There is a place for grey days, but I was pleased to see a break in the cloud after such a long dreary spell.
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First, we enjoyed a delightful, partly cloudy day, being eased back in to fair weather…
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Yesterday was almost too intense!
Impossible to stay in on such a day.
The sunshine is warm but there has been a stiff, very cold breeze and our nights are bitter.
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Our cheeky friend has taken to popping in for a snack
…and a snooze.
Although not bothered by the elements, I think he quite likes warming up!
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Often he goes off , then returns to take supper with us. I hate letting him back out into darkness, but he is a free spirit and would hate to be kept in.
Besides which, he is not our boy.
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3/4 pink, 1/4 blue house..
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Why would someone do that?
Well why not?
As far as I know there is no rule book that says houses must be painted all in one colour.
And in any case, who obeys rules these days?
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The pond had mostly thawed.
Grant shot off on a different route…
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After 5 years, you might think we would have run out of roads to explore, at least in our immediate area.
But there’s always another!
And one has to travel each route in a different season.
Or time of day.
Even driving a route in the opposite direction provides an entirely different vista.
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How these white-barked trees stand out on a day like this! The limbs seem to reach out to the light.
We came to a previously undiscovered (by us) stretch of water which I decided was a river.
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Somehow, we had found the Battenkill.
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Not that it had got lost, of course.
There are little pocket parks along its course.
So we decided to stop for a few minutes.
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One thing was for sure, I wouldn’t be bathing my toes in that water.
Though, bravely, I had gone out without a coat.
Wandering beside the icy river, I did think the day was rather fresh. Then discovered the temperature was 28F/2C.
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One Thanksgiving Eve, very many years ago, my aunty Kay and I got on the wrong side of uncle and decided we would go out for a drive.
“Bring the bottle!” commanded Kay.
“Got it!” said I.
We rounded up the cocker spaniels and took ourselves to the beach at Bayville where we sat on a log with our cheap bottle of blackberry brandy and set the world to rights.
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Sitting on a Long Island beach in November was an unlikely way to have a good time and when the bottle was empty, we needed to warm up but we weren’t ready to go home, so I drove to a nearby motel.
Leaving Kay with the dogs, I weaved my way barefoot, into the registration office and enquired after the availability of a room.
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The motel being full was as unlikely as us having a good time that evening, but it was a polite way of telling me to get lost.
That was the only time I drove while seriously impaired. There was no traffic and I was very lucky.
Afterwards I visualised what might have happened and I was very careful thereafter, not to drink if I was going to be driving.
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We still weren’t ready to go home, however, so I parked the car behind our local supermarket and we must have dozed off because suddenly the dogs were barking madly as someone tapped at the window.
“What’re you ladies doing?”
asked a policeman.
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Whatever mumbled story I gave, the man told us to go on home and be careful.
So I drove around behind the doctor’s office where I became extremely sick.
And then we went home.
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To this day I cannot abide blackberry!
That little episode was one of our more irresponsible escapades, but Kay and I often went out driving, not drinking, with Wendy and Jill barking madly at everyone and everything.
How I loved my aunty Kay.
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Prettily blowing in the wind, box elder.
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Because I can never resist ice!
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Different shades of winter.
The Green Mountains were still frosted, yesterday.
Blackberry brandy sounds delightful – on the way down at least…
I love the pictures of your sweet little visitor, who is stopping by for treats and rest. 😽❤️
Thank you for sharing.
Catherine
I’m not sure you’d get away so easily with a policeman nowadays!
My aunty could get away with anything but these days one would hopefully not get into such a situation!
Thank you, Carolyn, for today’s adventures! I like your story about drinking and driving, ot a thing to do!
Joanna
His Nibs looks very much at home!
I think he’s deciding whether to make this his primary residence. He keeps mentioning a cat-flap.
It’s hard to imagine how cold it is when I see the bright blue sky. But by the end of your post (seeing that ice formation), there’s no doubt that I’d definitely need a coat (and gloves and a hat) to face this day outside. I really enjoyed your story about your Aunty Kay and the cocker spaniels – what a special memory that is!
In the 1960s, everyone I knew used to drink and drive, especially my dad, who often stated that he was a better driver after drinking a lot of beer. Once I had a car in 1969, I naturally followed his example, and there were a few occasions when I drove 15 miles home from a night out and had no recollection of doing that the next morning. Once I had a job that involved driving, I put those wild days behind me.
It was cold enough for a coat on your trip, in my opinion. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
When I’m outside on a sunny, still day I don’t mind being cold. My feet and ears used to perish but I seem to have lost feeling in them. I really don’t like being cold when it’s grey, wet and windy or in a cold room.