Same view different day.
Yesterday afternoon was one of those days. I could see the lift. The lodge stood out in great clarity. 
Same lodge, different day.
I could even see the top of the course from the lodge. This is where the kids race, even though the gates are not up in this shot.
This is what I usually see when I look out the window at the lodge. This is the race course on a normal day. The gates are actually up in this shot, not that anyone can see them. I hope the skiers can find them.
The trees laden with snow looked ready for a Christmas card when I took my walk in the afternoon.
Who could imagine a scene so beautiful hidden in all that fog?
Last night, Shadow and I took a walk to see the lights. There were some cute inflatables too. Our neighbors like to put on a good show. I did not shoot them all, but here are a few samples:
There is nothing like excess when it comes to lights, lawn decorations and such in the middle of winter.
I like the way the bulbs carve out spots in the snow to shine through. The effect of the lights on the bushes is charming.
This morning, on my walk through the woods, I noticed that the local kids had been using this bit of the trail for their sleds, so I walked down the side. It is nice and steep even when it is not icy.
I took a walk while the kids skied. I found the original of the "frosted" trees they sell in stores. This one was prettier, and the frost was backlit by the sun.
There is no temperature selector, you just turn it on until it is hot enough and unplug it. When it is too cool, just plug it in again. It even came complete with the manufacturer's warranty with a list on the back of authorized repair shops. I think the warranty may have expired a while ago.
I took it home, and tonight I used it for the first time to wax my kids skis. It heated up and melted the wax and spread it out. Tomorrow will tell how good a job I did with the "new" iron. I could tell it had been around for a while by the fabric insulation on the cord. 
Underwriter's Laboratories usually prefers plastic on the outside of cords these days, but it seems safe enough since there are no signs of wear.
If you want help guessing how old it is, note this card that I found under the iron in the box. The signature indicates it was given before the third child was born to this family. She is older than I am, so that gives me a clue about the age of the iron. 
Here is a gift I know my brothers would appreciate, but the ones who would appreciate it the most do not have the requisite front lawn on which to install the guy with the bike.
That bike rack back there will not be going on the new car, because it would crack the spoiler which was mandatory if I wanted to have crusie control and the stereo to accept my music playing device.
She realized her mistake and was starting to correct it when something went bang. Most places, if you edge over into the curb, there are no consequences other than looking silly. This particular spot is not most places. She managed to catch the rim on this offset piece of sidewalk over the drain. She made it to school and called to tell me that the tire was losing air, and ask what should she do about it. 
I told her to go to class, since it did not present an immediate problem. The car was parked, and I needed time to figure out what to do. I went by to look at it later in the morning and started shopping for a new tire and rim. It is too bad about the tire because it had only been on the car for six weeks. We spent our afternoon picking up the rim, the tire and having them mounted to each other and the car. I am glad it was as simple as that and that nobody was hurt. We had the alignment checked and discovered that it was badly out of alignment, but not because of the curb. That would explain the funny wear on the tires too.
The snow is pretty on the new house, even though it is not as picturesque as the old one. The dog is still just as cute, and she loves the snow.
Ice fog frosts the trees in town if you have time to stop and admire them. Of course, this was a mandatory stop at the signal, but they are still there to look at and shoot.
I refuse to name names, but it is really big, and even I recognized the name. I will share some of what we saw. 
I was amazed by the collection of dead animals and plants made to look live again on display. The airplane hanging from the ceiling was something else too. My sister purchased something that might make people think about killing animals, but really, the new bow and arrows she gave my son for Christmas are for target shooting, much of which happened the next morning as soon as it was light.
The cousin in the pictures made targets out of small cardboard boxes. My sister complained that she did not want to eat the squirrels they were aiming at for breakfast, until I pointed out that her son was drawing a bead on a former box of candy. Yum, chocolate for breakfast. Light snowfall did not discourage the archers. My sister had funny things to say when I went out in my bare feet to take a few pictures. I did not want to get my socks wet, and my shoes were downstairs. It would take too long to get them, and I might miss something.
After the shooting experience, it was time to make a snow friend. 
All the while, I was looking out at the ground and thinking thoughts of the drive home and how fun that might be. These two potential drivers had visions of sugar plums or new clothes or something dancing in their heads, not driving in the snow. 
It turned out to be less traumatic than I thought. The road crews had done a good job clearing the west slope of the Cascades, and the east slope was clear. 
We faced some fog and low clouds, but those do not have a significant impact on the drive unless the partly cloudy starts falling.
Driving through the center of the state we were under clear skies, although the sun was too low in the sky to call it sunny. 
As we approached the Rockies, the snow started to fall once more and we slushed our way home for the last hundred miles or so. The sunset was pretty, even though I had to shoot it out the passenger window.