Best wishes in the New Year for all, especially our readers and a special thanks to all who comment on our site and keep it lively.

My neighbor called me up to tell me that there is an apparition in my back yard.

This smiley face just appeared in the snow, no footprints, no sign of human agency.

Was this made by the same mysterious forces that create crop circles? Is it a message– an omen for the coming year?

Is it a couple of rocks and the edge of an overturned kiddy pool, exposed by the melting snow on an unseasonably warm New Years Eve?

Readers, you decide. I favor the extraterrestrial theory, ’cause it’s more fun.