I Like #201

Welcome to another week of things to like.  This week has been absolutely insane weather.  We are now ten days into a really terrible cold snap; temperatures down to -8 and todays' the first day we're going to get above 22 degrees since this started.  The first few days were just really cold but then we had two snowstorms back to back and there's 8-10 inches on the ground depending on where you stick your quilting ruler.  That's just very unseasonable-  for example "very cold" winter weather for us usually means a couple days in the single digits and maybe 4-5" of snow.  I'm just so grateful that even though it's been colder and snowier here than in Texas, our power grid is better able to handle the increased power demands and we've only had a few rolling blackouts around here.  My cousins down in Texas are just emerging from many days of only intermittent power and three days without water.

My heat has stayed on throughout, the only challenge was my large and very drafty sliding glass door, but somewhere in the middle of this stretch I just nailed a big blanket up over it and that helped a little.

Anyway, we've been staying in even more than usual-I commented to a work colleague on zoom that it's been weird to go so many days without needing to put on a mask because we have gone absolutely nowhere.  Yesterday was the first day I even got out to walk with the dogs.  It's hard in the snow-I can only walk one at a time, but I think they enjoyed getting out.  

So things to like this week

I really enjoyed this blog post (and the original article) about one of the oldest intentionally made musical instruments ever discovered, an 18,000 year old Conch Shell.  In one of the links you can actually hear them play it.

http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/60733

https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/7/7/eabe9510

I love the blog the Jealous Curator, and this week she introduced me to contemporary fiber artist Andrea Alonge.  Her work is just amazing, rainbows and sparkles and fiber.

https://www.thejealouscurator.com/blog/2021/02/16/andrea-alonge-2/

This was from early in the week when the windows started icing over on the inside.  The inside of them finally thawed out yesterday.

Around 4PM every day the puppies get restive and want to know why I am still sitting there at the computer and not playing or snuggling with them.  Alas work must go on!

My studio is definitely the warmest place around here;  I think largely because it is newer and just more airtight (better windows, etc.) so we've  been out there fairly often.  Of course Spooky had to sit on Bentley instead of on one of the many other available chairs/dog beds.

My backyard!  Lots of little birdies at the feeders but I couldn't get any pictures of them.  And the dogs rumpused in the snow a little bit, but not very much and I didn't get a picture of that either.

Yesterday I shoveled enough driveway that I should be able to get out, but I'm not going anywhere today either.  

And I'll close with my amaryllis- it's blooming beautifully right now, a lovely spot of color amid the wintery weather!

I hope everyone is staying warm and safe!  Click over to LeeAnna's for more good things to like!