Two Days of Winter in January 2025: Playing “Poofer” with Molly in the Snow! (published 1-12-2025; article #512)

Introduction

With three inches of snow on the ground, the weather prognosticators got it about right this time. The predictions and warnings were televised days before the snow started. Over several days, local media continued to remind us “children” not to drive unless necessary, of how to drive in snow and ice safely, and of how to dress warmly if outside.

Welcome, dear reader, to the sixteenth entry in the pets topic section! Later, this article gets to the audiovisual recording of Molly and me playing “poofer” in the snow. But first, let's break down this two-day winter event by day.

Day One: Friday, 1/10/2025

Mrs. Appalachian Irishman had a snow day off from work. The snow was forecast to start by late morning. Three to five inches were predicted. The morning low was 20 degrees Fahrenheit. The daytime high, under cloudy skies, reached freezing (32 degrees).

Light snow started falling about 11:15 AM, accumulating only on concrete and asphalt surfaces. Heavier snow started coming down by early afternoon. The ground began to turn white. By about 3 PM, my wife and I brought Molly inside and upstairs with us. She enjoyed being a couch potato, as the next photograph, taken by my wife, shows.

In the late afternoon, Molly was fast asleep on the couch. An old but clean bedsheet is between Molly and the leather couch.

Don't worry, fellow pet lovers! During supper, Molly dined with us near the kitchen table. Soon afterward, she was ready for adventure! Inside, I counted four rounds of “got 'ems” games. I toss treats to Molly. She catches and eats them. Additionally, Molly wanted to go outside into the falling snow seven times! Each time, after romping around and barking for a while, she came back inside, damp with melting snow on her. It was a rich, full evening!

About 8:30 PM, I took Molly out into the heavily falling snow for her final “romp and stomp,” before bedding down for the night in her basement “condominium.” Her usual barking, sniffing, and running routine took less time, due to the snow. Once back upstairs, I removed my snow-dampened heavy jacket and toboggan. The snow continued overnight.

Day Two: Saturday, 1/11/2025

Under clouds all day, the morning low of 20 degrees rose to a balmy 38 degrees for the afternoon high. I wish that I could have trusted the back roads to House Mountain to be free of snow and ice. Another snow hike on House Mountain would have been wonderful. I didn't trust the roads.

Tinkering around indoors in the morning, I became restless. I wanted to get out into the snow! I wanted to stir Molly out of her basement “condominium!” Well, I did.

Four Photographs

From 12:14-22 PM, I took the following four photographs. The first one measures the snow in the front yard to be three inches.

Was that all? Shoots of grass were still visible.

The next image shows the front of the house and yard. Both vehicles were garaged. The view looks east.

Those tracks are Molly's and mine. My “Appalachian Irishman” yard sign is near the porch. Last summer, I touched up and repainted the two rocking chairs, the glider swing, and the small table on the porch.

The next two photographs were taken in our “back forty,” as I call the back section of our acre. The views look west.

The lone cedar tree has grown over the years. To the right are six cedar trees, standing closely together. During our evening “romp and stomp” sessions, Molly enjoys running around and through that cedar “forest,” playing hide and seek with me. Once finished, she darts across to the lone cedar tree, before bolting up to the driveway. It's good exercise and fun, unless it's raining!

So, where is Molly? I found her!

Do you see her, near the east corner of the house, looking at me! Okay, Molly, let's go!

Playing “Poofer” with Molly in the Snow!

I encouraged my “long-suffering” wife to pause her “couch potato” session long enough to record Molly and me playing “poofer” in the snow! We were on the driveway. The following is a still image from the audiovisual presentation, which is next.

With her head and tail up and eyes focused, Molly is ready! The “poofer” is aimed and ready to fire! Yes, I am left-handed.

The 33-second recording on Appalachian Irishman – Podcasts is Playing “Poofer” in the Snow with Molly (published 1-11-2025; episode 33). My wife, eager to return to the couch as a potato, recorded us well enough. I hope that you enjoy watching. Molly and I play “poofer,” “old favorite,” or “plastic bottle” at least once a day, if the weather permits.

Conclusion

After Molly decided that her play and exercise session was done, I filled her water bowl and snack bowl. She enjoyed the water and treats. After that, I shoveled snow off the walkway to the front porch. Unfulfilled by that exercise, I walked the subdivision road that leads to a county road and back. I waved at one neighbor and talked for a while with another.

I still wish that I had hiked House Mountain in the snow yesterday. It's only about seven or eight miles from the house. I could have walked there and back, since I didn't trust that the back roads would be clear.

At least we have had a couple of days of winter so far this January. The article from January 23 of last year chronicles the eight days of winter that we had then. Those were better times. Do you think that I am joking?

HVAC Air Return Vent Banging Fixed: My Wife Has 37 Pair of Shoes! (published 1-8-2025; article #511)

Introduction

Is someone searching online to learn how to fix a banging HVAC air return vent? Additionally, is a husband out there wondering how many pair of shoes his wife has?

This 117th entry in the humor topic section answers these inquiring questions! This year's first article on New Year's Day was analytical and pensive. This second article in 2025 will be funny. I hope, dear reader, that you laugh a bit, as I poke in jest at my “long-suffering” wife. I'm just deviling you, dear!

Fixed the Noisy Sheet Metal

First, let's fix the noisy sheet metal behind the HVAC air return vent. Last weekend, the sheet metal ductwork, located behind the hallway air return vent cover grille, started banging, once the thermostat turned off the propane furnace. At times, it sounded like a shot fired from a rifle or shotgun. Could nearby neighbors hear all that?

What started the banging? It could have been when I opened the hallway vent cover grille to see if I needed to replace the filter. I only opened the cover and looked at the filter! Was the infernal air return trying to tell me to replace the filter?

The following is a photograph of the hallway air return vent cover grille. Does it look guilty?

Well, maybe it does a little. What do you think?

How did I fix the banging noises? Well, I'll tell you what I did yesterday afternoon.

The sheet metal behind the hallway air return is inside my wife's walk-in closet, which is in our bedroom. My closet, also in our bedroom, is smaller. I can step one foot into it, but it's not the luxurious walk-in closet that my wife has.

The sheet metal is attached through the drywall into two-by-four wall studs by quarter-inch wood screw anchors. Using a screwdriver socket wrench, I checked the tightness of each anchor. Several were loose. Those could have been a part of the problem. Further, I noticed that the large, vertical section of sheet metal would bend in and pop out, making a banging noise, when I pushed into it. There was the source of the banging!

This educated country boy decided to brace heavy items against that section of sheet metal. The next photograph shows what I did.

Please excuse my wife's plastic flip-flops, box of crayons, and travel garment bag. I had to place them somewhere! I secured my wife's blue carry-on luggage, filled with heavy who-knows-what items, next to the banging piece of sheet metal. Behind her carry-on, I wedged in her larger, black suitcase. Yes, I had to place some of her shoes near all that. The large, vertical section of sheet metal no longer has room to pop out with a loud bang.

Afterward, the thermostat kicked the furnace on and off several times in quiet comfort! The shotgun-like banging was gone! That's how an educated country boy gets a job done!

How Many Shoes Does My Wife Have?

Now, let's move on to the funny part about my wife's shoe collection! I have always wondered how many pair of shoes my wife owns. Over the years, I have counted the ones that I could see easily in her closet. I have never known the exact count until yesterday, once I fixed the banging noise.

Yesterday morning, the Sevier County school system where my wife teaches and serves as vice principal had a two-hour weather delay. A light dusting of snow and icy roads caused the delay. Before leaving for work, my “long-suffering” wife moved hanging clothes from her closet into the guest bedroom closet. After she left, I had to move all her shoes out of her closet to make room for work.

At first, I thought that she had 28 pair of shoes in her closet, as the next image shows. A pair of shoes is in each box.

I counted 28 pair. Did you?

Later, however, while moving around her carry-on and suitcase, I discovered more shoes and boxes of shoes! The next image includes the updated total.

I count 33 pair of shoes. Did you get the same tally? These were only the ones in her closet.

My dear wife actually has a grand total of 37 pair of shoes. She had on a pair. One pair is in the utility room. Two pair are at the base of the stairwell, leading to the basement. Those other four, plus the 33 in her closet, make 37 total pair!

Conclusion

Molly is our soon-to-be ten-year-old puppy. She still acts like a puppy. Molly beds down for the night in her basement “condominium,” after our evening “romp and stomp” in our one-acre yard. The “romp and stomp” starts about 8:30 PM. It ends, usually after about 30 minutes, once Molly winds down her running, sniffing, and barking routine. I tag along. It's good exercise.

Move over, Molly. You have two beds in your “condominium.” I may need to use one of them, once my wife reads this article. We will see.

I wonder if my wife will write a rebuttal article about the number of shoes that I have. I know the total. It is much lower than hers. Did I hear you laughing a bit, dear reader? I thought so.

By the way, for grammarians, the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: pair shows that the plural form of pair is “pairs or pair.” My elementary and high school English teachers taught me that the plural of pair is pair, not pairs.

Appalachian Irishman, by the Numbers, in 2024: New Year's Day Terrorist Attack in New Orleans (published 1-1-2025; article #510)

“Pencil on system of equations” (10/28/2017), by Antoine Dautry, on Unsplash. Free to use under the Unsplash License.

Introduction

New Year's Day greetings, dear visitor. I couldn't use an exclamation point in the opening sentence. Forgive me if this article, the 107th in the topic section Life (such as it is), is somewhat pensive.

For New Year's Eve, my “long-suffering” wife succumbed to a mild stomach virus. The weather was warm, cloudy, and extremely windy. Today, under cooler and cloudy weather, she is almost fully recovered. Last evening, she was in bed at about 9 PM. I “hit the hay” about two hours later.

As I awoke this morning in predawn darkness, my wife was already up. The news about the early morning terrorist attack in New Orleans was already being broadcast on several television channels.

Before addressing that tragedy, this article highlights this website's analytical data from last year, 2024. This is becoming an annual tradition. For instance, the 12/31/2021 article shared data from 2021. The 1/1/2023 entry noted statistics from 2022. Early last year, the column from 1/8/2024 reported on 2023.

By the Numbers

In 2024, I wrote and published sixty-three articles, which, purely coincidentally, was the same total as in 2023. As of last year, the total body of work on this website, since the initial article from 3/6/2006, included 509 articles, written under 20 different topic sections.

Last year, there were 28 new comments posted below a variety of articles. All-time comments reached 265. I enjoy receiving comments from readers, some known, and others completely anonymous. Hopefully, my articles help readers, even if few comment, laugh, enjoy virtual hikes, think deeply, appreciate family heritage, and draw closer to God. I am only sowing seed.

In 2024, website analytics reported 99,469 total views from several nations. On a month-by-month basis, I record the number of views from which countries. Thankful as always, I am still pleased that this website draws local, regional, national, and international views.

Now, let's move on to why this article may seem pensive.

New Year's Day Terrorist Attack in New Orleans

Despite the 8:45 PM start this evening, I was looking forward to the College Football Playoff quarterfinal game between Georgia and Notre Dame. The game was postponed to the same time tomorrow. Under that postponed matchup, ESPN: 2024-25 college football bowl game, CFP schedule states, “**This game was postponed to Jan. 2 following a deadly truck attack on Jan. 1 in New Orleans.”

Media sources are rife with news about the terrorist attack. One source is “Live updates: Investigators hunt for additional suspects in deadly New Orleans attack.” The Associated Press (AP), ongoing updates since 1/1/2025. At the time of this article's publication, the AP source continues to provide live updates.

The named terrorist, who was killed, had ties to a known terrorist group. God forbid that other terrorist cells carry out their demonic plans!

Conclusion

The sun will set within 30 minutes after this article is published. My wife, almost fully recovered from her malady of yesterday, is preparing supper. A college bowl game is on the television. I walk past and glance at it from time to time.

This article hopes that God the Son will rise tomorrow in the hearts of people everywhere. If so, this troubled world will rest easy in peace and safety. May it be so, dear Lord!