Where Did The Month Go?

It's hard to believe that this is the last day of January.  Where did the month go?  Here in the Ville, most of January was consumed by 13 inches of snow and ice, and a week and half of single-digit temperatures.  But all in all, this first month of the year went by very quick.  I am hopeful for February to go by just as quick.

A Day Of Rest

 Three days of birthday partying wore me and the Old Man out.  As soon as my Favorite Cousin and her Dear Husband pulled out of the driveway, we were in our LazyBoys resting, where we stayed the majority of the rest of the day.  My cousin texted me last night and said they were tuckered out, too, but it was a happy tuckered.

The Partying Continues

 The birthday partying continues.  Yesterday, my Favorite Cousin made my requested spaghetti with her Dear Husband's family recipe for spaghetti sauce.The recipe is over 100 years old, But I digress.  Today the attention will be on the Old Man as we celebrate his birthday. 

Let The Partying Begin

 My cousin just texted and said they are about 30 minutes from The Compound.  So on half an hour, the birthday celebrations will officially begin.

Stay tuned. 

I Called It

 I sure called it: it was in the low 40's when I went to the grocery store this afternoon, and sure enough, I saw couple of guys wearing shorts, one of which was wearing sandals.  There are no words.

I don't know why this bugs me, but it does - the girls wear Ugh boots when it's 60 degrees, and the boys wear shorts when it's 40.  

Let The Partying Begin

 My friend Becky and her therapy dog Waffles came over this afternoon for a birthday visit.  Before that, the Old Man and I got hair cuts so we will look good for our birthdays.  But I digress.  Becky gave me one of the coolest bracelets I have ever seen, and gave the Old Man a 10 year bottle of favorite Bulleit bourbon.

After Becky and Waffles left, I did some preliminary cleaning in preparation for my cousins' visit on Sunday.  All is going according to what I have planned.  For now, any ways.

File Under: WTF?

 Once again, I have to say WTF.  I had to go to Tractor Supply this morning to get feed for Large Marge.  It was 8 degrees at 10:30.  I shook my head in disbelief as I saw people going in and out of Tractor Supply and the next-door Planet Fitness in hoodies, and some even in shorts.  There are no words.

File Under: WTF?

 I braved the 14 degree temperature this morning to go to Lowes to pick up a box of Duraflame logs, which the Old Man said that was the only thing he wanted for his birthday.  As I was in the curbside delivery parking spot, I noticed a disturbing trend.  In the fifteen minutes I was waiting, the majority of the people under the age of 30 were going in and out of Lowes were just wearing a hoodie or sweater. Most of them didn't even have their hoodie or sweater zipped up.  Us old folks were bundled up appropriately.  I am going to get off of my soap box and go get in my LazyBoy with my Snuggie. 

Deep Freeze Again

 It was 5 degrees this morning when I got up.  As of 2:30 right now, it is a balmy 15 degrees.  But we are safe and warm here in the house.  I got up a bit before the Old Man this morning and after I made coffee I lit a fire in the fireplace to have us cozy and warm.  I will light another fire after supper to make us once again cozy tonight.  

My heart goes out to the electric company, water company, and other workers out today in this cold.  

Trying To Do Better

 A couple of weeks ago, the Old Man and I chipped in and bought an Elipse electric leg exerciser.  From all of the bizillion commercials we've seen for it, it seems like it would be beneficial for us to use; we could use it while we are sitting in our LazyBoy chairs watching TV.  It was supposed to be delivered a week and a half ago but due to Snowmageddon, it was delayed and we got it Friday evening.  

Of course in our typical (or should I say a-typical) luck, we had to put it together.  Fortunately, we just had to put the pedals on.  We tackled it yesterday afternoon, and low and behold, it works just like they said in the commercials.  The Old Man did ten minutes first, then I took my turn and did ten minutes.  After he pedaled for a minute, he turned it off and took it to the dining room - it works much better for us sitting in a dining room table chair.  You can feel more "action" in your knees and legs if you have it directly under your chair.  

We're going to use it every day and hopefully work out way up to twenty minutes a session.

Stay tuned. 

Flashback Friday

 Twenty years ago today, this fine young man came into the world.  My TWIT post on his birth was one of the first posts I made in TWIT.  It's hard to believe that J.T. is all grown up.   He was on the tennis team during his high school years, and is now on the tennis team at college. 

I talked with his Dad this morning, asking for permission to post J.T.'s picture, and he said that he is as proud and happy on his 20th birthday as he was on the day he was born.  

Another Bright Sun Shiny Day

 It got up to 41 today, and best of all, it was sunny all day long.  When I go out in the morning to get the newspaper and mail, it is great to see a little bit more grass every day.  I just hope the snow keeps on  melting. 

Brrrr Again

 I was up earlier than usual this morning to go to my weekly Bible study fellowship group, and at 7:30 it was 9 degrees.  I'm home now, over 6 hours later and the temp is just 19 degrees.  But we are comfy and warm here at The Compound.  I made a fire this morning before I left, and I am getting ready to make another now.  

Brrrr

 It was 11 degrees when I got up this morning, but thank goodness the sun was shining and continued to shine all day.  It's supposed to get down to zero tonight.  That's pretty darned cold even for hot-blooded me.  

Sunny Monday

 We sure are glad to see the sunshine this morning at The Compound.  And are even more glad to see concrete instead of snow on the driveway.  The temps are supposed to go down during the afternoon, to a low of 9 degrees tonight. But we are happy seeing sun and seeing snow melting.

On a down side, it seems the Old Man has caught the cold that I had.  I just gave him a dose of Coricidan, which his primary care doctor recommended, so hopefully he will be on the mend soon.  

Hope For The Brief Future

 When I got up this morning, I checked the driveway and was very happy to see that over half of it was clear, thanks for the sun and above-freezing temps.  It's supposed to get to 42 degrees today, so I am hoping for more clearing this afternoon.  I called our grass cutter and told him not to bother coming today.   Before supper this evening, I am going to go out and clear a path down the back porch ramp and a path to the garage.  Don't worry - I just push the snow shovel; I don't actually shovel.  I'll get in the garage and get a bucket of rock salt out and put it on the ramp just in case any remaining snow refreezes tonight.

Now we have crazy low nighttime temps the next three nights - the weatherazzi is calling for single digit temps.  Not looking forward to that, and will keep thanking the Lord for our furnace.  

Stay tuned. 

Snowmageddon 2025 Continues

 Yesterday morning when I got up, it was zero degrees.  Yep, zero.  It "warmed up" to 29 yesterday afternoon.  Unfortunately, we got more snow yesterday - an additional 3 inches. For two days, it was nice to see my long driveway clear.  But never fear - our grass cutter called yesterday and said he'd by here today or tomorrow to clear the snow.  

Stay tuned. 

Snowmageddon 2025 Update

 When I got up this morning, it was zero degrees.  We remembered and left the cabinet doors under the kitchen sink and the two bathroom sinks open to help the heat get to the pipes.  But now it's time to get ready for another round of snow.  The weatherazzi is still calling for 2-5 inches here in our area starting tomorrow morning, but thankfully there is no forecast for ice.  As soon as I post this, I am going to bundle up and go to the grocery and pick up the Old Man's prescriptions and then I will get back in the warm house.

Stay tuned. 

Snowmageddon 2025 Update

I am very happy to report that Joe's Lawn Service was here this morning, and in a half an hour, the three guys had my long driveway, porches, and ramp cleared.  Two guys worked on the porches and ramp while the other guy operated the very powerful Bobcat to clear the driveway.  Tonight, it was as clear as a bone.  Now to wait for the second round of snow coming on Friday.  At least there isn't any ice in the forecast - just 2 to 5 inches of snow.  

In the morning, I am going to pick up the Old Man's prescriptions and get a few things we need from Kroger and then we will once again hunker down.

Stay tuned. 

Snowmageddon 2025 Update

 We got an additional inch of snow yesterday morning, bringing the total here at The Compound to 13.8 inches.  Yes.erday morning they announced schools would be closed today (duh) and tomorrow.  I can't imagine they would be open the rest of the week.

I was walking past the living room and looked out to find Neighbor Josh out there.  He and his wife noticed the fallen garbage can yesterday morning when they were taking their dogs out, and he came over and picked the can and a couple bags of garbage up.  And he pushed the can away from the road so the plows wouldn't knock it over again.  

The snow removal guys will be here today, hopefully.  They only have a quarter mile to go from their shop to The Compound, so maybe they will knock a bit off of the price.  We are stocked on food and drink, so I don't need to go out for anything, but I still want my driveway and porch ramp cleared off just in case.

Stay tuned. 

Snowmageddon 2025 Update

 As of 9:15 this morning, we got 12.8 inches of snow here at The Compound.  Fortunately, the freezing rain didn't last very long.  Another 1-2 inches is expected today. The city and pretty much half of the state is shut down today.  

We've made it through the storm with only one incident: I thought I was doing something sensible when I took the garbage can out to the curb Saturday night.  It was fine yesterday, but we're guessing when a snow plow came through during last night, it knocked it off the driveway and half-way in the ditch.  I texted Neighbor Nick and told him I needed a big favor.  He immediately replied and said he'd be happy to help us and pick it back up. We are thankful this is the only storm-related incident so far.

Stay tuned.  

Snowmageddon 2025 Update

 As of 5:00 this evening, we have a bit over 9 inches of snow here at The Compound.  Unfortunately at about 6:00, it transitioned over to freezing rain, which they are expecting 3/4 of an inch of.  Not looking forward to this, faithful readers.  I just am praying the power stays on so the Old Man and I can stay warm. 

Stay tuned. 

Snowmageddon 2025

 The weatherazzi was right - they said the snow would start at 8:00 and it sure did.  It has snowed hard until about 1:30.  I'm guessing it's taking a break to get ramped up again.  As of 1:30, we have 4.5 inches here at The Compound according to my weather app.   We have a cozy fire going, and I am undecorating the little Christmas tree while the Old Man is napping in his LazyBoy.  As soon as I get the ornaments put away, I plan on doing a little napping in my LazyBoy, too.

Neighbor Meg next door texted and said she was going to take a ruler out when she takes their dogs out later and get an accurate measure for here at The Compound.  

Stay tuned for updates.  

Snowmageddon Update

 The first round of snow in the winter storm is expected to start around 4:00 in the morning.  After that, there will unfortunately be freezing rain and sleet, followed by more snow later tonight and Monday.  According to the Accu Weather app I use, we are expecting 5-6 inches of everything by the time it moves out Monday morning.  

We are as prepared as we can be.  I went to Lowes earlier and got two huge boxes of Duraflame logs for the fireplace if needed, and we have plenty of food and jugs of water.  Neighbor Josh came over earlier and salted the front porch, front porch steps and the sidewalk so I will be hopefully able to get out tomorrow morning to get the newspaper for the Old Man.  And he even came over when I got back from Lowes and carried the 40# boxes of logs in for me.  A great neighbor.

After the kinfolk left this morning, I started taking down Christmas decorations.  I didn't do a whole lot of removal, but got the fireplace area cleared up so I can make a fire for the Old Man.  I will be able to get everything down tomorrow and Monday since we will probably be snowed in.  

Stay tuned. 

Snowmageddon Is On Its Way

 The weatherazzi is getting everyone worked up over Snomageddon 2025.  It is supposed to hit the 'Ville Sunday morning and go through Monday morning.  As of an hour or two ago, they are calling for 2-5 inches of snow here, but unfortunately about a half an inch of ice.

Two neighbors texted earlier saying Kroger was impossible - if you were lucky to find a parking spot, there were no shopping carts and shelves were bare.  Unfortunate for me, I had already planned to do my weekly shopping after the kin folk left tomorrow morning.  But we switched to Plan B.  My Favorite Cousin and I ran up to Dollar General Store, and got all of the canned goods I had on my list, as well as a fresh loaf of bread and milk, which I needed.  Then we went up the road to the new Mexican grocery store, and got a pound of ground beef and fresh fruits and veggies, which were about half of what Kroger charges.  Other than a trip to Lowes tomorrow to get a box of fake logs, we are good to go.  

Stay tuned. 

Starting Off The New Year Productively

 My Favorite Cousin and her Dear Husband will be here early afternoon for their delayed Christmas visit. I have busted a move the past two days cleaning, sweeping, mopping, dusting and decluttering.  I am happy to say my microwave is as clean as it was the day we bought it, and the stainless steel top on the kitchen island is so shiny you can see your reflection in it. Everything is ready for their visit, with the exception of a trip shortly to get some adult beverages. 

Happy New Year

TWIT and I would like to wish you, faithful readers, a very Happy New Year.  I hope 2025 brings you good health, happiness, and no drama.  

My New Year's resolution is to do anything I'm big enough to do.