A REMEDY FOR THE WINTER BLUES

Sunday was cold and windy with snow forecast as Tracy settled in to do reports and John searched for a DVD. Just as Tracy hit the first key on the keyboard, the phone rang. It was Judy our next door neighbour ( it was to cold to go out!) wondering if we'd like to join them on a drive to Creemore, a pretty town a little over an hour away. A nice lunch, a stroll around the town ( which is listed in Canada's top 10 prettiest towns we discovered when we got there) and a tour of the famous ( almost) Creemore Springs Brewery. After deliberating for a nanosecond we answered"YES!!"

We were soon on the road to Creemore with no thoughts of reports or DVDs in our minds. When we arrived, Creemore did prove to be a very pretty village nestled on the Mad River ( true - that's its name!). Unfortunately though, all the streets had been ripped up to renew drainage or suchlike, with slush and mud everywhere and construction machinery taking up all the parking spots. Undaunted we picked our way to a cosy cafe where lunch was taken, did a quick tour of the "quaint" shopping strip ( most shops were closed due to the works ), then headed to the Creemore Springs Brewhouse. Rob was in high excitement as Creemore is his favourite brew. After an informative brewery tour, several free samples and the obligatory photos we were very relaxed. Creemore is an all natural beer with no preservatives and is VERY tasty so we figured it fitted into our healthy diet quite nicely!

It was time too head home so off we headed through the bleak winter landscape. Though all the trees are now bear and the skies are grey, the countryside does have a sort of harsh beauty, especially when it snows. As we were driving home some snow flurries came in ahead of a snowstorm , which we just managed to beat home. We woke this morning to find everything covered in snow and it snowing quiet heavily - our first serious snow for the winter.