Joys of Winter

Fascinating, isn't it JessM - everything topsy-turvey. I'm beginning to wonder what will happen in the spring.

oooH Baggy, I am impressed! I love it when you do that.
Just learned out what a proton gradient is, listening to Brian Cox etc al on the radio. And the guest who explained mitochondria in about 30 secs.
Do we think Brian is fanciable or has he got an irritating accent. He has a number of things going for him that's for sure. Not as cute as Saba... (which thread was that...?)

Supernana - a sparkling day for you, lovely.

Lyra and The Swan
Shining out of a clear sky
In my morning window.
The crackling of ice
Under slow cars on the road below us.
Up our hill I crunch up to the henhouse
With a rake to scrape a path
Through the hard snow
From their door to the giant rhodie
(See! Even rhododendrons have their uses!)
Where they will find leaf mould ground to scratch in
And branches to stand on.
A jug of warm water too
Because they won't come down over ice
To their usual drinking puddles
Further down the hill.
Then it's crampons on
And tramp to school
Enjoying the noise of the gripping 'claws'
And not a single slip.
Coming home, facing the hills,
I marvel at the colour wash
Of the rising sun on snow
And think that however clever
We humans are, we'll never, ever
Make a dye to match
Nature's translucent luminescence.

A beautiful image, bags - love the translucent luminescence.

Without wanting to get too d&m (deep and meaningful!), nature has been my healing. You've said it in one, so thanks.....

The winds forecast for tomorrow
Visited some of us last night.
The rugged hills are still snow-covered
But the lower, more rounded ones
Had dark tops with snow below this morning
Because the fierce winds had scoured their tops
And whipped the snow off overnight.
And at home DD wondered if the roof was falling in
When snow, part melted, slid down
Our steep old roof with a whumph.

Brrrrr.......I'm sure you're keeping cosy bagitha, and hope the chilly winds abate, pronto!

bagitha the 'whumph' of snow sliding down the roof is certainly scary. I was in a deep sleep when it happened to us [last year]...awoke with a jump because it sounded like a steam train roaring past the bedroom window. Time to feed the pussy cat and then spend far too long shining a torch into his bedroom - like to be sure that he's snuggly warm

I've just been watching the fluffed-up Vsici
At breakfast again
Joined this time by the tiny wren flitting around
Who lives in a nest in-between
The stones of the old barn,
Where the rose hips of a climbing rose
Reach almost to the apex of the arch
And are still plump and orange
And the attic window where I
Look out at this old, damp and now slimey apple tree
Badly needs a clean
As soon I won't be able to see a thing!

Supernana and Bagitha

Hope you're both keeping safe in the stormy winds. xx

Butternut WOW! Never seen waves so high or experienced winds so ferocious. And, apparently, the worst is yet to come. Been to dentist. Drive a tad scary. Fallen branches and a loch that is bursting it's banks. All truly spectacular as there are huge silver-lined clouds, too. No ferries on the sea today. x

Neptune, his trident held proud and high,
whips up his wild horses, urging them furiously across the vast expanse of wild water,
the spray from their white manes sparkles like tinsel in the weak winter sunlight -
Ferocious wind spurs them on their magical way

Gally a super vision of the power of the sea.

I can see Neptune in my mind's eye, Gally. I can hear his roar and the thundering of his horse's hooves - all this I can see this on Gigha Sound!!! Am I right Supernana?

green Oh yes indeed. Neptune's horses are thrashing along the beach. Seaweed will be flung high and wide. Gulls cannot compete with the might of the wind. Keep trying to take photos through the windows but they are sticky with salt spray. Keep warm (hugs)

Gally, love your gracious nod to Neptune!

The wind's still howling here and the rain pounding, and here's our experience:

Last night the loch was black
With long orange streaks —
Reflections of road lights along the shore —
Across the still water.
Today, on occasions, the loch was white
With spray metres high
Whipped off the surface
And carried in the wind.
The hill behind us, with its Old English (German) name
In a place of Brythonic history
(don't you just love the complexity of Britain?),
Gives us shelter of sorts from the prevailing winds
Howling over Atlantic,
So we only lost to the gale
Half a plum tree and half a rowan tree,
An anti-down-draught chimney cowl,
A length of guttering,
And, for a few hours,
Our electricity supply.
So glad we have a solid fuel stove!
We also dug a drain today
To carry excess water round the house
And down the hill
To that blown, white-streaked, sea.

Baggy that's lovely. Take care - it's pretty bad here on the East but I know it's much worse on your side!

That's some day you've just had, bagitha - and like the title of a favourite book my sons loved as kids .......... "It could be worse".

How are the chickens?

My thoughts are with all of you north of the border, it was pretty wild here today.
Love to hear your descriptions of the wildlife and the water.

I hope you're all safe and sound up in Scotland - when I heard there were 165 mph gusts of wind in the Cairngorms, and lots of fallen trees, it started to sound a bit scary to be out there. Do let us know how you are all doing, won't you? Take care x

The third picture in this BBC series of lorries at Rest And Be Thankful is the main road between where I live and where supernana lives. Right in the mountains. The valleys must have acted like wind tunnels.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-16094360

A familiar road, bags, but a scary sight!

And that burning wind turbine is close to my birthplace - didn't know there was a wind farm there nowadays!

Wind is dying down to normal gale now but has been "awfally blowie" to quote one of the comments on here:

entertainment.stv.tv/opinion/286086-scotlands-hurricane-bawbag-raises-twitter-storm-the-top-reactions/

Love the Wee Wifies' Wind Scale!

Hurricane Bawbag. Only in Scotland!