Wolf Moon

Jan. 10, 10:27 p.m. EST -- Full Wolf Moon. Amid the zero cold and deep snows of midwinter, the wolf packs howled hungrily outside Indian villages. It was also known as the Old Moon or the moon after Yule. In some tribes this was the Full Snow Moon; most applied that name to the next moon. The moon will also be at perigee (its closest point to Earth) on this day, at 6:00 a.m. EST, at a distance of 222,138mi. (357,497 km.) from Earth. Very high ocean tides can be expected from the coincidence of perigee with full moon. - Full Moon Names for 2009 | space.com

I was out all afternoon gallivanting around town. I got home at dusk and walked down the driveway to retrieve the mail. This beautiful full moon was just rising from the trees in the northeast. I stopped and was struck how quiet my suburban street was. How perfect the newly fallen snow already glistened. Still. Quiet. Exhilarating! After a few minutes I headed in and grabbed my camera and snapped the above photo.

The moon caught me off guard again peeking through the window this evening -- this time her glow is shining through my front windows. I know it's going to make a path over the top of our house in the next few hours and then my back yard will become a brilliant display of shadows cast by the towering tree branches. It's going to be so spectacular tonight against the new blue snow and the extra brightness of the moon! I think I'm going to spend the evening with the lights off. Candles lit. Wine in hand. I'm going to enjoy the show that the first full moon of 2009 is putting on. I hope you can do the same in your own way.