While we are not getting whacked with the very cold weather and snow that is hitting the Midwest, where the bulk of my family lives, we are experiencing another cold snap. Night time temperatures are (once again) in the single digits. Typically we get below-zero conditions in December, although this year is considered to be warmer than normal (but it is still cold). The wind has blown a few days, giving a wind chill of well below zero. I fired up the Aladdin heater again to help warm the garage a bit.
Aladdin heater in garage
The Aladdin keeps the garage warm enough to keep the cat water from freezing; this is my “did it work” criteria, so I guess it did work. The next few nights are forecast to be quite cold so the heater will get a couple more workouts this week. If the lows are in the twin-digits the garage generally gets warm enough during the day to stay above freezing at night so the heater isn’t required.
We have moved our oldest outside cat, Mr. Bibbs, into the house for these cold nights. Mr. Bibbs is about 12 years old and does not appear to be in robust health even though he moves around, eats, and will jump into my lap when I am sitting outside in warmer weather. Right now he is in the cat room where he sits on the heated pad Pam provides for him and moves only to eat and use the cat box. A year ago in December we lost our cat Soot to cancer; I would hate to think losing a cat every year at Christmas would become a tradition. Hopefully the indoor respite will add a few years to Mr. Bibbs’ life. He is my favorite cat.
Mr. Bibbs in cat room
In other news, we have seen a potential retirement home listing that may be a possibility. It is in Florissant, an area we have considered before, but it is a long way from De Beque. Address is 816 Kutsu Ridge Road, Florissant, Co. We may try to arrange a realtor-guided visit over the holiday break, depending on weather conditions. Watch this space.
I’ve added a few photos taken in 2016 to The Lot gallery. Here is a link to that gallery; the new photos are at the bottom of the page.
Daughter Felicity is back in the USA; she is staying with a friend until January 1st when she can move into a room she will be renting (in a house with three other young women). Her new base will be in Vancouver, Washington (across the Columbia River from Portland, OR). While Felicity still intends to travel a great deal, it will be a benefit for her to have a place to return to between international trips. Felicity’s ongoing travel blog can be found on-line at this address: http://www.blog.felicityfields.com and is worth a read — take a look!
Son Toby has picked up a new part-time job working for a used book company, Better World Books. This will supplement the income he gets from his restaurant job and refereeing softball games in summer leagues. Unlike the other two jobs, this one will give him a base income that he can count on. Toby seems to be happy in his life and working three part-time jobs, perfectly OK with us.
That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!
Pam’s Two Cents Worth:
The cards are out, the tree is up, the holiday songs are ringing through the house. Only four more workdays to go until the community college closes down between Christmas and New Year. If the weather would just warm up a bit, life wouldn’t be half bad, even though this is the shortest daylight period of the year. I do worry about the feral cats outside during these cold snaps; I provide Dogloos for shelter and bedding, food, and heated water bowls.
Happy Trails.
A rather roomy log home — the heated garage is a nice addition, deep rather than wide…
Noted the absence of a refrigerator — gas stove isn’t to everyone’s tastes. I’m sure there’s a laundry room, probably just off the kitchen, but it wasn’t clearly defined in the photos.
Florissant doesn’t offer much — hospital, shopping, etc in Woodland Park (10 miles or so)…
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The problem for us SAD sufferers isn’t the length-of-day as much as the amount & type of sunlight.
The axial tilt means light travels through more atmosphere — consequently, 30%+ less sunlight and the shorter wavelengths are filtered out.
SAD sufferers need the shorter (blue & above) wavelengths. The “fix” is lighting with higher color temperatures (5000K & above), along with more lumens (light intensity).
Generally, about 10,000 lumens of full-spectrum lighting for half an hour in the morning compensates fairly well.
At night — “blue” lighting keeps us awake — filtering out the blue helps us get to sleep…
Larry:
I’l have more on the house in my next post…not going to work out for a couple of reasons. Pam prefers a gas stove and would like an in-wall oven for her baking.
Light…We changed out the overhead fluorescent lights in our kitchen for 6,200K units to offset the lack of daylight. It makes the kitchen a lot brighter. Still not full-spectrum but it helps.
Thanks for the note!