What could be better than making it to the middle of January before having to break out the snow shovel? I guess making it to March ... or living in the south where it never snows ... but regardless ... in Buffalo, not having to shovel until mid-January is a very good thing!!
Last year my dad gave me his old snowblower because my parents have hired a service and he doesn't need it anymore. It's an Ariens but it's o-l-d! I never used it last year because I couldn't get it started. I think there was old gas in it and a dirty spark plug (don't I sound like a motor-head?).
In the Fall, I put fresh gas in it which I embellished with stabilizer - oh, dear - "embellished" isn't quite the right word. I forgot I was talking about unleaded gasoline and not a craft project ... ok, so I
fortified it with stabilizer and also added some gunk to clean the engine. And guess what?? It did the trick and I was able to start the beast by myself. So, for the first time in my life, I snowblowed the driveway! Wahoo! And it was fun!
I said it was old! I thought about buying a new one but after I did lots of online research, I realized Ariens was a very reliable brand and since this baby is built like a tank and weighs a ton, I figured it should have lots of life left in it.
The wind was really gusting and the snow drifted to 3 feet in one spot. Funny thing is, it's supposed to get warm again tomorrow. Such a weird winter!
To me, a freshly snowblowed driveway is a thing of beauty! I was done lickity-split too. And just for fun, I thought I'd show you the hat holder that came with my house. I guess in the 50s when men wore hats, they hung them on the inside of the door so they wouldn't get crushed. Not too many mens brimmed hats being hung up in the cottage by the creek these days ...
So after my driveway and front walk were cleared of the white stuff, I put the kettle on. I made a double batch of bran muffins the other day and modified the recipe to include whole wheat flour and applesauce. One can never have too much bran, I'm thinkin'.
I sprinkled the muffins with walnuts and cinnamon and sugar for a little added yummy-ness. A couple of vintage books, a light snowfall, hot tea in a porcelain cup ... that's what I call bliss on a cold winter's day.
Stay warm and thanks for your visit and sweet comments.
Lynn