New Year's Morning 2009

The sun is shining brightly this morning and the sky is the pale blue of a robin's egg. The temperature is far from what a robin's appearance would herald in spring. It was 8 degrees when I awoke.

My sleep was fitful last night. The wind has so many characters: one moment it is a wolf in the full moon's light, the next it is a locomotive on a long stretch of prairie track, but most often here it steals the character of the sea from which it comes...roaring and pounding as if it were waves upon the shore.

I laughed at myself in the mirror yesterday when I returned from my walk to the Post Office, drug store, and bagel shop. An umbrella would have been useless in the wind, and I neglected to attach my hood to my coat so my head remained bare. It snowed the entire time...a wet, sticky snow. When I came back to the cottage and went to dry my hair, the snow had soaked it and then refrozen it in little strands with icicles hanging from the tips! It was a funny sight, but next time it snows I'll be sure to take the time to attach my hood before venturing out.

The North Wind

The North wind doth blow and we shall have snow,
And what will poor robin do then, poor thing?
He'll sit in a barn and keep himself warm
and hide his head under his wing, poor thing.

Today felt like the beginning of winter. The high temp was 51 degrees, and it's expected to fall to the low 40's tonight. That in itself wouldn't be anything but a normal fall day, but the wind was a steady 25mph with gusts up to 35mph. Even the locals were taken by surprise at the sudden change. Tomorrow should be back up to 57, but the wind will continue. One lady at a souvenir shop close to the ferry landing worried that she planned to leave tonight...if the ferry was running. Apparently those who had just come across had had a pretty rough ride. Well, this is my home for the next 8 months for better or for worse!

I did get a photo of the cove in Vineyard Haven, and the waves were no longer lazy as they were a couple of days ago. They were choppy and rolling over each other, clawing to get further onto the beach.