Snow Song

Rising, the sun trickles pink and gold across the snow. So faint you wonder if you really see it and miss the green of sweeter seasons.

Deer tracks trace a trail across the palette, stencil in the night. I think it's one of the summer fawns. He was tiny when the winter came but Alan said he'd be all right, and so far I guess he is.

American Tree Sparrow

No bird song now. Weeks ago it ended, as the focus turned to living through the winter, with no love in sight. 

Or sound

In a few weeks it will begin again, old as time and sweet as summer. The hills will ring with joy and hearts will leap with warming sun.

But for today, two ponies shred the snow with flying hooves, sailing by a dozen times, racing, dancing, manes a-flying, silent but for snorting, muffled by the banks of white stuff.

But where is Jack? Diamond and Gambit are in the strength of middle age and full of vigor. Jack is in his 20s and over all that stuff.

They scoop him out of his sheltered corner and it's a race, two on one; snow flies in their wake.

I go out with the camera and sing to them.

Di stops to stare down at me and then they're off again.

Critics

They're everywhere.

Snow rollers on the side lawn

Making Snowbanks

I imagine a large percentage of the population is or has been participating in this entertaining winter sport today. I got a head start last night thanks to the dog. At 12 pounds, with short little terrier legs, portions of his anatomy end up quite close to the ground.

This results in some daily bodily functions becoming....problematic... when the snow gets deep.

Last night he whined and wuthered and begged to go out.

Once out he would cringe and creep and race back in, his feet, and thus his nether regions, barely touching the ground...or the snow.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

 I eventually took pity and shoveled a potty portal for him.

He was delighted and tended to business with a will. 

This morning we all went out to play in the snow once more.  I shoveled out the car and bird feeders and refreshed the pup promenade. Becky cleared the snow off the car. The boss dug out the driveway with the skidsteer.

Enough snow has continued to trickle down that it will probably all need to be done again this afternoon....Yay!

BTW, weird snow. Sometimes when it snows just right a few loose flakes will sparkle on top. This snow resembled sugar or salt, rolled off the shovel with every scoop, and sparkled all the way to the ground.

Pretty I guess, but I am over it.

Stay warm and dry my friends, and do some baking and boiling to get your kitchen cozy. That is how we roll at Northview...Italian Sausage Soup and homemade bread, later turned into garlic bread....a fine feast indeed.

Fern

I have full respect for the coming storm. Experts are suggesting top ten all time, or even biggest one ever! 

Winters have been pretty easy in recent years. I remember much harder years.

Driving to work in minus 30 or 40 temps in a car with no heat or defroster. We kept a portable catalytic thingie on the passenger's seat pointed at the windshield. 

Keeping one tire on the snowbank to keep from sliding down the hills out of control. 

Several inches of ice on the milking parlor wall, from trying to keep the place clean when it was that cold.

Frozen water bowls in our conventional barn. Frozen stable cleaner. Frozen manure spreader chains. Frozen silo unloaders. Frozen every darned thing. Normal three or four hour sets of chores morning and evening morphing into sixteen or eighteen hour days and not really done then.

Earlier years when snowbanks were so tall and wide that Gloversville streets were reduced to one lane and you had to take turns and pray. Couldn't see over them or around them. Holidays when blizzards hit and no one could get home from college in distant states.

However I have lately been second guessing myself. After all, our parents walked to school barefoot, uphill both ways, right? Maybe my ancient memory was tricking me into thinking things were worse than they really were.

However, the almanac shows that the winter of 70-71 was actually the snowiest on record here. There were storms with over 30 inches of snow, so I guess I am remembering those snowbanks accurately after all. 

Turns out winter temperatures were the same story. In 80s when I was working at that farm with the milking parlor with frozen walls and driving that frigid car, some of the coldest temperatures on record occurred. 

Anyhow, I hope you can all stay safe and warm, and my heart goes out to livestock owners facing frozen equipment and monster snowbanks. And if you have to walk to school in this and it is uphill both ways.....maybe you could all chip in for a dogsled and a dozen huskies. Maybe we could all use a nice set of those. I have a couple sets of harness in the hutch in the dining room. 

It's snowing....

Calling Fellow Readers

Who are your favorite characters from books that you have read?

Some of mine are Stuart Ramey, James D. Cronley Jr., Kenneth R. McCoy,  Vetch, Avatre, any and all dust bunnies, Halt, Hal Mikkelson, Gunter and Houdini, Peaceable Drummond Sherwood, Brother Cadfael, Elvis Cole, Luis Mendoza, Good Luck, Annie Feeley, Agnes Tinkham, and Mrs. Rasmussen, Barnabas, and Skiff.

Not to mention many others I can't bring to mind right now.

How about you? Any characters you wish were real? People you admire and love if only in your mind. I actually identify with Mrs. Feely, right down to the bare feet and blue jeans. Share in the comments if you will...

And how about some that you are glad exist only between the pages and in the minds of their diabolical creators? I would love to know.

How do you spell Obsession

Your 2025, Recounted

Your Year

2153 Complete Checklists

2535 Checklists

232 Species

11 Life Birds

168872 Birds Counted

Your Time

365 days with Checklists

733.8 Hours Spent eBirding

Your Longest Streak:

365 days (January 01, 2025 to December 31, 2025)

Your Biggest day by Checklists: May 17, 2025 Your Biggest day by Species: May 17, 2025

Top Counted Species:

Canada Goose

You counted 60759 individuals across all Checklists

Most Frequent Species:

You observed American Goldfinch on 1004 Checklists

Your Media

1450 Photographs of 173 Species, 337 Sound Recordings of 113 Species

Your Places

Northview Farm was your most eBirded location with 681 Checklists

964.5 km (or 598 mi)Traveled eBirding, You birded in 857 locations total

Your Birding Bestie was Kristin Harshman

Events participated in: Great Backyard Bird Count, Global Big Day, October Big Day

You are in the top 0.044 percent of checklist contributors

You are in the top 0.484 percent of media contributors

You are in the top 9.374 percent of species observers

You are in the top 0.665  percent of eBirders based on time spent eBirding

This Will Probably Never Happen Again, so....