Since my last post a bit over a month ago, Winter in North has trudged along, little rain just cold.
Then just over a week ago it got very cold again and for a change the weather guessers were actually right with their snow predictions. On Saturday March 1st it was only 13 degrees for the high with a low of 6 above. Saturday afternoon it started to lightly snow, just as predicted, and then it just kept snowing. By Sunday morning there was already almost 8 inches built up and I wound up snow plowing twice that day to clear then keep up with the build up during the day Sunday since it just kept snowing.
Monday the 3rd it was all deep again, still snowing too, so I took Stacy to work then went back home and plowed again. That afternoon it snowed one last heavy time, but by the time we got home it had warmed up to the upper 30s and was raining so it was more slush then snow by then.
The photos, above and below, were taken on Monday while I was clearing the driveway and around our mailbox out in the front of our property. The property across the street (above) is a good place for lots of my photos. They grow alfalfa in the field during the spring and summer then in the fall they turn our their horses to graze. And there are also the area deer and elk that take advantage of the free food. But the property looks good with snow on it here or all green in the summer.
The photo below is on our property looking a bit westerly from the driveway. It is something these last few years that to get a good snowy photo like this you really have to work quickly!
The new "normal" weather pattern for this area, that used to be 3 to 5 feet deep snow from late December to early March, is now snow with a temp rise within a day or after every storm to well above freezing, melting the new snow. That's been pretty consistent, especially the last two winters.
And again with this storm also. A little over a week later and most of the snow in these photos is all but gone. In fact I'd say all the new snow is gone as it has melted down to the ice base from the bit of snow but very cold temps of the overall winter.
The bigger problem with a foot or more snow in two and a half days and rapid warm up to the upper 40s by last Wednesday is the resulting flooding. For the last 5 or so days its been the land of over 10,000 lakes around here! Numerous ponds and new small lakes abound in just our neck of the woods and on the area farmland. In our driveway we had a pond about 50 feet long by about 30 feet wide and 5 inches deep. Our basement flooded to almost two inches in the low corner and had to be pumped out daily. Area roads washed out, train tracks were under cut by runoff, houses were cut off by high water. But worst off that we know of close to where we live is a house that had previously never had any apparent flooding damage and it and the detached garage were sitting in the middle of a small lake. And we knew when it was being built that there was a basement to the house. So with the water being to the front porch in depth we knew the basement had to be flooded too. Three days ago it was down to where the owners could get back to their house and it looked like most of their belongings were out on the porch or in the back of their truck because of being water logged.
The first totally no rain day and Stacy is on her way to Boise for the rest of the week. She'd been there less than two weeks ago and she'll be going back again next month too. With the spring comes more state level meetings!
Stacy's father had his 92nd birthday on March 3rd. And all those years of his lamenting about how everybody in his family died young!
Over Valentines weekend Stacy had gone to help Sandy and her family and their move to their own house they'd bought. For Stacy, that was Grandma time with Justine! Stacy had a lot of fun with her but worked a lot to as the entire move happened in one day.
We had a cat 'adopt' us this year. Actually last winter it had shown up skin and bones, we fed it and after a few days it disappeared and we thought it had gone off to die as it looked that bad. we were very surprised to have it appear a few weeks ago in good health. Not a wild cat by any stretch, she had to have been somebodies house cat. Bad thing is, even after all our years with animal control, Stacy has become very allergic. So she can't stay with us because she wants in badly! and has started to climb up to the high bedroom deck and climb the screens trying to get inside. NOT cool kitty!! So we'll see if she either takes off again like last year, soon, or we'll have to take her to a shelter and maybe she'll find a home with a loving, non-allergic, new owner.
Not much else going on to type about. We are planning to start with some home renovations this summer, tired of waiting to start. We have two large projects planned, we'll have to see what can be accomplished!
Till next time!
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