What is better than a mug full of hot chocolate on a cold day? When I get in from work at night one of the first things I do is put on the kettle. The first thing I do is turn on the heat! But with electric heat it seems to take forever for the room to warm up. But, that mug of warmth helps, or at least I imagine it does.

Someone once told me that you should actually drink something cold to warm up and drink something hot to cool down. It doesn't make sense to me and so far I haven't seen any signs of it actually working.

What's your hot beverage of choice? Have you tried that new idea of adding hot chocolate and coffee together? I think it's a poor man's mocha. It is good but I've only made it myself at home. The best was when I used both fresh coffee and fresh hot chocolate. I tried just adding a bit of hot chocolate powder to my coffee and that was not so good.

Hot milk, tea and coffee are the traditional drinks besides hot chocolate. My Mother likes hot water with whiskey and lemon. My brother has his personal favourite mug, it's huge, he likes it full of tea with honey and lemon. I'm sure there are some great family recipes out there. When you're coming in from the cold it's a case of whatever works to warm you up.

Keep warm and Seasons Greetings,

Laura

What do you do when you're sick?

I like to watch TV, as a distraction and eat ice cream. The ice cream part is a family tradition. As kids, when one of us was sick my Mom would send my Dad out to get ice cream. Then whoever was sick would get the first bowl, usually. Sometimes they'd have to scramble for it. That's how it goes when you're one of four brothers and sisters.

These days when I'm sick and trying to avoid all those sweet and delicious things, like ice cream, I'm changing my old patterns. At least I'm trying to. I still love ice cream, it's my biggest roadblock to non-fatness.

Anyway, I've started buying myself flowers or a plant instead of ice cream when I'm sick. The flowers certainly last a lot longer. Plus they are nearly calorie free. I haven't tested this theory by actually eating them, but I suppose its always an option.

When my brother is sick he tries to pretend he isn't. He doesn't want to go to the doctor's office and he just keeps going, dripping snotty tissues and spewing mucus like a trail of bread crumbs. He stays sick a long time. If he would just get some medicine he could be feeling better in a week or less.

Both of my sisters go to the doctor pretty quick if they are sick. But, for different reasons. One is a dental assistant. She works in people's faces all day so its not a good thing to be contagious. The other sister is a Mom. She doesn't have time to be sick and doesn't want to be contagious either.

I'm somewhere in between. I try to hang on and hope it goes away. But, I get to a point where I decide it's not going anywhere and then I go in and see what the medical profession has to say about it.

Today I have leftover bronchitis, it just won't finish off and leave me alone even though the antibiotics are gone. I also have a sore throat. I'm hoping that's not another cold/ flu/ mystery bug warming up for the attack. Although ice cream would be so good today, I'm thinking to get a nice little poinsettia today.

The Ultimate Dragon Quiz

Your Inner Dragon is the embodiment of Nature and the Earth. Greens spend almost all of their time below the canopy or just above the treetops in tropical rain forests. Not a bad life considering every other creature in the forest looks up to you, figuratively and literally. You speak the language of every animal and plant in your domain and know most of them by first name. If people mess with your forests, you're more than happy to wail on their puny butts. Because of your protector/caretaker role, you are the Earth Elemental dragon.

Naturally your whole life pretty much revolves around the other couple million species you keep an eye on, but that's not your whole dragon. You also like to impose your steadfast will on others, commune with Nature, and lobby governments for alternative fuels and conservation. Your favorable attributes are Midnight, Winter, gemstones, mountains, caves, soil, respect, endurance, responsibility, prosperity, and purpose in life. Folks shouldn't get the idea you're a hippy pushover though, because your breath weapon is a nasty Fire/Acid combination. Maybe you should invest in a hemp shirt reading "Don't knock my smock, or I'll clean your clock." wink

Kingdomality

Try the Kingdomality test. Who would you be if you were back in the Medieval times?

In the past when I have tried this I was the Bard, the Discoverer and the Ruler. This time I'm the Benevolent Ruler again:

Your distinct personality, The Benevolent Ruler might be found in most of the thriving kingdoms of the time. You are the idealistic social dreamer. Your overriding goal is to solve the people problems of your world. You are a social reformer who wants everyone to be happy in a world that you can visualize. You are exceptionally perceptive about the woes and needs of humankind. You often have the understanding and skill to readily conceive and implement the solutions to your perceptions. On the positive side, you are creatively persuasive, charismatic and ideologically concerned. On the negative side, you may be unrealistically sentimental, scattered and impulsive, as well as deviously manipulative. Interestingly, your preference is just as applicable in today's corporate kingdoms.

Not much to see in our gardens now. Things are turning from green to brown and muddy. Or are they?

What is so bad about brown anyway? Take a look at some of the great shapes, textures, colours and movements going on right under your nose. In our garden I was watching snowballs being tossed around in the wind. I forget what the plant was called when it was in bloom, now they are huge brassy coloured snowballs on sticks. Kind of pretty in their way. That got me started looking at the rest of our so called dormant garden.

If you really look you can see that it's not dormant, not yet at least. There are tons of birds around still. We won't even talk about those other garden raiders: squirrels, raccoons, skunks, rabbits, the odd deer and pets. I like watching the birds in the garden. How do those little things survive all winter long? On days when we are complaining of cold there are those fragile looking birds out there, 24 hours, 7 days a week right outside in the cold. It's a bit humbling to think that those tiny birds are tougher, more rugged than we are.

Of course we know kids like to be outside, in the muck and snow (if you are lucky enough to have snow). Kids enjoy nature. Even the most game addicted kid I know likes to get out there once his parents push him out the door. The mud may seem just mucky to us but if you look at it, there is life in that mud. It's holding the essentials of everything your garden needs. Also, if there is still mud it's not all that cold yet. You still have time to wrap up and tidy up your garden for the winter.

Not a lot to do over the winter in a garden. Before it starts you can cut back the things that have finished off. I am perfectly happy to leave most of them as they are. It gives you something to look at besides a garden full of stumps. Also, its natural that way. Later, the snow will come and push them down to become their own natural fertilizer.

Some plants will not over winter and those need to be brought in and packaged up for the winter. If you can, leave them in pots and let them go dormant in your basement, laundry room, or whatever available space you have. A coat closet is okay if they won't be in your way there. All they really need is to exist without being disturbed much. Don't water them too much, some don't need any water at all. It's hard to know which are which until you have experimented a few seasons. This is one of the times it's great to have a garden journal. You can keep track of all your plant experiments and remember which plant did what.

Another thing I'm watching in our garden this season are the evergreens. All summer they sort of seem bland and boring. They don't DO anything. It's only now that we can appreciate them. Now, they are in their element. Around them the garden is shades of brown, gold and white, the perfect foil for their splash of green.

So, enjoy your winter garden. It's not the end, just a new beginning.

If you've read this column now and then, you've probably wondered about the vagabond part. Well, she is back!

I love to travel and road trips in particular are one of my favourite things. I don't need to hop on an airplane and go to Russia to be happy. Not that I would pass up the opportunity! But, just to wander around my own Canada is plenty happifying for me.

So, now that I have bought myself a car, my first car, I will be off wandering as soon as the ink is on the paperwork. Tomorrow, Wednesday, I will pay the rest of the car money and start packing. Likely I will fill up the tank with gas here in town when I leave on Thursday morning. I still don't like self serve gas stations. It's nice to see the lady here in town and chat for those 30 seconds or so. Plus, I don't have to look like a twit trying to figure out how each set of pumps works. Why are they all different?

Anyway, tonight I am going to look up local events in Ontario. I am thinking of Kincardine and Sarnia, both would be great but they are in different directions. That much driving could be too much for the little grey car, or me as a fairly new driver.

Both Sarnia and Kincardine are on the Great Lakes. But Kincardine has an actual lighthouse and a beach with great big rocks that I remember from when I was a kid. (We lived on a farm in the area, just for a few years). But, Sarnia is cheaper and I am thinking to move there. Not till after the winter though. Even I can not cope with another move this soon after moving in July.

So, tonight , after I look for a grape jelly recipe for my Mom, I will be cruising the sites and finding the most interesting things to see. Planning routes, pit stops and what is the least junk I need to pack for a couple of nights away in the little grey car, as yet unnamed. No doubt by the time I get back I will have named the car.

PS- She bought 3 baskets of grapes. They smell wonderful! I don't even like grapes.