A rainy afternoon made the lake ice into a splash pond resembling mid-March instead of midwinter.  This month the cold was like a guest  you prepared the house and cooked for who then departed prematurely – days earlier than expected.   The snowshoes, long underwear and mittens are collecting dust but at least the refrigerator isn’t full of leftover food.  

Squirrels recovering buried treasure where there was a foot of snow last week look delighted while all cross-country ski tracks around the BlueCircle are either icy or washed away.   The greenhouse lettuce succumbed to persistent clouds and freezing temperatures so gardening season is finally over.

I prefer a snow-covered dog to a wet and muddy one and she would rather delve into snow piles then almost anything else so maybe the next puff of Winter will bring at least enough for that.  Meanwhile there’s time to catch up on indoor projects and plan for Spring.