Christmas Day 2014

Today was the first day we've enjoyed significant sunshine in about a week.  Clear in the early AM, but clouds slowly moved back in as the day progressed.

Jo washed a load of clothes and was able to get them dried out on the clothesline in the sunshine.  Underwear you can hang on racks around the wood stove.  Sheets and towels are not so easily dried indoors.

Pines along our road out.

I think this cloud formation is called a mackerel or buttermilk sky, but I'm not certain.

Down near the house, a seep runs across the road, causing that section to stay wet and muddy all winter.

.

Christmas Day 2014

Saturday, 12/13/14

After several days of typical winter gloom, overcast and fog, we enjoyed a few hours of mostly clear sky this afternoon -- a most pleasant surprise not in our forecast.




Unfortunately, the blue sky did not stick around for long.  By the time Jo and I took our afternoon walk at four o'clock, overcast and fog had returned.

.

Saturday, 12/13/14

First Snow in the Ozarks

Jo and I exhibited at an art fair down in Little Rock this past weekend. We returned home on Monday to find snow on the ground. The snow was fairly localized, extending only from the Marshall area over to Harrison. We left Little Rock mid-morning and made several stops on the way home. Driving conditions were not a problem by the time we encountered snow because the ground is still warm and the temperature had risen slightly above freezing.

Little snow melted on Monday or Tuesday. The sky remained overcast and daytime temps rose only a little above freezing. Nighttime temps dropped into the twenties. Sunshine appeared on Wednesday. By Friday afternoon when the photo above was taken, snow only remained lurking in northern shadows.

.

First Snow in the Ozarks

Melting: Snow Removal the Old Fashioned Way

Sunshine and temperatures in the upper forties lead to much snow melting on Friday.  Above is the worst section of our driveway.  It never receives any sunshine.  With a little weight in the rear of the bed of our little pickup truck, I'm pretty sure we could make a trip out, but since we have no where we need to go, we didn't try.

With the low angle of winter's sun, even a slight change in the road's tilt or direction can make a big difference in whether or not it receives sunshine and melts the snow.  Above is the beginning of the section shown in the top photo.

.

Melting: Snow Removal the Old Fashioned Way

Sunday Walk

Jo and I (and the dogs) usually take our afternoon walk around four o'clock. With the end of Daylight Savings Time, our Sunday walk was actually taken an hour later than Saturday's. There was a dramatic diffenence in the sun's intensity and the length of shadows. The photo above is our road out -- our driveway -- about three quarters of a mile from the house. It is up near the gate, which is normally open, and is our "turn around" point where we reverse course and head back to the house. This is one of the best sections of our road because it's relatively flat and isn't prone to washing out.

Our driveway is technically a county road. It runs through land owned by our closest neighbor. Most of it is wooded, although he's partially cleared a few sections like this one where his horse, Pretty Boy, is grazing.

.

Sunday Walk

Jo's Snow Photos

Since Jo is the member of our team that doesn't stay up half the night and, therefore, gets up at the ungodly hour of 6 AM, she was able to take a few more snow photos before too many patches of bare ground started peaking through.






Jerry Joe's round hay bales up near the gate.










Our driveway heading back toward the house. Jo said she was having problems with the dogs cooperating with her picture taking -- correction: Jo was having problems with our problem child, Bucket, who was gorging on snow .

Jo's Snow Photos

Daffodils in the Road

Despite being transplanted and replanted by numerous applications of heavy equipment while our water line was being laid, at least a couple of dozen daffodils are trying to grow in the area around out water meter, including these out in the middle of the road.

From March, 2007

Daffodils in the Road