Status: Thawing

Hi folks. It has been a deep freeze since the first week of January.
It got so I'd have to thaw Iggy´s water bowl a couple of times a day
and that lives inside the trailer. Water jugs left on the floor have
frozen solid more than once. A 30# LP gas bottle is good for 36 hours
of heat to 60°. So, if pressed for a one word description of our lives
lately, "cold" springs to mind ... -21°F for a low, so far.

One big snowstorm early in the month. A couple of little ones along
with some icing has left our dooryard a rugged skating rink
necessitating the use of "ice creepers" along with consumption of 50#
of magnesium chloride. Tomorrow, according to the weather weenies, we
may get upwards of 1 1/2" of rain along with some icing either side of
the front passage. Oh joy - flooding and glare ice simultaneously,
followed by a return to sub-zero lows.

SWMBO is now going in to work for an 8 AM start. Those of you who know
her predilection for a 3 - 11 lifestyle many get up off the ground and
grandchildren should stop chortling now. (She may be occasionally
forgetful but I've never known her to lose track of her paddle,
kiddies). Actually, the hardship is imposed on Pops, who must get up
at 6AM to heat bath water for Her Nibs. The Queen of the Trailer
needn't appear until 6:30...

My Kindle Fire - First Edition developed a problem at the mini-USB
socket connection on the motherboard... she no charge any more. I
received it for Xmas last year (2011). Fortunately, SWMBO had
registered my advice to always buy the extended warranty for
computers. So, I packed it into the original packaging with the
receipt and drove over to the local Best Buy. They listened to my tale
of woe, plugged the charger in and verified the failure to pass
current. And then, blow me down and shiver me timbers, the young CSR
says, "would you like a replacement Kindle Fire or the new Kindle Fire
HD?" It seems the price is now lower than what was originally paid for
a Fire and the same for the new Fire HD, so you have to know I went
with the upgrade. Heck, I even bought a new extended warranty!

I like the HD screen, but I could do without the advertising that
appears. However, I'm way too parsimonious to pay $15 to rid myself of
the ads ... they aren't THAT annoying. The only downside to the
machine I have found so far is the deleterious effect upon my writing.
I'm spending too much time online.

Any who, that's all the news appropriate to share. Really wish I was
down in Louisiana about now. This shoveling stuff is for the birds. ;/

And so it goes...