Ready to be Ice-bound

Sleet is falling at this hour on the farm.  The temperature is below freezing, so it will accumulate.  We may have a fairy wonderland of ice by morning, or we may just have slippery steps and roads.  I vote for that fairy wonderland of ice!

Before the sleet started to fall, my uncle Charles Hamer (Unc) picked yellow daffodils that have been bursting from the earth several months early, and he cut some branches of white and red japonica that were beginning to bloom (also very early).

We always have some japonica and even yellow bell (forsythia) inside in January or early February to "force".  That means if you catch the branches in various stages of budding, you can bring them indoors where it is much warmer and "force" the buds into bloom.

As a child, I remember putting food coloring in the vases to watch the dye appear in streaks in the petals of the emerging flowers.  That was magical to watch as a child.

Now my equivalent magic entertainment comes from Photoshop CS2.

The Sopranos is on A&E tonight.  We never saw the series in the first few years when it was all the rage.  Now that A&E is carrying the series, I can see why there was a big fuss over it! What is it about Mafia movies that is so addictive?

We're ready to be ice-bound for a number of days.  The vehicles are gassed up; antifreeze checked; extra gas and diesel in cans; propane tanks have been topped off; groceries and essentials stocked; generator ready; a big pot of soup is ready; and we cooked a turkey today.   

We know the drill here on the farm. As the last telephone and electrical customer on this line, we have to be able to last for days without the essentials.  When you are ready for it, it can be kinda fun.

Oooh, I just remembered...We need to charge the camera and videocamera batteries and reformat the memory cards...to be ready to photograph that winter wonderland I hope will be draped over the farm when we awake.

By the way, if you have a favorite quilt or fabric shop in Mississippi, please tell me so that I can add it to my list of Mississippi Quilt Shops!