Almost Zero

7:26

8:00

8:01

A windy and extremely cold morning, below zero on the weather apps. 1º at our home.  I didn't think anyone would be out fishing this morning but a couple of guys just trudged out into the middle from Victoria.  Madness.

Heading Home At 8:10

 It's 8:00 at the moment and the sun is breaking through, filling the sky with snow filtered sunlight.  I forgot to mention that the birds, specifically the cardinals, are back at our feeder.

Cardinal Perching

Up Close

In His Element

Painting-like Photo

Yesterday we woke up to over a foot of fresh snow.  So after our coffee and reading or listening to the news, both Evie and I put on our warmest clothes and went out and spent a good half hour pushing the snow off of our parking area.  It was actually enjoyable being outside and doing something active.  We made sure to avoid lifting the snow, just pushing so as to avoid a pulled iliopsoas muscle, something I seem to do each winter.  As always, the house felt warm and comforting after our shoveling.

We knew that we would be snowed in, so we planned on having some good food for the day.  After our shoveling, Evie got out the crock pot and put together a beef stew so that it would be slow cooking most of the day, filling the kitchen with its aroma.  Once the stew was cooking, it was time for our big Sunday breakfast, eggs, bacon and bagels, my favorite meal of the week.  We watched CBS Sunday morning, creatures of habit.  I then took it easy, reading and taking a nap, watching some football while Evie went crazy in the kitchen, making a German Chocolate Cake for our dessert.  It took awhile but the end product was worth it.

Good Neighbors

Around 4:00, our neighbors, Jim and Barb stopped over for beers and appetizers.  They are in the process of moving to Woodlawn full time and are getting their home in Cleveland ready to put on the market.  We have not seen them to talk since before the holidays so it was fun to catch up on our their travels and news.  They left around 6:00 so Evie boiled up some potatoes, mashed them and served the stew on top.  I am a mashed potato and gravy fan so I was happy, going back for a second helping of stew.  We had the Chiefs/Patriots game saved, so we watched the entire game, ending after 10:00 with a very disappointing Chiefs loss in overtime.  It was a depressing football Sunday overall as we also wanted the New Orleans Saints to win but they lost in overtime as well. My takeaway....Brady, and Bellicheck,  the best quarterback and head coach ever.

Canadian Geese

Finally, during the evening Evie stepped outside and heard very loud honking geese,  an unusual sound at this time of the year.  And this morning, when I walked out on the porch to take a morning photo, I noticed black shapes out in the middle of the lake.  I was not sure what it was until I pulled out my binoculars and realized it was a gaggle of Canadian geese, perhaps over one hundred, hunkering down in the cold, in the middle of the lake.