Sunday, January 08, 2017

SUNDAY'S SNOW REPORT

FIRST A NOTE to those of you from - AWAY. We can go years with NO snow - or maybe just a little inch or two every once in a while - but this was a BIGGIE for us. Even just a few inches of snow can basically cripple the Shore and close schools for days as the buses just can't get down into the "necks" as they call our back roads and farms down in the marshes and woods. We can't use chemicals like other places because we are only about 5 miles across, the Chesapeake on one side, the Atlantic Ocean on the other, and miles of marsh, gullies, and guts draining into one or the other. The land is flat, so that drainage is a problem for the roads, consequently they are what we call turtle backed, high in the center often with deep drainage ditches running along side. And no guard rails, BTW. So it is difficult to plow the roads once you get off the main highway (13) that basically runs up the spine of the 80 mile long peninsula to Maryland. Some roads never see a plow. When you add wind to the snow, the open miles of farmland can quickly drift the snow back over the road. VDOT long ago stopped putting up snow fences (after 5 years in a row with no snow) and have had serious drifting problems ever since. But they save $$ not putting the fence up for only 2 or 3 snows a year. If you have a problem with that, move. Seriously. That is what one of our complaining "Come Here's" was told. Actually it was more specific............
Anyway, here are today's pix for my friends and family who are not here to enjoy this latest News making snow event. I will start with my CoCoRaHS precip cylinder, minus the inner tube which would crack in these temps (currently 23!!!!! It is supposed to be 63 by Friday) This cylinder is 4 feet off the ground to help you measure the snow drift there. The sign advertises it is a butterfly garden.
Hoover (the newest cat) actually caught a butterfly near this sign in Dec.... the 18th, actually when it was 70 degrees. But I digress. The yardstick is a few feet away in the zucchini garden, actually, minus the zucchini, of course. Please note the number nearest the snow is 17. Yep. 17. OMG!




Hoover likes to spend her days in the sun on one of the Adirondacks. This is her favorite. She struggled to find a potty spot, finally working her way over to the huge Aucuba where she could dig a spot in the leaf litter underneath. This is her first snow and she is confused!
 


The wind has been a real pain... the Buddha out front under the Yule Tide camellia was completely buried last night. This is what is left of the snow this morning... and Buddha sans snow the other day.

My old cat, Spook, spends much of his time across the street (away from Hoover who wants to play) and kind of got stuck there with deep drifts. I shoveled out my driveway to the street to help on this side, but that didn't help over there! At 73, I can't shovel snow like I used to... and the day of neighborhood kids coming by to shovel snow are long gone. They don't have an app for that. 

The snow is beautiful on the camellias. Snow won't hurt them but this cold temp will.
 
 
 
I picked these Friday and brought them in the house. I love having fresh home grown flowers on the table year round. Now I can't even get to this bush!
Stay warm! Stay safe! Keep off the ice  roads!

3 comments:

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

WOW you sure did have more snow than we did here in Nashua, NH, Possum. We were not able to get out and snow shoe, but should have traveled to the E.S. instead! And, yes, it is nice to have flowers indoors in the winter.

Ginnie said...

Snow is so beautiful covering the camellias and piling up all over the yard, but, at my age, all I see is WORK ... or I guess I could just hide inside until the warmer weather gets here and let nature take its course.

troutbirder said...

Snow can be beautiful and we have lots now. Ice is dangerous and makes me extra aware of the my vertigo. oh well...:)