Blustery Snow Day!

It is amazing how winter has overtaken us so quickly this year. This week all three ponds became solidly frozen over. No wonder with nighttime temperatures in the single digits! It was a fairly gradual process, with the two smaller ponds freezing and then opening up partially once, at least. Usually, all three ponds will freeze and reopen at least a couple of times before closing in for keeps. Not this year. The big pond finally closed in this week and with more cold weather ahead and no sign of thaws in the immediate future, it appears we won't see open water again until spring.

I haven't measured precipitation since I injured my knee back in September. But now I have had several physical therapy sessions and seem to be making good progress, so I decided to begin taking measurements again, which means getting outside before 9 a.m. to measure snow depth and clean the snow off the front deck. The beginning of December was a good time to start - we've had snow to report daily. I have measured a little over 10 inches so far. Today I measured a little over an inch at 9 a.m., but we are having snow squalls and lots of wind, so there will be more than that tomorrow, I expect.

While my knee is much better and I'm getting strength and range of motion back, I don't trust my balance completely. I find that using a cane is sometimes counterproductive as it gets in my way more than it helps. However, except for my morning snow measurements, I take it with me when I leave the house - unfamiliar territory can be tricky. So far, so good - I have a snow shovel to help me balance!

Yesterday Bath Fitters installed my walk-in shower. That was an all-day job, just like advertised, but it was a really long day. Ryan arrived at around 9 a.m. and left a little after 7 p.m. The plumber, Will, was here only for a little over an hour in the morning, but Ryan worked steadily through the day. It looks great - I'm sure I'll love it. I have to wait 24 hours to use it, so today I'll be putting things back in place and doing a final clean up in there. They left everything spick and span except couldn't do the floor because of the silicone seal. That has to set without being disturbed in any way. I took some before and after pictures - nice low step to get in, but mostly the same footprint as the old shower. I know I'm going to enjoy it. Behind the curtain there's a neat little seat! What luxury - and the shower head can be in high or low location to adapt for the seat. Plus assist bars on three sides!

Now I'm thinking about Christmas decorations - do I want to fuss with them or just hang a wreath on the door and call it done. I'm thinking "keep it simple" because whatever I put out has to be taken down again after New Years. My tired old back tells me less is better.

We have lots of local events going on from now until Christmas - concerts, church sales, and more than the usual number of meetings to finish up budgets and year-end reports. Danville has a big meeting this weekend about school closure issues. I believe you can watch that live on Saturday, December 6, from this Facebook site.  

Roads are not great here right now, so be careful if you are traveling in our region - snow squalls are making visibility poor and also sweeping snow across roadways sometimes hiding black ice. Take it slow and pay close attention to what's ahead and to other drivers. It's surprising how many people still don't have their winter tires on - or who are depending on "all season" tires, which just aren't adequate when the going gets tough. I know - I embraced the new trend of all weather tires at first. Over the years at different stages of my driving, I've carried a set of chains (and had to use them more times than I like to recall) abd had studded tires - usually "retreads." Then new cars came with "all season tires" and front wheel drive. That changed my driving habits considerably. There were many times when I couldn't make a hill or felt insecure on slippery roads, resulting in "white knuckle driving" experiences. There was some benefit when cars had all-wheel drive, but when we went back to winter tires, what a difference! They really do make driving a whole lot safer, and if you live on a back road, it may make sense to have them studded, too. It is rare to hear a car clunking along with chains - but it does happen. I expect it's mostly folks who live on isolated back roads who still carry a set of chains with them. Whatever gets you there safely!

I hadn't intended to delve into my driving history - but it brought back memories of the clunky 1940 Packard sedan (a lot like the one pictured here but mine didn't have whitewalls) that was my first car. It was a big old "safe" used car I bought at Lesnick's DeSoto-Plymouth when I started working there in about 1950. I never liked that car - it began to fall apart almost immediately and if I went through a puddle of water, the engine would die. It was like steering a cow by the tail on snowy roads. I wasn't unhappy when my father offered to take it off my hands and made it into a power unit to run his sawmill. It was a great rig for that and he sawed a heap of lumber with it. Fun to look back on, though. 

Cheers, everyone! Enjoy your holiday preparations.