The Smell of Winter

I was in Pittsburgh over the weekend, and it snowed on Saturday.  Not a lot, just enough to cover the roads in the morning, and require a snow brush.  It had mostly melted by yesterday afternoon, but it was still cold.  I was watching Downton Abbey with my mom and snuggling with my Babydog (Murphy's nickname...).  I had opened the window at the top of the bed in my mom's room just a crack so the icy air was seeping in, and it smelled like winter.  People in Georgia probably don't know what winter smells like.  It has never smelled like snow here.  It gets chilly, and sometimes there is even frost on my windshield, but it has not once smelled like snow, with a hint of woodsmoke from a fireplace. 

While I was home, I went to see the Madeleine Albright pin exhibit.  It was pretty interesting, although I was sort of hoping to see more pictures of her wearing the actual pins.  Still, they were pretty cool.  I think my favorite pin was actually one that was given to her by a man whose mother passed away during Hurricane Katrina.  His mother was a fan, and the pin was a gift for her 60th wedding anniversary, I think.  Not the most interesting pin, or the most unique, but for sure one with meaning.  We also got a chance to see an exhibit of photographs taken by Pittsburgh native Teeny Harris.  He was a freelance photographer for an African-American newspaper in Pittsburgh from the  1940's until the 1970's.  The exhibit featured over 300 of his photographs.  A lot of people don't know that Pittsburgh's Hill District was a really important center of African American culture during that time.  I won't pretend to be an expert, but many many important jazz artists and other musicians had strong ties to the Hill.  The photos were amazing.  Fashions, famous figures, lifestyle shots, urban landscapes...amazing.  My grandma was less than amazed...but I wasn't surprised.  My mom and I both agreed that we could have spent the whole day just in that room.  You should Google it.

I also went and worked out at the new LA Fitness on McKnight road and let me say, while it was crowded (Saturday morning though), it was VERY nice.  Much nicer than the club I work out at.

This weekend is the weekend I finally tackle my dreaded closet.  I mean it.  Now it's been published, so now you all know, so now I have to follow through.  If these cats don't cause me to be admitted to the hospital for some kind of major allergic crisis, which is entirely possible.  I have BIG PLANS for this closet people.  I have to start eliminating STUFF, since I really want to move, and I really don't want to pay to move stuff I never wear/use.  So there you have it.  Now I have to go take some Benadryl, and a shower, and hermetically seal my bedroom off from these damn cats.