It's Just Winter

   The bitter cold we've come to expect every winter was delayed for a while, but it's here now. This morning in Yorkton, the static air temperature was (at the time of this post) -32 C, with a windchill of -45. And things aren't likely going to get any better, with the low tonight -36, and a high of -23 tomorrow.
   And we're not the only ones suffering this brutal cold snap, either. Parts of Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and other regions are also under extreme cold warnings, as are many parts of the States.
   What's behind it? A "Polar Vortex", where frigid air normally domed over the Arctic is being pushed down by an influx of warmer air to the polar area. We just used to call it "winter", but now it seems everything has to have a name. Examples: Colorado Low, Alberta Clipper, McKenzie Screamer. All names for systems that can drop a lot of snow on many areas. Again, we used to call it "winter".
   There is good news, though. Warmer temperatures (-17 for a high) are expected Thursday, and -9 Friday. But still, January's going out like a lion.
   Stay warm!!

TTFN

War

   War has broken out. But not involving any of the major, or even minor, powers globally. No, this war is between Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan and Stor Elvdal, Norway. And it's over a moose, or more precisely which community has the biggest moose statue in the world.
   For 31 years, the crown was held by Moose Jaw's Mac:

   But it was wrested from his antlers by Norway's Storelgen in 2015:

   The tale of the tape confirms it. Mac stands 9.8 meters tall, Storelgen 10.3. And the City of Moose Jaw is not taking it lying down, either.
   There are plans to alter antlers on Mac so he can regain the title of Worlds Largest Moose Statue, and a go-fund-me page has been set up to collect the $50 thousand (Canadian) needed for the surgery. But it won't be an easy fix. Mac will have to undergo a structural integrity check to see if alterations can be done safely. And there's no time frame to have the work done, either.
   But it may be a moot point. Apparently, the man who created "Big Moose" in Stor Elvdal is in the planning process of a new, even larger moose statue. One that would stand 20 meters tall. According to reports I've seen, the new statue would be placed near Big Moose to show the size differential.
   It's not known if, or even how, Moose Jaw would respond, should the Norwegian project go ahead. For now, maybe they could attach a 1 to 2 meter sculpture of a flying squirrel?

TTFN

Kitty Update

   We've had her for a week now, and things are progressing quite well. Minerva (which we've shortened to Mini) took a few days, quite naturally, to get accustomed to her new surroundings. And our other 2 cats. Our eldest boy was a little iffy with her to start, but seems to have accepted her. Although he still has a few reservations. Our other girl cat, who is timid to start, has chosen to mainly ignore our new family member, and hides in our bedroom, only to come out for bathroom and feeding breaks. In time, we're sure she'll come around as well.
   We took Mini to the vet for her first check-up, and everything is good so far. She's due for booster shots for her in a few weeks, and she'll need to be spayed in a few months. She's still a bundle of energy, and I have to admit she's hard to keep up with at times. We're also training her (as much as you can train a cat) about what is and isn't acceptable behaviour. Unacceptable is usually greeted with a stream of water from a garden mist sprayer. It doesn't hurt her by any means, but it reinforces the "no" command.
   She still remains "segregated" in my wife's home office at night, simply because she's so rambunctious, but has food, water and a litter pan at her disposal.
   All in all, progress on all fronts!

TTFN

Welcome To The Family

   That little ball of fur and unbound energy joined our family this past weekend. Regular viewers will know we had to say a sad "goodbye" to one of our cats last April, due to illness, and we'd been looking to fill the void he left ever since. We had an aborted attempt last year with an adult male, who attacked our other boy and my wife, meaning we had no choice but to return him to the shelter. Which broke our hearts.
   Since then, my wife has been asking if we could try again. We spoke to our local vet, and he suggested getting a kitten, rather than a full-grown cat. A search of the internet later, checking several agencies, lead us to her.
   My wife has named her "Minerva", who was 2 months old when we adopted her. As you can see, we think there's a good part of her that's Siamese or Burmese.
   How have or other 2 kitties taken to her? Our older boy was less than impressed when we let her out of the carrier, but has since, so far, seemed to have adapted a little. Our other girl cat simply hides when this one is out and about. But we're sure she'll set used to her as well.
   Welcome to you forever home, Minerva!

TTFN

The Land Of Living Skies

   I took this yesterday, just at the right time. It's sunrise over Yorkton, and it was gorgeous! Even taken on a crappy cell phone camera through one of the windows in our office.
   It was a bit on the cold side yesterday morning, with the air temperature -24 Celsius, and a windchill about -35 at the time.
   As mentioned, this was a lucky shot. I just happened to glance out the window of our newsroom, which faces south, and saw the glow. I ambled to an east-facing window in the building, and caught it. Again, just in time. And it is nice to live in the land of living skies.

TTFN

Back

   I admit I could've used a few more days (maybe a week) extra, but I am back after my week off over the New Year. I accomplished what I set out to do, which was basically nothing, other than re-charge the batteries for the next few months ahead.
   I even got lazy, sleeping in until 06:00. I'm paying the price today, after getting up at my usual time of about 03:45. I will be back in the full swing of things in the next day or so.
   New Years Eve was quiet, as is our norm. I didn't, or more properly couldn't, stay awake to greet the new year. And what does 2019 hold? Right now, I'm working on a few minor things, but there could be a change in our family make-up later this month.
   I'll have more on that later.

TTFN