Snow Report and Time Check

 We lost a good share of our snow yesterday. We had rain all day, sometimes really heavy. A few streams got close to flood level but here at Joe's Pond we are ok. The roads were messy, going from darned slippery to miserable slush and now a lovely coating of about an inch of fluffy new snow on top of granular, crunchy stuff that fell as the temperature began to drop around midnight. I measured 2.44 in. of precipitation total this morning. There was a mix of water, solid ice, and snow in the measuring tube. I thought there was a full 3 inches of ice in the bottom, but 2/3 of that was water. It really didn't get very cold - just in the high 20s overnight, so the water in the tube didn't freeze all the way. It took two cups of hot water to thaw everything out so I could measure. (I subtract whatever amount of water I have to use to thaw the ice.) There was snow and ice clinging to the inside of the tube and only a small layer of snow, but it all has to be melted and measured. I clean off the outside - that doesn't count.

I've had an interesting week. On Monday the Cabot Historical Society had a meeting at Willey Hall. Our building is normally closed from late October until spring, but in addition to that, this fall the building was condemned as being unsafe. The supports underneath have rotted out - only two out of 12 original posts remain. This is a serious situation, but we have a very competent Building Committee working on it, so with some luck (and probably a good piece of change) the work can be completed next spring and we can get back into the building.

Also this week I had a very nice email from Bruce Jacobus. Some of you long-time Joe's Ponders may remember when Dale Jacobus owned the Ray & Ginny Johnson cottage that is now Kim and David Kidney's. It has been nice connecting with Dale's son, Bruce. Bruce knew my former in-laws, Dot and Bill Dimick, and his father and grandfather both worked at Fairbanks Morse Scale Company back in the day. I never knew them but heard the name often. Turns out Bruce has followed my blog for a long time. Very nice to know.

Yesterday I had my usual appointment that rolls around every eight weeks or so for my eye shots. The appointment is in the morning so Jamie can get me there, back home, and still get to work in St. Johnsbury by mid to late morning. Everything went as scheduled, and when I got home I settled in my recliner to stay quiet with my eyes closed (they are dilated and feel irritated as the anesthesia wears off). They settle down usually within a couple of hours, so by noon they were much more comfortable and I was hungry. I made my lunch and watched some TV. I  was so comfortable I decided to have a little nap. Not unusual for me after lunch, but yesterday I slept soundly and when I awoke it was almost dark outside! That was a complete loss of a whole afternoon - not that I had anything terribly important to do, but still. So much time lost. I had some emails to answer and a few things to take care of around the house, so everything got delayed, including my supper and getting to bed last night. I checked the weather at midnight, just as the rain was turning to snow. A long day, but I missed a good share of it!

Today the sunshine we had earlier in the morning has disappeared and I expect there may be a snow flurry or two as the morning progresses. I'm showing 30.4F. One of my tasks today is to check the garage thoroughly to see if I can find where one of my mouse traps disappeared to. On Monday I noticed one of my traps had a mouse in it, but I didn't want to deal with it then as I was on my way to the CHS meeting. However when I looked for it the next day, it was gone. The only explanation I can come up with is that the weasel may have found it. It isn't important except I want to be sure there isn't a half-eaten mouse body rotting away somewhere in my garage. I haven't caught many mice lately, perhaps because the weasel is having good hunting. There are several openings large enough for one to get in - but that might not allow getting out with the trap in tow. They are clever and determined little beasts - and dangerous if they feel threatened. 

My USPS notice of arriving mail today shows that Fred's cousins Alan and Sally Brown, have sent me their annual Christmas newsletter. I look forward to that each year. Alan and Sally used to visit when they lived in upper NY state, but now they are permanently in Florida where some of their family is, and they don't haven't come north for several years now, so the newsletter is a great way to catch up with them. This was a reminder that if I'm going to get greeting cards out, I'd better get going on it - the holidays will be here before we know it. In about two weeks we'll celebrate Christmas and then get ready for a new year! Lots to do - so little time.

Did I mention I have a solar-powered, jimmy-rigged star on my flag pole? I cobbled it together using a length of heavy electrical cable and a string of solar lights. It is more or less held together with clear packaging tape (and a bit of duct tape, of course!). I attached it to my flag pole rope and ran it up to the top. The solar unit isn't pointed in any particular direction - the whole assemblage kind of swings in the wind, but so far it has had enough charge to operate each night and seems to be holding together in spite of the foul weather. Look for it if you are going by at night! If the weather isn't too messy I may try to get a picture - each night so far we've had rain, snow, or deep cold, so I haven't wanted to be out there!