Northern weather

[E7]

Knocked the hell out of the Johnny Walker Black for curative purposes. Still sick, but I don't remember much of it...

There was an old gag about how to treat a cold that is very similar:

How to treat a cold: Drink 3 shots of whiskey on the hour for 6 hours.

At the end of that time, the cold will still be there, but you'll be gone.

[healey36]

Ugh, there's a bit of wisdom in there, somewhere...

Meanwhile, the shack starts to look pretty festive with some snow dumped on it:



Good night to build a fire and dive into the pile of books I got for Christmas.

Healey

[E7]

Amen to that!

[rogruth]

It looks so nice but I moved to Georgia 45 years ago. It was 65 here today and it felt cold to me.
I really like it when the temperature is in the 80s. We do have seasonal changes but you soon
learn that fall, winter and spring are rather short and summer is rather long. I know some do
not like that but I do. I'm ready for spring now.

[healey36]

We're supposed to get a bit of that Georgia weather this weekend, along with some Georgia rain.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

We're supposed to get a bit of that Georgia weather this weekend, along with some Georgia rain.

Yes, more roller coaster weather. 70 in January....

[robert.]

70 degrees in January usually leads to . A nor’easter with 28 inches of snow. Let the energy build and cool it off real quick.

[healey36]

70 degrees in January usually leads to . A nor’easter with 28 inches of snow. Let the energy build and cool it off real quick.

The Hagerstown Almanac had a nor’easter called for Jan. 9-11, which now looks to be a rain event with temps north of 60 degrees.

[E7]

Not much of a Fall around my neck of the woods. Cold and dreary. Cold then gave way to mild/semi-mild temps late December/January. Latest forecast is for unusually mild temps through the 16th. Happy to see anything North of 40. Coffee time.

[robert.]

25 miles north of Philadelphia with a yard full of robins.

[healey36]

Most boring winter ever...

Lost our older retriever a couple weeks back - threw me for a loop.

Maybe February will toss the cart over.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Most boring winter ever...

Comes from being too prepared and a wood pile that's not seeing much depletion.

[healey36]

I've actually burned about 20% of the pile so far. It's been getting pretty chilly at night, and that together with a bit of damp gives me good reason to stoke the fireplace. What's really interesting is that this year I cut mostly downed trees from a mate's woodlot, primarily oak, but some poplar. The stuff doesn't seem to burn very hot, so I'm not getting anywhere near as much heat pushing back into the room. I had a chimney cap installed this past summer, so I'm wondering if (seems unlikely) this has somehow altered my draft.

Had a pileated woodpecker pounding on an old silver maple out back today. The tree has a colony of squirrels living in it...they seemed none to amused. Looked like they tried to run him off, but he being twice their size, they kept their distance. We have quite a few downy woodpeckers and red-bellied woodpeckers, but this is the first pileated I've seen in the neighborhood.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

I've actually burned about 20% of the pile so far. It's been getting pretty chilly at night, and that together with a bit of damp gives me good reason to stoke the fireplace. What's really interesting is that this year I cut mostly downed trees from a mate's woodlot, primarily oak, but some poplar. The stuff doesn't seem to burn very hot, so I'm not getting anywhere near as much heat pushing back into the room. I had a chimney cap installed this past summer, so I'm wondering if (seems unlikely) this has somehow altered my draft.

I don't have a fire all that often; Cap should not seriously change the draft...baffle inside the flue might need adjustment. I had mine set a notch too closed and things got a tad smoky and fine was sluggish. Odd, poplar tends to burn too fast but not as much heat. Sometimes you need that mixed in with the oak to encourage things. I'm burning mainly maple mixed with the oak, but there's some poplar in the mix along with a few scraps of old yellow pine.

Had a pileated woodpecker pounding on an old silver maple out back today. The tree has a colony of squirrels living in it...they seemed none to amused. Looked like they tried to run him off, but he being twice their size, they kept their distance. We have quite a few downy woodpeckers and red-bellied woodpeckers, but this is the first pileated I've seen in the neighborhood.

Those pileated woodpeckers seem to be an invasion plague.....not many enemies, and just see and hear more of them every year.

[healey36]

Those pileated woodpeckers seem to be an invasion plague.....not many enemies, and just see and hear more of them every year.

Back in my working days, I briefly had an office in a leased building in some woods just off I-270 in Germantown. That place was infested with pileated woodpeckers. They have some size and a pterodactyl look about them; I wouldn't want one taking an interest in me.