Storm Xaver visits Germany

Yesterday a storm came to Germany from Newfoundland and killed some people in England along its way. Germans were told to leave their coastal homes, and airports, trains, and ferry services were shut down. The wind was 100 mph and I was worried our self-build horse shelter would fly away. I stood out in it with Bellis and Mara last night as it was attacked by the wind. For some reason my husband didn't want ot join us. They are calling it a hurricaine but, not being from the south, I don't know how to qualify that.


When large gusts came it was pretty tense. The donkey was paying close attention to the wind, kind of meditating, but with both ears forward so I know she was focusing. I know she'd leave the shelter if she felt it was about to fly away. In bad storms, Baasha didn't trust it either. It is a mobile shelter, after all, and the animals can sense that. Mara had that inward look in her eyes as she tried to judge her own safety, and for a long while she hovered her muzzle over Bellis' back for security. Two insulation sheets fell down from the ceiling; Mara did not like that.

Finally the gusts were less frequent, and I felt it was safe to go to bed.

We woke to the sound of the neighbor's car unable to get traction, and since she has a gravel driveway, I knew it couldn't be ice, it had to be snow.

SNOW! Not having to drive in it is the best thing ever. I just have to make it to a mailbox to return my "netflix" (Big Bang Theory and Deep Space 9). Since I don't have to go anywhere, I scraped the snow off J's car and shovelled the driveway. Frustratingly, the snow kept coating the car as fast as I could get it off, and there was nothing I could do about it. I'm glad it's not below freezing, there is no danger of ice, at least.

I would enjoy the snow a lot more if it wasn't guaranteed to be here 'til Easter. It loses its novelty quickly when it's several months of monochrome every year.

My man is confident driving in snow with his little Yaris. He didn't even wait for me to finish shovelling, he just took off, wheels spinning a bit. Sadly, that car must be sold because we only got a second car so I could get to work. (But not before he drives to Switzerland tomorrow! Who does that?)

Mara, of course, was out in the snow when I went out to check on them. She is completely ambivalent to bad weather, despite having almost no Winter coat. I've given up trying to get her out of the rain, she just doesn't notice it. Now she's white with a blanket of wet snow, and the donkey is perfectly dry. The donkey cannot abide moisture of any kind touching her.

The chickadees are on my new bird feeder constantly today. I can see them from where I sit at this laptop.

Since I knew a big snowstorm was coming, I treated myself to a trip to the pet store and got myself some Guppies for my aquarium. I'd been wanting to add Guppies since seeing them in a tank in Rome, I just had to wait for my Betta to die, and last week he obliged. Now I have all these colorful fish, it's like having a lot of Bettas that get along. They're so active they give me the impression they are starving. I'm relieved that the Danios are not attacking them, the Guppies are pretty confident and just as quick as the Danios so it seems like a good mix. Funnily, all the Tetras hid from the Guppies the first few hours, but it's a peaceful kingdom. Now that I'm snowed in, it's great to have "fish tv."

Since I took these photos this morning a lot more snow has fallen, and it's so wet it's the type to damage our trees, bushes, and fences. OK, that's enough Xaver. You can stop now.

Here is a video of Mara getting snowed on.