Catherine Nicolai
speaker
319 appearances
2 recordings
1 series
first heard Dec 2024
last heard Jan 2025
Catherine Nicolai’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.
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Appearances
to its inches of frozen ice.
And I stopped a moment to look at the way the light caught the angles of its surface. It wasn't even and flat.
The wind must have been blowing hard
as the crystals came together. I'd seen pictures before of frozen waves on the Great Lakes.
I'd heard of candle ice that made a beautiful ringing sound as millions of of thin straws of frozen water bumped into each other.
And once I'd held a frost flower in my hand, a kind of ice that came from a freezing fog. This was just a small pond with a slightly bumpy surface.
But still, I felt like I'd stumbled upon something miraculous. I squatted down to look more closely and noticed that
In the bright sun, the snow and ice sparkled like glitter, with a rainbow of colors that I could only catch when the light hit just right.
I stood up, tossing the dangling end of my scarf, back over my shoulder. I remembered that I had the newspaper under my arm, and that while I did have my boots and coat on, I was still dressed in my pajamas under it all. And maybe I should regroup before continuing any adventures.
Making my way back across the street and up the block to my house, I found myself taking one deep breath after another drawing this new energy deep inside to fill my cup. At my house, I dropped the newspaper on the kitchen table to read later and went to change into jeans.
I felt the urge to open a window, but I knew I was getting well ahead of myself. I remembered an early spring day years before.
when I'd had my first apartment, and how desperate I had been to let warm air in on a sunny day. I'd opened all the windows and gone out with friends for lunch.
our outing had lasted longer than I'd planned. And by the time I'd made it back home, my little flat was cold and drafty.
It had chased all the warmth right out of me. And after I'd closed up the windows, I'd had to layer two pairs of sweatpants on to sleep in.
Older and wiser, I opened the curtains rather than the windows themselves.
and sunlight filled my rooms. I got dressed excitedly, still dressing warmly, but choosing a thinner sweater.
and just regular socks rather than the double-thick ones, which I knew barely squeezed into my shoes.
Back downstairs, I donned my coat and boots and was out the door again. I still didn't know where I was going, but I felt the urge to go, to see, to be out in the world. On the road, as my car warmed up around me. I figured a coffee from the coffee shop, a bun from the bakery, and then a long drive out on the state road would be perfect.
I'd stop at that bridge that crosses the river and get out and listen to the ice breaking up. Reaching into my bag, I found my sunglasses. I hadn't needed them in quite a while. When I slipped them on and turned on the radio, I smiled into the sun. Sweet dreams.
Nothing much happens: bedtime stories to help you sleep · Merry Much Happens - 2024 · 16 Dec 2024
podcast
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Showing 61–80 of 319 · page 4 of 16
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