Midwinter

 It is now the middle of January, and we have burned one stack from the woodshed--about 90 cu.ft. or two-thirds of a cord. Not bad!

Yesterday we went for our first snowshoe, just out to Panama. The snow was crusty and sufficiently deep to justify the footwear. Everything was sheathed in ice and we went on to have freezing rain that lasted all night, as did the howling wind from the East. Winter may come early or late, but it always arrives eventually.

Fire in the Sky

 Bitter cold though it is, the sky is on fire!

 

For once, the ice from a storm is actually visible. Every branch is coated and each twig has its own icicles. 

Bleak

The early winter has been bleak. The solar-powered streetlight at the junction with the highway has been out for days: not enough sun! Just as a long, gray day came to end, a lovely warm gleam of light appeared among the red pines in front of the workshop. 

Winter's Knives

 Winter is trying to stab us--again! Eventually I had to take a shovel to these spikes; they were pressing against the glass rather forcefully.

Serious Winter

 Winter is getting real. We have deployed the snowblower twice (blew another shear bolt; only one left now!), the new enclosure has already defended the fuel line from falling ice, and we've done the commuting crawl behind motorists without snow tires. 

Indoor Activities

With the weather outside quite UNIVITING, we've been working indoors. I finally made the frame for the attic hatch we installed something like 16 years ago. Having knocked off the 28-year-old oil tank job and the 25-year-old woodshed work, it's pleasant to get to tasks that have been hanging fire for less than two decades!