Spring

'It's Above Freezing Can Spring Be Far Behind?'

Okay ladies and gentlemen the sun is up , the pipes have thawed, I'm in a better mood and Spring is just up ahead. Things are on the upswing. I'm lucky I had no burst pipes. And I'm also lucky to have had plenty of clothes to keep me warm. Some folks laugh because I dress in many, many layers this time of year. I figure if it gives them entertainment, let them laugh. I have yet to suffer much from cold weather even when I'm in it. I just hope that continues to be the case. I'll take my long johns and long undershirts off sometime around Easter. Til then I'm playin' it safe.

It's always fun to sit back and watch other silly people try to drive or walk on ice. As long as you're out of their way. During the recent blizzard I tried to stay put for the most part. When the highway patrol says 'don't get on the roads if you don't have to go' I stay home. In my youth there was nothing that could keep me home on such occasions. I guess I figured I was missing out on a historical event of some urgent importance if I didn't get out there and at least risk a fender bender in the ice storm.

I tried ice skating (with tennis shoes) across Bill Drake's pond once with the Deering brothers. The ice was probably about as thick as an onion skin. We got toward the middle of the pond and plop, plop, fizz, fizz dropped right in to the frigid H20. Could have been disastrous but thanks to long tree limbs and sticks we fought our way back to shore. It was a mighty cold walk back home in wet clothes in mid-February.

Others' stories don't have such happy endings. We were fortunate on that outing. We didn't learn much except to stay closer to shore the next time.

Learners, first timers, novices are always a great source of entertainment as long as you're not directly in their way. And even us old timers are not beyond making errors in such circumstances.
After the ice had cleared from the roads (or so I thought) I went to the store for a few things. Coming down the street returning to my house I slowed to about 15 miles per hour and then suddenly my car spun sideways into the oncoming traffic lane and came to rest nose first in my own driveway. Luckily no one had been coming my direction at the time.

Winter holds an abundance of lessons for all of us. If we're conscious enough to pay attention.