Even the Buddha looks cold

It looks like the farm will stay cold with some potential for rain but then snow again through the week-end. This is not good news as in this part of Oregon, we are used to snow that lasts a day at the most. Camelot, what went wrong? I can't blame it on global climate change as I remember many winters like this growing up and even when I had small children. Just it had changed, and we have been spoiled.

When it's like this, there are certain obvious opportunities (if you don't have to drive to the doctor, go to work, feed livestock, or get supplies). You can stay inside and just enjoy the beauty. Look out the window. Make quick forays into it, knocking off the snow as you return. Take a nap. Create a painting. Go for a walk. Photograph it. Build a bigger fire in the fireplace. Put out more birdseed and watch (photograph) the birds. Whine along with other Northwesterners about how terrible this is (yes, we know other parts of the country have this kind of condition every year). Fill some buckets of water just in case the power goes out (if you don't have a well, you won't know why we do this but think about it a bit).

This has been an excellent packing snow which would be good for snowball fights (I stopped doing those the year I got hit too hard by one of Farm Boss's missiles. He didn't understand that you do this for fun, not kills), make a great snowman/woman; but I kind of like the look of untouched snow (except where we, cats, birds, and sheep have been making trails through it).

I did though make a snow angel. In recent years we haven't had enough snow to make this possible. It's simple to do if you are one of the few who have never done it. You fall back in the snow, lying flat out (nearly a foot of snow is required to not injure yourself if you are not a child who is more used to falling flat out), move your arms up and down to create wings, rise up without disturbing the creation (hopefully), and evaluate how it came out. This year I added a new complication, try to photograph it. I had to wait for some sunlight to get the highlights to show up.In the garden, not as idols but as reminders of spiritual concepts, I have a small Buddha, Kwan Yin, and Aphrodite (inspired by the painting The Birth of Venus). They serve, year round, through all seasons, as reminders of various spiritual traits that I desire in my life. Simplified, they would be contemplation, kindness, and passion. I am not quite to the age for Snow White's dwarfs or little deer, and possibly past the age for flamingos. I'll start worrying if I want gnomes...