in its grip

The Arctic blast continues its grip on our state. I know the rest of the country is suffering as well, but I just want to note that yesterday, the lowest reported temperatures in the continental US were in Wisconsin. I feel this gives me credibility here, on Ocean as I continue to take note of the cold.

There was a two part reprieve today: first, in the morning, we climbed, for a precious few hours, right into the twenties F. Who would have thought just a few weeks ago that this would be cause for celebration?! We always want to do just a little better than where we are right now and our "right now" is so poor that any incremental upswing is going to be well regarded.

And so when I went to let the cheepers out, I felt like winter was my friend again.

Breakfast was joyful, but then it always is that.






And shortly after, we got our second pleasant surprise -- a set of hours with sunshine.

 



Enough to bring the cheepers out again. Well, only the hens. Oreo was not cool with the  fact that the barn roof kept dripping chunks of snow and water onto the path right by the entrance.





I think Ed and I will have to come up with something clever to keep the snows from sliding off right on top of a cheeper when the storms pile heavier stuff onto the barn roof.

There is never a dull moment with cheepers.

My work progresses. These November days offer a last taste of a very gentle period in my life and though it leads to Ocean posts that seem a bit like a stream of water, slowly meandering along an ever flat landscape, I can't help loving the pace. By contrast, December will be a blur, January -- full of novelty. But right now, I am the small leaf floating with the current of that stream and everything, even the humble views before me, of emptied fields and naked trees are sheer magic.