Wednesday - 341st

I've heard that about half the people who receive the second COVID shot will have no reaction at all beyond a sore arm, and half will feel really sick for a day or two. I'd say Ed and I fulfilled that prediction well: half of us got sick, with joint aches, fatigue, and flu like symptoms to the max, while the other half coasted. I'll let you guess who fell into which category.

I know you're tired of me starting the day with a weather story ("still cold out there" "so many degrees below freezing!" "biting wind" etc.), but it has been shockingly cold for a shockingly long period of time and so I can't ignore it. I'll glance at the thermometer and reach for the heavy overcoat. It's so bulky and awkward that I had wanted to give it away long ago, but of course that would have been a mistake. When polar winds blow down on us day after day, a quilt of a coat, faux fur trim and all, is the ticket.

 

 

We eat breakfast in the south facing front room. I have finally tidied this kid space and now it actually looks pretty enough to host us in the morning. Of course, one afternoon of play will recreate the chaos that reigned here for several years, but for now, we are enjoying the feeling of space and order.

The day is much like yesterday -- cold but sunny. We should be out, taking in this free dose of vitamin D, but instead, we spend a good chunk of the day napping on the couches -- not unusual for Ed, very weird for me. 

By late afternoon, guilt sets in. We should go skiing. Yes we should. Now or never. Maybe not today? Yes today!

If napping while skiing were possible, I would have done it. Instead, we do our loop and come back, returning to our couches, picking up where we left off.

Evening. A simple supper of scrambled eggs and veggies. I eat it in the company of my sweet Chicago grandgirl!

Slowly, very slowly, we're warming up here in Wisconsin. I can tell, because it was not hard to chase the two most domesticated cats, Dance and Friendly (referred to by me as Obsequious) outside. 

(Friendly's favorite perch in the last few day?  Up by my favorite ceramic platters. Grrr.!)

When the temps plummeted, they shivered and balked and ran to the warmest belly of the farmhouse. Tonight, they sprinted out the door, in hot pursuit of something. (Not deer: they appear to coexist in great harmony with the deer that pass this way all winter long.)

 

 

If we've learned anything this past year it is to keep our eyes narrowly focused on each day. To resist the temptation to look ahead, to look forward only to be disappointed. But, despite the multitude of uncertainties out there, this I know for sure: we are heading toward spring. And that's such a grand thing!