I think of every year as a new beginning. My life theme is something like, “Be at war with my vices, at peace with my neighbors, and let the new year make me a better person.” Well, 2022 certainly started out with a flash. It arrived with the onset of a snowstorm. Within a day or so into the new year, after stopping by to visit Rosemary and bring her milk, I found myself on an icy hill picking up speed with no control of the truck. It was a long treacherous hill and I realized I had to ditch the truck to stop it before I reached 50 mph. Selecting a place to ditch I tapped the breaks and cranked the steering wheel. I flew into the ditch unharmed. So icy were conditions it took me about half hour to gain highway 141 which intersected the hill I was careening down. I do not recommend this method as a means of starting an exciting new year.
Shortly after that incident the full force of the storm hit and I awoke to 24 inches of new snow and it kept on coming. When all was said and done I was surrounded with three feet of snow. Let the fun begin!
It isn’t all bad. Teagan, Latah, and I had lots of fun making the most of it; snowshoeing, sledding, walking to the school bus stop.
Latah literally wore the snow disk out that day. She spent all afternoon sliding off every precipice she could find in the area.
Now the rains have come and it is just plain nasty outside. My friends, Kathy and Ed, had their pergola come down. About 4 AM yesterday the pergola on the side of the house next to the kitchen crashed down. It crushed a table and chairs set, took out part of the railing and has blocked the side door. Drat the luck, I am so sorry that happened to Kathy and Ed. Rain on the snow becomes incredibly heavy.
On the lighter side: When not dealing with snow Judy Baenen has been working on a puzzle. She is so good at those and I admire her patience. I am using my spare time rereading one of my favorite western series, Robert Parker’s Cole and Hitch series. There are ten books which I read in order. Now I periodically redo one randomly as it becomes available. I just finished, “Revelation,” and enjoyed it very much.
It is strange how Robert B Parker died in 2010 but a well known author in his own right, Robert Knott, has been authorized to write the Robert B Parker books. He does a great job.
