it's January ...........

Heat wave!  A high of 5 F. today!  Break out the Fat-kini!  We have been polar punched so many times  we are dingy.  Never hearing the phrase polar vortex in my 60 years, I can sprinkle it in any sentence, including recipes.  

A normal January is respite time, hibernating, reading, garden planning and quiet.  Well the poles must be shifting because there is no more normal!  Indeed I ran around the backyard this morning doing morning chores and didn't realize I had my long johns on inside out until I put my jeans on!  

Cannot get the studio above 52 F.  But stuff is getting done.  Moving at the speed of old dog looking for a place to poop on a cold winter morning.  

 Although I am becoming accustomed to throwing in a hat and bulky sweater I have almost killed myself sitting on a heating pad!  The cord is just killer so I nixed the heating pad and went for the Ohio Spa treatment.  Fill an old wool sock with rice and left over garden lavender.  Stitch the end shut and microwave for 1 minute.  Heaven!  Why would anyone want hot stones when you can have a rice sock on your neck or face? 

Besides we can't even get to a spa! 

Eating their way through the garden, the deer have emptied the bird feeder every night.

Polar blue skies!

The chickens are cooped up.  They kick up a fuss around 7 a.m, this morning I slide breakfast into the coop as they were not coming out!  Happy to say laying has resumed, the girls are up to three eggs a day! 

January is time for reflection and no matter how crazy it gets there is still time for reflection. 

This little junco hit the window late Wednesday morning.  We all ran out to see what the explosion was that hit the window.  We held the little guy while he expired in our hands.  We had a beer and waited for him to come back to life.  We told stories about animals who had entered the Miller zone in the past, finished our beer but after an hour realized this little ball of fluff had seen his last sunrise.  We buried him at the base of the compost pile as it was the only loose earth we could find.  We had just sat Shiva for a junco..... 

The universe has a wonderful way of communicating if you want to listen....... Thursday morning my Mother in Law passed away peacefully in her sleep. She was 94 and had a great life.  Rachael only makes it home once a year and she is here now.  Abby and Rachael had time to visit with her Sunday; a real visit to sit, have tea and talk.  Rachael went back on Wednesday morning to visit a bit more before she headed off to Africa.  The timing was amazing and a bit mind boggling.  The Miller clan is descending on a frozen Ohio town on Lake Erie over the next few days.  The funereal will be next Tuesday, slated to be the coldest day of the year.  The stove is doing double time as is the cook.  Last fall when I was filling the freezer and basement I questioned why was I putting up so much food this year?  Most of the restaurants close down in the winter and there are going to be 30 people to feed.  It's all covered.......  The stories will be told, the beer we just bottled will be drunk and the freezer is going to be emptied.  We will gather in the house her father built for her and her new husband so many years ago.  There will be three generations, she kept track of each and everyone..... all the way to Beijing and Africa.   Quite a brood came from that little house on Walnut Blvd in Ashtabula. And although this has been so tough on my wonderful partner of over 30+ years the celebration will be EPIC.  As oldest kid said,  Mom we are gonna burn it down.  I think Ruth would love it .......