The start of 2026 in Avren has been rather gloomy on a number of fronts, including the weather front. Early in the month we had coverings of snow that looked beautiful under blue skies as the shifting sunlight highlighted the different textures throughout the day, moving from the glittering crystals on our stack of old terracotta roof tiles, to the thick icicles hanging from the guttering, and to the soft tinges of pinks and blues as sunset approached.
The snow lasted a couple of days, melted away, and was then replaced with a new layer. However, the past few days have been characterised by heavy mist and a cold dampness that clings to your bare skin like a spider’s web you can’t brush away. Today is the first day we have been able to see the horizon. Our wood burner has been working overtime, as have I by chopping wood to satiate its hunger. This is a wonderfully mindful and satisfying activity most of the time, but less so when you are subjected to an icy stiletto wind sharper than your axe.
To other matters….
I think we have become a favourite “prowl through” fast food restaurant for the local population of feral cats. We dutifully feed Jake, our “adopted” black cat who was here before we moved in, but he is often joined by various uninvited feline guests. Some do not dress for the occasion, thinking it is ok to turn up looking bedraggled in grubby and ill-fitting coats. Others walk proudly over our property in shiny white and black gowns, completely untroubled and unperturbed. They probably think that doing something useful like chasing rats is beneath them. We saw a new visitor the other day, maybe a tourist from out of town. She wore an interestingly patterned coat of black, brown and grey, with a striped tail like a racoon. Straight off the catwalk, one might say.
And on that witty note, I think I will draw this post to a close before I embarrass myself further.
Psychologist on the Move 