January 2016

I was about to write a story about a copperhead snake that I tangled with a while back, but looking outside at the gorgeous day we are having, I thought I’d rather write about that.

Most winters are mild here in the swamp compared to the rest of the country, and even within Texas the weather here can be relatively mild even when there is snow on the ground in the panhandle. Today is an exceptionally beautiful day. There are a few clouds hanging around but the sun is shining through bright and warm for the most part. The temperature is hovering at 70 degrees. Shorts and tee shirt weather for me, and of course, no shoes.

The day has been uneventful for the most part, and I know you don’t want to hear about the dull and mundane things we did today, but most days are like this. Ellen and I don’t mind the slow and lazy days of a mid-winter warm spell.

We went to town to do a little shopping and to just get outside a bit. We picked up some strawberry plants and a seedless Concord grape vine. Ellen wants to try some grapes though I told her they don’t grow well this far south, but what Ellen wants…

I met a very nice lady online this morning who gave my book an excellent review. I posted the review on this site if you care to take a look. The nice lady lives in British Columbia, Canada. I guess people are buying my book and enjoying it. To me, the review was plenty of excitement for today. Take a look and you’ll know why.

The weather outside makes me want to get out and plant something, but I know winter is not over yet. The lowest temperature I’ve had here in the swamp this season is 40 degrees. The arctic monster will find his way down here eventually and maybe we will get a little freezing weather. We need a little colder weather to keep the bugs at bay in the spring. But we’ve dealt with the hoards of mosquitos before, which invade the property when the conditions are right.

I cleaned out one of Ellen’s compost bins because fire ants took up residence inside the container. Not wanting chemicals in her compost, I emptied the bin, washed it out and started a new batch. I did spray chemicals on and around the outside of the receptacle to prevent another invasion of these pesky little insects.

Now I’m back at the computer trying to catch up with my stories and book marketing which seem to pile up when I’m gone for half a day. I know this story may be a little boring to some, but so is life much of the time. The difference between my mundane life and most others is that I can watch the lazy Guadalupe River flowing and all the little critters which inhabit my property. Today these include woodpeckers, starlings, cardinals, a Great Kiskadee or two, and numerous tiny birds of which I have no name for. All lovely brain food when the day would otherwise be extremely dull.

Sorry, but no snakes or alligators today to excite the story, but just the way I like it around here_slow and beautiful. It’s great to be me!