![Heartland [VHS]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41F1KJ7FPFL._SL75_.jpg){kind=small}
The longest night
Monday, December 21, 2009 at 10:35AM A balmy 18 degrees and a very lazy morning on the shortest day of the year. It's solstice, the beginning of winter for so many, and a real milestone in the north country. In fact, it may just be the most meaningful day of the year for me, and I suspect for many others.
We'll probably delay our celebration until tomorrow, when we can relax and spend the whole day together... true to our usual form. I like the idea of solstice being on the Tuesday the 22nd anyway, but I'm funny that way.
Yesterday Ben made more progress opening up the community road, pushing the snow berms back. He's still got some work to do on the steepest, narrowest, windiest part of California Creek Hill- but one thing at a time. He quit early to spend the afternoon with our daughter, so I could run to town to meet with a bunch of chicken-goat people.
Today he's off to the hangar to start repair work on the airplane... he's got to replace the hinge on his lower door, and do a few other things to keep it in top operating condition. It won't be long until he flies away, back to the trapline again.
Meanwhile, I'm trying to decide whether to harvest the last meatbird and an incompetent rooster this morning, before spending the rest of the day making cheese. I'm feeling lazy and a little bit indecisive, so I'll likely delay the harvest until later in the week, unless something in the coop changes my mind.
Today's cheddar will be a three pound block. I was hoping to try to squeeze four pounds into my press this time, but I didn't set enough milk out to thaw last night... and I don't feel like driving down to the neighbors to pick up some more milk, so three pounds it will be.
Yep, it's a lovely day. No sun (of course), no storm, no frigid temperatures... just a quiet, dark day on our Alaskan homestead. But I know a place up on the mountain where the sun hits 365 days a year... so you'll know where to find me right around 1:30 this afternoon. Yeah. I think that's a plan. Snowshoes for me and a sled for the child, and a bit of sun in our eyes on this shortest day of the year.
Reader Comments