Mooned

I took advantage of the mild spell and spent a lot of time watching the moon tonight. When it was at its zenith, it made one of those immense halos, thirty or forty times its own width. Then it settled through a band of thin clouds in the west, making them flush slightly pink. Finally, when it had sunk low enough to have been partly screened by the pines and the bare oaks, it swam in a small, bright pool of its own light that was surrounded by a vast area of blue haze which seemed almost to be the daytime sky attempting to invade the night. It was all quite nice, and bright enough for a short walk. I like hearing my footsteps echo through a chilly winter night.

I also took an unintentional nap for about an hour. Oops. I wonder what effect that will have on my sleep schedule? The forecast is for increasing clouds again. If there is not enough afternoon light coming in my window, I might end up sleeping through the entire day. That's one of those things that simply will not do. It's been decades since last it happened, but I've been getting dangerously close to it lately. I don't like disruptions. I hope I don't end up having to skip an entire day's sleep just to get back on schedule. Well, we shall see. I'll sleep on it.

Pleasing

The clouds must have decided to hang around the beach for another day, as almost none of them showed up here. Instead, we had spring-like sunshine, unimpeded by masses of spring foliage, and all the grass, thick and lush from its recent drenching, shone vivid green in the brightness. The windows were opened wide, and the house flooded with fresh, cool air. Winter seems, for the moment, to have been blown off course by some mischievous wind, for which I am grateful. This break may last but a day or two, but the change itself is invigorating. Dusting has been done, and vacuuming, and an accumulation of things has been discarded. It was a pre-spring cleaning. I was tempted to make iced tea, but didn't want to tempt fate. I like to have January enlivened by a mild day or two, but I don't want a heat wave.