Who's In Charge Around Here?

WHILE THE KITTENS humor me on another tab and work-related things have me mentally attuned to my surroundings, looming thoughts of winter keep me slightly on edge. I'm afraid reality will soon erase any lingering ideas I had about labeling this winter a "mild" one. The forecast is dire. Tonight's low is going to be 21 degrees F. Tomorrow's low, a bone-chilling 15--the result of what the weather professionals are labeling an "Arctic Blast" or some such thing. The blast won't be going anywhere fast. Only the Creator knows how long the blast will last. 

If you're not a gardener, you'll just bundle up and deal with it. If you live in the mid-west, you'll say, "Yeah, so what's the big deal? But if you live in western Oregon and/or you love plants, you'll understand. Suffice it to say that tonight when I get home from work, I'll be grabbing blankets and boxes and making a beeline for the garden. Plants that die when forced to endure frigid temperatures will get covered. Pots will be moved indoors. Faucets will be wrapped. 

And then I'll wait. And watch. And pray. It's interesting how Mother Nature always reminds me who's in charge. Sometimes the bark is worse than the bite. I'm hoping this is the case with this round of winter. 

But if not, at least I can count on my informal support group Facebook gardeners. We'll be commiserating. 

On another note, did you see the 60 Minutes episode the other night? Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon unveiled his attempt at invading the territory presently ruled by the postal service, UPS and FedEx. If you didn't see the episode you can read about it Here. Basically engineers are working on drones to deliver Amazon orders under--what was it?--five pounds, I believe. 

I like Amazon a lot. I buy books and market my book through Amazon and love my Kindle. I applaud the ingenuity of Mr. Bezos and his team for their innovative efforts. But there is a picture that I can't get out of my head. It goes something like this: A group of teenage boys, perhaps sporting a bit of redneck DNA are skipping school or maybe it's a weekend. They're sequestered with BB guns (or maybe worse) in a grassy field below drone airspace. Yep. Target practice! What kid would be able to resist such maleficence? 

I'm wondering if Mr. Bezos has forgotten what it's like to be a kid. Maybe he was never rebellious, has no redneck DNA. Or maybe he's got some secret idea for stealth drones. 

Lately, have your best intentions been thwarted?