From Robert Whitcomb’s “Digital Diary,’’ in GoLocal24.com

It’s good that in January in these parts  you see the underlying structures of many things, the skeletons of them, so to speak, with the leaves off the deciduous trees and other vegetation reduced, too.  More architecture than painting. Another nice thing is that the colors of birds, e.g., cardinals, stand out more vividly against the brown, gray and white of January than they do in greener times.

I love the sere of coastal marshes at this time of year, especially at sunrise and sunset.

Of course, it’s also good to know that winter will end in a few weeks.

January always seemed to me a quiet time in which you can catch your breath, before obligations start piling up again later in the winter – tax returns, etc. It’s a good time to catch up on sleep. 

We send out a lot of New Year’s cards well into this month. They arrive more reliably at their destinations than Christmas cards, especially this past holiday season, what with the pandemic and damage to the U.S. Postal Service by the Trump regime under its corrupt postmaster general, Louis DeJoy. (Being corrupt  and slavishly, even criminally, loyal have often seemed to be the main requirements for high-level employment in this destructive regime.)

Driving to Newport on a bright winter’s day, with shimmering views from the bridges of the Ocean State’s archipelago, is exhilarating, as is  sitting with an old friend at  the all-weather patio of a mostly empty restaurant  on the Newport waterfront with the light pouring in. But let’s hope that the eatery is crowded come spring.