🛺 Aha, the 12 the of II

 🛺 sneaking up on the Ides. 
 ' boro a little colder. bright and slightly hazy up in the sky

roads are clear ish w/ a bit of slush ? [ will take a peak in a bit ]

Further looking ahead. Forecast says ' warming for the next four days '

Road conditions - plowed. Mostly bare but patchy snow / ice visible 

Day is much clearer since AM. and decidedly cooler for sure

Errands. The hot table at Skyland [ les Mets Chinois ]
Shoppers Drugs, for anti itch cream [ occasionally, I break out in a general skin allergic reaction ]
Mailed letters [ after returning home and heading out to the post box ] 

Skin allergy. Why ? Dunno. When. Anytime.
OK what happens ? A pimple pops up - leave it alone - and another and another. spreads up my arms and across my back - maybe
Hydrochloride derivatives knock it down, antihistamine stops it

This pimple thing started on Monday and I took the antihistamine. Seems quiescent

🚂 .... FE 11

 🚂 apparently, we are in the hurricane s eye, metaphorically speaking. We will have freezing point temperatures [ in and around ] w/ very cold nights. 
the prediction is a month out [ w /some glitches likely ]. snow will be intermittent and so far no biggie dump is looming.

The Great Lakes are iced over and this reduces pick up moisture and hence less chance of big snow events. The corollary is, colder air is possible.

' boro is dull looking, sombre. BUT nice conditions for going out.

🥁 ... well, maybe not ......

🥁 ... winter is not over. BUT we'll see 32 F for the day and likely a few days hovering close 
it is white out there.
I need to check on the water flow off the gutters and downpipe.

reporting. yes, the day seems as advertised. snow fell as might be expected in slightly warmer [ thus more humid conditions ].

BTW. gutter and downpipes appear working properly

🥶 ---- > almost 🔥

 🥶 ---- > almost 🔥. Let s be careful now, the temperature is scheduled for near 24 F. BUT 14 degrees higher than the days leading up to now 

bright and clear. looking ahead, predictions are for + / - freezing for a week. And trust me that will be warm for us

follow up. the thermometer readings are : 13 F for now

The story. Our group health insurance has changed providers and name.
Sign up. Sure. 
Them : did you get a letter
Us      : nope
Them : did you get a welcome email
Us :  yes

turns out we don't have a registration  code

Thus, I called in, and a nice operator stayed w / me online and registered us.
the Skinny. she took 15 min to walk me through the process 
I figure at the very least, that was a 2 hr hand wringing, head throbbing session by myself

the day is almost comfortable for the southern Great White North

🥶 🥶 ... encore, triste ....

 🥶 🥶 ... I'm back !!!!. Yes, 1 F or 31 degrees to freezing [ warmth ? ]

Bright and clear. Cold as glass. What ? sorry - bright and cold, clear as glass

reporting. we had a shooting in a corner coffee shop. say, 1 1/2 km by car, closer if walking
I waited to mention this event, time to reflect on the meaning

meanwhile. stats on Amazon, our account, says 30 purchases in 3 months. and be informed that this period spanned Xmas. We purposefully chose to order online. M .. would find it hard to get out. Still.
Admittedly, I have loosened up on spending. Foot massager etc but we are aging in place 
gracefully ??? 

this morning, I did the Giant Tiger run for groceries [ Cheerios, cheese etc ]

Got exercise in. but. I didn't turn on the TV - decided that meditative silence was fine for aerobics 

🥶 .... so, not so cozy

 🥶 in the ' boro or the house. we are in deep cold

and not much doing here inside. some odd jobs, framed a picture - pondered a collage that I'm working on. not much joy 
BUT there is satisfaction in pondering

🔥 .... coziness in the ' boro

 🔥 the story.
Routine furnace maintenance. Crack in the heat exchanger.
New furnace required. And water heater is too old to chance a failure
Cold cold day on Monday. And just as cold through Thursday [ install date ]

We had space heaters and a fireplace room.

' boro had some snow fall not an inch
snow means a low pressure system is around and temperature reads 28F. Colder tonight tho '
ditto w / massive wind chill some 20 degrees

chores involved returning alcohol containers
dropped in at Skyland for the hot table and sundries. Also, we are trying golden threadfin [ like sea bream ] hope we like sea bream

sort of an alternate to Cpt Highliner breaded  ......... something