It was – 4 when I went out this morning to start up my car and check on the animals. It felt like a different kind of cold to me. There were many subzero days in the winter when I bought my first farm; it was common to see some – 30 nights.
But the cold today felt different. This winter feels different. There is no sun; there were dark clouds strong and gusting winds. The air was biting and heavy. The storms seem punishing and forever.
I was always able to be outside to feed the animals, water the tanks, check on everybody; I never felt my bones turning to ice in this way. I had to come into the house after 10 minutes; it felt as if the life was draining out of my body.
I’m getting older, and I have diabetes and heart disease, two circulation diseases that can make warming the body more difficult. Still, this kind of cold feels different, and I see the same thing in the agitation in the animal’s eyes. They look like I feel, I think. The cold makes me anxious and irritable.
I got hypothermia last week, and I’m trying to stay inside, a prisoner of climate change, I think. This cold feels different to me. Robert Frost’s winters were lovely, gentle, and beautiful. Our winters are getting harsh and punishing.
The animals seem anxious to me and unsettled.
Sheep and donkeys are mountain and desert animals; I’ve never thought they even noticed the cold much. But this is a different kind of cold. Tomorrow will be worse – high winds all night and into the morning and temperatures well below zero through most Sundays.
Zinnia, our polar dog, can’t handle being outside the wind and cold, it hurts her pads, and she starts hopping. So does Fate. I’ve never seen Fate rattled by the cold before, or Zinnia affected by frigid weather. Bud can hardly go outside at all.
All three dogs huddle by the wood stove and seem tired. I am worn, just by going outside.
I wish I could do more for these animals; we went and got some extra grain to feed them for energy. The barn cats love their heated indoor house in the basement.
The chickens seem indifferent, but they aren’t coming up, they hole up in their roosts
We have quilts and canvas hanging over the bedroom windows to blow the wind, which is unbearable at night. The wood stoves are going all day, and we are using heating oil for several hours a day to help the stoves out.
Monday, it’s supposed to warm up a bit. I’m ordering seeds for my newly raised garden bed. Spring looks especially sweet this year, and this is why I love living with the four seasons. Each season compliments and defines the next.
When we went to the hardware store to get some extra grain for the animals, I saw wheelbarrows lined up in the windblown snow. It was a Leica picture; it speaks of cold in light and shadow.
Our bedroom is freezing at night. We are fighting it with quilts on the windows, heated blankets, and a heroic baseboard strip that softens the cold. But the cold in my bones now. Nothing seems to get it out. I never wish I was somewhere else, we never think of moving. This is our life, and we love it and live it.
“Zinnia, our polar dog, can’t handle being outside the wind and cold, it hurts her pads, and she starts hopping. So does Rose. I’ve never seen Rose rattled by the cold before, or Zinnia affected by frigid weather. Bud can hardly go outside at all.”
This paragraph is so confusing…
Hypothermia will do that to me..I was dreaming of Rose..
Maybe she was dreaming of you: https://www.bedlamfarm.com/2009/11/01/rose-in-the-mind-of-a-dog/
Maybe, she was with me for a lot of cold nights and many storms..I never forget her, and she pops up in my writing allt he time..
you are certainly doing all you can do, Jon……both for yourself, and for your animals. I trust all of you will weather (no pun intended) this storm well. You are wise in knowing what to do and for being prepared………. I do keep you all in my thoughts……and hope (and know in my heart) that you will fare well through it all. Spring is always on the horizon!
Susan M
Thanks, we’ll be all right, we missed the worst of it but the cold is brutal..we’ll survive that too, one more day to get past..
My husband swears by a hot bath to warm him up quickly when he is cold. Have you tried this. For myself, I am not a fan of baths, prefer showers, but I can see how a warm bath could help.
I’m doing okay, Susan, I’ll be up and running tomorrow and the next day..I live in upstate New York and sometimes, in the middle of winter, I’ll be cold..I’d much rather write than boil in a hot bath..it does me a world of good.
Take care of yourself, Jon. Hypothermia is nothing to trifle with.
Yes, I’m learning..
An oil-filled radiator would work wonders in your bedroom. They are not expensive and are very secure.
We have a very good heating system in our bedroom, Nicola, and don’t need a new one. Anyone who lives in a upper story of a farmhouse in a storm with frigid temperatures and high winds will feel it…There is no heating system that can beat mother nature when she’s fired up..
If you are thoroughly cold and can’t manage to get warm either, you need an electric blanket on bed or in your chair.
Renske, don’t worry about us, we are supposed to do that for ourselves,and we have an electric blanket and enjoy it…sharing a problem is not giving it away, we are not idiots..I’ve been up here for nearly 20 winters and so has Maria..we aren’t asking for help…we can handle it..
Oh I love it Jon…such beautiful growth…..you are softening around the edges delightfully…. even in your saying you take care of your self, and don’t need others to decide for you, or to supply you with endless well meaning advice…. Your heart is shining through brightly. Glad you allow us to follow along on your journey, I see and learn much.
Hi Jon, This tip doesn’t work for everybody, but I’m sharing it because it’s inexpensive, and may help you as it does me, sitting for hours in front of my computer in the coldest room in the house. I sit with five or six heated (by microwave) cornbags, on my lap all covered by a blanket. They warm the circulation to my feet and my midriff, and are a very nice place to put my hands, chilled from typing. Hope this is not an intrusive sharing. I remain a friendly reader, Nancy