A First

Low temperatures are nothing new.  Ice in the trough has happened many times before (that stick was definitely necessary).  It was a first, however, when I opened the box of udder wipes and found them frozen stiff!  Knowing I was not going to save the milk yesterday, I could not bring myself to torture the girls that way and milked them come-as-you-are.  Carrying warm water to the Silkies worked well and it stayed liquid all day.  With no water coming from the tap in the morning, all I could do for the wild things was break a hole in the ice in their pan.  Still frozen at night, at least I could refill it and hope for the best.  Ratty Rita is finally starting to sprout feathers to cover her nudity, but it's taking too long.  She told me that she was worried too as I stroked her back last evening; she hinted she'd like to be a house chicken.  While that would not be a first, not this time, Rita.

My friend Tinka in Fiddletown told me last night that she would be happy with my 24 degrees; it was 17 at her place.  In some bizarre do-you-one-better race, it was 20 and falling here at five this morning.  Take that, Tinka!  Knowing there is a possibility of a power outage in our future, the laundry is done, the dishwasher has run, and all things electrical were accomplished yesterday.  They say the real cold is coming in tonight with snow predicted to 1,000 feet, and possibly to the eastern Sacramento border.  Wouldn't that be something?

Even if we keep power, if the satellite dish fills with snow I may not be able to access the computer to write an entry until there is a thaw.  The joys of high tech in a low-tech rural setting.