First day in 2012

It would had been a shame to waste a wonderful day under the covers, so we took a walk above this never-ending fog in our city. We were discovering new paths in a bear country and tried to find interesting things in this winter dullness. It is quite warm these days. I heard from many people: "It smells of spring." And: "Oh, I hope spring will arrive soon." I don't think it will. Cats have thick fur this winter.

Browsing this wonderful world web I keep noticing that pages start to fill with all sorts of Valentine's day tutorials. But at this moment I have Carnival costumes on my mind not Valentine's hearts. It might be fun this year because my mom celebrates her birthday on Shrove Tuesday. Oh yes, we might have lots of fun that day!

Velika planina

I have not thought for a moment that I would stay at home on All Saint’s Day. I knew that sun wouldn’t shine in Ljubljana that day. It is one hour’s drive to get to the parking place, and another half an hour or so to get to the pastures by foot. If I can’t get on top of the mountains then I can get at least close to them, right?I enjoyed each and every minute above the foggy lowlands. My mom told me later that I had spent a day 41 years ago exactly on the same pastures. It was sunny and warm on that day too.When I got back home lunch was on a table, and in the evening I lit a candle for all those who are not with us anymore. It was a good day.

Don Quixote

Ž and I decided to spend a day away from a foggy Ljubljana, and drove to a hill, a home of bears, wolves, lynxes, foxes and, of course, birds. Not any kind of birds. It is possible to see eagles there if you are lucky. An organization I work for fought a hard battle against building wind turbines in that area because it is a very special place for animals and plants. Those guys in suits from the company that sells electricity came to our office and offered us a bribery to withdrew from this "battle". Just like that. But we are a different bunch of people, we stand by what we believe is good for nature. Sorry guys, but we can't be bought. This time Ž and I were picking sweet berries of Whitebeam (Sorbus aria). At first we thought of making jam of them but at the moment the berries are spread out on trays and they will be dried for teas and compotes.Later we were wandering around the hills in search for eagle feathers but instead found animal tracks I wrote about in my previous post. We also found quite fresh bear's poo full of Whitebeam berries. Hmn. Though, there were no bears in sight. On our way back we drove by a lovely castle. Actually only ruins stayed of it. As I read in a book on Slovenian castles it started to decay after a group of villagers bought it at the beginning of 20th century. A pity. It stands on a wonderful spot among the meadows and pastures, and it would be a wonderful place for weddings as also small tree-lined road leads to it.I am glad we took this trip because dense fog kept lingering in the lowlands for whole day. I had a feeling that sunshine and blue skies were like a cure for my well-being that day. Well, it seems that they always are.

Animal tracks

I had lots of work last week and we had two days off work due to holidays, that's why there has been no word from me for so long. Also for today I can't say I have lots of time, so just a few photos from our trip to the sunny part of Slovenia (yes, there's been fog for too many days here in Ljubljana). This time I am presenting you some animal tracks. Bear: Fox: Most probably lynx: Wolf or dog? More photos will follow soon.

Race

Snow covered the mountains; all that can be seen from Ljubljana, had a white blanket on on Saturday morning when I was driving again to the eastern part of my country. It had melted by the time I was driving back home yesterday in the evening.Once a year there's a running race in a village where Ž comes from. The best ones run 7 kilometers, the locals usually run only 3, 5 kilometers. I haven't been running for more than 20 years, so I thought that it might be fun taking part in this race. So I did. It was easy and I enjoyed myself all through the race. Of course, I didn't get the prize, because I was the fourth crossing the finish line. Luckily three girls, about 25 years younger than me, won the first three places. I can hardly imagine what people would think, if me, coming from Ljubljana, a place despised by most of the people living there, would get one of those golden cups! :) I admit, I am glad that people finally start to realize that I am not so different from them, and that I am slowly, after so many years coming to those places, becoming friends with some of them. Lots of them have a hard life, but in spite of this they keep their spirits high. That's why it is so pleasant to be in their company. Although sometimes they speak so fast in their local dialect that I don't understand them at all... :)I hope you had nice weekend, too.

At the coast

Quite by coincidence I had to drive to one of the natural reserves that organization I work for manages in the coastal area. To drive Ž back home. To visit my colleagues who work there. To give kiss and hug to one of them celebrating his birthday the other day. To find one more treasure located right there in middle of the reserve. Have I told you already that I almost lived there on a hill that you can see on this photo below? Once upon a time. It was not meant to be, because I didn't want to live there. Today I would not resist at all, living there. It is a nice place after all, and eventually I would have to learn how to speak Italian. Yesterday I came home with a crate of figs and tomato (no photos, sorry). I picked up another Geocoin. I enjoyed the ride. It was a pleasant afternoon.It will get colder today, and the landscape already shows its autumnal colors. I don't know where I will spend the next two days (it will snow in the mountains tomorrow night), but I am sure I will be on a treasure hunt again. :)

Happy weekend!

Among the butterflies

My computer needed a checkup, and I couldn't post the photos on my blog. So, I also didn't post any words. Words of joy and happiness, and words of sadness and confusion. It's been a hard year for me and I guess this turmoil won't be over so soon as I'd expected. Maybe I will have to make the final cut and let it all go. Soon. To set me free for a new period in my life.

I spent the days running around catching the butterflies, having a good time driving around the flatlands and hills in the NE part of Slovenia. It felt like a holiday again. Though events happened that never should have. I wish all was over already, life has become too difficult to bear. Don't get me wrong - I will survive, but the burden is just too heavy.

I hope that your days were nice and pleasant. Oh, yes, and the weather next week might permit me to go to the mountains again. I can hardly wait! :) It feels like being in the tropics these last few weeks...

Welcome spring!

It all seemed too good to be true. Hither and thither through the meadows he rambled busily, along the hedgerows, across the copses, finding everywhere birds building, flowers budding, leaves thrusting everything happy, and progressive, and occupied. And instead of having an uneasy conscience pricking him and whispering "whitewash!" he somehow could only feel how jolly it was to be the only idle dog among all these busy citizens. After all, the best part of a holiday is perhaps not so much to be resting yourself, as to see all the other fellows busy working.

~Kenneth Grahame, The wind in the willows~

I took a ride by the train this weekend, to the north-eastern part of Slovenia. Ž comes from there. He loves those places and I sometimes wonder why the fortune separates us from the things we admire and we do not live happily without. After all we decide for ourselves, don't we?

We walked through the woods and along the rivers, we searched for the Middle Spotted Woodpeckers and toads. We wondered at the nature showing its first signs of spring. We met friends and talked to the people. For me it was like a holiday. I was taken care of after a long, long time again. It is spring, the time of a year when I get restless and when great changes start happening in my life. Each and every year. Sometimes they are happy and sometimes they are not. This time I can only hope for the best. When I was going back home, I had tears in my eyes but also a smile on my face. I felt all this:

He did not at all want to abandon the new life and its splendid spaces, to turn his back on sun and air and all they offered him and creep home and stay there; the upper world was all too strong, it called to him still, even down there, and he knew he must return to the larger stage. But it was good to think he had this to come back to, this place which was all his own, these things which were so glad to see him again and could always be counted upon for the same simple welcome.

~Kenneth Grahame, The wind in the willows~

My favorite time of a year has started. It lasts until my birthday and sometimes even after that. Whatever this spring will bring into my life, it will be good. I know.

I hope yours will be wonderful, too!

Weekend...

...passed quickly and I spent some nice hours outside my home. On Friday evening I decided to go to see a movie instead of reading a book. Becoming Jane is a love story, telling about a great romance between Jane Austen and Tom Lefroy. Right, as I read today on the internet, there is no proof that there ever was a big romance between the two of them. But I liked the movie. I relaxed and enjoyed the story and music. Just recently I read Pride and Prejudice. Well, it is nice to escape everyday life for a while. Though I think it was a hard time for women in those days.

I also read a book during this weekend. The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy. I have Tara road by the same author at home, I ordered it once at Amazon but I didn't like it at all. I liked The Copper Beech mostly because all the stories have a happy ending. Just what I need right now. Otherwise, in my opinion a plain writing.

I went to help my grandmom on her Ranč (we've been calling it ranch for ages, perhaps because it is a bigger property, I don't know, that piece of land just got that name) on Saturday, together with my parents. The weather was bad (some rain) and the wind was very strong. A hurricane, I called it. We cleared up the branches from the orchard and burned them, so my grandmom was the happiest woman that day. She baked us apple strudel (yum!) and made some lunch. We talked for a while about all sorts of things. It is so nice to be with my grandparents, usually it is so relaxing, so peaceful.

Yesterday I spent an afternoon searching for the spots where Eagle Owl might live. Well, I actually joined Mr Ž on his quest. It was a nice sunny day but windy again. We have this strong wind every spring now for more than 10 years. Some people died in Germany and also Austria was hit hard. We are kind of lucky to have Alps protecting us a bit. So, later in the afternoon, just before dark, we went to listen to this biggest European owl to a spot where it was heard before. We were lucky to see both, male and female and they uttered their sounds, too. So, another tick on our list. We will go and listen at this spot again later when the youngsters will be hatched. Hopefully... Wandering through the woods, I took some photos of the spring flowers. It is still too cold for the flowers to bloom at the place were I live, unfortunately. Although we might get some snow tomorrow, nobody can't deny that spring is coming to our land.So, I wasn't baking this weekend, I was taken care of, which was even better than staying at home, reading a book, cleaning a house and cooking.

The other day...

... I baked these:

Cinnamon rolls by some Swedish recipe. They came out very dry.

A day after I climbed the nearest mountain (or is it a hill with elevation a bit over 1000m?). It was freezing cold, the snow started to fall and the wind was blowing around my ears. On my way up I warmed myself but I was asking the trees, the snowflakes, the birds, the rocks - why am I doing this, torturing myself? I imagined how I sit in my cozy chair in my warm living room and read some excellent books I had brought home from a library... In a hut up there I drank some good hot tea and ate my lunch. The weather was even worse when I went down, back home. Then I realised that I had to go so far to be able to tell a story about my trip, to tell you that I saw an owl in a chimney of a weekend house I passed by, and to enjoy the coziness of my home even more. Often I say to myself:

If you don't go, you don't have a story.

Though the stories I read about are nice, too. :)