Emailed DA (Patreon)

So a few fans have reached out to ask me to please appeal my ban.

In addition, I noticed that I received something like 150+ new followers there in the last month or so, which would make it rather unfortunate if I just decided to leave the site dead. So I have emailed DeviantArt and asked what action I can take to recover my account. I have reassured them that I would be happy to remove any content that is in violation of copyright, since that is the infringement they have cited me for.

All I have received in response so far is an automated message that doesn't give me much hope, but I will cross my fingers that an actual person reviews my case and bothers to respond.

In the meantime, let's talk weather. If you recall, I mentioned that we had a whole weekend, almost 4 straight days, of nearly -50 C weather back in January. Well it has since warmed up. The week after that was closer to -20 C on average, which is more normal for this time of year. Last week as closer to -10 C on average, and this week we are seeing temperatures above 0 in the afternoons. We've had at least 3 days this week that have hit +8 C in the afternoon, which is abnormally warm.

While I am not complaining, this really makes a mess out of the roads and sidewalks. All of the snow and ice melts in the afternoon and early evening, then it freezes again overnight when the temperatures drop back down to 0 C or lower. This coats everything in a very thin, almost invisible, sheen of slightly damp ice that is insanely slipper and very difficult to detect.

This is, in essence, what they mean when they talk about "Black Ice". If you have never experienced this, then let me describe something to you. I can be walking along a clearly dry sidewalk of rough concrete in my thickly treaded winter boots. I can clearly feel that I am on stable ground with good footing. And then, out of nowhere, my foot will just shoot out from under me, because the 6" area under my next step was frozen over with this glass-like surface. You can't see it. It doesn't look any different than the rest of the sidewalk you've been walking on.

Just, "Whoosh", no footing.

But at least the weather has been gorgeous! :D