Fourth La Ninia In Five Years - Here We Go...!

At not yet 3:30 in the afternoon, it is so dark that all the outside security lights have started to come on and the snow is coming down so hard it's difficult to see across the driveway.  We are in for another La Ninia winter, the fourth one in five years.  For those of you that don't know what a La Ninia is, it's when the pacific ocean currents off the coast of Washington & Oregon are colder than "normal" which creates a wetter and colder winter pattern for the Pacific Northwest.  It can cause drought in the south and mid-west.  It's a snow/cold machine for us.  The last one finally abated in the end of June which gave us a cooler and later summer than normal.  Five years ago I spent more than I should have on those pretty purple boots.  It was the best money I ever spent.  Thank you LL Bean.  I never could have made it to the barn or cleaned out all the gates without them.  Intuition listened to always pays off.

I have to admit, I am so tired of these hard winters.  Now I can truly sympathize with my Mother and how hard it was on her when we were kids and living at Fallen Leaf Lake.  Firing up the old Army Weasel to get in and out as our road wasn't plowed in the winter.  Dad kept it open as long as he could, then it was the weasel and if anything happened with it - snowshoes or just on foot.

1959 Dad, me and my brother

I shoveled off the cement driveway this morning after spending nearly two hours putting a new belt on my snowblower.  By the time I had the belt on, it had warmed up too much for the snowblower to move the snow.  Shoveling heavy wet stuff Day 2.  About 20 min. after I had finished, the skies got dark and the snow moved in - a blizzard like day.  In an hour and a half I had 5 inches of new snow.  Like an idiot, I decided I'd better drive out for the mail.....well, the snow had drifted up by the gate and I got my van stuck.  A half hour of digging and she is safely parked in front of the house again.

Look at all that beauty tumbling out of the sky....Funny how I enjoyed it so much more when I was a kid.  It was so exciting to see the first flakes falling.  Magic snow.  Snow forts and sliding down hillsides and of course that magic of all magic days - Christmas.  It's been a l-o-n-g day.  I sure could have used a dose of that magic.  Guess my magic wand needed to be re-charged today.  Bah Humbug!