Yesterday the freezing rain and sleet hit. Not as hard as we’ve been hit before, but a definite hit. Overnight we received about 4 inches of snow, too.
We awoke to a world dressed for the New Year’s gala: all sequins and lace.
Lest you think it was all just beautiful, I am including a picture of one of my elms. The pile of branches underneath all fell off due to the weight of the ice. Should make a nice bonfire:
This reminds me of a day when I lived in Alaska, out in the Goldstream Valley. It had been very cold for several weeks, and the day before the temperature had risen rapidly from around 30 below to abou 10 above zero. During the night, of course, it had cooled off again.
I rose before dawn, which was not hard to do since dawn occurred at about 10:30 in the morning, and went outside to urinate, as was my usual custom. The warmth the day before had caused water to sublimate off the snow, and during the night it all was deposited as a thick layer of hoar frost on every twig and sprig.
As the Arctic dawn began, the sun painted the world in pink and gold and all shades in between. Somewhere in my vast collection of negatives are the pictures I took that day. As soon as I get a scanner I will present some of them for your delectation.
Stay warm.
the havens 