Much Colder

Snow all day long, first they said no accumulation, then they said three inches and another inch before midnight. Below ten degrees tonight and tomorrow night. B had a bunch of William Gibson novels, so I'm reading those and eating ramen noodles. I'll have to get out on Saturday, for whiskey and a few things that can I carry in, but that should give them time to clear the roads. A good Osage Orange fire in the stove, and the little infrared heater over by my desk. Probably lose power tonight, but the oil lamps are filled, and I have candles. When I'm in Big Lots (it's near my laundromat) I always look at the candle shelf and buy anything that will fit my candleholders. I didn't use many last winter, so I have a good supply. I rummaged in the large tin, that I use to store foodstuffs that mice can't get into, today, and found several potential meals. I have some purple potatoes to roast. I'd rather be stuck on the ridge than stuck in town. The fall and winter I mostly cook with pork fat, bacon drippings, so I have to eat bacon a few times a month; I just keep the fat in the skillet I cooked the bacon in, with a cover, and take out a spoonful when I need it. Cut the little purple potatoes in half, roll them in some melted bacon fat and several grinds of fresh black pepper, a hot oven, thirty or forty minutes, turn them once. These are very good. While the oven is hot, and the pan is greased, I crisp some kale leaves. Too cold to think, so I bundled up early, on the sofa, reading until I fell asleep. Beautiful morning, four inches of new snow. A perfect sunny day, still very cold , and everything sparkles. I limit my outdoor time because it's too damn cold, way too bright and I left my sunglasses in the Jeep. TR calls, to make sure I'm alive, and B walks over to say that a former student, now in the MFA writing program at Bowling Green is coming by at four for conversation and an early dinner. So I suit-up and go over there. Excellent pot roast dinner, with butternut squash cooked two ways. Good beer and good conversation. I bow out early, to get home and build a fire before dark. Realized I hadn't socialized at all over Xmas and New Year, it was nice, talking about lifestyles and writing. I'm a mess right now, dirty, unshaven, smelling a little like dog. I'll go into town tomorrow (Matt said the roads were ok) get a few things, stop at the museum, take a sponge bath and shave, wash my hair; all of my clean clothes are there (from last Tuesday, when I couldn't get them up the hill) and I need to change, I've been wearing the same pair of Carhartts for nine days. It's winter. The rules change. I care even less what I look like in winter. When B came over today, I'd created this little reading nook for myself, with blankets draped over chairs, sitting on a piece of foam-rubber I'd salvaged from the furniture store; in my velour bathrobe, over Carhartt bibs, over long underwear, hat and fingerless gloves, with an extra coverlet over my feet. Not concerned, at all, in the way I appeared to anyone else, just reading a book, and biding my time.