January 29, 2014 – Wednesday

-4/cloudy/windy

Pentoga Road

I’m up entirely too early this morning. After putting wood in the stove at midnight, I went back to bed and awakened at 4 AM to load it again. What I found was a house whose temperature was in the low forties and a cold stove. Rather than catching, the wood had smothered any coals that lie underneath.

There was nothing to do but get dressed and build the fire from scratch, something I’ve not had to do in the past month. Keeping a fire going is like baking with sourdough; you always keep a pinch to begin the next batch.

As I sat shivering on the floor in front of stove this morning, I was reminded of those days in the Arctic Circle, when I’d awaken to -30 degrees inside the camp and desperately try to get a small pile of kindling to catch fire. This wasn’t that bad, but it served as a reminder to take better care of my coals overnight as long as this cold spell lasts. Currently, it’s up to 55 degrees in the living room and the house should be approaching a balmy 70 by the time I wake up Sargie.

I rode with Sargie five miles down the road on her way to work and walked home Tuesday morning. With the temperature registering -24 and a heavy northwest headwind, I probably should have stayed home, but I get cabin fever and my feet get itchy to walk somewhere, to put one in front of the other.

In the end, I made it just fine. My face got frostbit in several places, but it was nothing that hasn’t happened hundreds of times before. Right now, it looks as though I have a patchy sunburn. In another day or two, it will be unnoticeable.

The rest of the day was spent inside, keeping the stove filled with wood, grading, reading, doing correspondence, watching a movie, and doing a bit of cleaning. Brutus and I slipped out at one point so I could work up a wheelbarrow full of wood. Despite his delicate puppy dog feet, we also spent time playing fetch. He has plenty of energy when in the warmth of the house, usually sitting alongside my chair hoping I’ll get up so he can walk with me. Where I go, he goes. I go to the kitchen, he walks with me. To the garage? He’s out the door, even for a few seconds, then back in the house when I enter. It’s a great thing when we’re outdoors, but after being confined inside this winter, it could drive me crazy.

Brutus’s assistance especially wasn’t appreciated yesterday afternoon while I was perched upon the throne in the reading room and had failed to close the bathroom door tightly. Brutus used his head to bang the door open then proceeded to walk in, sit in front of me, and lay his head in my lap. Bless his heart. I know he’s trained to be with me, but there are times I wish he’d be a bit more selfish.

So Brutus and I played fetch late yesterday afternoon after until he simply ran out of energy. The little guy was one tired puppy last night and seemed to have no trouble imitating a bear rug in the middle of the living room floor.

Luke called last night saying the kids wanted to read to us via Skype. Sargie and I spent the next half hour being thoroughly entertained by Coleman and Abigail. Coleman, who is in first grade, read an entire book, and Abigail recited some poetry. We loved it all and are hoping that they will call back soon to read again. I’ve got nothing but time and what better way than to share it with grandbabies?

Sargie was home early and arrived bearing a family-sized pizza. I’m not sure if it’s because we’re pigs, or possibly it’s the cold weather, but regardless, there was little left over. We spent the rest of the evening watching television. It was a good night to hibernate.

I rather imagine that today will be a repeat of yesterday… and the day before… and the day before that. Temperatures are to moderate a bit and it’s actually to get above zero. Unfortunately, the ten-day forecast indicates little relief and I heard a meteorologist say last night that February is looking to be much the same as January has been. I’ll spend most of my day inside feeding the stove.

Sargie closes tonight so it will be long day for her. Thankfully, she is off on Friday and Saturday this week; a rare two days in a row. I think we’ll go to Green Bay for at least one of those days. I’m ready to get out of Dodge, even if it’s a temporary reprieve, and Sargie’s always up for a road trip.

So with that, I think I might actually sneak back upstairs and crawl into bed alongside Sargie. There’s still an hour and a half before the alarm sounds and honestly, I could use a bit more sleep.

But rest assured, even in slumber, I’m relatively certain my mind continues to think deep thoughts.

After all, a man’s work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road…