Tuesday, November 07, 2017

November...

 No sun—no moon!
        No morn—no noon—
No dawn—
        No sky—no earthly view—
        No distance looking blue—
 No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,
   No comfortable feel in any member—
No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds,
        November!

~Thomas Hood 
.........................................
November days have been colder than usual, and suddenly quiet.  I am such a bird lover and always have a listening ear for them, and suddenly there is silence. The birds have gone -- almost no birds as Thomas Hood says.  Canada Geese flying south in high Vs overhead are still on the move.  Last night we got home around 10 pm and there were geese flying above us.  Such an odd thing to hear the geese calling to each other at night. 

The cold has come down suddenly too.  Last night our thermometer registered -1* and that just feels so icy for November.  The sudden cold and a dusting of snow inspired us to get busy and cut wood for the wood stove.  Although we were below zero this morning, the temperature climbed all the way up to 36*.  That sounds chilly, but it was perfect weather for cutting wood.  I kept unzipping my jacket and then took off my hat, but quickly zipped up and put my hat back on when we stopped for a coffee break.  Hubby and CarpenterSon used the chain saws while two granddaughters and I carried logs to the pick-ups.  It's good, satisfying work, and I really like end result -- the warmth of a wood fire burning on a cold day.  

I'm still finding things to sketch and paint for my nature journal, but with all of the "No" of November, it's getting harder and harder to do it, but  I will persist!  Thanks for stopping by.

13 comments:

  1. Tis November here as well although not as cold; today is rainy, windy and 40'ish but wind chill takes it down a tad. Anyone showing up is fed and horses extra. Earlier I thought it a good day to take a nap but as the ole feller said, "No rest for the weary and the righteous don't need none!" (Thanks to Jan Karon for making the old saying popular again.)
    Be safe out there, keep warm.

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  2. Your journal picture is lovely! I esp. like the barn and the trees. I find trees difficult to paint, but yours look quite good.
    We are not very cold yet, but today is decidedly chilly -- we need socks and long pants and a sweater, haha :) Keep painting! I'm dreading when I must paint snow or winter scenes. They're quite hard! Love your description of that good wood-chopping work.

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  3. (Gulp!) That does sound brrrr... cold - I've never been in such weather in my life!

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  4. Lovely pictures. My goodness that is cold! I am so glad you have been keeping up with your journal. I love getting my wood for my stove.

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  5. I just checked and minus 1 F. is minus 18 Celsius. Can it really be -18 in the morning this early? I grew up in Manitoba and I know about cold but now that I'm old (er) I feel the cold so much more and can't fathom going outside in it.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, it really was -1* F. And it's chilly. However, today it was about 20*F with a 20 mph wind and it felt much colder.

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  6. I was so concentrated on the cold that I forgot to mention that I like your journal pages, esp. the cow.

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  7. Ha! I had to read that outloud to hubby who also chuckled at the end. We even had snow already, yikes! We'll be cutting more wood when we head to our son's for an early Thanksgiving. It is satisfying work. Great journal art!

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  8. I tried to comment here yesterday (or the day before), but it wouldn't let me. And now I am in my car, in the library parking lot, using wifi. I don't have time to say all I wanted to say (plus, it is super unwieldy trying to balance this laptop and hit the keys) except that I love the things you are making and doing! It inspires me. Thanks, Jody!

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  9. Our wood is all in too - such a good feeling! It became cold this week - last week it was 70F! So unusual. But it's seasonal now and the woodstove is glowing. So cosy!

    Kathie
    I love your nature journal - I do some painting- mainly bday cards for the family but also some landscape painting. I have lots to learn but I'm enjoying it!

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  10. Jody,
    Your art journals are beautiful! A special treasure!
    Joyce

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  11. I have lovely memories of cutting and stacking firewood with my hubby. Nothing like a woodstove!

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  12. Our November is quite warm and sunny still but we've been promised some rain at least next week. You've treated us to another lovely post here and I enjoyed the Thomas Hood poem. Keep warm, my friend.
    Amalia
    xo

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