February 6 - Landmark

When you come looking for Paperback Writer look first for this old planter on a pole. It marks the lane into the "estates." While "estates" as a descriptor may be a bit puffed, the clear blue skies are for real. What you see just below the mountain tops is not smog but a layer of smoke that was with us for about three days as the forest service took advantage of calm winter days to burn brush and trees cut for clearing and thinning. The smoke is a temporary nuisance but we're glad for the clearing and thinning as it makes the forest healthier and reduces the danger of forest fires.

February 2 - Winter Hangs On

Really hasn't snowed much in the last three weeks or so. Remnants still hanging on in the shade or where the snow drifts. Snow on the roof on the north side stays with us all winter. Snowblower is fixed so now it doesn't snow. Mostly sunny now with overnight lows in the teens and daytime highs around 50. Skies are clear. Air is fresh. Not complaining.

Below is the San Francisco river where is crosses under the lane leading into our property. Snow melt from mountain above travels down the San Francisco to nearby Luna Lake and then spills over to make its way down to New Mexico. River is now up and running, Lake appears to be full.

December 26 - Maybe Next Spring

Somewhere, under the snow and between the trees lies my 200 ft driveway.

The good news is that I have a mighty snowblower. With it I can clear the snow away and find my driveway.

The bad news is that the day before Christmas the snowblower choked on a big rock and completely disabled itself.

The good news is that I have a fix-it-at-your-house warranty that runs till February of 1911. The repairman was scheduled to fix it today.

The bad news is that the repairman can’t come. Why? Well, because it is snowing.

Think about that. I live on a mountain at 8000 ft altitude. If it is snowing anywhere in Arizona, it is snowing here. When do I need a snow blower? When it's snowing. When's he gonna come? When it's done snowing. Maybe next spring.

December 21 - Many Are Cold But Few Are Frozen

Six AM finds me out in the workshop this morning, trying to finish up the paint job on a big Santa project. Outside temperature is a cool 28, inside somewhere in the high 40's so first job is to fire up the wood stove, get the temps up to something reasonable for painting.

My wirelesss internet reaches from the house to the workshop, so my laptop sits in a protected corner and pulls in public radio WERU from Bluehill and Bangor Maine. One degree there, blizzard warnings, 12 inches of snow coming, coastal flood warnings. Brrrr.

And now that the fire's crackling, and hands, and hopefully paint, have warmed it's time to go to work.

Many are cold but few are frozen.

December 9

21ºF, Wind NNW 10 to 18, gusting to 30, 8:00 am

December 8

Winter preview. Light very wet snow this morning. Clouds hovering on the mountain tops all day. Wet snow and tall grass soaked pants up to knees. Wrang water out of socks when I got home. Now at 10 pm, its windy with a patchy moving cloud cover. Moon peeking through now and then. Enough light to silhouette trees. Porch light shows more snow, maybe a half inch.