My computer tells me it's minus 8 degrees outside and I have no reason to doubt it. I just chatted with my daughter on the other side of the world where it was a sunny 27. She showed me (via webcam) the luscious bromeliads in the garden she was calling from. In return, I showed her the snowy wonderland that is our backyard, looking quite charming in the floodlit night.

Warm weather is definitely my preference, too, but this winter is already very different. The snow doesn't turn to horrid sludge so quickly, as it does in the city, and the mornings are quiet and fresh. When I finally found the sunflower seed stash in the garage (that is, what the mouse hadn't eaten yet), I filled a couple of feeders and made several chickadees quite delirious with excitement.

We arrived at this house at the very end of the gardening season, so things were left to naturally decline as the cold weather set in. The seed heads left standing in the garden now make graphic statements on the snow from every angle, and serve as standby snacks for the birds.