Ko-Ko's Carbolic

Winter has, without doubt, arrived in Glen Quharity, with the first snow of the season on Thursday and then the second snow on Saturday.

Thursday was just a rehearsal:  a light sheet of snow alleviated by bright sunshine. Saturday was the real deal: a foot-deep blanket of snow in the morning with snow falling continually throughout the day; it was bitterly cold and overcast.

Thankfully, most of the snow had melted by Sunday morning and though patches of snow are still lurking in the shadows it has been much warmer, though the word "cold" would be totally relevant.

When guests at the castle over the autumn have said "It's cold.", it is very tempting to say "No, this is not cold.", because I know what is coming. However, I neither wish to be confrontational nor indeed wish to invalidate someone's subjective experience. 

At the end of the day, it's ultimately a practical matter and I might proffer "Would you like to borrow a woolly hat?". And it is to be noted that I started wearing a winter jumper over my shirt a fortnight ago. A fortnight ago the jumper was off and on, to regulate my temperature. Now it is "on": such is the change in the weather.

As Saturday evening approached, I realised I had missed out on my daily walk so rushed out as it was getting dark. The picture of the scaffolded gate lodge and burn by the gate lodge were taken on this walk. They show the wintry conditions. The camera's night sight mode is amazing,  and the reality was much, much darker.

Here is a picture taken from the castle's front door on Saturday morning.  I was reluctant to breach the virgin blanket of pristine snow, but mainly I didn't venture out as I had my slippers on and who wants ice on their inner fleece?

And a polecat update for Ko-Ko fans...

With a random glance out the kitchen window, I spotted Ko-Ko with a rat in her mouth running towards the castle. She was looking extremely pleased with herself. I was happy that she is actively dealing with vermin, and that she can seemingly move in and out of the building at will. 

On Monday, as I headed to bed I saw something bright red in the middle of the corridor. "How did that get there?" and "What is it?" are questions that sprung to mind. I bent down to examine the object: a bar of carbolic soap with Ko-Ko's teeth marks. The characteristic smell perhaps made her think it was edible, but the proof of the pudding ... The raid on the nearby bathroom had proved fruitless, and the swag had been unceremoniously dumped.