Exhausted after running errands today in single-digit temps, with a brisk November breeze dropping the wind-chill well below zero, I was more than ready to snuggle into my favorite chair with a soft quilt and a dachshund by 4:00 pm.
Ronni was ready to snuggle too, having accompanied me on my frigid outings. I don’t usually allow either of the dogs to come along on super cold days like today. But the number one reason for venturing out at all today had been to take Miss hot-to-trot, sassy-pants Rhonda on her weekly date with the RATS!
Her favorite Barn Hunt rat-wranglers, Laurie and Valerie, had hidden five live rats (safely ensconced in tubes) for Ronni to hunt for among the stacks of straw bales today. What a treat!
Ronni launched her sleek, naked self from the start box with a joyous yip, racing up, over, around and through the tunnels in search of her prey, finding and pouncing eagerly on each one in turn.
Oh! A good time was had! I’m pretty sure she found and alerted on all five rats in about three minutes, but who’s counting? It’s all about the hunt, after all!
A short while later, bundled back up in her double-felted, polar-fleece coat and buried in a blankie on the heated passenger seat of the car, Ronni was more than happy to nap while Mom did such mundane tasks as picking up mail and shopping for kitty litter.
Finally home, I poured a mug of steaming hot Chai tea and settled myself, prepared to relax and enjoy a long, mellow Alaskan sunset.
This time of year, the sun is pretty much below the horizon by 4 pm, so any brilliant displays of neon orange and glowing purple have already faded away. What remains, and happily spends a leisurely time transitioning from sunset into twilight, are soft, bruised lavenders and pale pinks, glowing softly against shadowy white mountains in the distance.
There was just enough light yet for nuthatches and chickadees to be swooping in for a few late snack from the bird feeder before tucking themselves in for the night.
Because of the below zero temps this past week, I’ve kept the suet bars well stocked too, and my effort has been obviously appreciated.
I watched, enamored by the dusk antics of a trio of chickadees, until the last of my winged friends darted away for the night … and watched on as the sky slowly darkened and the twinkling lights on my little deck scenario began to glimmer. It’s 5:00 pm.
In another half an hour or so, the lights silhouetting my little trees will be all I can see in the otherwise dark Alaskan night. Time to turn some lights on indoors and maybe do some spinning. Nite nite. 🦉
De & the Dachsies - Our Rambles 
Love the lights…magic touch to the cold and dark!
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