January Cold

Siberian huskies are built for cold weather.


A Saturday morning sunrise. I spend a lot of time sitting at the kitchen table looking out the window. I doubt you'll ever find it prescribed in books like Seven Habits of Effective People, but it enriches life. Our culture enshrines the industrial values of productivity, efficiency, effectiveness and time management; and it is difficult for many people to loaf and look out the window. The sad truth is that I am actually quite effective when I get moving, but it isn't something I take great pride in. I always have suspected that people who strive to be "effective" are in some way like addicts who need to continually validate themselves through accomplishments. Sorry, you hyperachievers, I think you have a problem. I ponder things like this when I'm loafing, but also while I'm working. For instance how can you measure the effectiveness of time spent rocking a baby, or visiting an elderly person? You can measure a pile of rocks if you are into piling rocks, but how many piles of rocks do we really need?

As you can see, I am hopelessly conflicted by the whole subject.


Talking with Sam in Virginia.


Sunshine at this time of year is a luxury that needs to be savored. I find it hard to find anything more worthwhile doing at moments like this.


The dogs agree, I'm sure.




This looked like the start of a perfect day- clear, calm and cold.




But of course, we knew better. Lake effect snow was brewing up to the north and about to overtake us.


A sun dog. These form on either side of the low winter sun during cold weather when there are ice crystals in the air.



Cold snow is powdery like fine dust.


All good things must end. Eventually I got out and shovelled off the roof and contributed several hours of labor to the common weal.


Fortunately, evening puts an end to my effectiveness and allows for more loafing by the kitchen window, this time by the light of candles. The candle in the middle is burning in a large piece of vesicular basalt taken from Rockhouse Point.


A cold, but full moon.

January

What's happening inside the house?


Shearing Day!


Three bags full.


Before...

...and after a heavy snowfall.


Lights from our Christmas Tree reflected in the window.

Grandpa blowing out his driveway during. Ninety years old and still loves to fight old man winter. Although this looks like a snowstorm, the sun was shining only a few miles away. Lake effect snow is very local. If the copper veins had been located along the shores of the Keweenaw Peninsula, instead of along its high spine, nobody would have ever built these mining towns, or any other kind of town for that matter in the snowbelt. The Indians knew better, they lived along the lakeshore.

I've gotta admit that blowing snow can be fun when the blower is on the front of your tractor. Wrestling with a walk-behind blower is misery.

David's cabin

This winter I got my snowplow back into operation and use it to plow light snowfalls. When the banks get big, I just blow them away with the blower.

The greenhouse is now the white house.

Christmas 2010

Christmas eve dinner




It's hard not to overload your plate.



Grandma & Grandpa



Casualties...



Short track speed skating oval.



Mik burning through the final turn.



Straw in the doghouse, warm sunshine, does life get any better?



Pond hockey at its finest.


Dangerous Dan, also recipient of the the most spectacular speed skating award on the legendary "Death Course"



Fast and furious action on the rink...



...drew spectators from far and near.

In the more demanding form of pond hockey, nets are dispensed with. Instead, one must hit the bucket with the puck, a far more difficult target.

The path to the henhouse...

Where the cock-of-the-walk presides

...and keeps the hens on task.

Jeni quickly discovered that a down jacket gets a little warm for snowshoing on a sunny day.

Between skiing, skating, hockey, etc. copious amounts of coffee and coffee breads, cookies, etc. were consumed.

Jeni outfitted with her new librarian glasses and bookbag

Burning the midnight oil (candles).

Pond Hockey

Pond hockey is arguably the purest form of hockey. It is generally uncorrupted by rules, excessive equipment, indoor machine-groomed ice, referees, etc.


Mother nature plays an important role, however, in determining the smoothness and size of the ice surface available to play on. Generally, this is about as much as you care to shovel off on an ongoing basis.


The advantage of a small rink quickly become apparent as it allows you to get up and down the ice without become winded after a single rush.


Competition plays a part, but laughter and good humor play a larger part. You can't take hockey too seriously when your skate is likely to fall into a deep rut and your goal is a five gallon pail lying on its side.


Still everyone tries their best.


Since there are no lines, camping out in front of the goal is a common strategy.


Generally more attention is paid to offense than defense, and most goals are scored on breakaways caused by having no one left back.


Even on a breakaway, putting the puck inside a pail is no sure thing.