One Degree

That was the outside temperature when I got up this morning at around 8 o'clock. It catapulted up to eleven degrees around 1 o'clock. I went outside twice today. Once to deliver a couple books to my neighbor which means I walked maybe 25 feet, rang her doorbell, said hi to her and her kids, handed over the books, and walked back. The second time I went out to top up the birdbath because when the water freezes so much the heater is exposed. We don't want that. The furnace tech was here today to do tuneups on the furnaces which are working just fine, thank you very much. In fact, mine has been working overtime to keep me warm with the severe cold outside.

 

This morning I baked Mother Malcolm's Never-Fail Coffeecakes which made my house smell divine. Even the furnace tech commented on the aroma. They aren't very pretty. Two of them split, two didn't, but not too much filling oozed out. I was smart and put them on parchment paper so the little oozing that happened didn't bake sugar onto the baking sheet. All four of them have a destination so I won't be tempted to eat them all. Well, I'm tempted but I won't do it. I'll get a little of a couple of them but I won't devour them.

 

Another Christmas cactus bud is blooming. It's pale, not like the previous one which was a lot pinker, only the tips of the petals are dark pink, but it's pretty. I like it. One more bud to go.

 

The Red-bellied Woodpecker showed up on the suet nuggets today. The lower the nuggets get, the more acrobatic the bird gets to hold on and still be able to peck out bites. It stays a little longer each time until it gets a good-size chunk and then it flies off. I wonder where it goes. Does it have a nest? Is it in a hole in a tree? 

 

Instead of painting today, I drew a Christmas tree and a Menorah. They were pretty fun to draw. All those candles on the Menorah were a challenge to keep them from leaning on each other but I erased a lot and finally managed something satisfactory.

 

Speaking of Christmas trees, I carried my weird wire tree upstairs, set it up, put on the topper (because it's attached to the tree and would be impossible to do after it's decorated), and plugged it in. I crossed my fingers hoping that some of the lights lit. Instead they all did! I have a light saver thingy and a Tupperware of replacement bulbs, but didn't need either one this year. Elves are coming on Saturday to help decorate the tree because I can't carry the bin with the ornaments upstairs anymore. Plus it'll be fun to have help. There's a "show" of a fireplace on Netflix with Christmas carols that I put on when I put up the tree. Festive. And no ashes to clean up.

 

I was carrying the basket of laundry to fold into the living room when I saw the sky. It was orange and pink so I braved the cold (for the third time) to take this picture. I was very fast, believe me. 

 

After the furnace tech left, I wrote on the back of all of the watercolor postcards and addressed some to friends and relatives. I'm so glad I have a box of envelopes that the postcards fit in. I'd hate for them to be ruined by the postal sorting machines. I decided to do a few every day so my mail carrier has something to look forward to. 

I wrote 1,133 words today, a big improvement over yesterday. I got into a dialogue groove and the words pretty much poured out. Very satisfying. 

The reason I was so busy and focused today is because today would have been Durwood and my 49th wedding anniversary. I thought about him a lot today and wished he was here, but healthy. Here's what we looked like 13 years ago today. We went out for a steak dinner and the waitress took our picture for us. Don't we look happy?

--Barbara