We awoke to wet. And slippery. Zeke will have to wait for his walk until things thaw.

We watch weather. Our lives depend on it. I learned to love weather apps from Michael. I grew up deprived of weather sense, fostered in places where a thin coating of ice on puddles constituted severe cold. Snow fell far away. Now we stockpile sand against those times, like today, where it is another tool allowing you to get water and feed over ice covered walkways.

Weather dictates the order of priorities. Michael stands before a box containing our new water heater. His experiment of taking out the filter from our water line resulted in sand and grit coming and clogging many of our appliances. Some have their own filters we can flush. Others do not. The on-demand heater my brother gifted us is one that does not. Since we may be hosting our daughter and her family this summer, we needed a reliable source of hot water.

This closet looking space is a future stairwell. That big box would not fit down the current stairs, so Michael cleared this space and made a ramp to the basement.

I got to push the box over the edge, blindly trusting Michael to catch it.

Safe!

We will build a platform for it to stand on, but this is its new home. Midway between bathrooms and close to the future kitchen. Now to run a water supply line! Oh, and install a water filter too…

We bought the water heater in March 2. We unloaded it and loaded my trike and a used screen door into the Suburban. The ice and snow came On March 5 and 6th.

Zeke finally did get his walk. This doe waited until we were almost level with her before running to the woods. The turkeys huffed off reluctantly as well.

I give the swans and geese leeway. We all rejoice in open water.

Despite continuing cold, Michael began gathering eggs on March 7. They should begin to hatch on April 7. We have confidence that spring will come again!

In the meantime I am removing this last bit of old siding while Michael accompanies his mom to a doctor visit. This is where the screen door came from. It will replace a screen door that failed at my daughter’s house. Recycling at its best.

I am so looking forward to being able to set up my saws and making more cabinets. It is my reward and/or curative for/from the frustration of dealing with federal courts. I work for chicken feed…and lumber on.