Cold winds, light snow, oatmeal and hot chocolate....

Winter blasted through this morning.  Got up at 6AM,  temp was 35*.  By 8AM,  temp had dropped to 10* and the wind had kicked up to 30 MPH,  gusts up to 55 MPH.  Snow coming down light,  but can't seem to stick unless it can hide from the wind in cracks and crevis'.  Poor little birds that try to fly are not going in the direction they are heading,  so they just sit under the eaves of porches,  barns and sheds. 
My rugs on my porch blew around,  so put pieces of firewood on them to hold them down.  Furnace is working non stop.  Every vent I walk by the air is shooting up like heat from blacktop road in summer sun. 
Steve called at 8:30AM saying he is snowed in in Iowa,  where he went to class,  and class was canceled.  He said the wind is blowing so hard,  you can't see across the parking lot of his motel.  Said also that I-80 is closed due to wind and snow.  They have 12.7inches where he is at. 
In some neighboring counties across the river in MO they are reporting power outages.   Praying we don't loose power like that.  I would not want to see the guy's who repair lines having to work out in this weather.  
This morning was just one of those hot raisin-walnut oatmeal and hot chocolate breakfast days,  before heading out to do chores and check the animals,  and see what has blown away or is trying to.  The oatmeal evoked a memory from my teen years.  I milked a cow for 3 years as a teen.  The job of milking was passed to me after the 4 older brothers got jobs,  married,  and moved away.  Every morning and evening,  rain,  snow,  sleet,  heat, or storms,  the milking had to be done.  in the winter months,  Nusiance,  my milk cow stayed in the barn out of the weather.  It was still cold out there,  but milking wasn't too bad for she was plenty warm.  I always milked before breakfast,  and when us kids got done with our chores,  Mom always had us a warm breakfast ready to sit down to when we were done.   Many mornings like this it was oatmeal,  but some were maltomeal,  cornmeal mush,  or rice with raisins,  and always hot chocolate with marshmellows.  Does winter really evoke more memories than the summer months?  Something else to think about on these cold mornings.......