Early Morning Romp In the Snow

At about 4am this morning, I couldn't sleep, so I got up to do some banking. Yeah, it's lame, I know..but essential. After an hour or so, I walked through the kitchen and looked out the door to discover it was snowing!! Woo hoo!!!! Big ol' fat daddy flakes too!! I guess it'd been doing it for an hour or so. I took a bunch of pictures then realized that I'd better bring Jazz in since the door had fallen off her dogloo. How appropriate she she should have one in this weather.

Lucky got his first taste of the snow too. We've had him for almost 3 years, but this is his first snow. North Carolina hasn't really had a winter for several years. He freaked out as most cats do when their feet get wet, but then he took off and explored. I got Jazz and brought her in to eat around 5am. She ate and then had to do her business, so I took her back out. I should mention here that all I had on was a t shirt, thin cotton pants, beat up tennis shoes, no socks and a thin jacket. I figured, she was just going to pee and I'd be right back in. I returned to the door and took her leash off to let her in, but she bucked and tried to run. I grabbed her collar and she did her neat little spin in a circle trick to try to apparently break my arm..so I was forced to let go and off she ran. I should also mention that it's still dark outside, she's a black dog, I own 10 acres and we have no fence. This was going to suck.

I briefly heard a rustle in the woods then went to get a flashlight. I kept calling for her and making my way to where I'd heard the leaves crunch and then stopped to listen. Nothing. No cars. No wind. No leaves crunching..not even my breathing. No Jazz either. Only the gentle sound of snowflakes hitting the trees. It was as if time stopped for a minute just to let me enjoy the very rare quiet I get in life...as if that whole moment was just for me. I've never experienced such quiet solitude, but in that moment, I was completely at peace. Then I was pulled back to reality as I remembered why I was standing in the woods in little more than my pajamas. "Jaaaaaazz!" Nothing. Crap. I walked a little deeper into the woods and heard the far away crack of a hunter's gun. What sane person would be out in the woods, in the snow this freakin' early in the morning?!! Oh right. Me.

What seemed forever later, I trudged back in the house to get Jeff. It was about 6am and his alarm had already gone off once, but I still felt bad for getting him up to hike through the snow. He dressed and we headed back out to continue the search. I'm still in not much more than my pajamas, but I added a hat, socks, gloves and scarf to make it a little more comfy because I had no idea how long we'd be out there. I went back into the woods where I got tangled in a sticky bush..aka..thorns from hell. It was like the Devil's Snare scene from Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets. No matter how I moved, I only got more tangled...and unlike the movie, light didn't work. I was beating the branches w/ my flashlight while cursing and Jeff's going.."Jaaazz! Dana? Jaazzzz!! Hey Dana, what's going on? Jazzzz!!!" I replied..."Ow! #*$)@ sticky @!&$ bush!! Jaazzz! @*!$%# branches!! I'm !@$#% stuck!! Ow! !#*&;@*%..Jaazzzz!!! %$@#! dog...Ow..my @&*% ass..gasp...I'm freeee! Jaaazzzz!"

At this time, I hear branches moving and something coming..fast. I moved my flashlight towards the noise and didn't see anything. The sound became warped and no longer sounded as if it was in front of me, but behind me, so I turned around and around again until finally Jazz about knocked me over, but since my light was in the other direction, I didn't see her and it kinda scared me. A big furry beast had now plowed into me and what if it's not Jazz?! Thank God it was, but it was strange how the sound warped like that. Now I understand why it's so easy for people to get lost in the woods.

So anyhow, now we had her on a leash and headed back inside. We both went back out to take more pictures because hey, who knows when we'll get snow here again. The other dogs got their play time in and Henry and Hershel, my gnomes looked to be enjoying the weather. Henry was taking a hike and Hershel had already started shoveling the walk. For once, they're behaving and not stealing my underpants.

At 6:30, Jeff decided he was going to go ahead and get ready for work and left not long ago. I tried to get him to take a day off so we could play in the snow, but he can't since he's the boss. I apologized to him for waking him up, but at the same time, I rather enjoyed my romp in the snowy woods. It was kinda like Narnia. Anyway, I got to enjoy the snow while it was still coming down, before anyone else was even aware it had snowed...except that hunter. It was just a small appreciation for the beauty of nature and Jazz let me experience that. I'd never have gone outside if she hadn't run off. Even being cold was fun. I love cold weather anyway, so a big snow always makes me happy!! I could have done without the sticky bush, but all in all, it was fun and made me feel like a kid again.

It's becoming daylight now and the snow has changed to sleet, so I got to enjoy it while it was good. It was that really good snow too...the kind that crunches under your feet and packs really well into a snowball. I threw one at Patches who then just looked at me indignantly. Faith tackled me. Jack just ate the snow. Hershel did a faceplant after Faith knocked him off his rock. He'll make me pay for that with 2 pairs of underpants, but it was worth it. Alright, I'm off to reheat my coffee and curl up with a good book for awhile. I hope everyone else got some snow to enjoy!!