January 23, 2026, the 23rd day of 2026
1-23 Here We Stay
Hunkering Down
... View MoreJanuary 23, 2026, the 23rd day of 2026
1-23 Here We Stay
Hunkering Down
The 1st month the 23rd day of this new year. 123.
It is not that unusual to have double digit below zero for the low in January, but it usually is overnight and warns up to single digits or higher during the day.
At that time most everyone is usually inside and snuggly sleeping, so we hardly notice it, except for how long it takes to warm the house up in the morning.
But last night it dropped to -25°F and was still -23°F at 9:30, and now, nearly 10:00 a.m. it is -22°F. It is supposed to slowly rise to -15°F then steadily drop to -27°F. Time will tell, as always.
That kind of slow warm up is really brutal. Farm chores still had to be done, no matter the weather. They can wait a bit on really cold days, but not very long. The afternoon and early evening chores will be a bit warmer anyway.
Except for the farm chores that we cannot do in advance, the rest of the day--God wlling--we will hunker down, stay inside, drink hot drinks, listen to audiobooks and slightly hibernate.
We got the extra things done over the past few days to make this possible. The rest of the week looks cold, but nothing like this in comparison.
We will probably pop pop corn later. We never got to it as our last planned hunker down day got interrupted and it never really happened. But this time we will hopefully enjoy a restful day inside--for most of it anyway!
Since it is 1-23 I figured I would share Psalm 123, the only book of the Bible that has a 123rd chapter. And it has 4 verses. So that made it perfect for today
Plus, especially in this kind of weather we need to remember to turn to God and seek His mercy.
"Unto You I lift up my eyes, O You who dwell in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, Until He has mercy on us. Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us! For we are exceedingly filled with contempt. Our soul is exceedingly filled With the scorn of those who are at ease, with the contempt of the proud."
Psalms 123:1-4
While many in their perfect temperature places will mock us for living in such a place, I say, "how many places can you live that the weather will periodically send the weak ones fleeing?"
It always does, sooner or later. It is the ebb and flow of life in the Northwoods.
Stay strong! Stay warm!
NAN
