Once again our snow is nearly gone. All the new snow disappeared overnight and we are left with patches here and there, especially in the woods. Nothing exceptional, but there must be a lot of water running off the hillsides into the pond, and down the rivers. Look out below!

The Cabot road crew has been working here most of the morning, dumping gravel into a muddy spot just below our house (and perhaps other places, but we don't know that). There have been a lot of trucks and then the big grader came, so I think they must be finished here. The road has been passable, but muddy in spots. Not the deep holes a car can lose a wheel in, but rough and muddy enough to slow what little traffic there is down considerably. The back roads in Cabot were posted against heavy trucks or other equipment some time ago, as happens every spring. This helps keep the road from breaking up, I'm sure, and I'm wondering if the decrease in traffic since people are staying at home may help, as well.

Here is something we think is very special. First, because it sounds like it could be of enormous help in this pandemic, but also because it is a product of Vermonters and UVM. This is a new invention that will make you proud: Ventilator

We are expecting high winds this afternoon into tomorrow, so it's likely we'll lose our power at some point. We had some pretty high winds this morning, too, along with light rain. It all helps to "bring the frost out" of the roads and also move the ice a bit (the wind does have quite an effect on the ice, even though you might not think it would), so the combination means the block could go down soon. We'll keep you posted about that.

Remember a few nights ago we had an unusual full moon? I posted a picture Mary Whitcomb sent to me, and today when I was hunting for something else, I saw this one that she sent to me at about the same time. I forgot to post it then, but I think it's beautiful and you will enjoy it. This was taken on April 7, 2020. Thanks, Mary.

I had a nice note from a Worcester, Vermont couple today, thanking me for the blog and saying they enjoy stopping at Sambel's in the summer. It won't be long now - and I expect Sambels, like Three Ponds, will be able to accommodate  people very well, even if the restrictions caused by this pandemic persist.

We unexpectedly got low on bread this weekend. We weren't able to get any of the kind we usually buy when we shopped and we both thought we had an adequate supply in the freezer - we always have extra bread on hand. Except this time. I decided that before we ran out completely, I'd try making some. I haven't made bread for literally years, and I don't remember ever doing it very successfully. But I dove in and to my absolute delight, turned out two loaves of perfectly delicious bread. Hardly any effort at all, just patience and a little muscle to knead it. I remember my Grandmother Bolton making bread perhaps two or three times a week, and at a rate of perhaps six or more loaves at a time. The old mixer was hand operated and when fully loaded with dough, it was more than she could turn, so John Davidson, a hired man, or one of my uncles had to do it. Her bread was so good - but she sometimes put molasses on it for us kids, and I hated that. I always wanted mine either with butter (that's still the best, especially when the bread is still warm) or just plain. I thought about that last night when I tested one of my loaves - a slice warm with just butter!

There are  numerous things we used to do for ourselves that may come in handy to revisit as this new lifestyle evolves. I read that seeds for vegetable gardens are a hot commodity - if you can find them at all. People are buying baby chicks so they will have eggs and a food source months down the road. Of course, some may have more chicken in the pot and fewer eggs than expected if the chicks turn out to be mostly roosters. I guess that's a gamble worth taking. I know from personal experience chickens are not easy to raise. They take special care when very young, disease can strike, and they eat a lot! But it's worth the effort. Just don't get too attached. It's hard to think of your pet in a pot of chicken stew.