Dear Friends,

I think I may have waited just a bit too long to head south as I woke up this morning to a nice blanket of snow and temperatures in the teens. As I let Jezebel out for her morning relief she took a couple of tentative steps onto the snow and then jumped back. I realized it was her first experience with snow and so I had to go out with her to show her it was safe. She was still walking like she had twinkle toes.

I installed a Honeywell Lyric smart thermostat at my house this past weekend. My old thermostat wire was very built-in to my house some 45 years ago so pulling a wire that way was not gonna happen. It was long drills, cutting sheetrock and running a new wire just to ensure that we had the required “C” wire to allow the thermostat to be HomeKit compatible. I will give the log-in to my winter tenants and when they come up to ski they can make sure the home is warm for them. And, if they forget to turn it down I can set it to “away” while I am on the beach in Key West.

Did you vote yet? Most states allow early voting so why stand in line? Or, take a few friends to your polling place and vote all together! It really matters! Here’s a link to President Obama putting to rest the seven most common excuses for not voting.

This week’s Kibbles & Bytes Exclusive is on the Boom Swimmer Duo Bluetooth Waterproof speaker. It can hang out in your shower or on the beach. I have two in Orange/Green and two in Orange. Normally, these are $59.99 each but while current supply lasts, strictly first come, first served, you can have one of these versatile waterproof speakers for only $39.99!