Not so good things first.

The snow and ice storm that hit us was terrible. By the time Don could get out there with the snow blower yesterday afternoon, the layers of snow and ice were almost impenetrable. The ice kept clogging the shute on the snow blower. It was impossible to clear everything through to the ground. So we’re left with a layer of ice on everything we cleared. There is ice on every tree and shrub. They are encased in ice. We had very high winds last night and we’ll have more later today. I see some small branches have broken off some of the trees. So far, no other tree damage. And we still have power.

And here’s the thing. It will not get above freezing until Saturday. So this won’t go away. I’m very worried about my shrubs. I’ve never seen anything like this here.

More prayers for today are welcome.

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A photo of one of my many blog headers. This is the only one I could find as I lost all of that history when my last laptop died. In the old days, I used to love playing around with the design of my blog. But I haven’t done that in a long time. Today’s version of the header has been in place for several years. And I’m fine with that.

Why am I writing about that? Well, today marks the 17th anniversary of Mockingbird Hill Cottage.

Who would have thought?

As I always say on this day, that’s the longest I’ve held any job in my life!

5, 254 posts.

I can’t really count comments since my responses to your comments are also counted as comments and that skews the total.

It’s been a pleasure, of course. Mostly. There have been hateful comments, some trolls, and lots of spam. I’ve had to block several people, including a few longtime readers. The thing about social media is people often take advantage of the fact that they are in a virtual world and are not in the same room with you and slew all sorts of crap. Then they often dare you to delete the comment, which, of course, I do. Go figure.

BUT, 99.9% of this blogging life has been absolutely wonderful. YOU have been wonderful. Thank you for that. You know, I started out on Blogger and I was there for 4 or 5 years, but I was hacked a couple of times and I no longer felt safe there.There was no way to contact anyone for help. I also wanted more control, a plug in to eliminate spam, a way to design the blog that I couldn’t with Blogger, and a lot of other little things that have made this blog more personal. So I transferred the entire blog to a host/server. And the blog is much safer, Sometimes I regret that only because it involves quite a bit of expense on a yearly basis. As we work less and less these days, we have very little income coming in and that fact may result in the retiring of the blog. But, don’t panic; I haven’t made any decisions on that.

I’m a visual person. That’s the reason keeping a journal never worked for me. But when this new thing called a ‘blog’ appeared on the horizon, I was intrigued. I kept saying to Don: “Maybe I should start a blog…” He finally said, “Then DO it.” And I did. I discovered that writing text along with the ability to add photos was my version of a journal. Perfect for me. It didn’t involve talking out loud in person which was perfect for my introvert self. But I did have contact with all sorts of wonderful people from all over the world. And those people became friends. What a gift. What a frigging incredible gift! I am so grateful for everyone, past and present. Because, just as in real life, people come and go. So, for however long you have been with me here at MHC, thank you.

I’ve shared our dogs, our home, our property, our adventures out in the world, my collections, and my hobbies. You were there for me when I lost Riley, my father-in-law, my mom, my dad, and Scout. Things are very different 17 years on. As I get older, my life gets simpler. It’s not so exciting these days, but my anchor – my husband – keeps me grounded in the joy of simple things.

Thank you, my dear friends. It’s been a joy and continues to be. Thank you for all of your support over the years, for being here, for commenting, for understanding.

Bless you,

Stay safe.

Happy Monday,