The clock read 1:48am and I promised myself that I would keep my eyes closed for 12 more minutes of a real effort to fall asleep. If that didn’t work, I could get out of bed and play around online. I crawled back into bed after 3:00am, finally sleepy from the LED screen. Yet, at 7am I was pulling on fleece pants and a hat so I could help shovel Diene’s car out.

The morning air was cool, but not painfully so. Scraping the car’s windows made a satisfying crunching sound as ice sprayed my finger tips. The fresh snow was tinted pink from the sun’s ascent. After Diene left for work, I decided to take advantage of the rare occasion of waking up at the same time as the sun. I got my new camera and walked down to Lake Monona to take a few pictures.

Today I am grateful for the peace of the early morning and temperatures mild enough that I could go without gloves (helping facilitate the photography.)