January 2010
Like everywhere else in the UK, the weather is a major source of conversation. In this part of the country the bad weather started early and we seem to have had more days below freezing than above. On several occasions my drive has been a sheet of ice that even the land rover cannot cope with.
I ordered a set of snow chains before xmas which finally turned up the other day. Ironic that the delivery driver had decided his front wheel drive transit was more than a match for the conditions. I returned home to find his van well and truly stuck and blocking my drive. Fitted the chains but only managed to gouge big grooves in the track. Eventually had to get a local + JCB to get him out.
The wood burner has been doing sterling work but with such a large area to heat I have to resort to electric heating as well. It takes many hours before the fire can overcome the heat losses from the uninsulated gallery etc. Generally it is warm enough to work by mid evening, just when I really don't feel like it !. Another problem is getting some of the equipment up to temperature. Still managed to do quite a bit so must not grumble.
One bonus of the cold weather is that I have been able to get out with the camera on a few occasions. The best one was a few days ago photographing deer. They are having a really bad time of course and many will not survive the winter. However there has been an explosion in the deer numbers in recent years so this weather will have an impact. Although they are cute they do a lot of damage to trees and crops and are regarded as a pest by most people.
Hopefully this weather will ease off soon but of course we are only just heading into what should be the coldest time of the year so who knows.
Cheers
Pat
