It was cold again today, but the sun came out and it felt great! Unfortunately, I have a weather app on my phone, so I know the next few days will be miserable. Still, I try to stay in the moment.
Speaking of a creature that stays in the moment – Weedy wanted to extend his moment in bed this morning.
Roscoe loved the sunshine after many days of gloom.
A good friend called to warn me of the dangers of heat lamps in barns. I am well aware of this, and would never use heat lamps in the barn with the horses, but in the shed, the cats could just walk out of the building, and no lives would be lost if, God forbid, the shed caught fire. Alas, the cats do not seem to appreciate the warmth. I am going to leave the lamps on anyway. Licorice and Marmalade are scaredy cats, but they might figure out the benefits of warmth, given some time. This evening, they were happy to come to dinner at their new table near the lamps. Progress!
I got a picture of a rufous sided towhee this morning! They are ground feeders, and this one is very happy with the feeder on the island in front of the house. It is near the woods, which is the towhee’s preferred habitat. Though Jane did see one a few days ago on her deck!
Rufous sided towhee 
Towhee in flight
On the back deck, the birds provided their usual entertainment.
The flicker decided to eat suet today 
The finch and his mate 
Flicker in the tree 
Three types pf woodpeckers in one frame-
hairy woodpecker, red bellied woodpecker and downy woodpecker
White throated sparrow 
Mockingbird lifting off 
Wren lighter than air
I picked up some delicious Montana hay to feed as a treat during the frigid weather. Not that the horses deserve it after yesterday’s debacle! Tom Morris was very interested in exploring the truck when I returned from my mission. He approves of the Montana timothy.
Harry worked hard in the studio today, while I went gallivanting.
Bart looked very innocent when it was time to come in, but I was not fooled. I chained the gate in case Oisin decided to test it again, and I walked into the stall with Bart before removing the halter. No excitement this afternoon, they were all contrite.
Tom Morris patrolled the top of the stalls before retiring to the warm tack room for the night.
Many years ago (November, 1988) we went fox hunting in Galena, Illinois. It gets very cold up north there, and they had an expression “green suit weather” for days that were too cold to dress in traditional clothing. We were lucky not to encounter extreme weather on that trip (though we did play some drinking games that resulted in one member of the group being hospitalized with alcohol poisoning… but I digress). We were inspired to buy “green suits” (coveralls) at a local hardware store in Galena, and we wear them to this day in the very cold weather. One of our wisest purchases ever.
Tonight it was true green suit weather at night check. Single digit cold already (5 degrees)! Harry took a picture.
Finally, out in Montana, 5 degrees sounds like a heat wave. It was 2 degrees at midday there, with snow all day. Rainy and Honey are learning to be tough. Nancy sent pictures.
“This is not fun!”
Stay safe, stay well, endure. Peace.
Bonus! After pulling up your blog and seeing February 6 for days, today they all appeared!
I’m afraid this terrible cold is going to continue until next Saturday, which is just too long in my book. I’m grateful February is a short month. Be warm in the green suit weather.
Bird photos amazing! And soooo many kinds of birds, white throated sparrow (with yellow eyebrows), and three woodpeckers in one shot! the little wren looking buoyant. Love them! Not this weather!!! So cold! Montana finally looks like Montana, burrrrr. Galena, I makes me think of Lance And Sunny Beaulieu. I believe she stayed on after their divorce. Anyhoo, Happy Horses Happy Days!
Love seeing you in the green suit! I could use one of those for feeding birds, but my full-length down coat and shearling boots makes it possible for me to feed them in my jammies. No Towhees at our house, thanks for sharing!