Archive: Opinions

Winter returned with a vengeance on Sunday, and I am not sure why this storm caught me by surprise.  The National Weather Service predicted it would come and drop between 10-14 inches of snow in our region. 

Yet, even with the warning, I actually thought we had seen the last of the snow by late Saturday afternoon.  Our front yard was completely visible for the first time since Christmas.  My wife and I began talking about planting some vegetables, like peas, in the vegetable by St. Patrick’s Day.  We even thought about checking the garlic bulbs we planted back in November.

When we awoke around 6 Sunday morning, it was rather mild, and we continued our conversation about gardening.  I even thought about trimming a few of the trees that had grown too close to the chicken coop.  The idea of that chainsaw cutting away at unwanted limbs made me tingle with delight. 

But that soon changed as a cold front moved in packed with a lot of moisture.  Within a few hours, the snow began to fall, and by midday, it was clear that March had come in like a lion.  There would be no planting of peas by March 17 nor any branch trimming, leaf raking, or tilling of the garden.  There would be shoveling, plenty of shoveling. 

As we woke up Monday morning and watched the last snowflakes fall quietly to the ground, I thought for a moment about had happened during the past 24 hours and chuckled out loud.  Winter had clearly won the battle.  It was still in charge and unwilling to yield to any hopes of an early spring. 

I cursed the four-legged creature, Punxsutawney Phil, and his followers who declared a quick end to winter back on February 2.  Like Linus from the cartoon strip, Peanuts, who year after year waited in the pumpkin patch on Halloween Night for the Great Pumpkin to arrive with bags of treats, I too believed my dreams would become reality. 

The National Weather Service hit a home run with their prediction.  There was snow, nearly 14 inches of wet snow.  My first thoughts went out to the chickens.  They too were convinced that spring had arrived early as they had been roaming around their muddy pen just 24 hours ago.  I shoveled a path to their coop, opened the door, and found them to be just as disappointed with the weather as we were.  None of  moved from their roosts.   I thought I heard one of them cluck “shut the door.”

All was not lost on Monday. I spoke to my boss, and she told me to come to work when the roads were safe to travel. As soon as she spoke those words, the plow came down Rt. 34 B hurling a wave of wet snow two feet high and six feet deep into the entrance of our driveway.  So I spent an hour shoveling walkways and two paths down the driveway so I could get to work.

With the last shovel of heavy wet snow removed from the entrance to our drive, I chuckled again and thought to myself: At least I would not have to workout at the “Y” when I got home later that evening.  Spring is near.  Linus and I are waiting.  And that is to the point.     

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