Wednesday

Brrr it was 28 this AM, frost and ice was everywhere. Well it eventually warmed up to 58 degrees by the early afternoon. After our quiet times and a hearty breakfast of buckwheat cakes and eggs I ventured out into the yard. Of course I was wearing an under shirt,long sleeve shirt and a thermal shirt.Wow was it ever old. This morning was the coldest we have seen in Florida for as long as I can remember.

I worked outside until it was time to take our mid-morning hike. I raked leaves and then ran the lawnmower over them to break them up so they would compost more quickly. I covered the lower garden with leaves. I then burned a pile of trash, moved lots of deck and porch furniture as well as the smoker and grill into the basement. I'm slowly getting the cabin and yard ready for another winter.

We took a rather long hike this morning to the top of the mountain. It was still cold as we headed out and Nancy looked like she was wintering in Alaska. By the time we reached the mountain top she was shedding the hooded coat. WOW is all I can say after viewing the surrounding area with all of the leaves gone from the hardwoods. We saw cabins and houses we least expected in areas of the ridges that surround our mountain. This is the same hike we took last week when friends Jerry and Becky visited from Tampa. The temp had warmed up close to 60 by the time we headed back to our cabin. After a lite lunch I continued to dump several trash cans of leaves onto the lower garden.

Well I met with friend and new pickle ball lover, John at the Roaring Gap Club.We played about 6 sets in the 50 degree weather and worked up quite a sweat. Man is that a great sport for a cardio workout plus its just downright fun. Looking forward to next week's 5 days of playing this sport with all of my PB friends in Seminole, Florida. LATER.