But look at my face--ain't this a smile?

It appears that this is one of those days when everything in the world conspires to piss me off.
If you're a member of that cabal, I suggest you resign. Because I will hunt you down and kill you. (If you are a beloved friend or family member, I promise to make it quick and/or painless.)

Things are different #17

Back home, when it snowed it came through and dumped on us for a couple of days then moved on. Around here, at least the past couple of weeks, it's different. (I know--we'll get to the time of year when the snow dumps on us. But for now.) It's... insidious. The snow falls in this light, easily ignored pointillist flakefest. Snow gradually accumulates on the ground; you turn around and suddenly it's gone from a light dusting to a quarter inch, and then more and more. You leave the house thinking "I was out there five hours ago, and it hasn't really been snowing" and when your foot sinks into the drift next to the front door, you're surprised. Like in the monster movie when our protagonists realise that they're surrounded.

Here, for your edification, are a few winter pictures.
( A garden, a French Christmas tree )