December 21

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The sun comes up, on the shortest day.  Snow on the roofs, and trees everywhere.

7:30 am.

7:50.

8:12.

Color on the table.  Clementines.

Our daughter has been working midnights this month, as her company copes with doing over 25% of their annual business in the 10 days before Christmas.

When she has a night off, she is often up to interesting tasks that have enjoyable results for those who sleep through the night.  She has baked bread twice this month, and here was the project for the night of the 20th-21st....

I don't think I've ever had a better peanut butter cookie than the ones that result from this recipe.  They are really good.

As you can see, this recipe has been around a long time.

The part you can't see is that the original for this recipe is in the book that came with the Sunbeam mixer my parents got as a wedding present.  They had their 65th anniversary this year.  We've had this recipe for a long time.

When I was in jr. high, I had the idea that typing recipes for myself would be a good idea.  I don't recall why I thought that was a good idea.  I was a very weak typist....  I'm sure it took me about 85 times longer to type them than it would have taken to write them by hand, and I remember it being a frustrating job.

In any case, the fact that this is typed lets me know it dates from 1965-7.  So this card has been around a long time, if not as long as we've had the recipe.

The only modification (aside from the amounts for doubled and quadrupled batches) is that we are trying to avoid transfats and don't use shortening.

Well, and that we've never (ever) made them as small as "teaspoonsful."  We use more like a couple of tablespoons per cookie.  And we sprinkle them with red and/or green sugar.  They have always been one of our "go to" Christmas cookies.



Later.  Walking.  My walk is mostly fairly flat.  This is part of the steepest bit of the loop -- the far end is UP and DOWN.  And then it really is basically flat, the rest of the way  home.  This is the halfway point -- at the top of this hill.

The sky was totally gray (featureless overcast gray) on the 21st.  But allllll the leaves were not brown.  Some plants are alive.  I don't know the names of any of these, unless the grayish one is lamb's ears?

Myrtle.  Evergreen, even when the winter is COLD.

Yes, these are strawberries.  I think they are a decorative variety.  They do make actual berries, but not very many.

Of course -- we have some control over whether allllll the leaves are brown........................  On the shortest day, or any other day.

There's always paint.

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