Looks like a hard winter ahead.

Photo copyright Aji, 2022; all rights reserved.

I told you our whole world was gilded now. What's not visible through the golden haze is just how much of the trees between highway and river have already turned yellow. The hummingbirds have already begun departing, too: As of yesterday, dozens of them are gone on their migratory journey; only a very few remain.

I keep saying that it looks like a hard winter ahead. Of course, here, "a hard winter," the way the rest of the world understands that phrase, is the best kind. We need snow measured in feet, repeatedly. We need the cold deep enough to let the land sleep for a good long while.

But it will be a very hard winter for me in terms of physical functionality and mobility this year. I'm struggling on every single front now. Less than two weeks to cover huge expenses, namely the tax stuff, but medical, too. Now that I can no longer take the lupus meds, my pain levels are in the stratosphere, which makes the most basic functionality difficult, never mind the pace I need to maintain with us now going into the holiday creative and sales season. I can't do even a fraction of what I used to do. Add to that the tripling of the cost of silver, and I don't know how we make it.

And that's assuming there is a sales season. It's been a very bad year for us in that regard, while the demands on us have only increased, because this country's deliberate mishandling of the pandemic as left the most vulnerable in our communities even worse off than before. The number of deaths is staggering. So is the amount of pain and suffering out there, most of which we've powerless to help.

Just to keep ourselves going is taking everything I've got right now. I need help to do this. All the links are here; please, share them:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here (priority is first and foremost, the other ladder; also sheets);
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

We're still hoping to put aside enough for a new well when the ground thaws enough to drill in the spring, too, Nah, we've given up on the well. No one's available to drill before late next year at the earliest, and this year's tax burden means we would never be able to afford it anyway. But it's even more of a good time to make a purchase, because Uncle Sam is a vindictive colonizer, and my current stress levels about paying it all are off the charts. And there's lots of fabulous work, so please share all of the links. 

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2022; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.