  It makes it seem like spring isn’t quite so far away.

It seems like there are always things to do in the yard/garden, and I want to make it as beautiful as possible.  So, getting started on things now makes sense in addition to getting me outside in the sunshine (even when it’s cold).

Last week, Nick and I did a lot of pruning/trimming and general yard pick-up.  I forgot to take any progress pictures.

This week, I decided to prune the hydrangea that had grown out of control.  This is the ideal time of year to prune hydrangeas, anyway, so it was the perfect cold-weather yard task to tackle after work today.

Here’s the before.

I told you it had grown out of control.

I also trimmed the holly bush next to the hydrangea.  It was out of control, too, and I needed space to get behind the hydrangea to get the back of it.  I’m not sure if this is the right time of year to trim the holly bush, but I don’t especially like it, so I’m not really concerned.  I eventually want to get rid of it and replace it with a camellia.

This was my first pile of branches to haul away.  I ended up hauling away six wheelbarrows of branches. 

Here’s the after.

I still need to do some more trimming, but it was getting dark, so I called it a day. 

One day closer to spring!  

Do you have any cold-weather projects you're working on? 

Twenty-Five Things to Wrap Up 2025

Since I haven’t posted in a long time, I thought a 25 Things post would be a good way to catch up and wrap up 2025.  That way, I can start fresh in 2026.

1.    Since I usually start this kind of post off with a cat picture, enjoy this one of Theodore cuddled up in a blanket.

 

2.    Back in October, I wrote that I had finished up on a project with a tight deadline, and wasn’t expecting any more tight deadlines until January.  I spoke too soon!

3.    On December 1^st, I was told about a project with a January 3^rd deadline.  Normally, this type of project would be completed over the course of six months to a year, but that wasn’t an option this time.

4.    All of us working on it have worked a ton of overtime, and we’re on track to make the deadline. 

5.    Working that much overtime in December was a little difficult since it’s a busy time of year with holiday stuff, and I had already committed to a few things I wouldn’t have if I had known this was coming. 

6.    On the plus side, all of us who worked on it are going into the new year with over 100 hours of comp time. 

7.    It can be frustrating at times that we earn comp time instead of getting paid overtime, but I keep reminding myself that the comp time will help me retire sooner.

8.    Another positive is that I get along and work really well with the other people on this project.  If you’re on the phone with a coworker at 11:30 on Friday night and then again at 7:30 Saturday morning, it helps when it’s someone you have a good working relationship with. 

9.    Everyone else found out about the project the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, but I was off that day. 

10. We hosted a big Thanksgiving at our house, with a total of 15 people.  Everyone seemed to have a great time. 

11. As usual, I forgot to take many pictures.  I took pictures of a few desserts on Wednesday night, and then forgot all about taking pictures.

 

12. Unfortunately, we skipped taking Thanksgiving dinner to the hospice house this year.  I was over the cough, but still not back to feeling 100%, and I really didn’t have the energy to make two huge Thanksgiving dinners.

13. We’ve decided to change to taking a smaller meal there more than once a year.  I’m posting that here to help hold myself accountable since it won’t be tied to a specific event, which makes it easier to forget to do.

14. Tara had a bout of pancreatitis.  She and I spent most of the day before Thanksgiving at the vet’s office. 

15. She was given medication, and we’ve made some changes to her food, and she seems to be doing much better now.

16. Even with all of the overtime I worked, we were still able to go to my sister and S-I-L’s (Gabby and Amy) for Christmas.

17. They let me be in charge of the Barbie tree again.

18. I always have so much fun decorating the Barbie tree.

19. We tried to do a Christmas photo shoot with our cats before we left, and managed to get these of Caroline and Theodore.

 

20. We also tried to do a Christmas photo shoot with some of Gabby and Amy’s cats.

21. Dobby was the most cooperative.

22. And Sota did alright.

 

23. The cats kept trying to eat the bows, so we had to put everything away, and we never got around to trying again with any of the other cats.

24. Even though we didn’t get Christmas photos of any of their other cats, I did get more cat pictures.  This is Severus.

25. And that is it.  The last couple of months of 2025 were busy, just not very exciting.

I hope you all had a great end to 2025.  I’m working on catching up with everyone’s blogs, and hope to “see” you soon.

Happy New Year!