Snowy weekend!!

The winter has been quite severe this time around and most parts of US have borne the brunt of the polar vortex and the arctic blast since we stepped into the new year. While the East Coast and the Southern States are getting swathed in piles of snow, with more expected this week, Pacific Northwest got its share of snow this weekend. What started as flurries on a chilly Thursday noon, soon turned to a snow fest. Within a few hours, nearly 2-3 inches of snow could be found all around and more was to follow. As the school buses pulled up to drop the kids off, the air was filled with squeals of delight at the amount of snow that had already accumulated on sidewalks and walkways. For me this was the most snow I had ever seen right at my doorstep, and so when S returned early from work thanks to the winter weather, we decided to take a stroll in the snow. The snow being fresh was really soft to touch and obviously very very cold, but I had to hold it in my hands and feel it. The child in me was having a gala time. A couple of hurried clicks on the camera phone and we were back to the warmth of our home. Even with the blinds down, it felt like the whole neighborhood had flood-lights tuned on, the white snow was reflecting light and even the night was bright.

Friday morning was snow-less but there was no way one could distinguish the street from the side-walk, so it was work-from-home for hubby. With schools closed due to the weather alert, children were running around playfully in the snow, having a blast throwing snow at one another. By noon, it was snow-time again and soon more white frosting was being showered all over the city. Winding up work early for the weekend, we decided to venture out farther from home and capture some of the snowy charm on camera. And so we set out fully geared up, mufflers and gloves and caps on, trudging along on snow. Each step had me giggling with joy, feeling as if I was walking on a giant cake that had fluffy white icing in a fairy land. More snow followed on Saturday and towards evening, the snow had turned to freezing rain. The rain drops are like ice drops and this meant it was harder to walk about. The snow that had so generously taken over every visible surface, was now hardening to ice. While it is fun to walk in snow, it is quite scary to walk on ice, there is every chance of losing your balance and falling while walking on ice. But it was a cosy night as we had a dinner get-together with friends who luckily stay in neighboring apartment communities. Sunday was snow-free, but with the temperatures barely above freezing, we felt it will be quite a while before the snow cover vanished for good. Apparently it had been quite a while since Portland saw this much snow at a stretch, By Monday evening, the movement of cars on the roads had managed to clear out most of the ice. The apartment maintenance guys pitched in by clearing snow from the stairs and salting them to prevent ice from re-forming. After a very memorable snowy weekend, all we have now are traces of snow on the rooftops, and patches of snow on the sidewalks from which grass is already peeking out. What's more, it has been raining on and off since yesterday and so Portland is back to its usual rainy avatar.

Braving the tide.

Like rain from the skies above,

trickling along like creeks,

depth of parched earth as it seeks;

priceless jewels glistened a while,

fore running dry on her cheeks,

leaving behind salty streaks...

She had showered pristine love

seeking delight not dejection

yet met apathy not affection;

False was her fervor, fake her smile

mask of ebullience she wore with poise,

life was a blend of heart-breaks and joys...

Her deepest feelings poured out,

her dreams, desires and doubts;

pearls of her soul, it's semblance,

gems they were of her essence.

Her heart lightened, she sighed,

she was ready to brave the tide...

Picture is  from Google images

Wasted.

Time, words bite the dust,

advices, threats, arguments,

stubborn mind heeds none.

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Waste of time some say;

fun and fact sate human thirst-

water cooler chat.

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This post is shared with Haikuheights and the prompt is USELESS

Subzero yet sunny

This winter has been a lot of firsts, from the first subzero temperature experience to first snow flurries to a first dinner by the fireplace at our apartment. And today was a surprisingly beautiful morning. It began like an otherwise regular monday morning, dull and dreary with the sunrise scheduled for 7:45am. The little time that I have lived in Portland, I have realized that you either wake up to a foggy morning or a rainy morning unless it is summer which I'm yet to experience here. It is warmer on the days it rains. On foggy days, the sun decides to say a quick hello during the late afternoon before bidding adieu for the day and the fog returns. So today was a pleasant aberration. It was a cold morning, it was -1C when the sun rose behind the grey clouds. As usual I rolled up the blinds to let in the daylight and then out of nowhere came sunlight streaming into our home early in the morning, by early I only mean way before noon. Today has been a very bright and sunny day although it is quite cold. The presence of sunshine just brightened my day and I have been feeling very upbeat the whole day :) 

Picture is from Google images

Grimace

Hard to grin and bear-

it is alright to grimace,

we are but human.

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'Out of order' sign

hangs, morning smile upside down,

feet groan their way up.

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This post is shared with Haikuheights and the prompt is GRIMACE

New year's eve

Come new year's eve and every news channel keeps beaming images of crowds gathered to ring in the New year at different landmarks all around the world. Times Square in New York is one such popular spot for revelers. This time around S wanted to experience firsthand the crazy crowd at New year's eve in Times Square and so there we were waiting with millions in the cold for the iconic LED lit crystal ball to be lowered or dropped to set the new year rolling.

The last day of the year started out on a relaxed note. A lunch with my dear friend V and her husband in Saravana Bhavan took us back to India for a while. Given the huge number of Indian populace that inhabits New York and its surroundings, it was not odd to find a host of Indian restaurants waiting to tickle the taste-buds. Then it was time for a leisurely stroll through Central park, the lung space in the city of skyscrapers. Even on a wintry afternoon, there were quite a few fitness enthusiasts running along unmindful of the chilly breeze. The park looked more grey and brown than green and the many small lakes that dotted it seemed to have a touch of ice. Ducks were huddled around in non-icy parts of the lake.
Birds chirped and fluttered around while chipmunks foraged for nuts discarded by passers-by. A portion of the park was getting ready to host the midnight run, an annual fun run at midnight on new year's eve. As we walked, admiring the refreshing change the park felt amidst the concrete jungle, we even got to enjoy snow flurries. Specks of snow floating around as the chilly breeze kept blowing them all around made it a walk to remember. We got a taste of old world charm too, horse carriages carrying around visitors on a joy ride plied about their designated path through the park.














By sunset we walked to Rockefeller Center for the top of the deck view of the New York Skyline. The Christmas decor was all lit up and people were clicking away pictures. The Swarovski crystal chandelier that adorns the stairwell is simply dazzling. After a security check, we queued up to take the lift to the 67th floor for the top of the deck view of the city renowned as the "City that never sleeps". The sky had hues of orange and pink while the lights of the skyscrapers began outlining the towering concrete jungle. The result was a spectacular view of New York and her famed skyline, with the Brooklyn bridge and Statue of  Liberty in the distant background. The cold breeze we felt on the deck of the 69th floor had us holding on tightly to our caps. While we had known and expected it to be crowded in Times Square, we never felt it would start filling up as early as 5pm in the evening.

  

 

 

 
After admiring the skyline we headed to the ground and our feet made their way towards Times Square, it was only 6pm which meant the ball had been raised. But the crowds had filled up the 7th Avenue as far as 8 blocks.As we patiently waited in the queue for the security check to go towards Times Square, hawkers with tickets for clubs and other hotels nearby tried to ply their wares promising us quicker entry and better view of the event. The queue inched its way towards the Square and by 8pm we could see the ball shining atop the roof of One Times Square. The hours before the drop were dotted with hourly countdowns for the arrival of the new year and the crowd cheered along and blew trumpets. The atmosphere was really charged, the hordes of people meant we didn't feel too cold although the mercury kept plummeting towards 27F or -3C Closer to the ball, live music performance kept up the spirits, this year the star attraction was Miley Cyrus. As the Cinderella hour neared, the crowd began cheering loudly, people started passing around glitter paper. At 11:59pm the final countdown began and the lowering of the ball started. When the crowd counted down to 1 in unison, balloon were set free, confetti was dropped from nearby buildings and fireworks went off in the distant sky. All around people were greeting and exchanging wishes with their loved ones. It was adieu 2013 and welcome 2014 :-)

After one last walk around Times Square we grabbed some food and headed to Grand Central for a dekko at one of the most filmed terminal that has been featured in numerous movies. The GCT as it is fondly known is huge and anyone entering it feels that this is the gateway to the promised land. When we heard  announcements that the GCT would close for the day at 2am in the morning and all of us were asked to exit the building, we found ourselves on our way to the airport to check-in for our flight back home to Portland. We saw the first sunrise of 2014 from the Newark airport terminal waiting to board the airplane. The flight back home was like a flight in dreams for we caught up on our missed sleep. It was a once in a lifetime experience, a crazy all nighter of sorts. And we landed in Portland to enjoy a sunny New year's noon.

The image of Grand Central and 2014 are from Google images.
Click on the photos to see enlarged images.

Applause

Greatest show on earth-

parents try funny antics,

child claps gleefully.

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Thunder claps resound,

flashes of silver light skies,

peacocks dance in joy.

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This post is shared with Haikuheights and the prompt is CLAP