So, About That Winter

Now that Spring is here, we can talk freely. We didn’t seem to get very much snow this winter. Felt pretty warm, too. Is the end of snow near?

This is very much like the weather used to be in the mid-Atlantic. When I was in DC in the late 80’s and early 90’s, it would get cold, but there was barely any snow. A half an inch would surprise people and shut things down. We got much more slush, and that would freeze into ruts because there wasn’t a good plow system in place.

My grandparents lived on Long Island but wanted to retire in the 1970’s to someplace warm where they wouldn’t have to shovel and deal with snow anymore. They moved to Florida.

Decades later, as their grandchildren approach retirement age, the warm climate of Florida seems to be moving north.

No snow days means no unscheduled breaks, as my sister said recently, to go out and see your neighbors and feel a common spirit of “we’re shoveling!”  No random days off for kids to build snow forts or sculptures.

No snow means no snow tires, or people to sell or install them. No need for shovels or snow melt companies. Who wants to buy a snow plow, snowblower, or snowmobile? No one.

Sugar on mud won’t have the same appeal. What will be our  post-tipping point dessert?

I dunno. This winter was pretty pathetic. I used a snow blower three times, and it was often slush that gurgled out. I might use the wet-dry vac next year. : )

Comments | 12

  • Little winter

    Only 29″ of snow here in South Bratt and much of that came and went in a few days. I have averaged about 65″ over the past 30 years. Not a single below freezing night this winter. Not sure if we have had that before. When I ski many people I go up the lift with seem in denial. It’s just a bad year, be better next year. But it has been heading down for a number of years with much higher percent of our precipitation falling as rain. This meteorological winter, Dec, Jan, Feb. I measured 14.41″ of precipitation, enough for 10-12 feet of average density snow but that is not what happened. The amount of moisture goes up and the amount of snow goes down.

    That said, this morning skied in 6″ of new snow at Killington. They have been receiving quite a lot of snow in the past couple of weeks.

    Gary

  • Error

    Not a single below zero night, not below freezing.

    Gary

  • Scold Snap

    Kinda wish there was more conversation and exchange on this site. If weather isn’t one of the easiest and primo things to chat about, what is?

    • Hmmm

      If not weather… babies? Pets?

      Baby pets and weather! My kittens, who are now 11 months old, have a morning ritual while I get the wood stove going. They go on the enclosed side porch and look out the windows at birds and squirrels. Lots of air through the deck-like floor and the screen on the door, so they get to check out the temperature and smells of the day without going all the way outside. They have seen some snow, but know more about rain.

      One of our previous cats, Birdie, used to LOVE to go out into snow banks taller than her. She’d march right out, wander over to the fence about 15 feet away, do her business, then come trotting back. She went out a totally black cat but would come in looking like a frosted pop tart.

  • As predicted

    I was glancing through my day book the other morning, and saw noted on Dec 15, 2023 that a NH meteorologist had informed viewers (sadly, bless ’em) that according to projections, it wasn’t going to be much of a winter this year. I thought at the time, my heart says no but my head says, they’re probably right. And they were.

    Yesterday I was looking at photos from 2017 showing Brattleboro blanketed in snow and wanted to cry.

    I love snow! Never have I missed it like I did this winter.

  • Climate more than Weather

    “Normally” the lilacs come in as hummingbirds return to our yard in June. I’m wondering if the shifting warmth sets off a bump to migration patterns, and then a change to pollination cycles…

    …snowball effects….

  • Missing Winter

    My heart lifted a little at yesterday’s flurries. We may see a “wintry mix” this weekend, but this hasn’t been a proper Winter at all and a Spring slush won’t make up for it. I live for the cold and snow. This year sucked.

  • March madness

    Now that spring is here, we got some snow. Similar to last year. March is the big snow month now, it seems.

    I did get to use the snowblower twice this weekend, and it was happy to blow actual snow rather than slush for a change. Soaring arcs of powder in the sun against a perfectly clear blue sky. Quite nice.

  • March storm

    You are just lucky you live way up north. Down here in South Brattleboro I measured 2.81″ of total precipitation but only 6″ of snow. Lots of rain, freezing rain, and sleet between the beginning and ending snow storms. Sunday morning I chopped out the frozen stuff at the end of the driveway.

    • we got that ice

      The ends of the driveway were ice blocks here, too… heh. The soaring powder was not at the end of the driveway.

      We got about 10 inches total.

      I saw quite a few people out clearing roofs today – at WW, and at Retreat Farm. Big crews.

  • Sloodgy in West B

    It’s slushy mush out here in the mild west. Ugly already, and quite sloodgy to step in.

  • Spring snow and ice

    This was the first time in IDK how long that I had to use warm water to get into my vehicle!
    People were driving around with 8 inches of snow and ice on their cars.
    Memorial Park had two inches of fresh, new, frozen base and four inches of powder!

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