Went for a 20 minute walk this morning around 336 am with hopes of some critter activity. Under an overcast sky with the almost full moon glowing through the clouds in the Western sky, the windchill was 23 degrees F, but it felt colder. Way in the distance, twice trains sounded their whistles and twice I heard loud vehicles -- a car with muffler issues, and a noisy tractor-trailer rumbling up Route 9, but otherwise the silence was absolute.  Three times I heard a faint brief sound, but when I stopped to listen, it was gone.  Maybe just a dog.  Possibly an owl.  
      When I was almost back to the house and feeling disappointed at the critter-free walk, I heard the distinctive sound of geese calling overhead as they were apparently flying North -- a sign of Spring, but it sure felt like Winter this morning.