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Cold, Snow, Martin Luther King Day and More

by Peter Geiger | Monday, January 19th, 2009 | From: Blog

My weekend – the fish were not biting and the the auger not “auging”. On Friday I told you about all the fun Mainers have ice fishing and such, Friday night I went to my cottage and cut a hole in the lake and tried to pump water through a 100 foot hose to coat my skating rink. Lesson learned. It was so cold (- 25 degrees), that the water couldn’t get through the hose without freezing. The next morning, I tried to drill holes through the ice to set tarps. It was so cold the auger just wouldn’t cooperate. Got only two traps set and no fish. But, I was outdoors, it was sunny and the little bit of face that was exposed got wind burn. So, chalk one up for the fish.

 
When we came out with our winter call, we said that it would be “numbingly cold”. The Associated Press article that reports on our call for winter always has a comment from someone at the National Weather Service who says that we don’t know what we are doing, etc. In fact the article said “the almanac’s winter prediction is at odds with that of the National Weather Service whose trends-based outlook calls for warmer than normal temperatures over much of the country”. At the same time, the individual said that is it “generally impossible to come up with accurate forecasts more than a week in advance”.  Last week was anything but warm. In fact it was down right brutal with more to come.
 
Looking at the weather maps for this week, 80% of the country will be in the deep freeze through January 27th. Only parts of the Desert Southwest and the Deep South will see near or normal temps. The coldest part of winter is mid-January through mid-February. So, if you live in a part of the country that is hot and humid most of the year, look at this week as a respite. Break out the sweaters, jackets, socks on your hands, or whatever you have to do to stay warm.
 
We had 14 inches of snow yesterday. I am reminded of how much other “want” snow. The Washington DC/ Maryland area seems to escape most storms. Here is a hopeful message from Beth:

I thought you’d want to know that our local meteorologist feels that the DC area will have a major snowstorm in early February. According to your website, there’s a coastal snowstorm predicted between February 8 to 11. Interesting….We have not had any significant snowstorm in 2008 and 2009 (so far). Wow….I am so amazed as we have had many cold days. Mother Nature is certainly interesting this year.

I agree – interesting winter. Remember the President’s Day storm that buried Maryland a few years ago… maybe this year it will be on the 8th or 9th??  Stay tuned.  

It is Martin Luther King Day – salute to all who have helped change America over the years. I grew up during the ’60s and remember how much tension existed. We have come a long way thanks to Dr. King and his vision for America. Progress has been painfully slow but steady and we are in a better place. Enjoy the day.

If you notice a hole in the upper left-hand corner of your Farmers' Almanac, don't return it to the store! That hole isn't a defect; it's a part of history. Starting with the first edition of the Farmers' Almanac in 1818, readers used to nail holes into the corners to hang it up in their homes, barns, and outhouses (to provide both reading material and toilet paper). In 1910, the Almanac's publishers began pre-drilling holes in the corners to make it even easier for readers to keep all of that invaluable information (and paper) handy.

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