February 27, 2019 More Snow. . .

Our visiting woodpecker.

Monday 2/25. Snow continued to fall until a little after 1:00 pm.  JB cleaned off the solar panels on the morning walk, and again after lunch.  He certainly is getting his exercise.

I, on the other hand, opened a #10 can of freeze-dried peaches to have with my hot cereal.  (That's a lot of exercise for these arthritic hands.)  This is the first time I have tried peaches, and they are just as great as all the other fruit.  Even delicious to snack on dry, right out of the can.

After lunch, JB baked a loaf of bread, adding herbs this time.  Yum!

In an effort to cut down on our water usage, and therefore our gasoline usage, I am saving sheets and larger towels to take to the laundromat.  In May?

Larry worked four hours yesterday using the SnoCat to push all the snow off the road the one mile from their place down to the paved road.  Am sure he will be glad when all this white stuff goes away. . .

We watched Gravity this evening, with Sandra Bullock and George Clooney.  JB wanted to watch it again before I send it to Randy with the others.  It really is excellent, but I just don't really enjoy that kind of "outer space" movie.

Our high today was 28.  The temperature had dropped to 17 by 9:00 pm and it was snowing again.

Tuesday 2/26. It is 14 and snowing lightly this morning, with another 1-3/4" of new snow on the ground.  Well, it's not really on the ground as we haven't seen the ground since early December, and I don't think we'll be seeing it til June.  In fact, we may be able to do some sledding at our annual July 4th family picnic!

We have had a large woodpecker Up Here for the past few days.  Finally got a photo of him today.

After lunch we got outside to do some things other than daily chores.  I dug out the gas generator, my Jeep and the path/doorway the shop, so JB could start the generator to add water to the cistern; put mouse poison in the Jeep; and fill the small gas can.

Again, the snow continued to fall most of the day until about 2:30.  Then we actually had some blue sky and sunshine, but our high was only 20.  It was down to 10 at 9:00 pm, but at least it wasn't snowing although we did get another 1/2" during the day.

We are out of corn, so the deer are out of luck. . .

Wednesday 2/27.  It is 14 again this morning and overcast.  After bringing in the fire wood, I may just sit by the fire and read today.

Thought for the day: Call me naive but I seem to have underestimated the universal desire to sit in a hard plastic chair and stare at a screen until your eyes cross.  David Sedaris

February 25, 2019 More Snow But At Least The Light Is Returning

Going to get corn.

Everything everywhere is white.

Friday 2/22. We all went on a morning walk.  Looks like snow has moved in to about three canyons to the west, but seems to be moving north.  And the valley fog has crept into our canyon.

I still enjoy our "homesteading" magazines, but they often tire me out just reading them.  Most of the people they write about are young and very energetic.  I think, had we won the lottery and were able to move Up Here twenty years earlier that we did, we would have done many of the projects written about.  We would have at least had goats, a large garden, a garage, a small barn, etc.  But we are who we are, and I think we are doing pretty good for our age.  So I will just accept and be pleased and enjoy what we have done and how we are living.

I used the last of the February row of fire wood last Tuesday.  Just a fact, not an issue.  We still have two rows left in the shed and plenty more on the porch.

JB had to re-install the exhaust pipe on the propane generator.  Will have to figure out a better way to attach it in the Spring.

We had some light snow around noon, but that was just a teaser.  The real snow, along with fog, arrived at 1:30 pm.  Am smiling again as I watch the snow falling.  No more growling.  It doesn't help.

All in all it was a lazy, sleeping day.  We had sun and blue sky by 5:00 pm, and our high for the day was 34.  The snow left no more than a trace.

Saturday 2/23. It is 20 with blue sky and sunshine this morning, and some low valley fog.  But by noon the sky was overcast.

We all went on the morning walk, and the dogs and I went again in the afternoon.  I was bit the the Spring-cleaning bug and changed/re-arranged a few things in the house.  Sorted out a little pile of DVD's to send to Randy whenever we can get to town.  Easter?!

Our high for the day was 32, but no more snow.

Sunday 2/24. It is 18 this morning and snowing.  It snowed most of the night, dropping another 4".  That makes a total for the month so far of 60.5", which is already a record for us in February.  And whatever is going on up in the atmosphere is playing havoc with my sinuses.

JB and the dogs went on their morning walk while it was snowing, and he cleaned off the solar panels along the way.

This afternoon I watched seven of our herd of deer come to the corn.  They shared until the buck moved in.  Then two more arrived.  I think there were two bucks who reared up and mixed it up a bit.

Snow finally stopped falling at 3:15 pm, about 1/2 hour after the sun came out, and after dropping another 3".  Our high for the day was 28.

Monday 2/25. It is 17 and lightly snowing this morning.  Has been snowing since at least 4:00 am when I let the dogs out and they came back in covered in white.

Thought for the day: Life is complicated and not for the timid.  Garrison Keillor

February 22, 2019 More Sun & A Dead Battery

Looking out our front door
on Thursday.

Wednesday 2/20. Snow began to fall just as I got inside from feeding the girls at about 8:00 am.  It lasted about three hours, but the temperature had risen into the mid thirties so it didn't even leave a trace.  It was another sunny, leisurely day.  Just lovely, with a high of 36.

I passed my Jeep as I was taking the garbage out to the shed this afternoon and heard a clicking/thumping noise.  At first I thought it might be some animal stuck under the car and trying to get out.  But no, it seems that there must be a short somewhere that is causing the locks to continually lock and unlock.  JB tried the battery and it is dead.  Tomorrow we will just disconnect it.  Some little critter must have chewed on a wire.

Three deer came to eat some corn around 4:00 pm, then joined four others on the east slope and trudged their way through the snow to the east.

We have been watching The Ranch a lot lately.  The song that plays at the beginning during the credits is Mama Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys, which is one of my all-time favorites, but is now my ear worm for the month.

Thursday 2/21. It is 22 and mostly cloudy this morning, with just one month of winter left.  Am quite sure that March will be roaring in like a lion this year.

Yesterday on their morning walk, Jesse went over the south ridge with his hackles and tail up.  JB wasn't sure if he would be able to climb back up, but he did manage to struggle up.  He spent the rest of the day going up to the south ridge and barking every time he went outside.  Not sure what it is that he is smelling or seeing.

Today Jesse did the same thing, only now we can see small cat (?) tracks that didn't really sink into the snow.  Possibly a bobcat.  Mrs. Gridder mentioned in an email she sent yesterday that a friend of theirs who lives near Mission Ridge had a cougar come on his place and attack his dog.  He has lived there for 25 years and never had such an experience.  He managed to shoot and kill the cougar, but his dog didn't make it either.

Talked to Randy this morning.  He hasn't received as much snow as we have, but it is MUCH colder over there in the Idaho panhandle.  His neighbors down from him have registered-15 and I think he has been down to -2!

Now our forecast is not just for more snow, but they have named the storm that is moving in, Quiana.  That sounds ominous.  Nadia was the name of the last storm and she's the one who gave us 50".

I did the quarterly refrigerator maintenance today while JB was outside digging out my Jeep.  Then I went out to help him.  Had to dig it out so we could open the hood and disconnect the battery.  Finally got it shoveled out, and while JB took care of the details, I gave the deer more corn.

The clouds had broken up by mid-morning and we had another gorgeous day with lots of blue sky and sunshine, and a high of 36.  Mother Nature trying to make up for that nasty weather we had, and may have again.

Friday 2/22. It is 22 again this morning and mostly cloudy with valley fog.  More snow is due in this afternoon.

Thought for the day: Men have become the tools of their tools.  Henry David Thoreau

February 20, 2019 Enjoying The Sunshine

Larry & Elsie arriving in their SnoCat
Sunday afternoon, being greeted by
the dogs.

Monday 2/18. By the time I fed the girls at 8:00 am, the temperature had dropped from 20 to 14, but it is going to be such a beautiful day.

It took Larry and Elsie almost 2-1/2 hours to drive the three miles from their house to ours yesterday afternoon.  They didn't plow, but at one point on our road, Larry had to back up the use the plow to push aside a large snow drift.  The trip back down was a bit faster.  They plan to come back up in a couple weeks or so.

I took today off, doing only my daily chores, eating, reading and taking the dogs on an afternoon walk.  The snow on the south ridge has sunk sufficiently for me to make a path across to the west.  I only sank down to mid-calf, instead of mid-thigh or waist.  Dinga thought that was great fun, but Jesse wanted nothing to do with it.  JB puttered around a bit outside, but mainly it was a down day for both of us.  Neither of us slept very well last night.  Probably too much excitement. . .

The day warmed up to a high of 34, but that wasn't for very long.  Once again the sun was quite warm, and there was no fog of any kind.

Tuesday 2/19. It is 23 this morning and the sky is overcast.  My project for today is to clear off the deck, so I got that done before lunch.  I use the snow shovel but I don't pick up and throw, rather cut and shove off the edge.

The overcast began to break up and the sun was out by 1:00 pm, with large patches of blue sky, and the high for the day was 38.  On our afternoon walk, I could see that it was snowing in the mountains, but doesn't look like it will come our way.

It is a full snow moon tonight, how appropriate.  A very bright full snow moon.

Wednesday 2/20. It is 22 this morning and overcast again.  More snow is due in.

Thought for the day: Instructions for living a life: Pay attention.  Be astonished.  Tell about it.  Mary Oliver

February 18, 2019 Sunshine & Visitors

Deer at the corn.

Friday 2/15. I measured another inch of snow this morning.  Looks like we received a grand total of 50" in seven days during the storm.  It's certainly good for the water table, but I am seriously getting tired of cleaning off roofs and paths, which are my projects again for today.

I shoveled off as much as I could reach of the top of the hen house and run.  Then shoveled out the plow so we could move it out of the way for Larry to get the SnoCat in the yard.  Also "plowed" with my legs and shoveled to get a path to the shop door.  We got the remaining three cans of gas out.  Going to really have to slow down our use of water as we are running low on gas for the generator we use for the well pump.

We had fog rolling in and out all day with the sun making a great effort to shine through it.  Unfortunately that just seemed to create more fog.

We watched our two little does come for corn at 4:00 pm.  One is a little bigger than the other, so I think it is a doe and her daughter.

It was another beautiful day with a high of 33 and no new snow.

Saturday 2/16. It is 20 this morning with a broken overcast and valley fog.  The sides of the paths have sunk way down to a little over a foot, however the paths themselves are a least 1' to 2' high.

After lunch I raked off about 3' up on the back of the woodshed roof.

Our little herd of four deer came up to the corn twice today.  One of them is not sharing and we think it is the buck who has lost his little antlers.

It was a beautiful day with a high of 32 and the sun was quite warm, but when the sun set the fog moved in with a vengeance.  Quite the opposite of what usually happens.

On the radio this evening, Larry told us that they plan to drive up tomorrow in the SnoCat.  We sure hope they make it without getting stuck.

Sunday 2/17. It is 26 and mostly cloudy this morning.  I took another 2' off the back of the woodshed roof, while JB was making pumpkin bread.  It smelled so good while baking and tastes almost like gingerbread.

Since we are having guests today, I cleaned up around the house a bit.  

We are supposed to get snow today and it started falling at 1:00 pm, but only lasted about a half an hour.

Larry and Elsie arrived about 3:15 pm, just as the dogs and I were coming down from the south ridge on our walk.  So good to see them!  Got the groceries in (only four items) and chatted a bit, then settled down to play marbles (Chinese checkers).  We played two long, intense games and ended up winning one each.  Was we were playing, a heavy snow began to fall around 4:00 pm and the wind whipped up.  It stopped just before they left at 6:00 pm.  Our high for the day was 34, but the temperature had dropped to the low twenty's by the time they said goodbye.

Monday 2/18. It is 20 with clear skies on this President's Day morning.  The forecast is for more snow for the rest of the month.  We won't be getting down our road any time soon.  Larry and Elsie plan to come back up in another couple weeks.

Thought for the day: There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want.  Bill Watterson

February 15, 2019 A Day of Sun & Another Day of Snow

The tipi before. . .

. . .and after digging it out.

Path I "plowed" with my legs
to the compost pile.

Wednesday 2/13. The deer came last night and ate the corn, so I put more out for them today.  This was after I "plowed" my way to the compost pile with my legs.  That 15 minute trudge was the equivalent to more than 45 minutes on the StairMaster stepping machine.  I can attest to that because I used to work for StairMaster and spent many hours on their machines.

I could hear the birds rejoicing this morning in the sunshine.  There was valley fog this morning but it had disappeared by mid-day.

After lunch I dug out the tipi, which was way overdue.  It took me about an hour and when I had finished I was convinced it was going to be an ibuprofen evening.

JB re-attached the exhaust pipe that had fallen off the propane generator, then shoveled a bit in front of the outhouse and hen house.

Our high for this gorgeous day - with NO new snow - was 32.  The sun was quite warm and I had to take off my coat halfway into digging around the tipi.

Thursday 2/14. It is 20 this morning, and our promised Valentine's Day gift of snow arrived a little before 8:00 am.  No floating flakes today, but rather a determined march to the ground.  Rufus at WXCafe gives the most accurate weather forecasts of anyone we listen to.

I brought wood in right after feeding the girls and dogs.  Wanted to get it done before the paths got clogged up.  I heard a few birds, but they weren't rejoicing today.  Pretty sure I hear a "WTF" in there somewhere. . .

We finished watching Sherlock on Netflix, and I have added it to my list of all-time favorites.

I have seen our clothes line vibrating a couple of times which I thought a bit odd.  Then JB said he saw a weather news item that showed a light pole in Michigan vibrating in the cold!  Wow!

By 1:30 pm we had received another 1-1/2" of new snow and the temperature was up to 26/30.  The warmer the air, the larger the snowflakes.  I cleared snow off from around the edges of the porch.  Amazing how much had piled up there.  By 3:30 pm, we had another 1".  It was darker today than it has been with a very heavy overcast.

Had a very enjoyable chat with my Aunt Nene this evening.  She still has 10" of snow in her yard and is getting quite disgruntled with the whole situation.

Friday 2/15. It is 22 and overcast this morning.  Not snowing at the moment, but looks like it is moving in.

Thought for the day: To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and call whatever you hit the target.  Ashleigh Brilliant

February 13, 2019 48" Of Snow in 5 Days!!

Icicles are now punji stakes.

Me clearing off the side of
the generator/battery shed roof.

Monday 2/11. I measured another 3" of snow received overnight.  I am telling everyone that we are just fine.  Warm and dry, with plenty of food, chocolate, and toilet paper.  It's folks on the west side of the mountains who I am really concerned about.  20" in Port Orchard and a foot in many other places.  The weather news says 20" in Seattle!  I'll take 40" of snow on the mountain as opposed to 20" in Seattle any day.

Forgot to mention that JB made hamburger buns yesterday.  Perfect taste and texture - like Kaiser rolls.  Yum!

The forecast calls for more snow tonight and into tomorrow but we had snow falling at 8:15 am this morning.  They must have got their am's and pm's mixed up. . .

I met the challenge and brought fire wood in.  Then I cleared off about half way up the back of the generator/battery shed roof with our metal rake.  Clearing it off wasn't the hard part.  It was packing the snow down with my feet so I wouldn't sink to my waist that really wore me out.

JB dug the vehicles out enough to run them each for a bit.  It had not stopped snowing and at 1:30 pm JB measured again.  We had another 1-1/4".

I have started reading Still Foolin' 'Em by Billy Crystal.  An autobiography that he wrote in 2013 when he turned 65, just as funny and real as he is.

After a nap, I was out to give the deer more corn.  I hope they appreciate the fact that I had to dig down with my gloved hands about three feet to find the pan.  Then I cleared the snow away from around it.  Not sure if they well be back any time soon though.  I also broke up the ice in the girls' water dish, which we have to do several times a day.

It never stopped snowing today, although it was a very fine snow with very tiny flakes that didn't drop much.  But, for the first time ever, I was growling instead of smiling while watching the snow fall.

Our high for the day was 14.  Feels like we haven't seen 20 in forever.

Larry got their SnowCat running and cleared the road from their place down to the pavement.  This evening Elsie said they planned to drive it up to Rose Camp this coming weekend and to give her a list of items she could buy for us.  I love these guys!

Tuesday 2/12. It is 8 and snowing (of course) this morning with 5" of more snow.  Since Saturday morning, I have had to get dressed as soon as I get up.  No more just throwing on a coat and hat over my dressing gown and jammies and pulling on my mucking boots to go out to feed the girls.  

It looks as though the snow is settling a bit finally.  The sides to the paths don't seem as high.

The snow stopped and the sun shone through the clouds around 9:30 am as I was talking to Sande.  They are getting heavy rains in Santa Rosa and lots of snow in the Sierras.  Our day had quickly warmed to 28 (according to the gauge on the living room window) and the snow was an on-again, off-again thing.  Huge snow bombs were falling off the trees.

I am basically going to take the day off, except for my daily chores.  I brought in wood, and just covered it with a towel to keep the snow off.  Worked perfectly JB trudged up to the panels and cleaned them off.  Then helped him clear out and uncover the generator we use to pump water into the cistern.  Had to shovel that out, too.

Just after lunch the first of the snow and ice slid off the south side of the roof with quite a roar.  Three more such episodes off the south and one off the north kept us awake and Dinga panting.  The long icicles that were hanging on the eaves are now punji stakes (see photo above).

I baked a pan of Toll House chocolate chip bar cookies, using coconut oil instead of butter.  Delicious!  Next time I think I will try half of each.

As we were eating dinner a breeze picked up and blew snow off the trees creating white-outs.  Probably added another foot to the snow on the ground.

Our high for the day was 22/28 and we received another 3/4" of snow, which brings our total since Friday to 48".  Enough already!

Wednesday 2/13. It is 20 and mostly cloudy this morning, but at least it is not snowing at the moment.

Thought for the day: Some people will never like you because your spirit irritates their demons.  Empaths, Old Souls and Introverts

February 11, 2019 Three Feet of New Snow & Counting

3' of new snow!

Cleaning off the solar panels.

Looking up to the wood &
battery sheds.

Friday 2/8. Shortly after 8:00 am we can see tiny snowflakes drifting down.  Ten minutes later they stopped and we could see blue sky.  Just a teaser, I guess.

In these frigid temperatures, the snow gets very crunchy and often squeaky, like fingernails down a chalkboard.  Especially my walking stick when I use it, which is why I'd rather not. . .

Just before 11:30 am, we began to see tiny snowflakes again and there was no blue sky anywhere.  Within 1/2 hour, the flakes were larger although it was very bright out and the sun was peeking through the cloud cover.  However, the snow continued and when I measured at 3:40 pm, when we came back from our afternoon walk, we had received 1-3/4".  Our high for the day was 16/20.

Saturday 2/9. It is 10 degrees this morning and still snowing.  We have 19-1/4" more snow (21" total)!  Wow!  This is amazing!  Certainly the deepest snow we have had Up Here and the deepest I have ever experienced.  Our previous record was 18" in 24 hours and then we had no more than 6" on the ground.

Fortunately it is powder and we simply wade through the pathways to clear them.  Something I have never done before - wading through snow up to my waist.  Just one more adventure in our living Up Here. 

JB did shovel down to the hen house/outhouse.  It seems deeper wading up to the wood shed.  And pulling a sled full of wood is almost impossible as it is wider than the path and digs into the sides.  When I get it down to the porch, it is covered in snow, so I make a few more trips bringing in armloads.  Will have to figure out some way to cover the bag of wood.

JB took the dogs on a short morning walk just to the north ridge.  After that, he measured the snowfall again at 11:00 am and we had received another 7"!  So that makes 28" in 24 hours.

The snow has built up on the house's side berms and seems to be halfway up the windows on the south side.  I look out the loft door to the deck and the snow is halfway up its window also.  So that is my next project, while JB is shoveling off the porch, steps and in front.  Since it is powder, it is almost like shoveling heavy air.  I think I could clear everything off much faster if we just had a leaf blower!

After a late lunch, I shoveled out the generator that we use to pump water up from the well and into the cistern.  Probably won't have to use it til Monday, but more snow is due in, so I want it as clear as possible.

By 1:30 pm, we had received another 3" and by 4:00 pm, we had two more inches.  It was still snowing lightly when we checked at 9:00 pm.  Both Larry and Elsie and the Gridders received more than two feet.  Larry plans on getting the SnowCat going tomorrow afternoon so he can push the snow off the side of the road when he plows.  Something he cannot do with the pickup's plow and he is running out of room to put the snow.  At this point there is just no way to get up past their house except in a snowmobile, and even that might be questionable in all this powder.

Sunday 2/10. It is 6 and clear this morning, with another 3" of snow.  That is a total of 36" for this storm, and another one is due in on Valentine's day.  By now, I must admit that I am bordering on being a little overwhelmed, but it really is beautiful, especially this morning with the blue sky and sunshine.

Right after the girls and dogs have their breakfast, we are on our way to trudge/wade up to the solar panels to clean them off.  Dinga was thrilled, but Jesse only made it about thirty feet before he decided that was enough.  So I took him back to the house and let him in.  He couldn't see anything but the walls of the path anyway.  

We discovered that two deer had come up behind the house and up to and over the south ridge.  So right behind the wood shed we were able to start using their path to the panels.  As JB was cleaning them off, I trudged back down to shovel out the riser on the cistern and check the water level.

Then we ate breakfast and rested a bit.  Afterwards, I started my next project of raking the snow off the chicken run.  Using the metal rake, it is fairly easy but I did need a rest about halfway through.

A very slight breeze is knocking a little of the snow off the trees.  It looks as though someone is sprinkling glitter all over.

I finished clearing most of the new snow off the chicken run and in front of the door to the garbage/recycle shed.  I also cleared off the top of Miss Kitty and part of my Jeep.  Also discovered that those two deer had dug out the corn and eaten it.

The sky was overcast by 2:00 pm, and by 2:30 we were seeing a few lazy snowflakes drifting down.  Definitely not glitter.  An hour later it was really snowing.  Our high for the day was 18/16.

Monday 2/11. It is 6 and overcast this morning.  Looks like we got another 2" or so, with more in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow.

Thought for the day: I tried a morning without coffee.  My court date is pending.

February 8, 2019 A Cougar & More COLD

The solar panels before
tilting up. . .

. .  and after.

Wednesday 2/6. The temperature this morning on the side window was just 6!  And there was no valley fog today.

JB is pretty sure that he heard a cougar yowling on this morning's walk when he and the dogs were on the south ridge.  Sounded like it was up on the peak.  The dogs heard it too and their heads snapped in that direction, but they made no move to check it out.

I did my regular chores, plus, with all the power coming in, I vacuumed.  Also wrapped and packaged a couple of birthday presents to send.  One for our son, which obviously will be late, but he had to go to Hawaii on business for two weeks, so he wouldn't be home anyway.  The other is for my cousin whose birthday is March 1.  That one may also be late.  Had a Christmas stocking gift for my Aunt Nene that had finally arrived last time I went Down There, so that is now wrapped and ready to mail.  Will be more like an Easter gift in Christmas wrapping.

Am reading another book by Dean Koontz, The Key to Midnight.  Hard to put down.

What a magnificent winter day, even though our high was only 18.  Never saw cloud one.  And the stars in the moonless, winter sky are so brilliant tonight.  Orion looks as though it is made up of flickering bits of bright neon.  After living Up Here for almost eleven years, I am so much more aware of the stars and just how many moonless nights there are.  Especially since the moon is the main night light Up Here.

Thursday 2/7. It is 9/6 this morning with icy blue skies.  But this may be the last of the sunshine for a while as the forecast is calling for snow beginning tomorrow through Sunday with the possibility of one foot accumulation.  Then a day off and more snow through next week, especially Valentine's Day.  Well, there's another mailing that will be late - Valentines.  Maybe I'll just send all the kiddos Easter cards instead.

Thin, wispy clouds soon formed, although we had some blue sky for most of the day.  But it is cold, and I just do not do as well in the cold as JB does.

After lunch, we hiked up to the panels and tilted them halfway up.  Much harder than tilting them down.  I shoveled a few little pathways.  So did JB, then he started the generator to pump water into the cistern.

I really did not want to go on the afternoon walk until I noticed that the temperature has risen to 18.  My chin really gets cold if I forget a scarf, which I did not forget for the walk.  By then I could just barely make out blue sky behind some of the thin cloud cover.  Our high for the day was 20, but that was probably for just a minute or two.

I did finish my Koontz book and started another one by a different author.

Friday 2/8. It is 8 and overcast this morning.  The forecast for lots of snow has not changed.

Thought for the day: When even one American - who has done nothing wrong - is forced by fear to shut his mind and close his mouth, then all Americans are in peril.  Harry S. Truman

February 6, 2019 Brrrrrr!

All is white under snow
& rime.

Monday 2/4. So here I am, finally watching the snow fall while I drink my coffee.  It began falling on the other side of the mountains yesterday afternoon, which is unusual for February.  We received 2-1/2" over night, while friends and family over there have 3" to 9"!

People tend to be amazed by different weather variations during their lifetime, as if all the earth's weather is changing.  But one lifetime is a nanosecond in geological time, and therein lies the pattern, barring some cataclysmic event, such as a meteor slamming into our planet.  Often very warm weather precedes an ice age and very cold weather precedes a warming trend.  Who knows what is really going on.

Meanwhile, it snowed all day Up Here but was very bright day.  The sun even managed to shine through the cloud cover for a few minutes during the afternoon, but that had little effect on the snowfall.  By 5:00 we had another 1-3/4".

JB tried using the snow blower, but the snow was just too deep.

Tuesday 2/5. It is 10/8 this morning and overcast, but there is no valley fog.  We received another 1/4" last night before the snow stopped between 8:00 and 9:00 pm, which made it 4-1/2" in the past 24 hours.

After breakfast, JB and the dogs hiked up to the panels to clean them off.  They  came back down and JB started the generator to pump water into the cistern.  Then they were off again for their morning walk.  On the south ridge, JB spotted our little herd of deer down the slope grazing and moseying to the west.

I was only outside to feed the girls, bring the wood in and go for an afternoon walk, which was really not enjoyable because it was so cold.  Especially with a light breeze over the south ridge.  I did see a sliver of blue sky to the south and a sliver of blue way to the north with sun shining on the mountains up there, but that was the only blue sky for the day.  The thick, low clouds cut off the mountains to the west clear down to the bottom of the foothills.

Our high for the day was just 19.  Brrr!  All I really want to do is sit by the wood stove, drinking hot cocoa with peppermint schnapps, and enjoy a good book.

Wednesday 2/6. It is 10 again this morning with clear skies.  Still more cold days to endure.

Thought for the day: The man who does not do his own thinking is a slave, and is a traitor to himself and his fellow man.  Robert G. Ingersoll

February 4, 2019 Finally It Is Snowing

Saturday valley fog north over Columbia
River at 10:30 am. . .

. . .and again at 3:30 pm.

Friday 2/1. There must be a huge rabbit warren under the snow near the compost.  I can see two holes that go way into the snow with rabbit tracks going in and out.  Just wish I could see the rabbits.

Haven't seen our deer for a couple days now, but they do manage to sneak in and eat the corn.

I used the last of the fire wood in the January row on the 30th, but that is only because I am not using the large branch wood.  There is about a fourth of a row of that left.

The fog rolled in and out all day long and our high was 32, or so we thought.  When JB checked it at 9:00 pm, it was up to 34.

Saturday 2/2. It is 30/32 this morning with clear skies and sunshine sparkling on the snow.  We all went on the morning walk.  JB tends to mosey, while I have to slow down my forced march.

After lunch we burned half of the last box of old papers, then JB used the tractor to clear out some of the snow out front.

The sun was nice and warm today.  On the morning walk the dogs could still walk on top of the snow, but by the time of our afternoon walk, they just sank into it and had to walk on the paths.  I can tell by the tracks, that the deer also like to use our paths instead of wading through the snow.

There was barely any valley fog this morning, but by the time we went on our afternoon walk, the valley and canyons were filled with it.  Our high for the day was a balmy 42.  Must be the cold snap we were warned about.

So, just as I wrote that we haven't seen the deer lately, I saw our two little does around dusk, eating the corn.

Sunday 2/3. It is 23 and mostly clear this morning with high valley fog.  Clouds soon moved in, leaving just little pieces of blue.

We finished burning all our old records today.  Woo Hoo!  Other than that, it was a nice, lazy Sunday.  And again around dusk, I watched our two little does going for the corn.  I hadn't put any out today as I am trying to make it last.  Will put more out tomorrow.  Don't know when we will make Down There again to buy more.  It's a 50# bag and would really weight down Miss Kitty.  The 25# bag of flour I brought up last time was bad enough.

Our high for the day was 33, but I am sure that was only when the sun peaked out a bit this afternoon.  By 4:00 pm the temperature had dropped to 26 and we were fogged in.

Monday 2/4. On this our son's 44th birthday, our cold spell has finally arrived.  It is 10/12 and snowing.  Looks like we have already received a couple inches.

Thought for the day: Some things are better left unsaid.  Which I generally realize right after I have said them.

February 1, 2019 A Trip Down There & Where's the Storm??

High valley fog on Wednesday.

Wednesday 1/30. The light overcast tried to clear this morning, but was replaced by heavier, broken clouds.  At least our cold spell won't be as frigid as it is in the mid-west.  That is just nasty!  

Just as I went outside to start Miss Kitty at 11:30 am, the fog was sneaking over the south ridge into Rose Camp.  My road trip to the main canyon road and back only took about 40 minutes.  Had to back up a few feet in a couple places and take another run at it, but made it okay.  There were deer tracks everywhere along the road.  On the road, going up and down the slopes, just everywhere.  And at least one set of elk tracks.  The fog was gone and had sunk down into the canyon when I returned.  Will definitely try to go Down There tomorrow.

Am working on the genealogy of my maternal grandfather and am scanning all his documents that I have into the computer so I can put them on discs and share with my cousins and brother.

I am still fascinated with valley fog and continue to take pictures of it.  Must have thousands by now.

Our high on this cloudy day was 30/32.

Thursday 1/31. It is 20 and partly clear with high valley fog this morning.  Will be driving down into it as soon as I have fed the girls and dogs.

I was on my way by 8:45 am with no problems going down the road.  May have issues on the way back up.  I am thinking that this is more low clouds than high fog.  Certainly looked like it when I got to town.  Ran my errands, bought the groceries and was on my way back home by 12:45.  I could tell that the extra weight in Miss Kitty might be a problem on our road, and sure enough, at cougar corner I had to get out and shovel quite a bit.  Finally got going and just pushed through til I got just past the fence on our driveway.  Had to back up a few feet and take a run, but I made it home around 1:45 pm.  Woo Hoo!  I had taken the sled I use for the firewood just in case. . .

I mentioned previously that the snow was great for snowmen and snowballs, but I guess that was just the top layer.  Underneath it is soft and powdery.  Very hard to get any purchase when driving through one to two feet of it.

We enjoyed all the magazines, newspapers and mail after unloading, then watched Deadpool 2.  I found it at a Redbox for $5 while waiting at Walgreens for a prescription for JB.  So funny and just as good as the first one.  There was an article in one of the papers about the frigid weather in Chicago that is breaking all the records and getting down to -35 or morew.  A photo showed a woman tossing boiling water into the air which immediately froze!

So glad I got Down There and am back home before the big snow storm that is in the forecast for tonight.  We may get another foot of the white stuff.  Our high for the day was 27.

Friday 2/1. This first day of February finds us wondering where the big snow storm went.  It is 20 and overcast with high valley fog this morning but no more snow.  The forecast has changed to just 20% chance today.  The weather seems to be very unpredictable this winter.

Thought for the day: Minds are like parachutes; they only function when open.  Thomas Dewar