Dang Computer Made Me Late!!!
Today is a nice day, 41° and partly cloudy which also makes it partly sunny. That’s the part I notice. That’s the part I can see out my den window, the light blue sky part. The rain is gone. Everything is quiet. Nothing moves. The air has a chill, like an early spring chill. This is the oddest winter.
When I was a kid, I yearned for snow, especially if I had gotten a sled for Christmas. Back then all the sleds were wooden with metal runners. The steering was left to right or right to left in the front, one hand on each side, left and right. A rope was attached through a hole on each side of the sled’s steering, and pulling the rope was how we got the sled back up the hill. I have a picture in my memory drawer of pulling the sled up the hill. I can see my mittens covered in ice pulling the rope also covered in ice looped on the sled from side to side, left to right or right to left. That is my most vivid memory image of sledding when I was a kid. I remember the feelings, especially the glee at the down-hill speed. If you left from the top, it was a long hill, steep at the top, wider at the bottom. Sometimes the bottom got slushy before the rest of the hill. It was, nonetheless, a great hill with lots of options like sledding from the top or starting in the middle. I sledded from the top.
As long as there was no wind or snow, I could ride my bike. It always seemed a bit odd to be riding my bike in winter. It was also cumbersome. The bike had to be moved out of the cellar then back into the cellar any time it was used. It was mostly worth it, that sense of riding my bike and holding back winter.
I think the snow is pretty, but I have no interest in any snow activities. I do like watching the snow fall lit by the back light, but that is the extent of my interest. I look every now and then to check how high the snow is on the rail and how much snow is still falling. That snow check dates back to the start of my teaching career. I loved the unexpected day off even though I knew it had to be made up at the end. It was like a late Christmas present.
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January 10, 2023 at 5:30 pm
Hi Kat,
I can’t believe it’s January 10th when the official temperature at DFW airport, where I work is currently 82°.
When I was a little kid in New York I also had a sled just like you described. After moving to Texas in 1953, the sled was of little value and disappeared from my room. I’m sure my parents disposed of the sled rather than moving from one apartment to another.
I’m unsure if we will get snow this year. During the arctic outbreak on Valentine’s Day in 2020, we had a couple of inches of snow. That was the storm that knocked out the power in rolling blackouts. At our house we only had about two hours of power a day for nearly a week and the low temperature was -5°F.
Today, the Texas Legislature opened for its 141 day regular biennial session. On the agenda is strengthening the Texas electric grid. Both the energy and the utility companies are in the Republican leadership hip pockets. They will talk a lot and do nothing constructive. The Democrats haven’t won a statewide office since Governor Ann Richards. She was the governor from 1991 until she was defeated by George W. Bush in 1995. We’ve been a solid red State ever since. 🙁
January 10, 2023 at 8:47 pm
Hi Bob,
The 40’s here gave me the same reaction. It is far too warm.
I still have one of those sleds. The runners are rusty. The sled is really old. All my grands use the round either red plastic or aluminum sled.
I’m surprised the only snow we’ve had is a dusting, but December was too warm for snow. The further north you go the more snow they’ve had.
Other than the last governor and lieutenant governor this is the bluest of states. Now, though, all the top posts are held by democrats including governor. I thin three is only a couple of republicans in the state legislature.
January 10, 2023 at 9:58 pm
The only good thing I can say about the Texas legislature is that unless the governor calls a special session, they are only in regular session for 141 days every two years. They can do less damage that way. 🙂
January 10, 2023 at 10:45 pm
I have no complaints about my legislature.
January 10, 2023 at 7:17 pm
No problem to bike all year round here, when it’s frosty I just take a bike with better tires. I can only remember one day off because of snow when I was in school, we heard it on the radio, pre-internet times. Probably the so-called snow-winter 1978/79 with extraordinary amounts of snow in some parts of this country and Europe.
I think you have to post a picture today so you can write: Kat quote 🙂
January 10, 2023 at 8:50 pm
Birgit,
I got a chuckle out of, “Kat quote.”
If there is little wind, then winter biking is okay, but I haven’t seen many bikers.
January 11, 2023 at 2:15 pm
Last year, I needed help to deal with snow. My landscape crew spread salt everywhere and destroyed all my boxwoods and I had quite a few
Having been restored to rude health, I made sure my trusty Toro was ready to roll and, it is essentially lollygagging in the garage as we enjoy the 5th warmest start to a January on record.
Mind you, I am not complaining, snow is an annoyance not only personally but in my business. The longer we go without the hazard the better it is.
Waving from a tropical (ok in the 40s) Michigan
January 11, 2023 at 6:08 pm
My Dear Hedley,
I used to deal with snow, but I was young then.
Nothing around here gets salt because of the water ground table. Everything is sanded. I’m sorry about your boxwood. It is such a lovely bush, and I use it so much at Christmas for decorating.
My factotum comes and shovels and plows. He also shovels down the back stairs for the dogs then makes a path for the dogs in the backyard.
I can do without snow. Okay, maybe a storm or two over the course of a winter.