Preparing for Winter

November is quickly coming to a close in A Remote Western Town. Autumn has been kind to most of us this season, and for that, we are grateful. We have yet to receive the stinging snow- the kind that feels like tiny barbs driving into your exposed skin, and the wind has been mild. "Unseasonably warm" is what the weatherfolks are calling it, "a reprieve" is our name for it.

We prepared for winter all summer long. Hay sits in fat bales awaiting snowy winter dispersals to hungry heifers. Wood is chopped, dried and bundled outside remote farm houses and homes in town alike, and pantries are full of the canned and dried goods that will sustain us throughout the winter.

Mule deer have begun to come out of the hills and many of their bodies are unfortunately feeding huge ravens along the busy roadsides wherein they perished.

We've prepared our vehicles for winter, too. Snow tires, heavy weight wiper blades, engine block warmers, bins full of warm gear, water and dried foods have been installed in anticipation of the cold. We are warned to keep at least half a tank of gas at all times, and to stay in the vehicle in the event of a serious slide off. Most of us take heed, and hope we never have to use that wisdom.