now you're tire tracks and one pair of shoes

It is shockingly cold in ye olde Iowa. I realize that it is shockingly cold in much of the US, but we're going to be below zero for days, which feels like an unwelcome start to the year. It's especially unwelcome given how much snow is sitting around unmelted, but hopefully we'll survive.

I was somewhat productive today, but it was mostly in the kitchen. When I got up, I made all the ingredients for cobb salads - which meant cooking bacon, poaching chicken, chopping up tomatoes/onions/lettuce, etc. While the chicken was resting, I took a quick shower, and then [censored] and I had salad for lunch (which was a welcome respite after several days of cooking heavier tings). Then I put together four more salads in mason jars for the next couple of days.

At that point, I retreated to my office with plans to get tings done. And I did do a little bit...but then [censored] needed a ride, which was an adventure bc the roads are quite bad even in town (and impossible in the country). [Censored] needed a ride because his attempt to go to my dad's shop was met with impassible snow at every entrance to the shop, so I had to drop [censored] off and hope that he could wade to the shop through all the snow. It turns out wading was possible...but the snow was so deep around the doors that he couldn't get in to move things around sufficiently so that he could pull out the necessary equipment to dig out the driveway. So I went back to retrieve [censored], and he took a v. cold ride to the shop on a cabless tractor.

I will say, the snow was quite pretty, especially since the sun was out - but it was also -1 at 3pm, which was not great. After my excursion, I did a couple of tings and then had a long chat with the friendship renewal crew (Joann, Jane, and Jen) - we talked for almost two hours, which was much needed. Then I made fresh roasted broccoli to go with leftover salmon (the rice was also fresh, thanks to me discovering the timer setting on my rice cooker so that the rice cooked while I was on my call). [Censored] and I ate while watching some basketball, but the Iowa State game was a blowout (in our favor), so I cleaned up the kitchen, prepped a pork shoulder to roast tomorrow, and retreated upstairs.

Now, after journaling and doing a variety of other office-related tings, it's time for bed - goodnight!