It was an ice cold dawn this morning! The thermometer outside the kitchen window read -20C, and it always reads a little bit warm because it is so close to a protected heated wall. Brrr.
I can tell before I get out of bed in the morning if the temperature is below -15C. My bones ache when it gets that cold. The first night of a cold snap my body takes note, and gives the alert… more blankets! When I made the bed this morning I added a wool blanket. Wool is wonderfully warm. The weather people tell us there will be at least two more frigidly cold nights to come, so now I am ready.
When the winter temperature drops below -7C the oil furnace heats the house. This is always a challenge, because the humidity drops to 20% or lower after just a few hours. Several times a day towels are soaked and hung around the house to dry. In addition, bowls of water are strategically placed beside the heating vents, and need to be refilled daily. It seems the next few days of the cold snap will be busy ones. And oh yes, the plants will need a little extra water during the cold snaps, all this warm moving air leaves them thirsty.
The sun! Another sunny day has arrived. This is such a welcome light. The curtains are all open to let it in, despite the cold.
The sun certainly seems to be the important element in bringing the bugs into the house. Today, basking in the sunshine, sitting on the easy chair, a small shadow flickered across me, barely noticed. Upon inspection, a Stink Bug was found crawling on the inside of the living room window. That can be taken as a sign that spring is coming, even though it is colder today than it has been all winter.
Stay safe dear friends!
Pandemic Related
Attila’s Mom received her first Covid-19 vaccine shot yesterday, and has an appointment booked for he second shot. Wonderful! She lives in the USA.
Worldly
Weather
-18°C (-20C or a little lower at our house)
Date: 5:00 AM EST Friday 29 January 2021
Condition: Not observed
Pressure: 102.9 kPa
Tendency: Falling
Temperature: -17.7°C
Dew point: -22.0°C
Humidity: 69%
Wind: W 14 km/h
Wind Chill: -26
Quote
“A man builds a fine house; and now he has a master, and a task for life; he is to furnish, watch, show it, and keep it in repair, the rest of his days.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
1803 – 1882
I love our small house!
Stay warm, Maggie! My daughter just told me she heard that it is 2F right now! Jacked up my heat this morning. Snow on the way for Sunday into Monday but no idea of accumulations yet.
Eileen
Thanks Eileen! I hope you have warm and cozy night, it sounds very cold where you are too! We are looking at some snow early next week, but no storms thank goodness. So far this winter the driveway has been shoveled once, and it wasn’t a big job. I contrast this with the winter I stayed here alone, I was out there shoveling constantly, and the banks were so high that was almost impossible to lift the snow up that high. At the time local people said it was the worst winter for the snow they had ever seen. I believe it, this winter has not been challening so far, in the way of snow and extreme cold. Stay safe dear friend!
Stay warm! (Drink lots of water, too!)
Joan, who even complains about Yuma winters… 😀
LOL, Joan! Yuma winters sound wonderful from here in Canada. 🙂 Great advice, drinking lots of water, in any climate.
Hello Maggie, and to everyone. Mike and I went to meet BODIE BEAR this afternoon. He is an absolutely beautiful Aussie shepherd, with gorgeous light blue eyes. I think he will weigh between 40-50 pounds when he reaches adulthood. I think puppies and kittens are with us for moments of pure bliss. Of course, our pets continue to enrich our lives as they grow up, but the puppie/kitten phase is so special. He ( well, BODIE, Natalie and Jeremy ) begin “Puppie Kindergarten “ next week. Carson and Ryder will have to give him REAL exercise as he grows up. They have several great green spaces near their home for him to run/jump as much as he wants. He has really connected with Natalie, and pays great attention to her. This is normal, as she is with him all the time. It was a wonderful, masked visit….just not long enough! Carson, now 14, is taller than his Dad. And, he is really getting those adolescent muscles. Jeremy can still beat him arm wrestling….but I bet he won’t be able to much longer. Also, he is already passing and receiving college credits! These schools are so advanced compared to my education back in the olden times. He will be going to somewhere in Europe to complete a course his Senior year….this will all depend on COVID. I am attempting to detail a weeks worth of dinner menus…I am so over trying to decide daily what I am going to cook. And, I want more variety, and more veggies. Since my retirement and my health issues…I need to improve in this area. I am trying to analyze what may be wrong with your fingers. Could it be arthritis? I have seen patients that develop nodule-like bumps because of arthritis…..just wondering. I will be interested in your diagnosis. Take care of yourself and Atilla. I wish everyone was as diligent as you are with COVID precautions….Mike and I are as vigilant as possible, though we know we broke protocol with the puppie visit. Out 2 nd vaccination is 2/9. xxoo Margarett
Hello Margarett! So glad to hear you were able to get your first Covid-19 vaccination shot. A very big deal. In Canada we are not so lucky, our supply of the vaccines is not being delivered as promised, they are coming from Europe. We are seriously short of shots, and not even all our long-term-care homes have been fully vaccinated. The vulnerable living independently have no timeline on when the vaccine will be available, so the death rate for people my age remains somewhere around 25% of those diagnosed, and older people it is 35% of those diagnosed. Pretty scary, but we are at the mercy of world politics when it comes to vaccines, so there is no solution to it. In the meantime, we remain isolated but for Attila’s job. The UK variant has arrived in Canada, so things are probably going to get a lot worse before they get better for us.
Puppys sound like a lot of fun! I hear they are also a lot of work, lol. Labour of love. How wonderful you got to see your family!
Eating lots of vegetables and fruits is at the core element of a healthy diet, and it can be difficult to achieve. We find it challenging because we don’t buy fresh vegetables in the winter, they don’t grow here, and they are touched by strangers so we don’t trust them to be virus free. Our diet is restricted to frozen vegetables which are cooked before eating, both store bought and from our garden. We also have fresh squash from our garden that keeps most of the winter. The Instant Pot has been wonderful in making it easier for us to eat vegetables, as I add them to everything I make in the Instant Pot, no matter what the recipe calls for, I include a few cups of frozen vegetables. Stay safe dear friend!