On Sunday [01/30], we had a lovely evening. The sky was clear and jet contrails stitched the sky with their widening plumes. Pinehaven stood silhouetted against the darkening sky.
Above the barn, three jets formed a perfect triangle with their exhaust; or perhaps it is the letter "A" as a friend suggested.
From our backyard, where the view is more open, the sun was just setting as the few wispy clouds came alive with a fleshy glow. I stepped through soft snow to find a spot to take this photo. It is, though, more than anything else, a prelude to a series of two serious storms.
Today [02/01] one has hit as another prepares to slide in silently from the south.
This was how a maple looked this morning. There's 0.2" of ice on everything. I awoke at 1 a.m. last night and heard the freezing rain tapping at the windows. I turned on the clock radio just so I wouldn't have to hear it. Later I pulled the covers over my head. Every moment I worried about the power failing; but it did not.
This similar shot is of a maple in the back yard. That's a similar position as the third picture on this page. What a change a couple of days can make.
At the rear of our property, this Austrian Pine is thick with ice. Each tiny needle looks like a dangerous dark green dagger. The weight the trees are carrying must already be enormous. Now add another round of freezing rain tonight - as much as 0.75" - to what we have, and things will come tumbling down. I'm worried about whether we'll get through this night with power.
And yet the silvery shimmer of deciduous trees against a backdrop of pines is enticing. Where I am standing for this picture is about the very spot I fell this morning. I was walking across the icy concrete with baby steps, trash in one hand, compost in the other, and weeeee .... down I went, flat on my back. I am not hurt, but for my pride.
Walking in the snow is easy. Each step breaks through a crunchy coating and holds your shoe in place. You are held upright, saved by the ice itself. Our driveway is a spectacle. Each pebble is coated in ice. Every tiny grade leads you down. It is simply a day to stay inside and enjoy nature better through a window.
