Then The Snows Came

Well we have now had snow out here in the wilds. Not a great deal, but enough to make getting about difficult. Normally the village tractors would have been out and about, with plough blades on the front, coughing and wheezing as they clear the roads. As we live up a small lane they haven't been to us yet, well they did when the snow first fell, as we have a two foot wall of snow at the bottom of the slope from our driveway gates. At the moment it seems like the village has gone into hibernation, nothing much is stirring anywhere, chickens are huddled up somewhere and the village dogs seem to have developed asthma when they bark.
Our dogs and cats have been out playing in the snow, Sirius normally ends up with a pile of snow on the end of his nose as he snuffles the ground. Albert and Razzy have been rolling and jumping in it like a pair of overgrown kittens. Mr Cat and Stinky don't do snow if they can possibly avoid it, and because Fenric is a Boxer and only has short hair he tends to feel the cold. Gremlin, our white cat, keeps coming home with black oily patches all over himself, maybe he has been doing oil changes on the tractors. Bonnie always lets us know when Grems is about, as she seems fascinated by him and barks and prances about whenever she catches sight of him.
To get out of the village at this time of year we go out past the cemetery, due to potholes we would normally avoid this stretch of road, but it is the shortest route out to get to a main road. It is also the flattest route with no ditches either side, so if we do do a Margot Fontaine we aren't going to come to too much harm, either to ourselves or the car.
Yesterday the weather was glorious, the sun was shining, the sky was blue and the snow a dazzling white. There was a constant drip, drip, drip from roofs and trees, and the temperature soared to 16C at one point. Looking at the weather forecast the weather was due to improve, and we could say goodbye to the sub zero temperatures. As I found out this morning the respite was short lived, last night's temperatures dropped (I did notice -8C at one point, and have been told it went to -14C). All of yesterday's thaw has now turned to ice, and the 'main road' through the village has become a skating rink. I was hoping that like the other year the tops of the trees would be encased in ice, when the sun hit them it looked as though they were made from glass.
Luckily during yesterday's thaw Mum and Dad managed to escape the village, as Mum had to have a small operation today. It might be one thing to get out of the village, but we also have to take into account will we be able to get back. We do have winter tyres on the car and have reduced the pressure in them, thanks for the tip Kristin. The next thing on our must do list is renew the car insurance as that is due this week. Hopefully the slow thaw will continue for long enough to enable us to do it later in the week, failing that it will be a trip on the bus, which is an adventure in itself.
Well the log baskets are full, and the fires are banked in so it is now time to go and feed the menagerie while I can still see what I am doing. Then up to Mum and Dad's to feed their cats. I could always use my head torch, but do I really want to slip and slide through the village like some demented Dalek?
I was going to take some photos and post them on here, but sod's law the batteries in the camera were flat. I must remember what they always tried to drum into us in the Navy, 'Prior planning prevents piss poor performance'. Oh well, at least they are on charge ready for when we get the proper snow in the New Year.