a nice cosy day in

  Well we've had our first decent dump of snow for several years and it was really quite lovely. I know in other parts of the world snow is an every winter occurrence, but not here. We might get a light dusting that disappears as quickly as it comes, but to have snow that actually lies on the ground and disrupts the city only happens every few years. We see it on the top of Maungatua, and around the

Silverpeaks, and we feel the effects of it in the wind chill other winters. 

Anyway, on Sunday night the forecast wasn't good, snow down to 200 metres, which is us. As dusk fell there was a light dusting on the lawn and on the bushes, nothing settled on the road. The wind blew a gale and the snow kept falling, the temperature kept dropping as the evening went on and the heat pump was turned way up high, - we, the GKB and me,  don't like being cold!

On Monday morning the GKB got up at his usual time, which is 3 or 4 hours earlier than me, to get ready for work. Turned on the radio to find that the roads were closed and that everyone was being asked to stay at home unless it was essential to travel. So that was him home for the day. We live on a plain and are surrounded by hills and the roads were closed.  So we decided to settle in for a nice, cosy day in, keeping warm, watching the telly and drinking warm drinks. How silly can you be? How silly could I be? I knew it was my day off and the GKB was home and the roads were closed, what I forgot was that if we couldn't go out others couldn't come in! Therefore some of the people where I work were stuck at home. On the other side of the hill. Lunch time the phone goes. Diana can you come into work, K can't get here. Yes, I can come in I said, no, I don't want to I thought. But I went in, it's the sort of industry where you need a full team on every shift. That was the end of a relaxing day off.

A couple of teenage boys built a snowman in the gardens between the units and the residents thought he was a beauty. I came out of work that evening and the wind had stopped. It was lovely and still - the sky was clear and the stars were all twinkling and I found it surprisingly mild. I just loved it.

Unlike youngest grandson who just hated it. He is 5 and bawled his eyes out and told his mother he was going to get a blanket and lie on the couch and watch videos all day! And he did.

pretty good advice -

Recently I've been reading a book by Robert H. Schuller of the Crystal Cathedral called 'Tough times never last, but tough people do!'.  He is a possibility thinker/preacher.  About 2/3rds of the way through I came across the following poem by Edgar A. Guest:

 Don't Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you are trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest, if you must - but don't you quit!

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a failure turns about,

When he might have won had he stuck it out;

Don't give up, though the pace seems slow -

You might succeed with another blow.

Success is failure turned inside out -

the silver tint of the clouds of doubt -

And you can never tell how close you are,

It may be near when it seems afar;

So stick to the fight when you are hardest hit -

It's when things get worse that you mustn't quit!

I think it's pretty good advice, don't you? 



cats... and even more cats...



Claude

 I seem to have acquired some additional furry friends in recent weeks. Well actually Claude seems to have invited some of his mates around to sunbathe at our place. In the summer we have the occasional feline use the passage between our front door and the back door to make its way from one side of the property to the other but I have not seen them just socialising as they have been this month.

I went out the front door a couple of weeks ago and was confronted by a large black and white cat curled up, very comfortably thankyou, in the GKB's deck chair on the front steps  - Claude was stretched out on the concrete just in front of him, both making the most of the warm winter sun. They both just looked at me rather lazily as if I was in the wrong place - and don't disturb us please! So I retreated and left them to it.

A couple of days later I went out to hang washing on the line and there, on top of the wheelie bin, was a large grey persian soaking up the
sun. Not a silly place to be, lovely fine day, warm plastic lid on the bin, and I'm alright jack. He just dared me to move him as well, but I didn't blame him for making the most of a good thing, if I was a cat I'd probably have done the same.

And that same day a wee calico/tabby cat was around in my pebble garden, lying on the stones, out of the breeze and just enjoying the warmth of the day. Oh for the life of a cat (just occasionally), they eat and  drink when they want, come and go when they want and please themselves about anything they do.

So even though we have had a volcanic ash cloud overhead from the south American eruption for much of  that time it is obviously not blocking out as much heat as I would have thought.