Gee, thanks! Perked me right up. I've been feeling like a lazy sluggard lately.

Well, the GOP does have a broader agenda than that!

They want us to starve and freeze to death in the dark.

We only got down to 15 below last night, and we might hit a high of 6 above today.

The chows loved this kind of weather, but the 2 smaller dogs, a smooth coat JRT and a pom/mini beagle cross, rush out and back in within minutes! Every hour or so. I don't think they have to pee that much, but they run around the house a couple times to burn off excess energy. Although I had to shovel a path to the porch for my stove delivery this afternoon, I don't go out in these temps any oftener or longer than necessary.

This is grilled cheese and tomato soup lunch weather!

That's one of the things I'm thankful for even here in very rural RedNeckLand -

underground utilities and I guess because this little bump in the road town is the county seat, we have our own power plant. County hospital too. If power goes off, it's never for very long, and I've made sure my heat doesn't rely on electric ignition.

But I've been hearing on the news that much of the country's experiencing the harshest winter in 20-30 years, some places even the last 50 years - and some of those records are expected to fall. So even though the exit pipe on my washing machine presently has an ice plug in the trap, things could be a lot worse. Wish me luck getting it flowing again, though, or I'll be out of clean clothes before long. My friend down the street said bring a load down to her house if I need to, although of course I prefer to do it at home.

Well, best of everything to everyone now and later. At the moment I have to shovel a path to the house so the deliveryman can bring in my new kitchen range today. I'll keep telling myself it's worth it.

Thanks for the pics, and

a slightly belated Happy New Year to everyone. I was out like a light when the time rolled around last night. Getting old, I guess.

Well, any fruit in a storm, I say! Cheers.

BTW, everyone, keep Kid President in your thoughts and prayers. He seems to be doing well,

but he was in hospital recently.

How I'm treated by my red neighbors remains the LEAST important result of ObamaCare,

but I swear that sometimes I can sense a bit of softening in the attitude of some people who used to be hostile, even vicious. What makes me happiest about that is not the reduced social strain but rather the people's gradual awakening I can hope for, and especially the vindication of my beloved Party and its leader. Not that we needed vindicating, but it still tastes as sweet.

Thanks! To adapt a phrase from an even less respectable rag than MAIL,

we can enjoy it for the pictures w/o reading the articles!

In the top one, maybe Bo's telling the Prez, "Don't worry - no GOP's gonna sneak in here while I'm on watch!"