weekend survival with rocks, brooms and maps

Here's to a beautiful weekend.  I never get tired of this view, a snowy Mont Blanc from a Saint Gervais vantage point.

I learned a new joke about an obscure winter sport. Want to hear it?

How do you keep bacon from curling?    You take away their tiny, little brooms.

Cute, don't you think? If you are as unfamiliar to the sport of curling as I am, then you might enjoy my write up of the international curling competition in Les Contamines. Read it here.  You don't have to like the sport, you just hopefully have to like my pictures.

If you were bummed to arrive at the end of 30 Rock, here is an awesome infographic of nine classic jokes from the hilarious television series.

And the third thing I want to tell you about is an online map-making class taught by the lovely Anne Ditmeyer from Prêt à Voyager. I'm already registered, come join the fun and take it with me!

What would you make a map of?

no mountain high enough

The other weekend on a bright and sunny morning, we set out to hike a mountain, just Félix and I. It was fantastic and hard and I am glad we did it. The Mont Joly has been on my list of hikes to do since I moved over here.  It felt so good to be out early in the morning, working on getting to the top and in a lot of ways that hike has mimicked some recent obstacles in my life. Some parts are steep, some with narrow passage but the hard work required leads to something amazing.  Were it not for toil and difficulty, there wouldn't be breathtaking beauty and a sense of accomplishment at the top.

a view from the top

After dropping Dean Martin off at his work the other morning, I took a moment to snap this picture with my phone. He has an amazing, unobstructed panorama of the Mont Blanc and surrounding mountains.  I am thankful that we live in such a beatiful place. It makes being so far from my family a little easier.