This and That - January edition

I hope everyone is starting to feel settled in the new year. We have been focusing on walking, hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, puzzles, sightseeing, photography and yoga.

Chinese New Year for the year 2023 is celebrated/observed on Sunday, January 22. This year the animal sign is the Rabbit. I have only celebrated the Chinese New Year once when our supper club hosted a dinner party. 

Chinese New Year is the first day of the New Year in the Chinese lunisolar calendar (Chinese traditional calendar). It is also known as the Lunar New Year or the Spring Festival. The first day of the festival begins on the New Moon sometime each year between January 21st and February 20th. The holiday/festival lasts 16 days from New Year’s Eve to the 15th day of the New Year which also happens to be the Lantern Festival.

For New Year's Eve, we enjoyed a wow-worthy seafood tower at home before our dinner. The top layer consisted of lobster trail and shrimp, and the bottom layer was oysters and littleneck clams. Joe is a huge fan of oysters on the half shell, and I make a delicious American style sauce for the oysters with red wine vinegar, minced shallot, chives, parsley, tabasco, worcestershire, white pepper, salt and olive oil. 

We're looking forward to seeing this movie soon. I asked my hubby to take my jar of coins to the coin machine at the grocery store, and requested an Amazon voucher (I do this all the time). He came home smiling and said he pressed the wrong button at the machine so we are going to the movies. After giving him the eye roll, we started looking at the movies that were playing at our local theater. We've chosen our movie, A Man Called Otto.

A chunk of this movie was filmed outside of Pittsburgh. The whole filming crew couldn't have been kinder to everyone. The fact that Tom Hanks was waving and talking to everyone not to mention randomly showing up at people's weddings to wish them luck just makes me want to see the movie more.

Once in a while I brave the dark and take night photos. This is the recent wolf moon at our beautiful Historic St. John's church.I used my phone and will try it again once I get a new lense for my camera.

On a dreary day (January 10), we went to check on "our" Snowy Owls that arrive in the winter. They have been at the same location for many years (I am so intrigued by their GSP). I no longer have a camera with a zoom lense (dropped it last February in Florida and it cannot be repaired), so I took this photo with Joe's pocket camera.

Joe took this photo through a spotting scope with his cell phone. She is so beautiful. 

A photo I took in 2019 when I had a zoom lense.

Have you seen the Dolly Parton cake mixes in the grocery store? I've waited for over a year and finally found them. We all enjoyed the coconut cake, and I'm making a banana cake this week for a birthday celebration. 

When my friend shared his spreadsheet that he uses for his sour dough bread making, it was impressive. I've made bread many times, but this bread was exceptional. He delivered the bread warm and right out of the oven. I know that some of you make bread and are very good at it too.   

Happy New Year to All!

xo

Deb