A Good Snow, Dahlias and Books...

Tani, nose to the wind…

Mr. H and I were discussing the nor’easter that grounded the East Coast to a halt on Saturday. We were one of the lucky ones, far enough away from the coast to avoid the heaviest snow, flooding, and power outages. When we woke up this morning in our little New Hampshire haven, I looked outside, turned to him, and said  ‘It was a GOOD snow, not a great snow, but a good snow.” He understood.

A GOOD snow lays a soft powdery bed, one to snowshoe or ski through the woods. Not too heavy, not too wet, not too icy.  You can get where you need to go safely. It looks pretty, but not quite. The trees are missing their sugary finery. When you live in a house designed with a multitude of windows to “bring the outside in” you notice these things. 

I have two other snow categories. One is the “MEH” snow…a lot of talk and no action. You could sneeze outside and it would blow away. 

And finally, GREAT snow. When you wake up in the storybook land of Narnia, where every tree shimmers in a wintery white and you feel the pull to go out and play.  In my case, and I should qualify this, these measurements are all in relation to photography.  I love the soul of winter and it truly shows its glimmering self in GREAT snow. It is when we can retreat and settle into a winter quietude. 

All said, I will take what we have, because really, do I have any choice? Mr. H, Tani, and I had a good romp through the woods this morning and it was glorious. As I type, the sun is shining and a keen wind is lifting a fine white powder into a lofty ballerina twirl past my window. I will head out again to enjoy it all with Tani trailing alongside me. In fact, all this writing has me eager to get out again. I am off…

And I am back with a pink glow in my cheeks and a tired dog sleeping underfoot. Now that you have learned the upside down view of my snow world, lets talk gardens. 

The Happy Winter Gardener

Mr. H was a happy winter gardener today, planning for our summer garden. Dahlia tubers will arrive in the spring with names that read like a romance novel.  Fleurel, Bodacious*, Gitt’s Perfection. Pink Allegro, Spartacus*, Sweet Surprise, Belle of Barmera, Cafe Au Lait and Tsuki Yori No Shisha* and no surprise, Mango Madness. This will certainly feed his inner Chateau Mango, our expat home in Vietnam. One he had painted a vivid mango yellow/orange color… much to my surprise. I wrote all about it here.

I have Frances Palmer to thank for a few of the dahlia suggestions. In my mind, she is Queen of the Dahlia world. I went right to her fabulous book, Frances Palmer- Life in the Studio for a list of her favorites ( *). Mr. H selected the rest. 

I have long wanted to grow dahlias but have been a bit anxious about them. Mr. H says he is willing to give me one of his nine 4’ x 9’ garden beds and he might even give me two. So kind. 😉 We have to square away deer fencing first, we hear dahlias are a delicacy for them. Then there are the Japanese beetles, earwigs and slugs to deal with. The trials and tribulations of gardening! I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Speaking of gardening, you might enjoy these:

Sarah Raven "How to Grow Dahlias"

Dauntless Dahlias with Frances Palmer at the New York Botanical Gardens.

Mr. H and I are enjoing Dan Pearson on Naturalistic Garden Designs via Create Academy.

Books and Books

The above is how my reading library is stacking up so far in 2022, how about you? Last year I set a reading goal of 50 books, a significant jump from the 37 books I read the previous year. I use Goodreads to keep track of my reading. This year I set set a goal of 55 books. It might be crazy but I love to read, so…why not?

People often ask “Have you read Louise Penny yet?” I promised I would but never got around to it. This year I decided to jump in and now I can’t get enough of her Chief Inspector Armand Garmache series. I want to move to Canada as a result. The fictitious town of Three Pines to be exact. While we are at it you might as well throw in a few murder mysteries too. I started with the first book, Still Life, quickly moved onto the second, A Fatal Grace and started the third in the series The Cruelest Month. I think I might be addicted to this series and wonder if I will make it through all 17 of them this year. There is a strong possibility.

Another book highly recommended was The Invisible Life of Addie Larue. I really enjoyed this book, it fed my inner nerd. Magical realism, historical fiction, paranormal, fantasy fiction…shall I go on? It was the perfect book to start the year. I listened to it on Audible. Great narrator!

Ok, I admit, I was a bit lax about starting The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles. Like many others, I asked how he could possibly top A Gentleman in Moscow. I started the book on Audible and was so hooked within the first 50 pages I took Mr. H’s hardcopy of the book and jumped right in. This is the magic formula for me, to be able to listen to a book and read it when I don’t have the time to listen. Crazy I know, but that’s what I like. As I turned the last page, I said to Mr. H “Wow that was great!, you have to read this book.” He said, “I would have liked to but you took my book.” 😂 I have since turned into one of those annoying people asking him “What page are you on? What’s happening in the book? Do you like it? Just wait until….” I don’t tell him though, that would spoil all the fun.

I have been trying to convince Mr. H for the past year to listen to the Slightly Foxed podcasts. I recently had him cornered on a long car drive and said “Just trust me, you will like it.’ We listened to Episode 39, Idle Moment: Literary Loafers through the Ages and Pages -afterward, he turned to me and asked if we could listen to a few more. He felt a connection with idlers and literary loafers. Mission accomplished! We started with the first episode and the journey continues. The reason why I mention this is that one of the books referenced is Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, published in 1932. I am currently listening to it on Audible as one of the many books mentioned in the podcast. So far, it’s a hoot!

Two books I enjoyed before the holidays were Wintering by Katherine May and The Love Story of Missy Carmichael by Beth Morrey. One is a reflection on the power of rest and retreat in difficult times and the other puts it into practice in a fictional story. I highly recommend both!

I mentioned the wonderful book by Frances Palmer, a Christmas gift in 2020. I was fortunate to receive Lucy Hunter’s gorgeous new book The Flower Hunter this past Christmas. I first discovered Lucy on Instagram and went on to hear her speak on a few podcasts. One worth listening to is The Restless Creatives Podcast featuring Lucy and her book launch.

Another fascinating book is Little Stories of Your Life by Laura Pashby. If you have a burning desire to tell your own story, and discover your creative self, get this book! I am taking it slowly, one chapter at a time. It is one of those books you will think deeply about. What better way to start a new year?

And there you have it. A little ramble about snow, dahlias and books. I hope there is something here that will inspire and delight you. Thank you for stopping by for a little collage of life from Tahilla Farm.

Before I go, you might enjoy a view from my kitchen window to playful snowy juncos.

Best wishes for a lovely week!

Jeanne xx