The weatherman was finally correct, unfortunately:

The image at the top of the page is twenty-four hours earlier than the second picture. Snow started here two days ago and is forecast to continue until morning. To date (and I realize winter doesn’t begin for another four weeks or so), we’ve had more so far than we had all of last winter. The first major winter snowfall of 2024 happened in spring! Of course, it was closely followed by another and then over two months of rainstorms, one after another. In the course of three short months, this portion of southern Alberta went from potentially catastrophic drought conditions to an abundance of water for farmers and lawns. Aah, the unpredictability of nature.

I don’t mind snow, so long as it’s on tv or in a picture. And I enjoy the first snowfall, but that’s where my appreciation for the white stuff ends. As I tell people who are foolish enough to ask, I wouldn’t mind the stuff if it arrived absence of cold weather.

On the plus side of things, Christmas decorations have appeared in the stores, which adds enjoyment to this time of year. With our children living in a different city, it’s harder to appreciate the festive season. Thank goodness I have my dogs, Haley and Daisy, to cheer me up. They enjoy my company, especially when we go for walks, and my affection for Pete and Repeat, as I call them, is growing. That will have to suffice until my daughters arrive for the holiday.

As for the sneak peak I promised, I have an announcement to make. Me and my partners in crime, Jann Rowland and Lelia Eye, have a Christmas novella for you. It begins with Mrs. Bennet’s vigorous disappointment over Elizabeth’s refusal to marry Mr. Collins, and concludes as you would expect. Rather than go into any great detail of the plot, I have permission to share the cover image:

Look for the story on Kindle in the next week or two and enjoy this latest tale of seasonal antics.

I was tempted to include a Christmas song here but that should wait at least until the end of next week, after US Thanksgiving. Instead, in deference to my title, I have a charming cover of the Bob Dylan classic referred to in the title:

Enjoy the coming week.