Ground Hog's Day

The view from the bedroom ...the edge of
the snow on the far right is Smallsbush Rd!

   Today is Ground Hog's Day and I don't think ol' Phil saw his shadow.  We're in the middle of a snowstorm.  Yep, we finally got it.  It's been snowing since last night and we've got about 6-8" so far and it's still coming down! The TV weather man says it will slow down around lunch and we may end up with 10-12" total.  It's pretty light fluffy stuff and I think I can drive thru it but I don't want to try. Hopefully, Wally from next door will have the road cleared by tomorrow morning when I have an appointment to have a 'finger stick'.  Otherwise it will be 'aim for the mailboxes and step on the gas!' We're out of dog food but Fanny doesn't seem to be complaining.  Last night we shared some left over chili and rice and this morning she had a slice of wheat toast with peanut butter.  I took some steaks out of the freezer yesterday so we may have them for supper tonight.  I wonder if that will be okay with her?
  
    Friday Jeff and I had a not so great trip to the clinic in Cooperstown for a follow-up appointment for him.   Rte 28 was wet, snowy, slushy and generally ucky on the way down (but dry on the way back). Remember when we went to the ER that night earlier in January?  Well, this appointment was the follow-up for that. The neurologist has just about ruled out a seizure but wants a couple of tests done to determine if Jeff had had a 'minute' stroke...a rather common occurrence for a man of his age with a life time of hard work, hard living and smoking. Most people don't notice it since there's no pain and the numbness/tingling goes away.  He's got to have a Doppler scan of his neck and an MRI.  The doctor thinks medication will be a baby aspirin a day to thin Jeff's blood. Getting old is so much fun...not.  We did stop for lunch at Liz's Diner in Mohawk.  Oh, the cheese burger was the best I've had in a long time!  Jeff and I shared a slice of apple pie, too. Ahh!
   Jeff's noticed that the pallets he normally collects haven't been available.  Someone else is getting to them faster than he is so we've decided to buy some split hard work.  I noticed an ad for a face cord available for $65 delivered or picked up.  He's going to check it out and we'll see about getting a one. Jeff's not sure the utility trailer can haul a face cord in 1 trip...it doesn't have far to go but it will be up the hill and pass the troopers so he doesn't want to take any chances.  Besides if the price is the same...delivered or picked-up...I'd rather they be delivered.  A little less work?

Wonder why the bottom of the T rusted?

Jeff  cleaned the stovepipe on Thursday and found out that the bottom T that he opens to let the soot etc fall out had rusted and had to be replaced.  Now the new T is in the TV room waiting to be installed but it's been too cold...below zero...to work with metal outside so it has to wait.  That also means the stove can't be used...there's a hole in the pipe!  The temperature is suppose to be in the 30's on Wednesday...hopefully, the T can be replaced then. The small electric heater that suppose to have replaced the wood stove hasn't. It's a waste of electricity.  Jeff thinks we should to get a Karo-sun heater as a back-up heat source but I put that on the same list as the chickens he wants...when he moves in for good we'll get it.