Weather-wise

Although it didn't stop raining all day I walked to the coast with the dog, aiming to go as far as the ponies. There are 6 of them over-wintering out  here. They don't get any upkeep in the way of coats or fodder.
I expected to find them sheltering  inland from the coast but they were right down above the sea, where the land dips sharply down towards the cliffs. I realised that it was actually the most sheltered area as the wind was coming from the SW and they were on a northern slope. No fools.

I'm always  interested in how these outdoor horses  keep warm (and I wrote a long blip about it a few years ago here). Their coats seem so inadequate for the purpose once saturated (see extra) but I realised, as they kept on cropping and munching  the coarse grass, that the need to take fuel on board is key.  
I was reminded of the fact that the verb ' to starve' originally meant 'to die from the cold' and in some parts of the UK (Yorkshire, Northern Ireland) 'I'm starving' still means 'I'm freezing cold'.
Evidently these ponies are neither.