Gripping

Cold here today, -20 C  at 7am when I went to breakfast.  Not often we get that kind of cold and it sounds like it might be around for a while.  Creek is frozen right to the middle and the only open water is where the ice eater is working around the pilings.

The pool of open water gets smaller as the temperature drops but it still keeps the the worst ravages of the ice  from damaging the dock.  The Boat?  It is safely  residing in a heated shed for the winter at a  local boatyard , some routine maintenance and refurbishment of the varnish, boy am I glad I chose this winter for the work.  One of the coldest on record here with consistent temperatures below freezing , been abut three weeks since we have seen positive values.

Had an unusual daytime visitor late yesterday.

Late in the afternoon Rocky Racoon appeared , he (or she) seems to have a frostbitten left front paw and was scrounging for sustenance around the base of the bird feeders, slim pickings there after the avian ground feeders had left.  I made him two large raw bacon sandwiches,(streaky on white bread) and took them carefully out  the back door, Rocky slipped behind the shed while I was outside, but he/she was hungry enough to reappear about two minutes later and dig in.  I’ll repeat the exercise today at dusk, it might just tide Rocky over until the weather breaks.  No cruelty in nature but only the fittest make it through winters like this and apart from the paw Rocky looked pretty healthy, good coat and a fine bushy tail.

No outside work at these temperatures, I’m almost as old as Janus.  Probably spend my day entertaining myself by finishing up my tax returns.  Roll on Spring.