Ice Melts But Water Is Still Wet

After the big snow, there was one day of school, and then school was canceled again on account of ice. The whole world became an icy paradise, beautiful, fragile and deadly.

All along the fence line of the pasture, little trees and shrubs stood covered with icing.

The mailbox was capped with ice.

The last remaining miniature rose was encased and preserved on ice.

Red berries also were coated with a shiny, transparent veneer.

Bow wanted to go outside, but it was too cold to venture out. Then slowly the ice began to melt. Today, it is melting in torrents.

Bow asked to go out. This time it was not too cold for him. Now it was only too wet! He faced another dilemma: how to step outside without getting his feet wet. The dogs were eager to play with him, and the swing and the bench were beckoning, but all Bow could do was stand on the ledge and display very carefully, lest he slip and his feet come into contact with water!

When he was done, he was done. We went inside, and Bow asked to watch the video of his exploits out of doors, which he found very interesting.

Distant Thunder

The weather can't seem to decide what to do. One moment all is calm and the sun is shining, and the next, distant thunder threatens us with a storm, which may or may not ever materialize. Bow, always quite sensitive to nature's mixed signals, is not sure what to do, either.

Today is Sword's birthday, but we celebrated it on the 17th, as that was a Wednesday. Today, and for the next ten days or more, Lawrence will be on vacation with his family out of state. So today was an ordinary day for us, except that we had banana cake for breakfast.

I went for a walk after lunch with Brownie, and I noticed that the wind had blown some of the ripening pears off the trees before their time.

I gathered as many of the fallen pears as I could, in the hopes they will still ripen at home.

Luckily, there are still many more pears left on the tree.

In the late afternoon, Bow and I went out. While in the outer pens, we heard some distant thunder. It would start, then stop, with no clear resolution. Bow was confused as to what he should do about it. Should he ignore it, protest against it, ask to go back inside, or just take it lying down?

Eventually we did go back in. There is still thunder out there, but now it is closer. No rain yet, though.

Weathering the Storm

I am cautiously optmistic about HB284. People have called and asked how they can help. There has been much activity on the legislative front. My informants in Jefferson City think the bill will not be passed and that the parallel legislation that is being introduced in the state senate is also getting nowhere. But it feels like a roller coaster, coming up for the vote and getting passed out of committee one day, then getting shelved the next, and who knows what tomorrow will bring. In this way, politics is a lot like the weather.

Bow was enjoying the warm weather that came upon us recently, spending most of the day outside with Lawrence on Wednesday, but then by evening everything changed. Storm clouds flew over our property, the winds picked up, and even the tiniest flowers tucked safely underfoot began to tremble.

After dinner, the storm came in.

Besides the big show that a storm always brings us, there was a considerable drop in temperature. I had to start heating the pens again. All yesterday it was quite cold out. Today, it's may be a little warmer, but still too cold to play outside before noon.

Earlier this morning Bow asked to go out, but no sooner out, than he wanted to go right back in. But the cool weather made him playful. When we went back inside he was jumping and initiating a short chase sequence, making happy whistling-like sounds with his mouth. Then he kissed me and examined my hand and led me to the glass where he spelled: "Give me a rug." When I gave him the rug, though, he had trouble deciding what to do with it.

 And now he is napping. When the weather changes again, he will be well rested and will have plenty of energy to accept new challenges.