Relative Something

Yesterday, the 13th of January, we endured another day of serious melting, having not dropped below freezing the previous night. Our trails in the woods look like a super-highway for deer traffic in some areas. There isn’t a single trail where at least one deer has left its hoof prints.

We found a spot where deer had lain down and melted the snow right in the middle of one of the trails. They must be well aware of Asher’s presence because, despite all the tracks, they are conspicuously nonexistent during the daytime hours.

The songbirds sounded pretty happy about the big thaw. The false echoes of spring floated in the air as we made our way among the leafless trees of our woods.

Mid-40s(F) in the middle of the day allowed for a stroll without my outer layer insulated shirt-jacket. My vest was perfectly adequate. Playing with Asher rendered my mitts soaked from the wet snow.

One of my favorite things is when Cyndie sends me pictures she took that look exactly like something I would capture. She knows me oh so well. At least the melting mess makes for interesting photos.

I have done some custom cropping of her images, but she gets all the credit for capturing these views for my entertainment.

Where was I while she was walking the dog and seeing all this beautiful scenery? In the house, finishing the jigsaw puzzle and reading more chapters of Bruce Springsteen’s autobiography.

At the afternoon feeding for the horses, Mia got covered with a blanket again, which she calmly accepted. I believe it helps our cause to remove the blankets when the temperatures warm up. They tend to fret less when the time comes to put them on again. We like to get them on before bad weather makes them cold and wet, but that can find them less interested, if you know what I mean.

Since I believe they are picking up information that we’re not always aware of sending, it’s on us to visualize the desire to keep them as warm and dry as possible when the weather is expected to change. Mia must have sensed this yesterday.

At this point, I’m hoping we can get some new snow on the ground soon to offer a little added traction. The paddocks are a ghastly, icy mess to navigate across until that happens. Twice yesterday, when Mia tried to execute her hurried escape from the reach of maneuvering horses, her hooves slipped dramatically.

That’s a rather nerve-wracking sound when it happens right next to where I’m standing.

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