We are having a mild winter this year. All of the snow melted from the yard over the last few weeks, leaving soggy limp grass that tramples into mud in places. The sun shone off and on yesterday, which was a surprise as the forecast predicted wet snow and freezing rain. Today the storm reached us, the roads thick with snow and ice. Driving is treacherous.

I took advantage of the clear roads on Wednesday and spent my morning running errands all over the city. I have created a series of paper bookmarks to display a project I have been working on and they required two visits to the copy center, one to drop off and one to pick up the bookmarks. I need to work on the original bookmark file though (an MS Word file) as the staff at the copy center pointed out to me that my bookmarks were not equidistant and therefore would be very hard to cut. Back to the drawing board.

I welcome my birthdays with enthusiasm, always have. This year the celebration seemed more special than ever before, there may be many reasons for this. It may be that as one ages, the miracle of growing old is more obvious by the year. It may be that this birthday came with no dependent children to put before myself, leaving me free of roles, expectations, and obligations.

On this birthday, as well, my dear friend Auntie Mame, a professional cook and pastry chef prepared a spectacular four-course meal. It was an experience to remember, cooked to perfection and presented with panache.

My diet is severely restricted and I suffer from potentially fatal food allergies, which means I seldom eat in restaurants and never indulge in pot luck dinners and the like. To cook for me one must be aware of every ingredient, in every food on the list, and be ready to reject or substitute frequently. I do not know what measures Auntie Mame had to take to ensure that I could enjoy that wonderful meal without fear or consequence. The meal was memorable and the company, Auntie Mame and Mike, was all one could wish for on a happy Birthday.

Recently I listed my site with a brand new Canadian Art Directory www.canadaart.INFO I have long wanted to find a consistent place to list my site. The World Wide Web is such a big place and it is very easy to disappear in the digital noise. However, for me, the best part about listing with canadaart is that it provides me with a "Business Card" that lists the links to this site and my contact information where it can be easily found and easily changed.

Today, Saturday, Luna and Janus will arrive in the sunshine to share a meal and whisk me off the movie Theatre. It has been over a decade since I viewed a first run movie at a Theatre, so this is quite an event. They have decided that Attila and I should see "Lord of the Rings". I am looking forward to this very much.

We have been viewing some very good movies right here at home. Recently we rented Vatel with Gerard Depardieu, Uma Thurman, Tim Roth, Julian Glover, Timothy Spall, Julian Sands, and Richard Griffith. The pre-revolution French aristocracy (1671, Louis XIV) are portrayed in such a way that one sees easily and clearly that wealth and power are in no way related to human worthiness. One review describes the movie as portraying "France's most legendary court and most celebrated king". Link
I celebrate that I am not a citizen of such a place and time.

Attila suggested we watch "Gladiator"; I resisted. Movies that rely on violence for their popularity are not popular with me. I decided that in the spirit of compromise, it behooved me to watch this movie merely because Attila wished to see it. My reaction was very strong. I can not say I liked the movie, watching pain and death has never seemed amusing. I can say that I respected the writing, the acting, and the storytelling. Senseless, cruel violence, and people who live to hurt others are not portrayed as heroes in this film, but as the weak, unstable and pathetic creatures that they are.

In my last journal entry I mentioned one of my favorite treats, Fresh Orange Loaf. When I received an email asking me for the recipe I was tickled, I always love to hear from people. So here it is, for the record:

Fresh Orange Loaf

Recipe By: Purity Cookbook, page 199

1 whole orange
1/2 cup orange juice
1 egg
2 tablespoons oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
2 1/3 cups sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins or 6 whole prunes

Quarter orange and place pieces in food processor bowl. Chop fine. Add liquid ingredients, then dry ingredients. Place raisins or prunes on top. Pulse to mix. Pour into greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 F for 60 minutes.

Per recipe: 3543 Calories; 35g Fat (9% calories from fat); 38g Protein; 793g Carbohydrate; 181mg Cholesterol; 2685mg Sodium