This morning I invite you into our home. It is a cool white February morning: you can see the white glow of winter through the doors onto the deck, with Bernie's barbecue silhouetted beyond the windows. You can see why I call myself heather_in_red for my hotmail account: the winter colours are in full array. The tulips on the red tablecloth are yellow with red stripy centres, and are gradually opening up. There is still a surviving poinsettia plant on the divider between the dining room and kitchen. Most of my other plants have now been moved into my green office, where I sit and type. In the living room, you can see how family photographs are placed above the mantelpiece. Most of the pottery over there is from Honduras, brought carefully home to Canada. On the hearth, you see a pot given to me by my brother-in-law's sister-in-law (figure that out!) and in it, eucalyptus in green and red along with bullrushes (cattails) that Bernie and I went out in spring '05 to collect. Sprayed with hairspray, they last a long time. If it were night time, the fire would be burning cheerfully. We have been having almost daily evening fires, and will again tonight. Bernie likes the fact that the fireplace features a fan, so that when it gets really warm we can flick a switch and fan the heat out to the rest of the house, and reduce our electricity bill! I flick it on and off according to the noise level in the house. If it is noisy, I don't hear the fan, but in the quiet, it sounds too much like white noise and I'd rather be cozy, warm, and silent.