Sand Storm! (Our just deserts, pun intended)

We've had a few calls from out west, wondering how deep our snow is.  Very strangely, we've had little snow accumulation, with the  weather warming between each snow fall allowing the white stuff to disappear.  Compared to the photos from last year, we're basically snow free so far.  (Which leaves us wondering when the other 'snow' will fall?  Excuse the play on words!)  It did, however, snow a little bit last night, but when I looked out it seemed like more of a sand storm.  The wind had picked up the top soil and dusted it over the white snow, sort of like cocoa on a white cake.  Many of the drifts look like sand dunes and make it seem like it should be quite a bit warmer.  Here's the proof:

This photo is like one of the swirly sand toys from the 70s!

We took a quick trip in to Charlottetown today, just to get out of the house and see what the city had to offer.  We were hoping to catch an artist and craftsman conference, but it was only for vendors who wanted to buy in bulk.  (Perhaps a good venue for me, if I ever get my booked published.)  There's a lovely store in town called "Liquid Gold Tasting Bar and All Things Olive"  (Liquid Gold, for short)  They have a marvelous selection of regular and flavoured olive oils, as well as a wide selection of balsamic vinegars.  The beautiful thing is that you can taste all of them (it's like an olive oil warehouse) before you buy.  The oils are high quality and very fresh, unlike a lot of the grocery store brands that have lost all of their nuances.  I can source both black and white truffle oil there, which is decadent, but finishes certain meals, like risotto, incredibly well.

The house is slowly coming together.  We've rearranged the doors downstairs, so the bathroom has a solid door, instead of frosted glass  and we can now close off the dining room from the hallway, which makes for warmer winter dining.  We have most of the things we need to redo the downstairs bathroom, so that will be our next project and then on to the floors in the hallway and living room.  Good-bye hideously stained carpet!

I have yet to hear from the publisher that I submitted to; it's hard to wait, but then they haven't told me "No" yet, so it's also still hopeful.  I have started my next book, but I'm not very far in to it.  (The last one took me over 4 years, so I guess I have to cut myself some slack.)  I've almost completed the design of the logo for "Take the Cake", so we should be able to start advertising properly.  (Assuming that Ron can take my moods and I can learn not to have a mental break down with every project.)  I have a couple of future cake requests, so I can't just drop out of the business all together.  Well, that's about all from the gentle island.  We're well and content and hope you are, too.  Keep in touch and know that we miss you!