And it begins...

So this winter, weather in the mid-Atlantic (or at least our little corner) has been quite unpredictable. At least on the part of the local meteorologists. The forecast would call for 3-4 inches of snow, and we would get nothing, no rain, no hail, no flakes. This scenario has happened at least four times with the highest accumulation being little more than a sneeze. But this week, things changed. Yesterday morning, a wintry mix turned into a few inches followed by 6 more inches of snow last night. After last year's blizzard (times two!), it's hard to remember what a typical amount of snowfall in Baltimore looks like. I guess this is it--main roads are fine but sides roads are slushy at best. Sidewalks are a little treacherous, but passable, and more than a few people are walking around in completely inappropriate snow gear (were those grocery bags on his feet?). We were gifted with a day off of school, and I was decently productive. I got some work accomplished and made it out to the barn for a lovely hack in the snow. While the snow in the city quickly changes from picturesque to gross, the surrounding areas stay white and pristine for far longer. The farm where I board is beautiful in any weather, but the snow just makes it supreme.

Here are some photos that we took:






For class this week, I had to make a few models of some of my ideas; since our project is a series of conical, tube like structures, clay worked best. I have a few ideas competing at the moment (fox hunting images! wedding dresses! root veggies!), but I think I have my heart set on a series of bird beaks. Once I've worked through some more sketches, I'll post those, but for now here are some pics of the models:



And just for fun:


I had the opportunity to audit a clinic with Jimmy Wofford yesterday (yep, I braved the weather just to audit!), and it was fabulous! It's impossible to not learn something when listening and watching the great JW. It was extra special coming on the heels of Jimmy's announcement to seek the US Team Chef position. It was fun to watch Cherie and Abby as they participated (very impressively), and I even picked up a few tips that I applied yesterday in my ride. Check for a great training day despite the weather!

Here's a photo of Jimmy teaching (with a rapt audience:)


And suddenly another weekend is upon us. How did that happen? Hoping to get in some gymnastics this weekend as well as some good reading time! Have a great weekend!