14 days of weather

Ona je volela blues (She loved blues)

It's complicated. :->

Never compliment on winter weather before the end of winter

... should be the title of this post. As the start of the winter (mentioned in previous post) gave us nice snow blanket as what would be perfect uverture to nice cold white winter (with white Christmas, New Years, etc.) it just wasn't meant to be. Up to now, and especially in past week we are being served with miserable mixture of drizzle, rain and even more rain. While higher regions of Alpine Europe received more than a meter of snow, we got localized flooding.

"Winter" panorama with swollen Kolpa

Can it get better? Hopefully. Although it seems good old long snowy winters are thing of the past, we still can hope for at least few snow flakes. Looking out at yet another rainy day- even from a room with a Christmas tree just doesn't compare to good old snowy day.

Let it snow...

First snow of the year fell today. Bon hiver!!!

Autumn leaves...

If I'd want to do this autumn any justice, this post should be decorated with fallen leaves of all colors, the smell of roasted chestnuts, and the warmth of sun. As to this moment blogs and computers in general aren't capable of such multimedia I'm left with words and few pictures.

I guess last weekend was the summary of the autumn. After Saturday's rainfall Sunday morning confronted us with deep blue cloudless sky and great visibility. It was to hard to stay at home, so I took a walk to a nearby hill above Vinica, Žeželj. Most part of the walk takes place inside forest, and at the moment it's truly spectacular. Although some of the leaves already fell, it still feels as being surrounded with palette of some great illustrator. Intentionally or not, you're left with big imprint of colors, smells and sounds.

Part of my short journey took me next to archaeological sites from Iron age- Šlemine and Stražni dol. In those days these parts were ruled by Illyrian tribe of Iapodes, and Šlemine was one of their most northern outposts. In those days parts near Kolpa were contact zone between Celtic and Illyrian tribes. Iapodes were conquered by Romans in 1st century BC.

Some artifacts from Iron-age sites near Vinica; picture owners: President and Fellows of Harvard College; picture contributor: Darja Jontes
In such days as this sunny Sunday it was not hard to imagine how life looked like on this hill more than two-thousand years ago....

Crossroads

As I recall there comes this time in our lives, when you're no longer sure the path you're on is the right path. The very essence of our lives is the endless stream of choosing. Most of the time it's rather trivial, but more often than not, you're at the major crossroad. Continuing on a path you've been on, although it doesn't seem to lead to where you want it, or face something new and unknown. And whichever you choose you might loose something, but yet you might gain something as well. The only certain thing is you shouldn't stop at the crossroad for to long...

There's a legend connecting crossroads with devil. The story is, that people should avoid traveling through remote crossroads at midnight- or the devil might show himself to them and try to steal their soul. One of the fathers of blues music, Robert Johnson even claimed he sold his soul to the devil at the crossroad in exchange for guitar skills that made him famous. Although most likely his own fabrication for promotion of his music, yet the legend is much older than blues. And the punch line of this entry? I don't know, I guess I have a feeling I'm almost at my crossroad and I don't want to stay there for to long...
For closure of this (let's face it- a bit depressing) blog entry, and for welcoming the start of autumn, I wanted to post a video of Stephanie Biddle singing French jazz song Les feuilles mortes (The autumn leaves). I couldn't find it, so here's lyrics, and the video performed by some other singer.

Oh! I would like as much as you remember
The happy days where we were friends.
In this time the life was more beautiful,
And the sun more burning than today.
The dead leaves collected with the shovel.
You see, I did not forget...
The dead leaves collected with the shovel,
The memories and the regrets also
And the wind of North carries them
In the cold night of the lapse of memory.
You see, I did not forget
The song that you sang me.

This is a song which resembles to us.
You, you loved me and I loved you
And we lived both together,
You who loved me, me who loved you.
But the life separate those which love themselves,
All softly, without making noise
And the sea erases on the sand
The Steps of divided lovers.

The dead leaves collected with the shovel,
The memories and the regrets also
But my quiet and faithful love
Smiles always and thanks the life
I loved you so much, you was so pretty.
Why do you want that I forget you ?
In this time, the life was more beautiful
And the sun more burning than today.
You were my softer friend
But I don't have only to make regrets
And the song than you sang,
Always, always I will hear it !

Blue moon