The morning after

Enough Christmas. Time to get serious about paddling. I broke my rule and went downriver first, then paddled back up into the wind. I figure if I'm going to be on the Gulf next week I'd better get used to some wind. Yuck. Why, exactly, did I agree to go on that trip?
I don't know how I got these light effects, but they are cool, aren't they? What I was trying to show was how low the river is.

Here are some more river scenes.

Christmas 2005 @ Swamp Cottage

Christmas morning was beautiful so I took my boat out and paddled while the boys slept. DY went to his mother's so it was just the three of us for pancakes and then presents!

Looks like Santa came!

The boys seem to think that their dashboard hula girls are...interesting. Nicholas went all out and dressed up in his 12-year-old Camp Cherry Lake t-shirt and Space Camp shorts. Very impressive.
Santa brought the boys each Gator sweatshirts. With a bit of luck perhaps at least one of Christopher's teams will win a bowl game (the UCF Golden Knights lost in overtime). Nicholas is sure that this outfit will be a big hit when he goes to FSU.

Christmas Dinner Table. Of course, this is no big deal. We eat like this every night.

The Yule Log.

The view from the dock

Bucky and I agree that we have never seen the river so low.

The first snow of the season

It started snowing around 4 p.m. Monday in Washington, D.C., but I wasn't able to get out and take pictures until the next afternoon. In front of the Madison Hotel, the little palms and pansies don't look ready for winter!
A more seasonal view: The Metropolitan AME Church near my hotel. Isn't it pretty?