Here at Hangman Hill

As a Christmas gift our friends Jen and Mark Panosky gave us an authentic set for making Asiatico Spanish coffee. After a succulent home-cooked meal tonight we sampled this coffee for dessert. It consists of sweetened milk, cognac, a liquorice liqueur, and espresso sequentially layered in a special glass. It was a wonderful way to end the meal and thankfully there is enough left over for another meal. Thanks Mark and Jen!

Last weekend we were in New Hampshire and on Sunday we enjoyed a short hike up Middle Mountain. Last time we hiked this trail was in the autumn of 2014 with snow on the ground. This time all the snow had melted and we enjoyed a dry hike with sunny views on the summit. The leaves on the trees were just emerging, so the trail was very green and the views were not yet obscured.

Tonight we came home to a bounty of fresh asparagus in the garden. We picked the first crop on Sunday and less than 48 hours later this is what had appeared! We will be enjoying a continuous feast of freshness for the foreseeable future.

Last weekend we started on the long awaited kitchen rennovation at our chalet in New Hampshire.  Most of the snow has now melted, so what better to do during mud-season than install a few new cabinets and paint the walls?  The pictures below show us unpacking the cabinets and then removing them to get ready for a new tile floor and some new cabinets later in the month.  More updates to follow….

We spent last weekend celebrating the wedding of Lucy Shalaeva and Alex Ferruzzi on Long Island, NY. We first met Lucy in Madison, WI when she was seven. We have each worked with her parents Evgenyi and Marina on various scientific endeavors over the years. We were reunited with them when we moved to Connecticut where they were both working at Pfizer.

The village of Huntington where the wedding and reception were held was quaint, with interesting shops and views to Long Island Sound. It snowed continually throughout the day making a lovely backdrop for a bride from Siberia.

We had a wonderful time at the wedding, and were very grateful to be able to share this special day with the bride, groom and their families.

Courtyard in the home where the reception was held.

Sheri spent a long weekend in Wyoming with her brother Michael. There wasn't much snow so they did a few walks locally; one had great views to the Uinta Mts. They also did some home renovations to progress the kitchen project. Michael is a good host, makes a mean fish taco and his stir-fry is worthy of a return visit.

Walk in Evanston,WY

A few weeks ago we took some time off from work for our annual winter vacation.  This year we stayed local (New Hampshire) as the best snow conditions have been here at home on the east coast.  We also kept it short (4 days), so that we can spend time on a kitchen rennovation at our chalet later in the year.

 Just getting started…

 the competition begins…

 A perfect day

 On the trail again

 Day 2

 I could almost drink this….

 Will this be the winner?

Last weekend we decided to celebrate Bruno’s upcoming birthday with a backcountry ski adventure.  

Ever since skiing in New Hampshire in the early 2000’s we had wanted to try out the Wildcat Valley trail from the top of Wildcat Mountain into the town of Jackson.  This ungroomed trail drops off the backside of the downhill ski area and descends nearly 2500′ to the valley.  

It was snowing when we awoke on Sunday morning and we were the first party on the trail.  After icy drop-in the trail was superb skiing for the first few miles.  We were soon overtaken by another party who seemed to be in a hurry for fresh tracks, but after that we had the trail to ourselves.  In places the trail was steep and hardpacked, and a little too fast for our skiing abilities!  Hence we had a few ungracious wipe-outs and more swearing than would be normally accepted on a Sunday.  Despite this we had a good time and made very fast time. 

The last few miles to the road at Dana Place were rather tortuous as the trail had begun to fall apart under the previous weeks warm weather and the combination of large holes and an icy crust did not make for smooth, fast, or graceful progress.  We did make it back to the car in less than guidebook time and we finished up our adventure with lunch at the trailhead.

I think that a return visit may be in order next year after we have taken a few lessons to sharpen up our telemark turns!

 

 On the trail

 Humor in the woods…

 

 

Getting near to the end