Posted tagged ‘Snow’
February 3, 2014
When I woke up this morning, it was raining. By the time I was leaving to go to breakfast, about a half hour later, it was snowing. When I got in the car, it was just in time to hear the Cape and Islands NPR forecaster say the rain would be turning to snow later. About then someone should have looked out the window and readjusted that forecast just a bit. The announcer went on to say we are supposed to get around 3 inches of snow. I was a bit skeptical as those first flakes were wet and didn’t stick, but as I was driving home, I could see the snow was starting to cover the ground. From my window here in the den, the backyard looks like a winter wonderland (a word used with tongue in cheek). The pine branches have a layer of snow, and the snow is still falling heavily from the north. I’m not so skeptical any more.
I have no plans for today. Peapod will be by later with my groceries, and I’m clicking my heels in the air as my larder is about as empty as I can remember it ever being. The last three meals were eggs: an omelet with cheese, two over-easy and an egg salad sandwich. Thank God I am now out of eggs, but I am also out of bread and just about everything else. The animals have food as I went to Agway on Saturday. I took care of the dog, the cats and the birds. Today I take care of me.
Cartoons weren’t all that educational when I was a kid. Many were violent but in a funny way we knew wasn’t real. I can’t remember how many times I watched Road Runner use Acme dynamite on Coyote who always survived despite being flattened or blown up. Tom endlessly chased Jerry who was so much smarter unlike the mice I caught last winter in my eaves. They were suckers for peanut butter. I still love Rocky and Bullwinkle and appreciate their satirical and ironic humor far more now then I did as a kid. To me the best antagonists in any cartoons will always be Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale. How many times did Elmer Fudd shoot himself with his shot-gun instead of shooting Bugs Bunny? Popeye was in his own way trying to be inspirational with all that spinach. He’d pop open the can and suck down the green slop which sailed from the can in an arc to his mouth. His arm muscles would grow and grow and Bluto would become history after one Popeye punch. I never did like spinach, but I did punch a couple of people, one in elementary school and one at Fenway Park.
I think my favorite cartoon was George of the Jungle which was on when I was in college. It definitely wasn’t meant for little kids. In one cartoon, George whacked the bad guy on his head with a thick club and announced, “I came. I saw and I conked him.” In another cartoon, the jungle was being redistricted by a character named Gerry Mander. What kid would get that reference when half the adults I know wouldn’t have? That was the fun of George of the Jungle.
Categories: Musings
Tags: animals food, Bird food, Boris Badenov and Natasha Fatale, Bugs Bunny, cartoons, Coyote, egg salad, eggs every which way, Elmer Fudd, George of the Jungle, groceries, NPR, omelet, over-easy, Popeye, rain, Road Runner, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Snow, spinach, Tom and Jerry
Comments: 24 Comments
January 30, 2014
If someone was giving out gold stars, I’d get a few. I feel so accomplished. This morning I had blood drawn, went to the bank, the dump, the pharmacy and Dunkin’ Donuts, all by 9:30. Yesterday the @#$%$$#dump was closed because of the snow on Tuesday night. My trunk had been filled with potentially smelly trash so I was not happy. Luckily it stayed cold. Now I am done with errands and intend to stay inside cozy and warm. I have earned it. A sloth I will be.
Both my papers had stories about Atlanta. One headline was “City Brought to Standstill by 3 Inches of Snow.” It gave me the chuckle I suspect was meant. We got between 4 and 5 inches overnight on Tuesday which is not even considered a snow storm, a dusting maybe. The schools were even open. I swept the walk all the way to the car which plowed easily through the snow in front of it to the road without needing any shoveling or sweeping. By late morning the sun was shining, and the road was down to pavement. Today the sun is shining again with that shimmering light that only comes with winter and the sky is stark blue, both helping the day take on the illusion of warmth. It was 20˚ went I went to the dump.
The threshold between childhood and adulthood is hazy and comes in steps. Thinking of snow as a bother is one of those steps. When I was a kid and it had snowed, I was just so excited. I’d grab my sled and we all, the whole neighborhood, sledded, and flew down the hill whizzing by those trudging up the hill, those who had already flown. We’d build snow forts and use water to ice and reinforce the walls. They’d last for weeks. We had snowball fights. The world was a giant play-land. Some time or other all that stopped and snow on the ground meant shoveling and not much more. That’s still my current stand about snow. Once you cross the line, it’s usually forever.
The sledding and the snow forts may go, but a few pieces of that childhood and snow never disappear. I think snow is lovely when it falls, when the world is hushed. When I was young, I’d watch the flakes fall in the shine of the street light by my house. Now I turn on the outside lights and stand at the door to watch the flakes falling and sometimes I put out my hand to catch a few.
After the storm, I used to pile on the winter clothes, put on a hat and mittens, shovel the walk and then free my car. Sometimes it took hours depending upon the amount of snow, and I’d come close to freezing. The snow had stopped being pretty and had become a nuisance. Now I stay and wait for Skip, my plowman. The snow is pretty again.
Categories: Musings
Tags: 4-5 inches of snow, accomplishments, cold day, dump, dusting of snow, errands, shoveling, Sledding, Snow, snow flakes, the fun of snow
Comments: 19 Comments
January 28, 2014
Cold isn’t enough of a descriptor for the weather today. Bone-chilling comes a bit closer but even that seems inadequate. Yesterday was “…Just spring when the world is mud-luscious.” The snow was soft, perfect for snowballs. The streets had reappeared and the icicles were melting from the roof. It was like a day in early March when the first green shoots start appearing and winter begins its swan song. Today, though, is pure winter. The snow is hard and the water of yesterday has frozen making it slippery especially along the sides of the road. I walked gingerly and carefully to the driveway to get my papers. The high today will be 20˚. The only bright spot is we will not be getting any snow. That will fall in the most unlikeliest places like the Virginias and the Carolinas where more than six inches are predicted. Forecasters have called this storm a once in a generation winter storm. I have to think kids will be thrilled with their first ever snow day.
I have errands, but they’ll have to wait until tomorrow because of the dump. It is closed on Tuesdays, and I really need a dump run so I might as well lump all of the errands together for tomorrow. I do fear the dump most of all. It is open ground and like the frozen tundra with the wind blowing and howling and with no place to find shelter. I will even wear my winter coat for the first time this season. I swear I saw a polar bear on the last dump run.
My mother used to keep her heat so high we wore t-shirts around the house when we visited her in winter. She was always cold. I finally understand why. The older we get the less resistant we are to the cold. I always wear a sweatshirt around the house now. I used to wear only a long-sleeve shirt and was plenty warm. That won’t do any more. Socks with my slippers are now a necessity. Nothing is worse than cold feet. I haven’t moved my thermostat any higher to combat the cold. I’ve decided to layer, even in the house.
I got an energy report from the gas company. It seems I burn more gas than my neighbors. That makes perfect sense considering four of the neighboring houses are empty most of the winter and my two closest neighbors heat with oil. I guess I win the prize by default.
Categories: Musings
Tags: cold, dump run, errands, howling wind, layers, mud-luscious, once in a generation winter storm, Snow, socks, sweatshirts, tundra, winter
Comments: 18 Comments
January 23, 2014
The blizzard did not live up to its hype. The Cape Cod Times reports this morning we have 7 or 8 inches of snow here in Dennis though it looks like more in some places because of the drifting. My car had very little snow on it, but my back step had so much snow Gracie chose to jump over it rather than step into the drift, but she had no problem going down the stairs into the backyard as the snow wasn’t too high for her. Today is sunny and cold with a temperature around 19˚. Tonight will be in the single digits, but by Saturday it will be in the 30’s. Maybe I’ll even sit on the deck and catch the sun. I’d have to shovel first of course.
This is only our second snow storm so I suppose complaints aren’t warranted, but I hate how cold it is and how cold it has been from all those incursions by the polar region. Given a choice, though, I choose being cold over being hot. When it’s hot, there are only a few ways to get cooler, excluding central air of course. You can sit in front of a fan going full blast, take cold showers or go swimming, a temporary reprieve at best. But when you’re cold, you can bundle up, snuggle under a down comforter, layer or just stay in the warm house with the heat cranking. It is just so much easier to get warm.
When I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Ghana, the heat in the Upper Region was interminable this time of year. I’d sit in my living room reading, and when I’d stand up, my sweaty imprint would be on the chair cushions like the chalk outline of the victim at a murder scene. I had no fan so a cold shower was my only way to beat the heat. I’d take one just before bed, not dry off, go inside to sleep and let the air dry me, sort of my own cooling system. Most times I could fall asleep. During the day, though, I lived in a condition of perpetual sweat whenever I did anything. It wasn’t pretty.
I’ll complain about the cold now and in August I’ll complain about the heat. That seems to be part of the human condition, the complaining I mean.
Categories: Musings
Tags: blizzard, bundle, central air, cold, cold versus heat, cozy, drifts of snow, fan, Ghana, layer, Peace Corps, single digit, Snow
Comments: 16 Comments
January 21, 2014
Snow is coming. It will start this afternoon and go all night. The sky already has the look of snow about it. It is quite cold and will get colder. Yesterday I filled the bird feeders. Today I have a few things to pick up, and I assume I’ll be jockeying with the bread and milk crowd for a parking space. It always astounds me that everyone is out of bread and milk just before the snow falls. It must be a cultural phenomenon.
The weather men are hedging their forecasts. One station predicts between 8 and 10 inches while the other says between 8 and 12. The only thing they agree on is the Cape will get more snow than the rest of the state. Oh joy!
I remember when I was a kid hoping for a snow day. I’d watch the snow fall looking through the picture window in the living room. A street light was just at the bottom of the front lawn, and I’d watch the snow fall in the light. It was always so pretty glinting as it fell. In those days, the TV didn’t scroll the closed schools, but the fire station in town blew the signal early in the morning. When I was older, in high school in a different town, I had to listen to the radio to find out if my school was closed. It never mattered how old I was, a day off from school was cause for celebration. It was like an unexpected present.
My dad never let a snow storm slow him down. He always went to work. He’d get up early and shovel to the car then clear it to get it on the road. In the old days he had chains on his tires then when they went out of style, he had snow tires put on his car at the start of every winter. The other tires were stored in the cellar waiting for better weather. We lived on a hill, and it was tough going up and down. About in the middle the hill rose a bit, and that’s where cars would slide going up. Sometimes going down was so slippery cars would take the side road and avoid the hill altogether. For us kids, a no school day meant a day sledding on the hill. I can still remember the excitement of holding the sled, running, jumping on and speeding down that hill. We had the joy of flying.
Categories: Musings
Tags: bird feeders, bread and milk crowd, chains, cold, fire station signal, Sledding, Snow, snow day, snow sky, snow tires
Comments: 12 Comments
January 4, 2014
The snow fell all day into the night yesterday. The plow didn’t come until quite late and did only one sweep on each side of my street. My car and house are still buried. I can see my paper, but the snow is just too deep to make the trek to get it. My factotum, Skip, said he’d be here by nine but that’s nine Skip time so he’s not here yet. I need to be out in the next couple of hours so I hope he’s on his way.
Yesterday Gracie was smarter than I am. I let her out back and then noticed the snow had forced the back gate open and Gracie, being Gracie, went out. I called her and she came right back into the yard and the house. It was snowing, and the snow was so deep it was up to her belly so leaving the yard and walking in all that snow wasn’t attractive to her. When she next needed to go out, I attached two leashes together and let her out front. She wasn’t too happy as she never goes out there so it took a while for her to find the right spot. I held the leash and waited. My sister suggested that maybe I ought to try and shut the gate, and that’s where stupid comes in for me. I put on my shoes, rolled up my pants so they wouldn’t get wet and went out. I never gave a thought to my legs from the tops of my socks to where the pants started. The steps to the yard were covered in snow, and I had to hold on to the underneath rungs of the wooden handrail so I could use my foot to clear off each step before I got to it. When I got to the bottom of the steps, my legs were covered in snow as were my shoes and even the rolled up pants. The gate wouldn’t shut because of the show blown against it. I couldn’t get to the snow outside the gate because of the Christmas light wires so I reached with my leg as far as I could and cleared the snow with my foot. One section was beyond my reach so I shut the gate as far as I could and kicked it. The gate moved a little at a time until finally it shut. I worked my way up the stairs to the back door, but I couldn’t get inside: the button you push to open the door was frozen and wouldn’t move. Gracie went in the dog door and stood in the kitchen watching me. I banged that button with my fist so many times my hands were sore. I knew my only other recourse was to go out the gate, walk through all the snow to my friends’ house and get my spare key from them. No, I couldn’t bear it so I kept banging and cursing. Finally the button gave way, and I got into the house. I was covered with snow so I took off all the snowy stuff right there and then hung it up to dry. I put on warm socks, slippers, pants and a sweatshirt and was warm in no time. I think it will take me a lot longer to smarten up. That was about the dumbest thing I’ve done: bare skin, no hat, no coat, no boots and no gloves. What an idiot!
Categories: Musings
Tags: back gate, buried in snow, idiot, plow, smart dog, Snow, soaken wet
Comments: 12 Comments
January 3, 2014
The first thing I did when I woke up was check to see if the clock radio was still working. When I saw the red digital time, I knew I had electricity. After last year, that had been my biggest fear, but we are warm and cozy.
Some windows are so covered with snow I can’t see out. It is still snowing, and the storm won’t end until mid-afternoon. Everywhere else the snow ended this morning. My street isn’t even plowed. One plow went by early last night but none since then. I had trouble getting my back door open for Gracie who didn’t want to go out, but I pushed and out she went. It was then I noticed the back gate had come open and Gracie had run out of the yard. I yelled and she came right back into the house, a first for Gracie the runner because even an open gate wasn’t enough to keep her outside in the snow. I’ve decided to attach a couple of leashes to each other then to Gracie so she can go out the front door if she has to go. The snow is so deep it reaches to her belly.
The snow flies from all directions blown by the wind. We are still in blizzard conditions. The birds are at the feeders, including a woodpecker at the suet. I am glad I filled all those feeders yesterday. When Skip finally comes to plow, I’ll have him shovel a path to the feeders so I can keep them filled.
We are warmer than Boston by eight or ten degrees. I guess that’s the silver lining, but not one I’ll enjoy as I don’t envision leaving the house for any reason. The roads here on the Cape are not treated with salt, just sand, because of the water table so they usually have a layer of snow even after being plowed. It takes a sunny day or lots of traffic to melt that snow. Driving around corners is tricky.
I have everything I need to wait out the storm. It has to stop sometime!
Categories: Musings
Tags: blizzard, plows, Snow, storm, Wind
Comments: 25 Comments
December 15, 2013
North of me is the winter wonderland. My sister, outside of Boston, got either 10 or 11 inches of snow. We got torrential rain all night. I could hear it on the roof. I have no idea why but heavy rain triggers the sensor lights in the backyard, the ones geared for Gracie, to go on. They stay on until the morning light triggers them to turn off. This is the second time it has happened. The first time I thought some giant animal had burrowed into the yard, but after 15 minutes, when the lights didn’t go out, I figured it was either a very patient animal casing the yard for dinner or some weird problem with the lights.
My errands yesterday were fruitful. I found two small trees, one smaller than the other but both perfect. They are now standing in the corner of the living room waiting to be decorated, but my back is bad so that may not happen until tomorrow, but I don’t mind the wait. The trees are lovely even without the lights and decorations.
I am not traveling north to see the play. My sister said it is miserable up there, really cold and dark, and when you add my back to the mix, staying home sounds like the better choice. I’ll watch Christmas movies and drink egg nog. I just watched Reginald Owen’s A Christmas Carol and now I’m watching the Muppets get their chance at Scrooge’s rehabilitation. It doesn’t matter how many times I see this movie I love it every time.
Christmas still has wonder no matter how old you are. I love the lights on my house, and I drive by the house sometimes just to look and to admire the view. I’m sure my neighbors, should they catch me, might think it strange. If I’m on the road and a house covered in lights catches my attention, I deviate my route just to see it. On my official light tour, I stop at Dunkin’ Donuts first for hot cocoa. Christmas music now plays the whole time I’m in the car. I sing along. I sit on the couch in the living room to read so I won’t miss a single minute of the tree. The season is short enough as it is. My two sisters always have live trees. I think it is built into our genetic code. They fill their houses with Christmas just as I do and my mother did. I remember she’d come down for the weekend, and we’d go shopping. She’d buy an ornament and say, “That’s it, no more ornaments. I have enough for several trees.” Well, she always bought more and always declared it the last. I have a couple of new ones this year. One is the official 2013 World Series ornament. The other is a sand dollar made from pottery.
It’s egg nog time!
Categories: Musings
Tags: Christmas lights, Christmas tree, cocoa, egg nog, Gene Lockhart, heavy rain, light tour, Muppets, ornaments, Scrooge, sensor lights, Snow, trees, wonder
Comments: 19 Comments
December 10, 2013
It was the sleep of the dead. I might as well have been in a sarcophagus. I woke up at 8 as I had a meeting at 9, got a call making sure I knew of the meeting and ended up not going. I was just so tired I went back to bed and woke up at noon to a winter wonderland, well not quite a wonderland but it is snowing. The snowflakes are huge and wet so I doubt the storm has much staying power. I was going to get my tree today, but I’ll wait for a drier day. I will do some decorating later and tonight some wrapping. It’s time for Christmas at my house.
When I was around three Santa came to our house. I remember peeking out at him from my parent’s bedroom. He was sitting on the couch waiting for me. I walked over, sat on his lap and told him what I wanted for Christmas. My brother, a year younger than I, was too afraid and never left the bedroom. I have a picture of me with Santa from that day. My face is filled with wonder, and I am staring open-mouthed at Santa right there in my own house.
When my nephew was young, I sent my sister a Christmas report card for him. It had all sorts of good little boy and good little girl behaviors like puts toys away, eats vegetables, listens, goes to bed when asked-all the stuff kids usually balk at doing. There was a column next to each behavior where a gold or black star was placed. On Christmas Eve, the report card was to be left under the tree for Santa so he would know how good a boy my nephew had been. Ryan, my nephew, took that card to heart. If he was bad, my sister would put up a black star, and Ryan would cry and swear to be good if she’d just take the star off. She usually gave him an ultimatum he had to follow if he wanted the star removed. He usually did and the black star was no more. Santa always had such power for goodness during Christmas.
Categories: Musings
Tags: being a good little boy or girl, Santa, sleeping in, Snow, threat of Santa, visit to Santa
Comments: 19 Comments
November 12, 2013
I woke up to the sound of rain. It was earlier than usual, but I had a nine o’clock meeting anyway so I got up, started my coffee, ran out for the papers then ran back inside to a house filled with the wonderful aroma of freshly brewing coffee. I filled my cup and took the first sip. I can’t imagine starting any day without my coffee.
While I was at the library board meeting, the rain turned to snow for a few minutes, but at 37˚ it is still just a bit too warm to sustain the snow. I couldn’t be happier as I think it is far too early in the season for snow. On my way home the rain became sleet, giant globs of sleet. Gracie didn’t even want the window open. I was just so happy to get home and inside my warm house. It still smell of coffee.
We all have favorite smells. Some conjure memories of childhood while others bring to mind the people we love and miss. Places where we’ve been are pulled from memories, drawn by a smell. I love the smell of spring, of the earth and flowers and the first mown grass. I can smell rain before it comes. A summer rain cooling the hot pavement has a strange, easily recognized smell. I know when any neighbors have a fire going as the smell of burning wood permeates the air. Last year when the electricity was off for so long my house was filled with the aroma of burning wood, and it stayed for days. The pine smell of the Christmas tree fills the living room then spreads to all of downstairs. Sugar cookies baking always remind me of my mother. They were a Christmas tradition as was the decorating and eating cookies heavy with icing. The smell of turkey cooking in the oven at Thanksgiving draws the cats and the dog to the kitchen. They sit near the stove hoping for a taste. I never disappoint them.
I think that winter gives us a gift starting at Thanksgiving and lasting until the tree comes down in January. It is the season of smells mixed with memories.
Categories: Musings
Tags: brewing coffee, burning wood, Christmas tree, rain, sleet, smells, Snow, sugar cookies, turkeys cooking
Comments: 11 Comments
keepthecoffeecoming.blog 