We fired up the wood stoves a few weeks ago, but the familiar, lazy smoke coming up from neighboring chimneys the other day is still one of the most pleasant signs of the season.

You’ve probably noticed some extra work days at the Fire Station. Our volunteer department’s been looking at the structural needs of the building, and taking care recently of something important: the second floor exit stairway off the south wall. The old worn and wooden stairs didn’t meet current standards, so the department just installed a new steel stairway making for a much safer exit.

With the supports needed for the stairway, the bottle bin hasn’t disappeared — it’s now just around the corner on the back of the building. Just as easy to get to — with this holiday and weekend coming up, your returnables can be dropped off as usual (and these donations very appreciated by the department).

Stepped on the brakes a few times this past week or so. The deer are definitely on the move, and I was glad to see a couple quickly slip through shrubs and into the woods. One young one, however, played it safe, standing picture-perfect still in a yard letting me enjoy the moment and safely pass by.

It’s a quiet week for news. Wishing you success with snow tires and wood-stacking, but mostly warm kitchens and noisy living rooms, and enough turducken, pork pie, or tofurky around the table to most make everyone happy!