The Big Chill

"The Big Chill" was a 1983 movie with an ensemble cast that has nothing other than its title to do with today's topic.  As the daughter of a WWI veteran, I learned a number of the poignant war songs of that era and yesterday the opening line of one kept running through my head:  "Keep the home fires burning."  However, with all the wildfires still raging in California, that hardly seemed appropriate for a blog title.  The temperature dropped yesterday and Stove and I worked on our relationship and more wood was brought to the porch to feed his appetite.

My milk customer and some helpers came up in the afternoon.  Milk and eggs are no longer available, but he's determined not to go away empty handed.  He came for a trailer load of chicken and goat manure for his bamboo forest.  (I know!  Bamboo in Fair Play sounds incongruous, but he's a man of vision.)  Bamboo evidently requires a lot of manure.  MC has come several times a year in the past to pick up what here is termed "garden gold."  Hey, it saves me a lot of work and I'm happy to contribute.

Bess and I remind me of two elderly spinster aunties from my childhood, Annie and Libby.  They weren't really aunts, but friends of my great-aunt Kate and they were frequent visitors.  Annie was tall and spare and somewhat disapproving while Libby was short and plump and funny.  I'm not sure the sisters had ever lived separately and they were set in their ways, just like Bess and me.  Once a routine is developed, we read each other's mind and act accordingly.  Each morning while the coffee machine does its thing, I get a milk bone for Bess that she takes into the dining room to eat.  She then stands by the treat drawer and waits for a "bacon" bit that is followed by a small, crunchy marrow thing that Deb and Craig got her hooked on.  These goodies must come in exactly this order or I get "the look."

Strong winds and low temps are predicted for today.  While it's easy to get spoiled with the lovely days we've had this week, it is winter and cold weather is to be expected.  Rainfall so far has been about one percent of normal for December, and we're all hoping we're not headed into another year of drought.  In the meantime, I'll keep Stove happy and well fed.