I wrote my first review of an album! My friend, Linda Bianchi, released a Christmas album last year. The review is on CDBaby and also on Amazon. It was daunting to write about the cd. I love it and have listened to it often. But I was intimidated by the other reviews that sounded like they were from people who’d written a lot of reviews. Ultimately I am happy with the results. The album is called Christmas in New York.

It is a wolf moon rising at dusk. I took this on the way home from work. That amazing ball of light, right on the horizon, is the moon. I copied this article from Robert Roy Britt that was posted on aol.com. Thanks Robert!

Robert Roy Britt

Space.com

(Jan. 29) – Tonight’s full moon will be the biggest and brightest full moon of the year. It offers anyone with clear skies an opportunity to identify easy-to-see features on the moon.

This being the first full moon of 2010, it is also known as the wolf moon, a moniker dating back to Native American culture and the notion that hungry wolves howled at the full moon on cold winter nights. Each month brings another full moon name.

But why will this moon be bigger than others? Here’s how the moon works:

The moon is, on average, 238,855 miles from Earth. The moon’s orbit around Earth – which causes it to go through all its phases once every 29.5 days – is not a perfect circle, but rather an ellipse. One side of the orbit is 31,070 miles closer than the other.

So in each orbit, the moon reaches this closest point to us, called perigee. Once or twice a year, perigee coincides with a full moon, as it will tonight, making the moon bigger and brighter than any other full moons during the year.

Tonight it will be about 14 percent wider and 30 percent brighter than lesser full moons of the year, according to Spaceweather.com.

As a bonus, Mars will be just to the left of the moon tonight. Look for the reddish, starlike object.

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I hope you got a chance to see it tonight. It was a true delight.

Cold and windy but blue sky clear and it was a long day. Did get a lot of work done though. Tomorrow I have my first appointment with a new primary care physician. Haven’t been able to get mammograms without one. So I’m overdo. Not nervous about it, I am what I am. But none the less, it is getting to me a little.

Listening to Shirley Bassey and now Al Green. I love those two kinds of music. Among many others…Very relaxing but yet exhiliarating. I’m not sure how that can be but it is. It is those times when you feel strong and ready for the onslaught. You study it as it comes at you and slay the enemy.  Victorious. Again.

Charlie got a bath! Isn’t he so handsome! I know it is slightly out of focus but Charlie doesn’t sit still. I like this picture too because I don’t often see the black side of his face – his dark brown eyes disappear into the black hair. I often find myself talking to the eye that is on the white side of his face. I wonder if he can tell.

The US Mint is releasing four new pennies in 2010 for the 100th anniversary of the first Lincoln cent illustrating phases of his life: early childhood; formative years; early career; and presidency. I now have the 1st and second ones – log cabin and lincoln reading a book sitting on a log. I’ve been fitting them into my current cent folders.

 The DC and territories quarters are out now – they are all 2009 issues. I have DC, Guam, Puerto Rico and Northern Mariana Islands coins but all Phillys. I still need American Somoa and US Virgin Islands from both mints. These I’m having a tough time fitting into my coin folders because of spaces allotted not because of a size change.

I am surprised and happy about the new America the Beautiful quarters. I will have to order new folders for them. When I learned of the DC and territories coins I realized that I had been looking forward to completing my coin collecting hobby. But with a quick adjustment of attitude I now look forward collecting all of these new coins. I find pleasure in the hunt.

Last night I had trouble sleeping.  I live on the 3rd floor and don’t have curtains in my bedroom window but have hung colored glass and wind chimes. One is a big clear cracked-glass globe that was probably meant to be an ornament on a humongous Christmas tree. I bought it at a yard sale.

Ok, so I’m reading in bed and I lowered the book and my eyes and the globe and the moon were in direct alignment. Now the moon is not full but it was so bright and to be obscured by the globe – well it was down right Hogwartian. Just think of that moment, three aligned. A slight movement to the right or left, a moment later or earlier, or one more or less paragraph and that magic would have not happened.

Today I saw a great blue heron fly by my bedroom window. It is awfully late in the season but a joy none the less. What a wonderful Christmas treat!

Now it is a rainy Christmas midnight here in the Hudson Valley, which is in New York State. Everybody has quieted down for the night and my sister and I just finished watching a double feature of the last two Harry Potter movies. We watched them in our respective homes (hers in North Dakota) on our DVD players and we were on the phone for almost the entire time. We had a intermission between movies. We watch movies periodically like this and it is a lot of fun. It would be greater to see each other in person but our work keeps us far apart. Cell phone free minutes make it much easier for us to stay in touch. Modern technology does have its uses.

Today I’ve talked to my mom and my younger brother. I went over to my older brother’s last night where his wife and 3 kids and the latters’ partners were all gathered. What a delightful bunch of people. We laughed and laughed. I sent out my electonic Christmas cards to friends and family and have heard back from a lot of them already. I’ve got great friends. I’ve got a great family.

With my job I get the week between Christmas and New Year’s off and it is a wonderful way to wind up the year. Time for reflection and rest. Time for preparing to start the new year with renewed enthusiasm and hope.

After 5 years of progressively worsening financial woes, I have finally straightened that all out. And slowly but surely I will recover. This year I will straighten out my health problems. I will overcome these issues. I wish you success in your own struggles. May 2010 be your best year ever!

Merry Christmas!

We had more snow this past weekend. This picture was not taken in January of 2007, I just changed the batteries in my camera.

Charlie is watching people walking by in the snow. I love my balcony, we spend a lot of time out there. Cold, hot, dark, it doesn’t matter, it is our front porch.

On this particular day though, you might be able to tell in the photo that it is snowing. And the cat wants in. I guess Simon doesn’t like the cold much at all. Usually he is the last one in and not the first.

Merry Christmas! Hope your day is warm, safe and happy!

My first Northern Mariana Islands Philiadelphia Quarter! I don’t have all 6 territories and I don’t have any Denver Mint issues. I am sad to see the adventure, the treasure seeking experience so close to being over. It is so much fun!