January 20, 2012




Starting to get some serious snow
on Tuesday




A foot by Thursday afternoon
with more on the way!

 











Once again our world is as silent as it is white.  Only the sound of the occasional train whistle or plane engine reaches us Up Here.  A little green shows through on the snow laden branches.  Even the brown tree trunks are smattered in white.  It has been snowing constantly since before 4:00 a.m. Tuesday.  By 3:30 p.m. Wednesday we had received 8" and by 9:00 a.m. Thursday we had a total of 11-1/2".  I am sure we have another 3" to 5" by now.  All of Western Washington got hit pretty hard too, but they do not expect it like we do.  Nor do they know what to do with it when it arrives.

It is easy to get lazy in the winter when there is no snow.  All the firewood is cut and stacked.  Our provisions have been brought up and put away.  We can still drive JB's Jeep to town.  All that is left is to enjoy - until the snow arrives.  Now "lazy" has to be put aside and it is not all that easy.  Suddenly we have to trudge up to the panels several times a day to clean off the snow if necessary (and we can't see if they need it til we get there).  Two miles of the road has to be packed down at least once a day as long as it is snowing.  The paths and driveway have to be cleared with the snowblower and shovel.  And the deck must be cleared off.  Am having a hard time remembering what I said I liked about snow. . .  Oh, yeah - now I get to use my snow shoes.  Will make "trudging" a lot easier.  Actually the fun begins once it has stopped snowing.

Driving MAX Wednesday morning, JB and the dogs went down to pack the road.  It's a little more difficult in this powder snow with MAX, but they made it just fine.  This is Dinga's favorite weather - snow!  She goes nuts running and playing, making snow angels, eating ice, rooting through the now after small critters.  She would love Alaska.  But she doesn't have to do any of the work!  After doing the road, JB shoveled out in front of the house.  I waited til 1:00 p.m. to clear the deck and by then it was covered in 7" of snow.  Not fun!

JB went Down There yesterday and, this being the first time down on MAX this season, it took longer for him to get going.  Preparations we should have made the night before pushed back his schedule in the morning.  It was 2 degrees and lightly snowing when he finally go on his way at 9:30 a.m.  By the time he arrived back home at 3:30 p.m., it had warmed up to 6 degrees and we had another inch or two of snow.  He had to shovel some of the snow off the road at the end of our driveway to get back up, but it wasn't too bad.

While he was gone I quickly did the dishes and filled the water buckets so as to use as little power as possible.  Then I suited up and brought in firewood; shoveled the area in front of the house; cleaned off JB's Jeep; and cleaned off the panels.  After lunch, I once again found myself out cleaning off the deck at 1:00 p.m.  Only 4-1/2" this time.  Much easier and faster than 7".  Needless to say, I think we have both already got our exercise for the week.

Thought for the day:  The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hand of man.   Author Unknown