As a music fanatic who regularly spent all the money on discs, primarily metal, in those forlorn days of my youth, the last few months have been rather odd. I've misplaced my portable music player when relocating. And then—well, major life changes—little time for hiking, and even that—without music.

Having gotten used to this seemingly minor correction, I didn't realize how much I was missing until I headed out on a brief nature walk, armed with my camera and a new music player once again. The latter added a whole other dimension to being in the great wintry north.

Silence and solitude are desirable only when they are desirable. As contrived as it sounds, the soundtrack to my life is back!