Each day I count my blessings, this winter especially. Today it didn’t snow, is one blessing. Another one; today it snowed, but it was only a little and it will be gone in a few more days. Or how about this: the sun was out and about and I worked in the garden. Oh, this winter has been the best yet for me and if I could be assured of each and every winter being like this I might actually stay in New Jersey till I get too old to garden.

After a busy December, with shopping, partying, lunches and dinners, January represents to me the emptiest month of the year. True, the days are slowly getting longer, a little bit more light with every passing day. It’s usually cold, as it should in winter, and snow and ice are undoubtedly in the future. A few days ago ice skimmed the pond, leaving an open hole where water bubbled upwards thanks to an additional pump.