Fluffy Stuff

Mali’s musings on temperature differentials (Hot and cold) has reminded me how grateful I am that the temperatures have reached the warm 20s F, warm enough to snow, in a sense, and to dump some decent stuff for playing in (and alas, shoveling). This past long weekend found me shoveling the flat roofs on Friday:

heading up the mountain for some groomed (and ultimately exhausting) cross-country skiing on Saturday:

off for a brisk walk with a neighbor on Sunday (on which we saw a horned lark!):

and a snowshoe with friends and their dogs on Monday:

For me—for many of us—being able to play outside is essential for surviving the winter and steering clear the clutches of deep depression (we will all of us become depressed, but it is a matter of degree). Lately it seems that it will never be anything but winter. Recently, fleetingly, it was pretty.