Another year's almost over

Well, here we are, another year almost over, and the days are finally getting longer again. I took this picture on 28 December. Three days after Christmas and it had rained so much at temps of just below zero that the brances of the pine tree on the north side of the house were so heavy with ice they lay on the ground. This branch is usually at least twelve feet (four meters) off the ground. The rain was followed by high winds. It thawed enough that the pine branches were ice free by the time the winds were at their worst, but we lost a few small branches from the oak trees and the plum tree.


I'm thinking on a new pastel painting. The rough draft on newsprint turned out quite well. The composition seems to be good, but I think the male cardinal need to be just a touch bigger and the branches of the pine are not quite right. I'm going to have to go out and take a few pics of the pine tree and work on them a bit more.

True winter has arrived

I took these pictures about six PM on 28 November. This time the snow is going to stick around unlike the first snow of 28 October. It was a soft wet snow, perfect for snowballs which the dogs love to chase. It never ceases to amaze them when the "balls" they are chasing simply disappear, and they never get so disappointed that they stop chasing the disappearing balls. The temperature hovered around the zero mark so clearing the deck and the steps was not much of a hardship. Its snowed a little every day since and I imagine I'll soon be tired of the white stuff, but as long as the temperatures stay mild it will be ok. The oil furnace hasn't started yet and here it is December first. It won't start till the temperature goes below minus 12, and I don't mind if that condition is never met.