We recently joined most of the US with snow, ice, and frigid temperatures. On Sunday, we got 10" of snow with another 1/2" of ice on top. And to lock it all in, temperatures are staying below freezing, with temperatures mainly in the teens and single digits.
However, yesterday we had sunshine and a warm spell, when it made it into the 20s. The sun did its magic and melted areas that had been cleared. I think. I haven't been past our driveway since Friday. But we have a path down the middle, so we can get a car out. The snowblower worked for a short while until it decided that it had had enough of the heavy, icy cover and quit. And has not worked since. We've only used it a couple of times, so I hope we didn't totally burn out the motor.
However, the good news is that we still have electricity and heat. We had prepared for outages, but we were lucky not to have any. So we've had some proper snow days with nothing to do but stay inside and read, work puzzles, and knit. Yes, of course, there were plenty of things to do besides leisure activities, but what fun would that be?
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| One of the three puzzles Ward has worked recently. This one was fun to look at but difficult to work. |
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| I made a two-sided felted bag. Pink on one side... |
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| and black on the other. |
Also, I find I still check the workline to see if I have to go into work. I've been retired for almost a year, but old habits die hard. Does anyone else do that?
It's been several hours since I started this post, and in the meantime, I ventured into the outside world, going to a Zumba class at the gym. While there were still icy spots, the roads were mostly dry. The thawing and refreezing at night hasn't begun yet, but when it does, there will be more ice, especially black ice, to deal with. But such is winter.
How are things in your neck of the woods?
Until next time...
Cold! Very cold! And still very icy. You really caught the brunt of the storm. There has been zero melting around our place, but we haven't been out to see how the roads are. The state may have cleared some, but we have not seen one vehicle cross our ridge, not even a neighbor.
ReplyDeleteSeems like a good time to enjoy being at home since I imagine your ridge is not the first to be cleared. You certainly won't go hungry with the great stores of food you have in your cellar. :)
DeleteThat's a lot of snow! I'm glad you still have electricity and you've spent the time doing fun activities. The puzzle looks very challenging. No snow here. :)
ReplyDeleteI don't have the patience to work a puzzle like that--a 1000 pieces of mostly white and gray. But Ward does. I enjoyed looking at all the birds when it was finished, especially because they were all birds that live in our area.
DeleteI wondered if you got snowed in. How did you make that beautiful bag? I know you and Ward are very creative.
ReplyDeleteI used wool yarn with additional novelty "yarn" to make the colored part. Then I felted it by washing it in hot water with agitation. I knit several purses years ago with this method, but hadn't made one in a long time. I tried this one using leftover yarn I had on hand.
DeleteYou had a lot more than we did! We had mostly ice/freezing rain.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you didn't lose power. Being at home is so much more pleasant when you have power, are warm, and can do things.
Your knot bag looks great! If I remember correctly, aren't you a fellow left-hander? How did you learn to knit?
Freezing rain is a real problem because it coats the powerlines and trees. The weight of it all starts everything snapping. We had more sleet than freezing rain.
ReplyDeleteYou remember correctly. I'm a leftie. I taught myself to knit when I was 8 yo. By the time, I tried to learn for real, it was too late to switch. My mother tried to get me lessons with another knitter. That woman put a mirror in front of her to help me. But it didn't. I tried knitting again as an adult. There were still little to no instructions out there for left-handers, so I never learned much beyond the basic stitches. Now, there are YouTube videos that you can watch for left-handed instruction. I watched a couple of them for this project, as a refresher. Some of them are better than others.
Yes, I knitted first and then felted. I like the look and for something like a bag, it's quite sturdy. I haven't done felting with plain wool.
ReplyDeleteI've been hearing on the news about your weather. It does not sound like any fun. Even though your area probably has more infrastructure in place to deal with ice and snow than we do, enough is enough.
It is cold here, but that is all. I will not complain too badly about the cold, except that we really don't have the clothes for winter warmth.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived in the south, I remember that I had to borrow heavy coats, etc., when we visited north in the winter.
DeleteLove those bags, aren't you afraid they might felt too much? I've never done it.
ReplyDeleteI think you got more snow than in my area but I haven't been outside to check, too cold.
ReplyDeleteI love jigsaw puzzles, it's a good indoor activity. That word puzzle does seem difficult. Knitting is good though I'm really bad at it.
Have a lovely day.
Hey
ReplyDeleteIcy winters must be such a pain
Am an equator girl and know nothing about ice or snow fall :)
But that's a good plan to do all those things indoors. Feels cozy and good
Lovely bags!
Where do u stay by the way
And my best regards
Lots of snow in Toronto, way too much. Hope you are both ok and continuing to keep warm, and hopefully the snowblower is alright!!
ReplyDelete