finally,

it's really cold

and there's some snow now,

enough for a good ski.

perma frost (not really)

squeaky

frosted

frost running deeply now.

the devilish plants around here

lots of cruelly thorned wild black raspberry canes

are poking up through

lovely deep snow

and a few black eyed susans

this little one was shivering

in the wind

not quite still now

as i left for school i noticed

evidence of nighttime

deer activity

the front arbor vitae is a favorite spot for a snack.

though it is a common tree around here

right here there are few

so my lawn tree is very popular

in the deep cold the ladies

up in the st lawrence river valley

the ladies

lean away from west wind

and back home the cedar out front

site of nocturnal browsing-

if you look up you see this.

the deer have trimmed out

the edges where the cedars and other trees live

to a height of about 5 feet.

give or take.

so when you look out across the fields there appears to be a dark skirt

or an apron

encircling the woods.