Aftermath

 

We paced ourselves yesterday.  

Go outside.  Tackle snow.

Come inside.  Throw coats and gloves in the dryer. 

Rest.

Watch turkeys. 

Go outside.  Tackle more snow. 

Shovel pathway to the barnyard.

Take horses to barnyard. 

Come inside. Rest. 

Take an Advil. 

Listen to and watch blocks of snow rumbling off the roof. 

More turkey watching.

Go outside. Clean barns.

Watch more snow slide from outbuildings and crash into a mountainous pile.

Come inside. Rest.

Watch turkeys, squirrels and chickadees.

Yes, indeed, the gathering at the bird feeders grew in numbers and species as the day wore on. 

Turkeys and squirrels were desperate and hungry.

Chickadees?  Well, it was just the daily routine for them, except for sharing.

 No obstacles for their flitting to and from the feeders, except maybe a need for more frequent trips to make sure the turkeys and squirrels didn't get ALL the food.

Yes, we had drama outside our windows yesterday.

 Plus, we spent a good portion of our day slowly but methodically attacking one challenge at a time, most of it with shovels.  

Bill was eventually able to get the tractor out and clear a path through the driveway. 

Just as he finished, a grader came by filling the end of the driveway with clods of snow. 

Later, last evening Peter, our neighbor, came by with his big John Deere tractor and widened the driveway. 

Thank you, Peter.  

Sad to say that even though the snow and rain have stopped, we ain't over this storm yet. 

Snow has hardened. We have no pathway down the lane where the wood is stored. 

Bill spent quite some time this morning working at the barn door so it would open. 

Also, on one side of the house, the roof is still covered with about two feet of snow. 

It started sliding off last night, with the afternoon and evening's warm-up, but this morning, we're back down to freezing, and we've got enough ice outside to keep us stepping oh so carefully. 

At least the turkeys and squirrels might be light enough to scamper over the snow rather than sinking into it AND maybe they'll find some more places for nourishment. 

Getting through this siege and back to some sense of normal is going to take patience and more sore bodies.

We practiced patience yesterday with our pacing, and we'll keep working at it. 

Not too many other choices.

It's not all that bad today cuz the sun will shine AND last we heard, the ZAGS WILL PLAY TONIGHT and "All Creatures Great and Small" is returning to PBS tomorrow night. 

YAY!

At the end of this day, for two hours, we can forget our troubles and enjoy some great college basketball. 

KHQ/ROOT @ 6 p.m. PST

GO, ZAGS!