0125

Leap century day - I'll have to reset my watch's date.

Very warm - close to 60°, sunny, breezy - so that I strip to my waist for awhile as I cut the trees felled yesterday, and become sluggish and sleepy. I open up the beehive, to see how they're doing - and they're not doing. No life whatsoever, just thousands of bees frozen in various positions, like so many wind-up toys that stopped wherever they were when their motors wound down. Did they starve? Too cold for too long? Did I do something wrong? Or fail to do something needed? Depressing.

No fire tonight. I cut up & cook 3 small pumpkins that are starting to spoil, leaving only 3 more left to process. Read my mail, including a note from Lenore telling me that the wood-fired boiler is still for sale.