Have you noticed that there is an almost magical stillness when it snows?
As though the earth has gone quiet. And nature has hushed for a time, all the creatures moving quietly.
It is that feeling you get when it is a semi-dark, cold morning. With few out and milling about.
Somehow it makes you feel warm and cozy looking out at the white blanket covering the ground. You can almost feel the stillness that comes when snow is layered on the ground.
Why This Is:
There’s actually a scientific reason for this.
Snow absorbs sound waves because it is made of ice crystals, which have space between them. These open spaces absorb sound waves, creating that serene quiet that happens right after a snowstorm.
One study found that just 2 inches of snow can absorb 60% of sound waves.
Landscape Of Snow:
The snow stopped yesterday. So today it is just part of the landscape outside. Squirrels and birds are ferreting around for berries and nuts.
Ivy loves to watch them run and jump and hop along. She can see them quite well against the white of the snow.
There are so many residents who feed the birds that I know they won’t go hungry.
A Different Yard This Year:
I wonder what my yard will look like with three tall trees in it; two in front and one in the back, when the leaves return? It will definitely make a difference in what I plant because there won’t be much sunlight.
But then, that is a challenge, isn’t it? Being faced with something different and knowing you’ll have to get creative to make it as beautiful as the flowers you previously planted.
Cleaning The Walkways Of Snow:
Every few hours someone comes by to shovel the walkways. I’m so thankful for that. Though I haven’t gone farther than the mailbox just outside my door in a couple of days.
I feel sorry for those who live upstairs. But as I watch the men shoveling my sidewalk, I see them also climb the steps and shovel those steps as well.
I listen to the babbling brook on my sound machine 24/7. And today I have “Lighthouse” playing on my CD player.
Gracie Mae & Mornings:
Gracie Mae is always very curious in the mornings.
Before, when she was younger, she would eat and go take a long nap. But now that routine has changed.
She just jumped up on the table next to my chair so I was able to get a photo for you.
The coloring and markings she has are like no other cat I’ve seen before. It’s like little smudges of ginger that she accidentally got on herself.
Here you can see her from the side and how the ginger smudges are around her eyes and ears.
She has brought so much joy to my life. Ivy too.
Mischievous Ivy:
Of course, Ivy is a stinker and manages to get into all kinds of scrapes. Like inadvertently turning on the vacuum cleaner.
While Gracie roams around, silent as can be, scoping out the place.
I still wonder if Gracie can hear. She never turns when you call her name.
When there’s someone at the door, she will run to the bedroom. But I wonder if she’s just hearing vibrations.
What I’m Watching On TV:
I’m watching “Castle Rock” on Hulu now.
Castle Rock is an American psychological horror streaming television series, featuring and inspired by characters, settings, and themes from the stories created by Stephen King and his fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine.
What I’m Reading:
I downloaded “Where The Forest Meets The Stars” from the Amazon Prime library and have been reading it the last few nights on my Kindle.
It is a beautifully written and quite enchanting story about opening yourself up to love after an incredibly painful loss.
In this gorgeously stunning debut, a mysterious child teaches two strangers how to love and trust again.
After the loss of her mother and her own battle with breast cancer, Joanna Teale returns to her graduate research on nesting birds in rural Illinois, determined to prove that her recent hardships have not broken her.
She throws herself into her work from dusk to dawn, until her solitary routine is disrupted by the appearance of a mysterious child who shows up at her cabin barefoot and covered in bruises.
The girl calls herself Ursa, and she claims to have been sent from the stars to witness five miracles. With concerns about the child’s home situation, Jo reluctantly agrees to let her stay―just until she learns more about Ura’s past.
Jo enlists the help of her reclusive neighbor, Gabriel Nash, to solve the mystery of the charming child. But the more time they spend together, the more questions they have.
How does a young girl not only read but understand Shakespeare? Why do good things keep happening in her presence? And why aren’t Jo and Gabe checking the missing children’s website anymore?
Though the three have formed an incredible bond, they know difficult choices must be made. As the summer nears an end and Ursa gets closer to her fifth miracle, her dangerous past closes in.
When it finally catches up to them, all of their painful secrets will be forced into the open, and their fates will be left to the stars.
I have always been aware of the “hush” after a fresh snow, but didn’t know there was a scientific reason. You will definitely figure out your garden situation — of that I have no doubt! I combine different kinds of coleus, caladium and impatiens for brightly colored shade pots. They end up being my favorites each year. Beautiful pictures of Gracie! The book sounds wonderful – making a note of it.
I’ve had wonderful luck with angel wing begonias in filtered light… more shade than not. They have been real show stoppers at the end of my driveway and at my front door. Of course, hostas are my favorite and there are so man varieties. I know this light will be a bonus compared to how so many of your plants roasted at the old apartment.
I’ve felt that way about snow but thought it was just me…being me.
We’re do for a foot here in upstate NY,doubly thankful for the young maintenance man that keeps everything shovelled and salted and my buddy who shovels out my car!
My sister in law had a white,blue eyed cat that wasn’t deaf,Albert,he could certainly hear that can opener at supper time!
Stay safe and warm and say hi to the furgirls from Bella & Bud,my mischief makers😺😻!
Every place we lived where it snowed, I’d say, “it’s like the world is on hold”. Silence was definitely golden.
I hope you had a wonderful day.
The snow is beautiful ..giant soft flakes blowing every which way…all the birds are gathered at the suet and sunflower seeds. It is still winter here in Wi. I am longing for Spring days on the porch…sometimes winter makes me sad 😥…your blog cheers me up ….We have lots of shade…just so you know petunias still grow beautifully here and begonias…I have learned that some things that say full sun do good here without burning…💞
Have you thought about putting a red checked valance on one of those expanda rods, in front of your kitchen light. Then if you can find a picture to use heavy duty command strips to hold it on the mirror. Maybe install a small shelf below the mirror to set a couple pretties on. Just a thought!! Hope your having a great day. It is snowing here in Wisconsin today.
Well, well. You’re just about right on target for what I have planned and the curtain that I’ve already hung.
You always had a great close up view of your garden at your other place which helped with the strip mall outside the fence. You always made a little oasis for yourself. Bet you are still adapting to a long distance view out your windows now with such pretty landscape of trees and the apartment buildings nestled sweetly in between like a little village. Half your outdoor beautifying already seems done here! So happy for you 💓
I love snow! Nothing makes me happier than being outside shoveling at night when there is no one around listening to the silence of the world. Enjoy your day Brenda!
Hostas come in a wonderful range of size and leaf color – limey greens, blue greens, and cream with green. And they get those tall stalks of flowers. Impatiens are also true shade lovers and are coral, all shades of pink, white, orange,and red. Some are bi-color. For shade, I would stick to the regular ones, not the fancy bigger varieties. They bloom all season and, like hostas, really don’t need a lot of care. Very cheery.
Great in container pots.
Happy day,
Mary
most white cats are deaf, I had an all white cat and he was deaf. some say it depends on their eye color. that I don’t know. ask you vet.
Yes. Was going to say the same.
One of our earliest vets, told us blue eyes in kittens & catties can mean deafness.
Unsure how they test to see for sure.
A good idea yo ask your vet Brenda.
P. S. Gracie is just so beautiful.
Ginger would have been a fun name for her!!
We had a precious Cocker Spaniel Ginger!
Love the name. ❤
It’s nice seeing pictures outside of this new place. It was hard to imagine how your former place looked outside other than your lovely enclosed patio so it’s refreshing to see how your neighbors also live there. You seem to be in good company there and you will enjoy seeing how everyone spruces up for warmer weather. Thanks for the book review and it’s now on my to read list. Enjoy those kitties today snug inside. We have so much to be thankful for here on our own soil compared to what is happening overseas.
It is snowing here right now, too. The big, fluffy kind of flakes that flutter and swirl to the ground lightly. Even though I’m over winter and longing for spring, I have to admit, the flakes look pretty. I don’t mind shoveling our porch and front sidewalk, it’s the double driveway that’s a pain. Good thing I don’t have to do that often – only when Brian is at work.
I never noticed before that Gracie had ginger markings on her face. She’s so pretty! She certainly has that ginger striped tail, so probably either her mother or father were a ginger cat. She might be deaf – a lot of white cats are. We had a pure white cat when we were first married – Sasha – but she wasn’t deaf. Did you know it also depends on their eye color? From Cornell College of vet medicine:
“Researchers found that only 17 to 22 percent of white cats with non-blue eyes are born deaf. The percentage rises to 40 percent if the cat has one blue eye, while upwards of 65 to 85 percent of all-white cats with both eyes blue are deaf. Some of these cats are deaf in only one ear.”
Enjoy the silence of your pretty snowfall!
Gracie certainly has unusual markings. I noticed her tail is pretty colorful though. I’m sure they are enjoying the wild outdoor animals. I heard my Norah chattering the other day after my daughter put the wild bird seed out. Such entertainment for them.
We have a ferral cat we adopted thru Working Whiskers from our local Shelter. She has been living in my husbands workshop. I leave the door propped open for her. Lately she will be in the rafters when I go in and I talk to her and tell her how beautiful she is. Ask her about her mousing adventures. This morning she greeted me at the door. Then scurried away and then back again. I wonder if there will be a day I get to touch her. She has a bobbed tail and is beautiful. She is doing her job as the mice population in the chicken coop Is way down!
This is the first time I’m noticing the flag displayed between floors. Does every building have them as the responsibility of management? If not, is that one yours? And how would you get up there to refresh it as needed? Seems kind of perilous a job for the upper tenant!
As for Gracie ignoring you…ha! Most of my cats do that. However, I’d once heard white cats are often deaf. As a child we had one who was stray. A male that we took in. He would go lay down in the middle of the road in front of our house. I assumed he was deaf. Had to confine him to indoor living only! But then my current male, Charlie, also solid white, loves being called by name and responds immediately. Cats! Who really knows what goes on between those perky pairs of ears?!
I don’t have a flag. I’m just assuming maybe some of the tenants are veterans?
When the leaves come out I guess you’ll know if it’s a shady garden all day, or part of the day, or whatever. And then there’s getting use to some shade loving plants. So the first year there might be one of experimenting. It will surely be fun though. Gracie certainly looks grown up now.