Not snowing

Forecasts given earlier in the week projected snow, perhaps major, for Friday night into Saturday.  That has fallen as flat as a deflated glowing front-yard Santa.  We now have grass poking through the remnants of our last storm.  Which has meant no skiing for a week . . .

Temperature up to 19 F now, from a low of about 10.  Also not windy.  May not stoke the woodstove this afternoon.

No further sign of the pine siskins.  They come in a swarm, deplete the local resources, and move on.  Probably a lot of griping in the finch world about those voracious Bedouin raiders . . .

Winter rites of the Great North Woods

Took advantage of the sun and warmth (25 F!  Whee!) to maintain our auxiliary heating system.  Let the stove go out*, took down the stovepipe and cleaned out creosote, shoveled ashes into a metal bucket, etc, etc.  Less creosote than I expected, barely enough to justify the effort.  Which, given the chimney-fire rate this time of the year in Maine, is just the amount I want to see . . .

*"Out", in this context, means cold and dark.  It does not mean you can shovel the ashes into a paper bag or cardboard box, another source of Fire Marshal visits to the smoldering ruins this time of year.  Did have some live coals buried there.  Hence, the metal bucket for the ash, and said bucket is now sitting out on the driveway asphalt rather than on our garage floor.  Another North Woods Survival Tip, free of charge.