Celebrate, Snow-Gauge Clif

Snow-Gauge Clif: Let the Mud Begin

77 Comments

On Saturday, March 19, a heavy rain fell as though it were a day in April. If the rain had been snow, as it would have been in years past, Snow-Joe would have gotten quite a work out. Instead, the rain came down, down, down, and most of the snow went away, to be replaced by mud.

Here are pictures of the tracks I made going to the compost bins in the backyard. The mud was so deep that I wondered if I would lose my shoes on the way to and from the house.

As you might have guessed, Snow-Gauge Clif’s job is coming to an end. Barring any last-minute snowstorms, I expect we have a week or two at most.

The shady front yard still has 7 inches of snow at its deepest and a skim of snow over much of the lawn.

The backyard is quite another matter. There is a spot that has 7 inches of snow—where Snow-Joe threw it—but for the most part, the lawn is bare.

Here’s a better photo of the backyard. Note the patio and how the snow is nearly gone. As soon as the mud dries, and we can walk on the lawn without fear of losing our shoes, the blue chairs will come out.

Finally, here’s a photo of our listing clothesline, which is a little on the tipsy side. When the yard dries out, Clif is wondering if he’ll have to reset the clothesline. Never a dull moment at our home on the edge of the woods.

************************************************

In Addition: Cheers to 45 years!

On Saturday Clif and I celebrated our forty-fifth wedding anniversary. We marked the occasion with an appetizer night featuring dumplings, a cashew dip, and other assorted goodies. Appetizer nights are a favorite at our home, where with a minimum of fuss and a maximum of enjoyment, we have many different treats to nibble.

There was also a toast where we used lovely glasses given to us by our friend Doree Austin on our first wedding anniversary.

After our appetizer meal, we watched a film that I highly recommend—Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom, a sweet low-key movie from Bhutan that has been nominated this year for an Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.

Filmed in Buhatan and written and directed by Pawo Choyning Dorji, this charming movie tells the story of a young, uninspired teacher, Ugyen Dorji, who is sent to a remote mountain village to fulfill his teacher contract. Does Ugyen want to go to this village, accessible only by foot and a journey of many days? He does not. Instead, Ugyen wants to go to Australia and follow his dream of becoming a singer.

But up the mountain Ugyen goes, finally making it to Lunana, a poor village that has some of the most breathtaking scenery I’ve ever seen. During the course of the movie, lessons are learned and taught. In its own gentle way, Lunana examines the notion of culture, of whether to leave or to stay.  Best of all, Lunana manages to avoid being predictable, which gives the movie a nice twist.

For those who have Kanopy, Lunana is available free for streaming. For those who don’t have Kanopy, other streaming options include Vudu and Prime Video, where the movie can be rented for $6.99.

Lunana is definitely worth $6.99, and so far it is my favorite foreign film of the year.

 

77 thoughts on “Snow-Gauge Clif: Let the Mud Begin”

  3. So many bits to comment on. First of all, our snow cover is very similar and, likewise, early for this time of year. Hard to know what we’ll get next! Secondly, many congrats on your 45th. It goes so fast, doesn’t it?!

    Most of all, many thanks for pointing me in the direction of this movie from Bhutan. I was privileged to have been there 3 times in the early 2000s on business, helping them as they developed their post-secondary education system, and had several Bhutanese grads students who I’m still in touch with. You’re right, there’s no more beautiful place, and no friendlier either. I will have to find this movie!

    1. Thank you, thank you! How wonderful you were able to got Bhutan three times. Must admit I’m a little envious. Hope you are able to see “Lunana.” What a gem of a movie!

  6. Happy 45th, what a milestone! You two must have been mere babes when you married. 🙂
    Snow-out is another reason to celebrate. The patio and grilled pizza awaits!
    Thanks for the film review, I will have a look-see. Sounds charming.

  9. Congratulations on your anniversary, and as my sister says, on keeping the glasses for all that time. I hope that your mud season is short. Perhaps we should have a reverse Clif with a gauge showing how deep the mud is instead of how high the snow is.

  11. I joyfully salute your 45th (!!) wedding anniversary! Such a lovely photo of you and Clif. I also particularly love the mud footprints — leading you to many more happy years.

  12. What a wonderful photo of you both — and of Clif as Snow Gauger! Forty-five years is wonderful; here’s to many more for you both. As for the sound of boot-sucking mud, waiting for it to dry a bit is a very, very good idea!

  13. A shared life well lived. You are blessed to be able to look back on 45 years and so I join others who wish you many more anniversaries. This is a lovely photograph of you both!

  14. I agree with the previous comment, what a lovely photo of you both, and both looking just as I would have thought. Congratulations on 45 years, it is quite an achievement, and Paul and I are just behind you with 44 years. Thanks for the tip on the movie from Bhutan I would love to see that one…when I was younger I wanted to visit that part of the world, now I think I’ll just settle for a movie!

  17. Happy Anniversary, and that’s a great photo! Yes, goodbye to the white stuff and hello to the brown stuff. Same thing here. When brown becomes the color of the day, we do know that green will be up next which is always a good thing.

    1. Thanks, Judy! I try to be patient with mud, but I have to admit I hate it. From my kitchen window, I look at my nearly bare yard and long to be out there picking up sticks and starting to do some spring clean-up. Soon, I hope!

  18. Happy Anniversary! We just celebrated 39 years over the weekend. As far as mud season, the local trails this weekend were pretty horrendous. As you mentioned deep mud, followed by 10-foot-long patches of ice.

    1. Many thanks and a happy anniversary to you! Another March wedding. Those trails sound treacherous. A bad, bad mud season this year. I suppose it’s because it was so cold.

  19. Congrats on your anniversary — that’s a real milestone, especially in today’s world! Sorry about your mud, but I’m having a similar problem here — and can you even imagine how awful it is with a long-haired dog who simply MUST get outside and patrol the fence line???

  20. Many congratulations on your anniversary! I love the photo – we see quite a few of Clif but very few of you! We are having a spell of dry sunny weather but the breeze is chilly. At least here the mud has dried up and work on the garden can start. I hope yours goes too soon.

    1. Thank you, thank you! I also enjoy seeing pictures of bloggers, who most always are the ones taking the pictures and are therefore are not included in the photos.

  22. Wishing you both a very happy anniversary month (knowing how you celebrate often). You look sweet together. Did you ever write a post about how you met? I love hearing those stories.

  23. Congratulations!. Wishing you both health and happiness.

    No rain here and our garden is full of snow. I am trying to remove the snow piles from the garden to free the rose plants.

  26. Happy Anniversary and wonderful photo of the celebration!🙂 Definitely don’t want to lose a shoe in the mud, but your definitely getting closer to patio time! Thanks for the great review and recommendation and I’ll be watching the movie this weekend when it feels like winter again.🙂

  27. Congratulations! Appetizer nights sound fun and something I would like to promote here on occasions! We have enough food that we don’t have to have a meal and appetizers as well.
    I will keep an eye out for the movie. Bhutan has amazing scenery, I believe and the plot lines sounds plausible.
    I can’t believe the grass is green under all that snow!

  33. Happy 45th Anniversary, Laurie & Clif! What a way to mark a milestone – with your 1st anniversary gift goblets on an Appetizer Extravaganza! Love how you guys roll! Wishing you many many many more adventuresome years to come!

    Can’t believe that one bout of rain has washed all that snow away (excepting your resolute front yard) …

    1. Thank you, thank you! “Resolute” is a good word for the front yard when it comes to snow. It seems to me that it’s the last yard on our road for the snow to melt.

  34. Pingback: Pizza & Games Night – Touring My Backyard

Comments are closed.