Record temperature drops ...

They say it's been over a decade since Toronto has seen (or should I say "felt"?) cold weather like this ... believe me when I say this is "arctic cold" ... the kind of cold that hurts your throat and slams your nostrils shut when you take your first step out of the protected warmth of your house ... the kind of cold that makes the air still and thick as if it's about to freeze and become something brittle and tangible ... the kind of cold that makes chimney smoke waft straight into the frigid air. Bitter cold ... the kind that bites at your skin ... and burns with its icy flames.

The furnace is just barely keeping up ... and we're all wearing extra layers ... socks, sweat shirts (heck I've even got a scarf around my neck ... but to be honest, more for comfort than warmth).

I'm just slowly getting over an ear infection ... it's still tender and aches off and on ... but the antibiotics are doing the trick, I hope.

Life has slowed down to a manageable pace ... but I think we're all trying to catch our respective breaths ... and adjusting to this "slower" version of life before us.