28th February 2018 The Beast from the East. Aka. Russian cold:

Wednesday 28th 15-21F, -9-6C, very windy but becoming clearer and brighter. Walked across the stubble fields to avoid the traffic. The snow is gently carved with micro-contours like a "busy" map. Countless small domes have formed where stalks have slowed the drifting snow until they were buried. The lane was softly packed but had obviously been scraped earlier by a snow plough. Drifts on the verge had been beautifully sculpted by the days of  winds.

Talking of which, I was easily able to lean on the wind while walking both ways. 30mph gusts at -10C is equivalent to a rather chilly -31C. Though it didn't feel that cold unless I removed my GG 'Nordic' gloves to take a photograph. The temperature has risen to 19F, -7C, after half an hour of snow clearing on the drive and garden paths.

I think I'll stay off the narrowed roads with my trike. The snow ploughing has left broad strips of no-man's-land along each side. Making it impossible for me to ride close to the verge. Or to pull off the road to let a bus or lorry pass. It is still blowing a gale this evening as the temperatures sink towards a forecast -8C. We had very little promised sunshine this afternoon and the roads were up to 4" deep with drifts blown off the fields.

More snow clearing to get the car out. Still trying to source winter fuel [compressed sawdust briquettes] but most of the regular places are still sold out. What a complete farce! If only the quality could be relied on one could buy a palette full but a lot of these blocks are absolute rubbish compared with the best. We wouldn't use them all [1 Ton or 1000kg] anyway but have no suitable indoor, heated storage to keep them perfectly dry from one year to the next.

It just goes to show how one simply cannot rely on vital products to remain available even in the 21st century. With the dire weather forecast [for Russian cold] I'm amazed "they" didn't strip the supermarkets bare! Like they did after the 1999 Great Storm. That was the time the water was off for days, as was the electricity, just after Christmas. Choose your [wooden] furniture carefully in case of emergency.

Your next tin of beans may be your last if the weather peels back the thin skin of modern, Western civilization! The supermarkets aren't into rationing and will cheerfully sell out to anyone with the cash when the electronic tills have gone down. And no, I'm not living in the Communist Soviet Block. It just feels like it sometimes.

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