Jack Frost is an unwelcome house guest.

Brrrr.  My house is cold!

Heh, first winter in the new house and I'm reminded again that older California houses don't have the best insulation by a long shot.  The house was built in 1980 so it's not really OLD old, but not as well protected from the winter chill as something built in 2005 would be; the single pane windows have a lot to do with it.  I'm kind of used to it since the house I grew up in was exactly like that until the folks replaced everything with double pane windows; but since I'm probably many years from having the money to do that I needed to find a way to help seal out the cold at least a little bit.  (And after the first heating bill, it was a top priority.) 

Those blackout/insulating curtains are supposed to be helpful for this kind of thing, but they're pretty expensive.  I got them for my tenants' room but I didn't feel like spending a few hundred bucks doing it for the rest of the house.  (Especially because it took a lot longer after the tenant's room to get curtains for my OWN room.)  I've seen something like saran wrap taped over a window to seal it, but that wasn't quite the look I was going for either.  I was looking for something thick, something insulative - and relatively inexpensive.

My solution - fleece blankets!!   A couple of searches later on the almighty Google on similar themes had entries on things like "window quilts", especially for very old homes in non-urban areas that really ARE not insulated, and this isn't a new idea at all.  Kind of like those tapestries in medieval times to warm up stone walls!  I was all set to run out and buy fleece until I saw the suggestion to try using fleece blankets from discount stores.  BRILLIANT.  It was the beginning of cold season so all the store were bringing out their sale blankets.  That night I ran over to the local discount store and bought cheap tension rods and blankets.

My existing curtains are made for just screening out a little summer light and are 4" away from the actual window.  I put the fleece as close as I could to the actual window and it actually helps!  It's not as though my house was magically toasty warm, but there is a noticeable difference when you put your hand on one side of the blanket verses the other.  At least now I don't feel any benefit from the having the heat on leaks out 5 seconds later through the window.  Maybe 10 minutes! ha. Every little bit counts.

can i keep him if he follows me home?

One of the activities (and highlights!) during the Florida trip was the airboat ride while we were in the Everglades which was downright awesome.  Our guide would drive the boat pretty fast and do turns so we were "drifting" (Everglades Drifting?) to one side and the other.  There's no seatbelts on these things so the wind is in your face and it feels really fast!

swamp chicken

This is probably the only time I've ever seen wild animals on a tour so close.  I really thought that the animals we saw right off the dock were fake, stuffed animals so the tourists could see those if none of the wild ones made an appearance!  Surprisingly in this 20 minute boat ride we saw at least 3 gators and plenty of birds.  The cutest was probably the "swamp chicken", I forget its real name, but runs across the lily pads.  I wonder if natives eat them, and that's why they call them chickens?  I bet they're kind of tough.  (You know what the first thing my dad asked me after I told him I saw alligators?  "Did you eat any?"  The answer is yes, but I feel like extra warm and cheerful that it's the FIRST thing my dad thinks of.  Cuz it was my first thought too, when it was available to try.  Kind of like chicken...though maybe more like pork in its texture.)

Larry the Gator

who doesn't like scratches behind the ear?

I've always thought that reptiles are pretty cute.  Baby alligators are in fact ADORABLE because they don't have the knobbly skin all over them yet. After the ride where we did see plenty of gators right up close from the boat, the park had a bit of a safari-animal show about the animals of the area.  The best part was at the end when you could take a picture with a juvenile gator.  Yup, that's me.  Totally cheesy and TOTALLY AWESOME.


Larry's been raised in captivity, I think, so while you can't mess with him, he's pretty used to people.  He's about 3 or 4 and I really like how his handler (some teenaged fellow) said that Larry really likes it when you scratch behind his ears.  Look at that face!! He totally is loving the attention. :)  He closed his in bliss.

bringing a friend home from the everglades...maybe.

On another note, I'm pondering doing another blog/comic blog about me and the kitty, only of course, fantastically and highly fictionalized.  (Yes, I know I have too many hobbies. )  I'm practicing the drawing now (using the style pictured above), and testing materials. Any opinions? 

Ok, this didn't exactly happen this way, but kinda close! 

Into the wild green limes

I'm testing out the blogger app while I'm in Key Largo! instead of sleeping like I should...

After a whirlwind of activity for this very brief Florida trip I will be concluding my adventures with a day in the Florida Keys before heading back tomorrow night. I feel like I've really accomplished something by eating key lime pie from where key limes actually come from.

See you on the flip side!!