Sunday, February 18, 2018

A lovely day to work inside

(I think mammals on the deck are going to be the death of Gatsby)
It's February 18 and we woke up to our first snowfall; crazy! Seems everyone is saying that about their weather these days. Out in Ohio where Julie Zickefoose lives, it's flooding. No, spring floods aren't crazy, but as she wrote on her blog this morning,

If only we could funnel this rain to places out West that need it so badly. This climate change, and the odd jet stream that has formed since the ocean water is so warm, is tough, bringing Arctic cold way farther south and east than usual, while it visits arid drought on the West. And it's not fake, and it's nobody's imagination. Nobody makes up a flood like this. It's here, the unfriendly neighbor, creeping up the front steps.

Anyway, snow showers have fallen off and on all day, even as the light covering we had this morning melted away. With overnight lows in the 20s predicted for most of this week, that pattern of sticking and melting could likely continue, making for messy morning commutes. So far, though, the roads are just wet.
Snow on the railroad tie around the daffodils

FAT flakes!!!
So what have I done inside? Laundry, dishes, let-dogs-out/let-dogs-in-after-wiping-12-wet-paws, a big pot of seasoned pinto beans, a four-loaf batch of bread, let-dogs-out/let-dogs-in-after-wiping-12-wet-paws, some graphic design work for a couple clients, phone conversations with family, let-dogs-out/let-dogs-in-after-wiping-12-wet-paws, all while keeping the home fires burning – and letting dogs out, cleaning paws, and letting them back in. I'm tempted to make a double batch of biscotti to use up some of the store-bought (gasp!) eggs now that my hens have returned from vacation. This morning I collected two eggs when I opened the pop door, and shortly thereafter saw this,
so it might even be a three-egg day!

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40 Acts

Today's devotional is on James, one of my favorite books of the Bible. It is not followed by Green/Yellow/Red acts to choose from; instead there are questions to ask oneself. Faith and deeds, inextricably linked.

That's it for today from . . .

4 comments:

Theresa said...

Snow here too and bitter cold. The guys are shedding but still have most of their curls. They'll need it for this next week. I read Julie's Robin post. I too wish we could have a bit more normal weather.

Mama Pea said...

We're getting our first real snowfall of the winter today. Yes, the first one. We have probably about 6" which is 2" more than our largest amount previously. Strange, strange winter we're having.

thecrazysheeplady said...

What are the logistics of doing 4 loaves of bread in one day? Are you baking them all at once or in stages?

Michelle said...

Theresa, I hope you got DUMPED on! I know you need it, and better late than never!

Hmm, you have to get 6" to qualify as a real snowfall? Then we get one of those every five years or so.

Sara, nothing unusual. I have a big mixer so I just quadruple the recipe. Dump the kneaded dough out, divide into four lumps, form the loaves, put them in waiting pans, and put them in the oven to rise and bake. (Years ago I learned a tip that works great. When the dough has risen in the bread pans sufficiently, you just turn the oven up – I have it on 100° to rise – and set the timer for 30 minutes. Comes out beautifully every time, without having to remove the pans to preheat the oven.)