Design

This evening the 'drumbeat' of the forecast materialized, and we've had several inches of fluffy, damp snow and it's still coming. This is most unusual for us -- we normally have nice winter days alternating with cold rainy days in February in the Upstate of South Carolina. But this year, with El Nino and altered wind patterns, has been entirely different. This evening's snow is wet, heavy, and slushy and will freeze overnight to a harder consistency, making the roads slippery, and keeping us folks unused to snow and ice inside and not venturing forth. The quietness has already descended. I'll need to go out briefly to post a cancellation notice for a program Saturday morning -- I've called all the registered participants, but there might be some northerly sort of person who might appear. But I guess I've lived in the Southern U.S. for long enough to share the aversion to snowy and icy travel. I'm only a mile away from campus, but I wouldn't ...

We didn't really get much in the way of snow with the recent winter storm, although surrounding areas did. In the mountains, up to a foot of snow and ice fell, creating slippery conditions on highways and streets. This morning, the ice droplets sparkled as the sun started to peak out. The Eastern hemlocks looked graceful, with their dusting of ice. And it looks like I need to fill the feeders again!