Brrr...It's Cold Out There!

We got down to -31 degrees last night. That's cold. I was pretty happy to be able to sleep in this morning as it was -18 (I think) when Lanny left for morning chores. I don't milk if the temp is -20 and I guess he figured it was close enough. Chores this evening will be chilly but they shouldn't be too bad. It's those more extreme negative temps that cause problems. At -15 degrees, everything starts freezing in the parlor. Hoses freeze, hands and feet get chilled, boots get slippery, and anything wet that hits the floor freezes within a short amount of time (not instantaneously but it sometimes seems that way...)It makes for some treacherous walking if one isn't careful about spreading ashes or sawdust on the icy patches. Still the cows prefer to be outdoors rather than in the barn. They come in with frosty 'beards' on their chins, snot-sicles the size of baby carrots, and frozen manure blobs hanging from tails but still they would prefer to be out on the manure pack. I'll stay indoors and leave the frozen noses to the cows.