It was a crisp, sunny day so we set off for a long walk in the morning. First to UP to pick up my tips for the past few days, then cross town to Oak Bay and the Old Farm Market for our weekly groceries. It was a lovely, peaceful walk, picking our way along quiet residential streets of Fernwood and around the Jubilee hospital. Lots of birdsong, winter flowers and massive cedars dwarfing the 'fixer upper' houses along the way.
We popped into Goodside Pastry for some sweet survival rations and then finished the hike to the market. By this time the sun was out in full force (for December) and we basked in the warmth, crossing the road as needed to stay with our face in the sun. The deer were enjoying the heat too, laying flat on the ground as if to offer maximum surface area to ol' Sol.
Loaded down with supplies, we took the bus home along Beach Drive. The grass at Willows Beach is at maximum greenness this time of year, and the clear blue sky somehow made Mount Baker appear larger than ever before. Getting a clear view of the mountain, even in a moving bus, pumps me up like nothing else.