Anticlimax

We waited and waited. They reckoned we would have snow. It's still not arrived. The slight patina of white of yesterday morning was quickly washed away as rain set in. By the evening yet more rain came. We ventured to the bins to discover a layer of ice coated the ground. By this morning a freezing fog had appeared, blotting out any view in a different sort of whiteness.It's all a bit of an anticlimax.The ground is just as treacherous underfoot but we have none of the prettiness which virgin snow brings.

I suppose if it had come, I would be moaning about the problems of making my way through inches of the white stuff, its slipperiness, its slushiness. I gather most of this country is under a blanket but not so here. We remain just cold, at -7C, rather grey now the fog is evaporating, & damp, oh so damp.

No, I think I would have left the moaning until Monday, when the snow has been mauled by cars & feet & looking filthy as it so quickly does. At first I would have rejoiced in its prettiness & the transformation of the world, especially as Sunday isn't a day we have to go out on.

The one thing today I have done is make sure there is plenty of food for the birds. Snow or no snow, it's very cold out there for them. I wouldn't like to be out, day & night, at the moment. They will certainly need some internal fuel & the ground's too solid for them to find many grubs & worms around.

I am, though, looking forward to going out tomorrow. I suspect the view over the Bay will be spectacular. I suspect the rain that fell here will be snow over there, emphasising all the drama & beauty of the scene.