Countdown to Spring – Melt, Baby, Melt

So, let’s see.  As I was writing last week’s entry, the snow was just starting to come down.  When it got to about 3-4”, I went outside and shoveled my deck and walkway.  Oh, look, it’s light and fluffy.  Not too bad.  About two more inches fell, then the temperature went up and it went from light and fluffy to sogged and glazed over snow.  What had been an easy job of clearing it away turned into a cardio workout at the end of it all. 

I normally appreciate the prettiness of ice coating all the tree branches, especially at night.  But at this stage of winter, it was enjoyed for maybe five minutes, then I just wanted it to go with the snow.

Over this past weekend, a lot of that wintery precipitation disappeared with above-freezing temperatures and a whole lot of rain.  There’s still snow out there, but enough of it’s gone now that it’s about a 50:50 mix of white to greens and browns. 

The forecast for my area for today and tomorrow is near to above 50°F, followed by a return to 30s, then 40s, then 50s, then 30s again.  It’s a little uneven, temperature-wise, blamed on anything you chose to blame it on in the moment.  But with temperatures remaining above freezing during the day at least, and no forecast for any precipitation but rain showers for the next ten days, maybe all these wet, white crystalline structures hanging around will go bye-bye and we’ll head into March with bare ground.

Then, it’ll likely snow again.  That’s winter for you.

In a final note, I am on the downside of what may have been either the flu or a flu-like illness.  Sore throat, body aches, chills, fatigue, and a decent chunk of fever on top of sneezes, sniffles and barking like a seal.  Definitely not a cold.  I normally don’t get sick during the winter, but this year was an exception.  Just another reason for not liking this winter season anymore, eh?

Only 34 days until Spring

The Big Chill Down

As I type this, the cold front which is allowing bone-chilling, dangerously cold air to ooze down from more northern regions of the planet has already passed through.  Under normal circumstances, the warmest part of the day in my area would be somewhere between 12 noon and 2 PM.  Today, the warmest part of the day was around 3 AM, when it was still about 22°F.  By 2 PM today, the temperature will be about 12°F, and by this time tomorrow, we will be rebounding (I hope) from temperatures that were below 0°F during the night.  Brr, baby.

In the summertime, we would actually be appreciative of what amounts to a 20-30° cool-down, a lower humidity, and a good strong breeze to usher it all in.  Not so much this time of year.  Like many, I’m not a fan of weather that’s over 80°F with a similar percentage of humidity.  But,  anybody who complains about the heat of summer by missing winter has already forgotten the temperatures that are coming tonight.

There should be no lynch mob forming for Punxsutawney Phil or any other woodland creature used to predict when the vernal equinox will be at hand, at least not yet.  He predicted an early spring and it may still happen.  A shot of cold air is bound to happen between February 2^nd and March 20^th  of any year.  It’s if it continues, if the cold air doesn’t disappear and we see more wet and white winter weather, that Ground Hog Phil, our Pennsylvania Prognosticator, should be concerned that people might checking out their cookbooks for wild game recipes.

I will finish this on a serious note – look out for those at risk in this type of weather.  From people to pets, no one should be exposed to the cold, and not just tonight, either.