It really is an insult. Like a cold slap in the face. You think you're nearing spring? Take that!
Simply put: it's bitter cold. We've been told it's not *just* an Arctic blast, it's a Siberian-Arctic blast.
I think maybe I should have put off trimming Ed's beard. It's like stripping a chicken of its feathers just when the temperatures plummet to their lowest of lows and the wind picks up to make the suffering that much greater.
It's my day to file taxes. I mean, why not just soak in the misery of it all!
Looking out, I see the cheepers are at the barn entrance. Why?! It's not even 5F outside. It's as if they can't believe their misfortune!
I go to give them extra food treats, knowing that tomorrow, when the winds really pick up, they probably wont come out at all. They hate the cold, they despise a strong wind.
So, a terrible day? No, not at all! For one thing, there is an afternoon with Snowdrop before me!
Whoa, not so fast. Lily, my new old car, possibly disturbed by her new digs refuses to start. Her battery is as dead as I've ever seen on a car. So dead is it, that even cables wont jump-start it.
Et tu, Brute?
Never mind, we'll figure it out tomorrow. For now, I borrow Ed's car.
Snowdrop herself has had a full morning and she uses the afternoon to run through all her possible emotions: serious, anxious, silly, sublime, energetic, and finally exhausted. I leave you with an image of the serious...
...and the sublime.
I drive home just as the sun is setting. The wind has pushed all but a few clouds out of the way. I pause to admire the pink and purple sky.
Beautiful, but cold. I park the car next to Lily and the truck. The rusty Ford pickup hasn't been moved at all this winter and when I glance at it now, I notice a shadow underneath its rusted body.
Yes, this is the night to hide and huddle.
I make my way to the farmhouse and get started on supper. It's definitely the night for hot chili. And maybe a dram of Scotch from the Isle of Islay.
Simply put: it's bitter cold. We've been told it's not *just* an Arctic blast, it's a Siberian-Arctic blast.
I think maybe I should have put off trimming Ed's beard. It's like stripping a chicken of its feathers just when the temperatures plummet to their lowest of lows and the wind picks up to make the suffering that much greater.
It's my day to file taxes. I mean, why not just soak in the misery of it all!
Looking out, I see the cheepers are at the barn entrance. Why?! It's not even 5F outside. It's as if they can't believe their misfortune!
I go to give them extra food treats, knowing that tomorrow, when the winds really pick up, they probably wont come out at all. They hate the cold, they despise a strong wind.
So, a terrible day? No, not at all! For one thing, there is an afternoon with Snowdrop before me!
Whoa, not so fast. Lily, my new old car, possibly disturbed by her new digs refuses to start. Her battery is as dead as I've ever seen on a car. So dead is it, that even cables wont jump-start it.
Et tu, Brute?
Never mind, we'll figure it out tomorrow. For now, I borrow Ed's car.
Snowdrop herself has had a full morning and she uses the afternoon to run through all her possible emotions: serious, anxious, silly, sublime, energetic, and finally exhausted. I leave you with an image of the serious...
...and the sublime.
I drive home just as the sun is setting. The wind has pushed all but a few clouds out of the way. I pause to admire the pink and purple sky.
Beautiful, but cold. I park the car next to Lily and the truck. The rusty Ford pickup hasn't been moved at all this winter and when I glance at it now, I notice a shadow underneath its rusted body.
Yes, this is the night to hide and huddle.
I make my way to the farmhouse and get started on supper. It's definitely the night for hot chili. And maybe a dram of Scotch from the Isle of Islay.
I would love to see -5F! We've been nowhere near that in the last several weeks. I think, yes on Friday we finally have the beginning of a warm up. We're supposed to hit -5F then. And on Saturday and Sunday we might even make the upper teens F! That's balmy weather compared to what we've had recently. It'll be wonderful!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that Lily won't start. I hope she gets fixed up real soon.
Love Snowdrop's little outfit. She's so cute!
I have to ask -- where in the world are you? -5F as a high seems dismal! (We hit -13F overnight...)
DeleteBrutal weather. But, the sun is out and march is a week away! Yeah!
Hi! I'm just on the other side of Michigan from you, that little spit of Canada that drops between Michigan and NY. I guess we're getting hit more solidly by the arctic cold, so it's a bit colder over here. Current temp is -1F, which is actually 3 degrees higher (so far) than they forecast. :D They're now saying that on Saturday it's supposed to make 21F!
DeleteNina, I had to come back in to ask - where do you get all your flowers from? I would LOVE to have flowers all winter long. You're so lucky!
ReplyDeleteAll our grocery stores have fresh bouquets. Trader Joe's, Copps, Whole Foods. I pick the ones that are under $6. You can always find something simple in that price range at this time of the year.
DeleteOh, okay. I was thinking you had a greenhouse or something. You're a hardy soul, going out for flowers in this cold. DH brought flowers for Valentine's Day and they got a bit nipped by our cold just between the store and car and the car and the house, so most of them have faded fast.
DeleteWhat a coincidence. My car didn't start either. Jumper Cables didn't work, but the ADAC team started the car enough to get it to the Ford Dealership for a new battery that's under warranty. With a new battery the car is as good as new at 15, so I took the car for a spin through the car wash. Hoping your Mazda needs only a new battery. And drive your car often to keep recharging her. Alles liebe.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately it's not likely to be the battery as the car had a new one put in just this November. Somewhere, there is a slow discharge. Figuring out the source will be an enormous undertaking. We have some usual suspects. If not that, we'll take it in to a mechanic and cross our fingers.
DeleteStill settling on a good way to spell her (the car's) name? Lili/Lily. Sorry to hear you've got such cold weather. Our guys are running around without coats on (not that I think it's warm enough for them to do it, but it's warm enough that they think it's okay).
ReplyDeleteHa! They would not think it's okay in Madison! One more point on the side of Denmark!
DeleteVery observant of you about Lily. Two reasons for the change: my reader-friend was a little taken aback that a car should share her name so I thought maybe I'd adjust it a touch. Too, Lily feels more like the flower that I love so much. In my most affectionate moments, I call it the Polish diminutive -- Lilianka. My mom tells me that her half sister, Lillian, was called Lydia in the States, Lilly by my grandpa and Lila by my grandma. So there's precedent for variations on a theme! :)
Ah! You make me think of my grandmother today. As a child I was fascinated to hear her call my mother Marianka! a name that no one else used. Grandmother was born here in 1887, and her parents were immigrants from Prague. So she, second generation, was fluent in both languages. My mother refused to ever speak "Bohemian", a stubbornness she now regrets. Do your daughters speak Polish?
ReplyDelete"Bohemian". My grandfather was of Bohemian origin. He was born in the US but his mother came over from Europe. Her name was Constantia. :)
DeleteMy younger girl knows a few sentences, my older girl -- nothing. I was very practical: I wanted them to learn French, Spanish, Italian -- anything that might prove useful. Polish? Well, you have to know that for a good dozen years -- the first dozen years of their lives, I stayed away from Poland.
DeleteMy grandma was the only one who called me Ninoczka.
Why not just call it " lil car" (combo of Lily car and Little Car" ) That is not nice for it to be naughty for you! This is probably why the price was so good! Do you have that lemon law in WI? Where a private car sale must divulge problems with the car to any prospective buyer?
ReplyDeleteI am SO over winter now. We've had to leave our faucets dripping for weeks now! And we have septic! It must be a lake under all the 15 feet of snow we have out back!
I don't think it was the owner's fault. Honestly, I think it's a new problem. The owner has been very helpful in numerous ways. There is a danger in buying cars with many features and Ed has always warned me of this -- the electrical systems are complicated and it's hard to trace a small malfunction. On the upside, this car is so pleasant to drive that it would take more than one flat battery to make me regret its purchase!
DeleteI don't suppose it helps to remind you of some of the downsides of summer that we are experiencing now - nights too hot to sleep without aircon, fierce sun and extreme UV, the glare off cars in traffic, cotton clothes that all need ironing. In northern Australia though there are the much worse problems of cyclones.
ReplyDeleteJayview, I love summer. (And I never iron anything.) Only one downside of that season -- mosquitoes. Everything else is just plain exhilarating. I don't hate winter, but my greatest passion is just for that moment in time when spring turns to summer.
DeleteHas to do with day lilies perhaps? We don't have really bad mosquitoes like you do. I suspect our 13 year drought killed them off and they haven't really recovered in the post drought years.
Delete