Snow day!

One of the things I love best about living here in Washington is that it doesn't snow in our area very often- but when it does, it's gorgeous. Better still, it doesn't last very long... so when it does snow, it's an occasion.

I'm taking the day off; for the first time in years I don't have to worry about deadlines at the paper or anything like that. That's actually kind of nice. Plus, the roads don't get cleared well, if at all, and most people here don't drive well in the snow...it's just a good day to stay at home until things melt. It's supposed to turn over to rain this afternoon, so as soon as there was enough light, I went outside to take some photos and check on the animals.

There will be a new post up on Grit shortly; it's all ready to go but they're still having trouble with their system. Keep an eye out for that; it'll kick off a series of posts where I go over what worked and what didn't in the garden this year.

Whatever holidays you celebrate this time of year, I hope they're wonderful. Now, it's time to get back outside before the rain comes. Happy snow day to me... :)

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

It's not normal for us to get too cold here in the PNW, so this past week's sub-freezing temps have been a bit of a challenge. I run on the cold side to start with (no lie- my normal temp is between 96.8 and 97.5) so extreme lows like this present a personal challenge when I have to work outside. Chores increase exponentially it seems, both in number and duration, the lower the mercury goes.

Water bottles that usually last the animals 2 days are freezing solid within hours. No more quick top-offs as I dash off to work... these days require bringing everything inside, thawing the tubes and switching out bottles completely. Lucky for me, the caps and tubes fit onto 1 liter soda bottles, so it didn't cost too much to stock up on spares- just one dollar each, compared to at least $8 per bottle if I bought all new ones at the feed store.

Speaking of the feed store... can't forget the food! The rabbits and chickens both need to eat more when it's super cold, just to stay warm. I'm refilling feeders every time I go out, and once a day everyone gets a nice big flake of hay in their pen. Even the chickens; they get the "fines" that shake out into the bottom of my bucket as I feed all of the rabbits. Those little bits of grass and seeds are a boost for them, since they can't get out and forage much this time of year.

I have to say, though, that I am grateful for the dry weather. The low temps mean lots and lots of sunshine, and that's a huge deal for us right about now. It's also too cold for snow, a fact I'm also appreciative of. So, while we're making extra trips out to the woodpile and running around with additional chores, it's not knee-deep in snow or squishing along in the rain. Counting my blessings, indeed.

What weather challenges are you facing this season?

Hiatus

hi·a·tus  noun \hī-ˈā-təs\:  an interruption in time or continuity :  Break; especially :   a period of time when something (such as an activity or program) is stopped. (Courtesy of Merriam Webster online: www.m-w.com)

Well, hello there! I’m sorry for dropping off for a while, but the work-life balance went a bit sideways on me. Things haven’t quite leveled off yet, but I miss this space and it’s time to get organized again.

We’re into the time of year that many of us folks in the Pacific Northwest affectionately refer to as “the dark days”. For as long as our days are in the summer, they’re quite short going into winter: sunrise today was at 7:16 am and sunset will arrive at 4:30pm. This translates to a bit of fumbling around in the dark, both before and after work, when it comes to taking care of the chores outside.

It’s also the time of year where our weather turns… well… soggy. I was going to say unpredictable, but let’s be honest: we can pretty much count on it being wet. Hollywood likes to paint us a little rainier than we really are (fact: we get fewer inches of rain per year than New York City) but it’s not too far from the truth. We’re the Evergreen State for a reason, after all! Before you start to think I’m complaining, I have to say that I’ll take the damp over months of snow, any day.

In truth, I do love this time of year. When spring starts coming around, I end up packing away my “inside toys” and focus on everything outside. But once the clocks change, I settle in and it’s all about making things. I’ve been spending quite a bit of time sitting by the fire with my spinning wheel these past few weeks; hands down it’s one of the most soothing hobbies I have, and definitely a favorite. Spinning is art, science and music all rolled into one happy little woolly package... so much fun! Spinners, you know what I mean.

If you don’t spin, but enjoy making things, I highly recommend giving it a shot. There are lots of (Free!) resources available on the internet to get you started, and a basic spindle is super easy to make. When I first was looking into spinning, I made my own spindle because I didn’t want to fork out the money for something I wasn’t sure I’d like. Now that I think about it, I’ll do a post on how to make a starter spindle, if anyone’s interested.

What do you do to get you through your ‘dark days’ of winter?