It's Finally Warm Here

Finally!  The switch has been flipped and the cold, rainy, and windy weather is over.  For now, anyway.  We rode to the lake today and it was just glorious.  The air was calm, it was warm and not hot.  It was very enjoyable.

The always lovely lake.

We reached the mid-point and had a tiny snack.  There was a man wearing a kayak outfit, practicing rolling the boat.  The maneuver is called an Eskimo Roll.  Here he is, pushing himself over.

Now he is laying on his side in the water.  He never did go all the way around.  I look at this, and then I look at the average person in a kayak and there's no way they could do this, nor would they.  The roll is a recovery technique for a capsized kayak.  Most of the kayaks we see, you'd just fall out of it and yell for help.

A marmot has moved into our rockery.  I don't want that.  They carry Hanta virus and ticks that cause Lyme and other dread diseases.  So, we've tried to barricade him out of his den.

This is one end.

This is the middle.  I really hope this keeps him out.  Poisoning is no bueno because then the predators eat the corpses, and they die.  Those are very heavy stones, they're basalt.  So, I doubt if he'll push them aside.

Some of the peonies have opened.  Some have not.  The extended period of time of thick clouds and rain seem to have glued the blossoms together.  I doubt if this will open.  It's gummed up and black on the tips.

The peony we bought last year has made an effort, but it's damaged, as well.

The best of the lot is the Fried Egg.

February 1, 2024 I had to buy a new lap top to replace the one I bought in December 2021.  Today the new laptop froze while I was not watching it.  It would not respond to the off button, control alt delete or anything.  After about 10 minutes or so, the fan started running hard, and it came up with a completely different greeting screen.  It seems to be fine now.  I wonder if it was a big upgrade Microsoft decided to push, or what.  While it was frozen I got the old broken laptop from downstairs, I had been using it to put stuff on the TV screen since it's Windows 10.  Thought it might be a good idea to read how to file a claim if current laptop stayed dead.

This is why I had to replace it.  The frame that holds the screen separated from the screen on the sides and bottom.  This time I bought an extended warranty for the new lap top.  It's interesting that it physically broke.

I mention this because if the freeze happens again, I'll know when the first time was.

Mustache the rabbit has returned.  We've been out three times this afternoon to ask him to eat elsewhere.  We get within two feet of him before he runs.  We still haven't seen the other two, so they may still be on the eaten list.