Holidailies: Walking in a Winter Wonderland

"Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,
In the lane, snow is glistening
A beautiful sight,
We're happy tonight.
Walking in a winter wonderland."

The weather has been warming up the last few days, which means that it will start to snow. And snow and snow and snow. On the one hand, I welcome the snow--it covers all the ugliness that is post-autumn here in the Mac. There is something soothing about the large flakes that settle on the bushes and trees, softening the world outside.

Gone away is the bluebird,
Here to stay is a new bird
He sings a love song,
As we go along,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

When I first moved here, I was enchanted with the winter birds that hang about--giant crows, squawking blackbirds and little chickadees. They all seemed so hardy and I admired their resourcefulness and chutzpah of sticking it out in tough living conditions.

On garbage day I saw that people in the neighbourhood often covered up their garbage with blankets and sheets. I first scoffed at how "dainty" people must think themselves to be to not even want people to see that they *gasp* put garbage out on the *curb* once a week. I literally laughed out loud at the thought that these pick up truck driving red necks would feel this way. I brushed it off as an Easterner thing that they must have brought out West.

I said so out loud one day at work and got *that look* from someone who retorted that the reason for covering the garbage was to keep it from the birds. I was confused--what did they mean "keep it from the birds"? And then I discovered the menace that is scavenging birds--huge and loud in their daily habits; The birds, aided in part by their huge size, would rip open the bags and spread the trash down the street like a smorgasbord of leftovers, wrappers and detritus. Ahhh, the delights of wildlife about town.

In the meadow we can build a snowman,
Then pretend that he is Parson Brown

He'll say: Are you married?
We'll say: No man,
But you can do the job
When you're in town.

Later on, we'll conspire,
As we dream by the fire
To face unafraid,
The plans that we've made,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

Now that the tree is up, the kids enjoy the twinkle of the tree lights, fidgeting with the ornaments and tell me that they are hopeful that one day we will have a fireplace to have a fire and a mantle for the stockings.

In the meadow we can build a snowman,
And pretend that he's a circus clown
We'll have lots of fun with mister snowman,
Until the other kids knock him down.

The kids are, of course, thrilled with the snow. It isnt the right type of snowfall to make snowmen but they dont let that distract them. As they like to say in Alberta, it's a dry cold ;) and we watch as the snow continues to fall...

When it snows, ain't it thrilling,
Though your nose gets a chilling
We'll frolic and play, the Eskimo way,
Walking in a winter wonderland.