HAPPY NEW YEAR!

WE WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY, HEALTHY AND PROSPEROUS YEAR AHEAD.

We're getting the snow as promised.  It began snowing around 9 a.m., just as I went out to measure for CoCoRaHS.  I measured only 3/4 in. that had fallen yesterday and overnight.  It has been snowing and blowing all day and there is hardly any snow on our deck - the wind took care of that!  I'm not sure how much is actually on the ground now, but I'd guess in the area of six inches if you don't measure drifts.  I may be able to tell better tomorrow.  Road crews are still out.  Some stretches of interstates were closed for a few hours during the day, but I think they are clear now.  There are still flurries going on, but I think most of the snow is over until Saturday when we will get a few inches more.  

We have changed our internet service from Fairpoint to Charter, so our old e-mail addresses will no longer work in a few more days.  I can still be reached through the website:  janebrown@joespondvermont.com or at joespondvt@gmail.com, or my personal email address, which has changed to janebrowncabot@gmail.com.   I'm guessing most of you know what a pain it is to change email addresses.  I've done it a once or twice before, but my address book wasn't very big then. Over time I've collected literally hundreds of names and emails that I don't even recognize.  People have contacted me at various times about Ice-Out or questions on Cabot or Joe's Pond history, and I've put their contact information in my address book - but in some cases years have passed and now I don't have a clue who they are.  I am thankful that all my Joe's Pond Association contacts (about 250) aren't being disturbed since I already use gmail for that address list.

We just tried to see if it's still snowing much, and it apparently isn't.  We couldn't see much going on out there, so I think the wind has quieted down, too.  It's a lull between two storms, I think. 

 

We are expecting a rather serious snow storm tomorrow.  Taking this seriously, we did some grocery shopping this afternoon rather than waiting until tomorrow - just in case.  The forecast is for 12-18 inches, more or less, depending on what track the storm finally follows.  Skiers and snowmobile enthusiasts everywhere are jubilant that this is shaping up to be one of the best snow years in a while.  We won't know anything for sure until after the storm has passed, but it does seem promising at the moment.  Or not, depending on one's interests and attitude.

Diane Rossi shared this photo of Bill and one of his visitors today, Oreo, who came with Henretta all the way from Joe's Pond to Sherburne to see him. Oreo is a friendly little girl and she and Bill became friends last summer, so this was a happy reunion.  Diane said Bill is doing well, settling in at his new residence, getting to know the staff and other residents.  There are lots of activities for residents there, and that is especially important for anyone as gregarious as Bill.  

It will be interesting to see how the weather behaves tomorrow.  If you don't absolutely have to travel, best to stay home.  The road crews will be busy and there are always those crazies who drive too fast for conditions or who don't have proper tires on their vehicles so end up in a ditch or taking out someone else on the highway.  So try to stay out of their way if you must be on the road!

 

We are experiencing another of those pretty drastic temperature swings right now.  From being below zero day before yesterday, today we were in the low 40s.  The temperature has dropped to freezing now, and it's going to be a fairly cold night.  Everything was icy this morning from the rain freezing on the still very cold ground and pavement.  We've also had lots of wind. That seems to be dying down a bit now the sun is gone, but it's still pretty gusty.  

We've had a turkey or two hanging out for the last couple of days, both here and up at Jamie and Marie's.  I imagine as the weather turns colder there will be a significant crust on the snow and that will make foraging difficult for them.  

I had .40 in. of precipitation in my measuring tube this morning.  The rain came down fairly heavily for a while during the night, but mostly I heard the wind.  I was surprised and happy we didn't lose power.  The snow is off all the trees now, so that makes it less likely the limbs will bend or the trees will fall over and take down  power lines. We'll see what tomorrow brings - snow, we expect!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

We hope you are enjoying a very Merry Christmas!  The Dimick/Brown family had their annual Christmas Eve gathering at the Waterford, Vermont Dimick's last night.  Of course we took lots of pictures, and we were otherwise occupied and didn't get lots of potentially wonderful shots, but I've made a short SLIDESHOW to share with you.  When we arrived in late afternoon, Monika had been called to the hospital to resolve some equipment problem in the x-ray department, but she made it back in time for a great dinner.  Unfortunately, she missed the fun of opening presents - but we caught her up on everything as best we could.

A classmate of Jo-Ann's at White Mountain School, Edner Oloo, is spending the holiday break with Jo-Ann.  Edner is from Kenya, so going home for Christmas was out of the question.  We were very happy to have her share our family Christmas.  You'll see her at the beginning of the slide show, sitting quietly on the stairs with Uncle Bob in the foreground - later on you'll see her with Jo-Ann and Tangeni as they share Christmas gifts.  Aunt Theresa and Aunt Marie, Uncle Jamie and Grandpa and Grandma all show up in the slide show, but Monika missed getting photographed!  Bill was chef for the evening, with help on the grill from Brother Bob.  We all had a wonderful time with lots of laughs.  Tangeni learned about the fastest joke in the world, and we suspect Edner may have wondered if life in the Dimick family is always that zany.  It always is when everyone gets together.  We laughed a lot, ate way too much, but had a great time.  Today, Grandma and Grandpa are quietly recovering.  Time for a walk in the beautiful sunshine.  

We wish everyone a beautiful and safe Christmas Day with friends and/or family you love!

Good morning!  What a beautiful day we have here.  Low 30s and bright sunshine.  Couldn't ask for a prettier day.  We had another half inch of snow overnight, but it's light and fluffy, not anything to bother anyone much at all. 

I have been preoccupied lately (eye appointments and Christmas) so my email built up a bit.  I found some interesting items I will share with you.  

I hadn't heard from Ray and Evelyn Richer since they moved away, so I was very happy to get a nice long email from Evelyn.  They are not far away, in Monroe, NH, and settling in at their new digs.  Evelyn said they hadn't intended to go the fixer-upper route again, but that's just what they found, in a location they love and so couldn't resist.  Ray has been working on getting it livable while they lived in a camper on the property.  Now they are moved in and together will bring new life to the old house.  Evelyn sounded excited to be close to Woodsville where she grew up.  I know they will make a lovely home there.  We miss them at Joe's Pond, though.

I also had a nice long email from Liz Randall.  Liz and John have a home across the road from us here on W. Shore Road, and on Long Island.  We have watched their three youngsters grow up, graduate high school, college, and now Jason is married with two children, Lauren was married in June, (see photo, Mr. & Mrs. Kevin Scanlon) and Matt just got engaged (see photo at right, Matt and his betrothed, Niki Ubags).  The Randall family will gather at the family home on Long Island for the holidays.  Some years they have celebrated in Vermont, but that won't happen this year.  Right after the holidays, Matt and Niki will be leaving for Switzerland.  Jason and his family live in Plymouth, NH.


We had a Christmas message from Jack and Sue LaGue announcing the engagement of their daughter, Jenn.  She and her fiance, Brian (shown here), live in Winooski and are building a home in the Waterbury area.  Also, Jack and Sue just bought a condo in Florida, so as Jack said, they are official "snow birds" now. 

Right here on West Shore Road we have a change, too.  Bill Rossi moved last week to an assisted living facility in Shelburne, Vermont.  Diane has been spending lots of time there, too, and they are enjoying outings and parties provided for the residents.  I'm sure Bill would appreciate hearing from his Joe's Pond friends.  His address is:  185 Pine Haven Shores, Apt. 3123, Shelburne VT 05482.  His phone is 802-923-2572.  If you are over that way, stop in to see him.  I'm sure he'll be very happy to see you.

Yesterday we went to St. Johnsbury to get haircuts and finish some Christmas shopping.  As we pulled into the parking lot at Julie's Hair Care on Portland Street, there was a team of horses coming down the street.  Fred got this picture.  We have no idea who was offering "sleigh" rides, but the wagon was packed with people who seemed to be enjoying themselves.

We always enjoy haircut days.  Julie keeps her salon beautifully decorated throughout the year, and it is especially pretty now.  She continued her seascape theme incorporating Christmas.  Julie not only is an expert beautician, she  also sings with the North Country Chorus,  loves and sings opera, and appreciates all  kinds of music.  Yesterday we enjoyed Bing Crosby's Christmas carols while we were there.   Did I mention Julie is also a cat person?  We compare notes on her cats and whatever Woody is up to.
 
I thought you might like to see how much "winter" we have here right now - the first picture is the Sprague's house at the end of the bridge in West Danville.  Below that is the Danville Inn.  While there is only about 12 inches of snow on the ground, we have had enough snow so the banks have built up - it looks worse than it really is!

We've had a cold day, but the sun was shining all day and it was beautiful - especially inside looking out!  We stayed in the single digits above zero well into the morning after about a -6 degree low overnight.  I think it was about noon when we saw 10 above.  I was busy baking, so had a good excuse not to do my usual hike up Jamie and Marie's driveway.  It's not that I was wimping out exactly, but I broke my earmuffs the other day and I hate wearing hats - stirs up the static electricity and gives me a bad hair day - so I figured I'd save myself the frustration and enjoy my warm kitchen.  Fred didn't mind - he got warm cookies at lunch.  Fred took these pictures early this morning.  The top two are West Shore Road at the bottom of our driveway; the bottom one is looking across the pond towards Route 15.  There wasn't a cloud in the sky and it looks warm, but was still below zero.  I don't think tonight will be quite as cold as it was last night.

We exchanged e-mails with our friend Michael in Alaska today.  He said this cold spell had been with them for several days, but now it has moderated up there.  We think that's the same weather system we have had so perhaps their warmer weather will get to us later this week.  Today in Anchorage the temperature was in the mid 20s while we were barely in the teens.  I looked at their forecast and they will be getting another downward swing in a few days.  

We haven't seen our flock of turkeys for almost a week.  They must be having a hard time finding food since it rained and froze.  This picture was the last time we saw them here at our house.  Now there is a crust on everything.  They may be up above us on the farm.  Someone told us they have sheep up there now - or maybe it was goats.  Anyway, farms are a good place for them to find food.  We wish them luck.

Complete change in our weather, from near zero yesterday to 40ish today and rain.  Some of our snow has diminished, but no bare ground is showing, and tonight the temperatures are back in low teens and we got a sifting of new snow as the temperature dropped late this afternoon.  Now everything is crispy and slippery.  The roads were treacherous today - icy spots, slush and too many people going too fast for conditions.  I think we are again due some cold weather for a few days until the middle of this week.  I heard one report today that in some parts of the country they haven't seen cold like this since 1996.  In the Dakotas it's been -37 degrees without the wind chill and -50 or more with it.  Brrrrrrr - that's cold! 

I am very pleased that we already have an article in response to my mentioning writing for the Cabot Chronicle.  I won't divulge the author or when it will be published, but it is just what we are looking for.  You can read the Chronicle on-line - the Arcana column of the Cabot Historical Society is on page 5 of the current issue.  You'll find other articles in back issues.

I know you're out there, you people with funny or interesting stories to tell about Cabot, and I'm hoping you will share them with us.  It doesn't matter if you've never written anything for publication before.  We're interested in stories, not style.  Also, if someone you know has connections to Cabot and stories to tell but doesn't read this blog, please let them know we'd like to hear from them.  

In the meantime, stay warm and safe.  



 

Ice Fishermen are Here!!

This message came from Henretta Splain this morning (Clubhouse Circle): 

Early this am saw car lights pointed on the pond from the end of Island rd.  When I woke up I see an ice hut on the pond looking toward camp swampy.  
Happy holidays
Henretta

Thanks for letting us know, Henretta!

(P.S. - I just had a note from Henretta saying sometime late this afternoon the ice hut was gone - apparently it was not meant to be a permanent fishing shanty.) 

 
Last week someone asked me how soon I thought the ice fishermen would be out on the pond, and now they are there!  I'm guessing in most places there is plenty of ice after these several below-zero nights and continued cold days.  However, there is that same strip near the east shore that was open for quite a bit longer than the rest of the pond, so I wouldn't trust the ice there for a while yet. 

Today has been cold and blustery again.  We've had another 5- 6 inches of new snow (I measured 3.5 this morning at around 9:30) and it was snowing until mid-afternoon.  Fred cleared the driveway again just before dusk and thinks we got at least 6 inches last night and today.  I think the wind has died down now, and the temperature is supposed to continue rising during the night.  We've been in the teens all day, but now I'm seeing 20 degrees on the weather station.  I hope we don't get rain, but even if we do, I believe we have enough snow on the ground so no bare spots will show up.

The Cabot Historical Society now has a column in the Cabot Chronicle called "Cabot Arcana."  Each month we publish some story from Cabot's history, either an event or about a person who lived here.  We would like to have anyone who has a Cabot connection write a few paragraphs (approximately 400 words) to tell their story of growing up here, going to school in Cabot, visiting a special spot or perhaps something about a relative who lived in Cabot.  I can't promise that your story will be published, but we are looking for fresh ideas for our column.  All submissions will become the property of the Cabot Historical Society and will be added to our collection.  Photographs are wonderful additions to any story and if you send originals, they will be returned after we have scanned them.  Good quality digital copies are also acceptable.  Material may be sent to me at cabothistorical@gmail.com or to CHS, 640 W Shore Rd., Cabot VT 05647.  

We are sorry to report that Dot Temple, long-time JPA member on West Shore Road passed away on December 12th.   Dot spent many summers here with her family and had many friends at Joe's Pond.  We will miss her.  Our sincere condolences to her family.  Friends who wish to send messages may direct them to:  Jeff Temple, 20 Edgewood Dr., Rutland VT 05701.

Last night was the coldest this season.  I had a reading of minus 11.5 degrees on my indoor-outdoor, and minus 13 on the old mercury type thermometer outside my office window.  When it's that cold and the wind is blowing like it was last night, a couple degrees one way or the other doesn't make a whole lot of difference.  It's cold.  plain and simple.  

I didn't linger outside when I took snow measurements this morning.  This was a nose-pinching morning, for sure.  I measured 1.5 in. of new snow, but I the way the wind blew last night, I doubt there is any way to tell how much actually fell.  The snow was being blown about all day yesterday and especially last night - but all I can do is report what appears on my snow board each day.  I've about given up on the backyard stake.  That showed a strong 12 inches yesterday morning, but this morning was down to 10.5, but there were ridges of snow around it.  The only fair way to measure how much is on the ground is to go out there with my yardstick and take several measurements and then average the readings.  I'll do that later - after the warmup this weekend.  We may have a lot less to deal with by Monday.

We had to go to St. Johnsbury yesterday and it was not pretty around Joe's Pond.  Even going down West Shore Road the snow was blowing off the trees creating whiteouts.  Route 2 was the same, but traffic was moving at a reasonable speed for the most part.  I still worried that someone would slam into me when I slowed down for blinding clouds of snow.  By the time we were going down the east side of Dole Hill, the stormy weather let up, but in St. Johnsbury it looked like the frozen north with snow blowing off buildings and almost nobody out on the streets.  Traffic in the stores was down, too.  

Fred had to get his driver's license renewed, so we went up to the Green Mountain Mall.  The Motor Vehicle Department is opposite Pennys at the south end of the mall.  While I was waiting, I walked the length of the mall to the new pub, St. J. Brewery, in part of the space the Pennys store used to occupy at the north end of the mall.  It was just after noon and there weren't many people there, but it looked very nice.  However, there were only a few vendors set up in the mall - possibly half a dozen, and not many decorations.  It wasn't very Christmas-like - not like I've seen in in years past.  There are lots of empty store fronts, but those businesses that are there, Pennys, Sears, Olympia Sprots, Payless, Optical Expressions and Maurice's were brightly lit and decorated.  There are a couple  gyms, and the Chamber of Commerce office and Vermont Motor Vehicle space that is occupied on Thursdays.  Connected, but not accessible without going outside, are Job Lots and the Dollar Tree Store, and these stores seemed to be busy.  Usually there are people walking for their exercise, but I didn't see anyone doing that, and I sat for some time outside the DMV waiting for Fred.  It would be nice to see the mall come alive again.  In the meantime, the stores that are there are well stocked and the clerks friendly, making it a good shopping experience.

Today Fred and I are staying inside - well, except Fred just went out to do his usual runs up Jamie and Marie's driveway.  I'll opt out of walking today - I have "important" projects to do.  One I finished late last night was confirmation of my grandfather's activities years ago when he took a brief journey west after his first wife passed away.  Some of my cousins have supposed he was gone for "one or two years," as an aunt had said in an interview years ago for a book Irma Bolton wrote about the family.  Her book was mainly genealogy, but she got as much input from family as she could.  

A number of years ago, another aunt gave me my grandfather's diaries that span the years between 1885 through the 1930s.  I had not paid much attention to the story of when my grandfather "went west" until I read his diaries.  My great grandmother, Harriet Denison Bolton, passed away in June, 1896, and then my grandfather's first wife, Mary Blodgett, died that November, on their 6th annoversary.  My grandfather left the farm and his two small children in the care of his father, John Bolton, and trusted neighbors, Edward and Eliza Pinkham, who moved to the farm soon after Mary's death.  The Pinkhams had two children, girls about 10 and 14.  The 14 year old, Grace, worked in mills in Massachusetts.  She was born there before her parents moved to Vermont, so I suspect she lived with family when she worked in the mills.  I never heard her story.  

Long story short, my grandfather left in September, 1897 for Oregon, where he worked briefly for a surveying company and got to see a lot of the country, which was his aim, to find a potential homestead.  I remember him saying he never found a place he liked better than the farm on Cabot Plain.  He returned to his farm and family in November, 1897, having been away about seven weeks.  

I am very happy to ease the minds of my cousins who have felt all these years he had abandoned his family.  He had taken great pains to provide for the family in his absence.  When he returned, the Pinkhams remained at the farm and a year later, their daughter, Gracie, came to live with them.  My grandfather married her a year later, on her 15th birthday.  Yep, imagine that.  He was 30.  They raised 10 children together, 5 girls and 5 boys.  The first was born in 1900, the last in 1921. The children from his first marriage were raised along with those from his second, with love and respect.   All were healthy, educated and turned out to be good citizens.  Grandmother Grace died in 1949 at 65, my grandfather died in 1952 at 83.  They were kind and gentle people who loved every one of their children.  And my grandmother was a happy lady for all of the hard work and what must have been nearly impossibly hectic years spent raising 12 children.  She always had hired help - but still, all that responsibility at 15 years old????  My goodness.

Weather Alert

The Vermont Department of Safety has issued a weather alert for the whole state.  Most of us are familiar with the dos and don'ts that accompany cold weather, but it doesn't hurt to review.  This is going to be a mean couple of days with deep cold and some gusty winds that could mean whiteouts on roads and dangerous wind chill temperatures.  Pay attention to livestock and keep an eye on your neighbors to be sure they are safe, too.  Severe cold spells often result in overheated stoves and/or chimney fires, so please be careful.

The warning is for Northern Vermont and New York.  We will be getting snow along with the below-zero temperatures and winds.  Best to stay inside if you can, but if you must go out, be sure all exposed skin is covered.  Frost bite is not fun and can happen within minutes without your realizing it.  

We can't complain about today's weather.  It's been in the 20s all day with even a little sunshine.   Fred has our driveway cleared of the two inches of new snow we got yesterday and during the night, and I suppose there will be another sifting tonight.  It's light and fluffy, but can make the roads slippery.  The Town of Cabot has been plowing and sanding regularly, so our roads are good so far.

We haven't seen the turkeys today except this morning Fred saw our neighbor driving slowly past our house towards Route 2 while a large flock of turkeys shuffled down the road ahead of her.  They seemed reluctant to either fly or get into the deep snow on the roadsides.  Eventually they dispersed, but they may have found some other place to feed today.

I saw somewhere on the internet earlier this afternoon that today Amazon.com had delivered it's first package by drone.  I believe it took place somewhere in the UK.  Apparently it isn't something that will happen here quickly - for lots of reasons - but I guess it could be a useful tool in an emergency.  By "emergency" I mean something more urgent than delivering a gift to your spouse last minute because you forgot an anniversary or something.  I can see potential life-saving uses to get medicine, food or other necessities to remote areas.  However, in general, drones could make our lives much more complicated, public and stressful.  None of which we need.

I've been sending out batches of Ice-Out tickets for people who want them for Christmas.  It's such fun to do that - I sent 60 out yesterday and another 50 pre-paid today.  One customer commented on how much fun her family has when they get them in their Christmas stockings.  It's interesting that a $1 ticket can have such an impact.  Some businesses give them to their employees - I hope not in lieu of a bonus! - and others give them to their clients.  As my friend who ordered 60 said, "It's the fun of getting them and being part of the contest."   All of which is good for us and we're just happy to provide the fun!

Good Morning!
We have a beautiful sunny day going on here after a fresh coating of snow overnight.  Our turkey friends have visited early, most flying out of the woods rather than trying to wade through about a foot of snow now on the ground.  Unfortunately, Fred had to go out to clear the driveway and they all took off, but I'm sure they will fly in again once things are quiet again.

I had a note from Andy Rudin this morning with this link about Christmas tree farming in Massachusetts.  I don't think Vermont has been as severely impacted as other states by drought, but we are certainly very aware this past year was much drier than usual.  It appears we are going to need to conserve and adapt - sooner rather than later.  Thanks to Andy for sending that.

With another 3.5 inches of snow in the past 24 hours, we now have about 12 inches of snow on the ground.  It's not only beautiful, but it gives hope there will be a great ski and snowmobile season this year and that all the snow will help the drought conditions.  It seems we are pretty much insured a White Christmas - although that could change, as we all know.  So far, things are lookin' good.  

We've played hide and seek with the turkeys all day.  They were at the apple trees early this morning and at 9 o'clock I completely forgot about them and went out to measure the snow for CoCoRaHS.  The minute I opened the door onto the deck I heard a rumble that at first I thought was the town plow truck coming up West Shore Road; then I realized it was a dozen or so turkeys all taking flight at once.  I was sorry I forgot to look for them, I could have delayed a bit, but they were back within an hour or so, scratching in the snow under the trees.  

At noon Fred managed to leave quietly enough so they were undisturbed, but when he got to Jamie and Marie's he frightened off a couple near their bird feeder.  I think one of those flew down here, directly over our house.  I was working at the computer when movement caught my eye and there was this huge turkey flying out of the woods outside my office window right towards me.  It could have landed on the house - I really don't know.  It was a really big bird and I had a fine view of its underbelly.  I went out soon after to take my walk, and they were all gone.  I think that fly-over probably upset the whole bunch.

After lunch there were two back under the tree when Fred went out to snow blow the driveway.  They ran down the lawn and into the woods as soon as they heard him shoveling by our garage, so there wasn't any panic that time.  They spent most of the late afternoon here again and we had nothing going on to disturb them.  They don't pay any attention to Woody when he sits in the window and glares at them.  I guess they know he's inside and harmless.

We got another four inches of snow overnight and during today, and it's been in the 20s.  It's going to be much colder this weekend, so whatever's frozen now will likely stay frozen.  No three times freezing over at the pond this year, I'm guessing.  

It's hard to believe Christmas is less than two weeks away.  It always happens this way - I think I have plenty of time and then suddenly it's Christmas Eve.  I started making plans early and have nearly everything finished, but it turns out I won't have much free time that week before, so I need to get everything done this week, including making Christmas cookies.  Some years I don't do cookies, but I hope to this year so I will have some for Christmas Eve with the family.  In the meantime, I have a bunch of other non-Christmas projects to finish, and some Ice-Out tickets to get in the mail tomorrow for a gal in Panton, Vermont who has been buying Ice-Out tickets every year for as long as I can recall.  I love it when people want them to use for Christmas gifts.  It could turn out to be a really big gift, like $5,000!

No, it's not a partridge in a pear tree, but . . .

What a crisp, cold day!  We got into the single numbers above zero last night, and today has remained in the low 20s, slipping downward a bit tonight with snow in the forecast - three to six inches predicted.  

Woody and I spent much of the afternoon watching a herd of turkeys munching fruit from the ornamental apple trees by our house.  The turkey invasion actually started this morning when two spent a long time under the trees, scratching and pecking.  They were quite suddenly joined by six that flew out of the woods - I just happened to be watching when they appeared.  It startled me to see so many very large birds flying towards us.  They spent quite a bit of time feeding, and even stayed there as we walked down the driveway at about noon to take our walk.  We tried to be as quiet as possible so we wouldn't interrupt their meal, but when we came back half an hour or so later, they were all gone.  Then around 2 o'clock, a flock of about 17 came strolling us from the woods to our apple trees, and that's when Woody and I got really interested as they jockeyed for position on the small limbs.  

They are neither graceful nor handsome birds.  They don't seem to have very good eyesight, and are very unsteady on the small branches at the top of the trees.  They seemed to reach for berries that were too far away - even when there were some right next to them - and would lose their balance and topple down into the snow, all flapping wings and clumsiness.  It didn't seem to deter them one bit, and after a few minutes harassing their buddies on the ground, they'd lift off into the tree again.   I must say, they take off very smoothly - it's getting their big bodies in between all the small limbs and twigs that is hard for them.

This went on for a couple hours while Woody and I watched and took pictures.  Numerous cars went by and our boiler spewed steam at the side of the house within 15 feet of them a few times, but none of that bothered them.  However, about dusk, they all took flight at once, and were out of sight in seconds.  This is not normal procedure for them.  A few may fly when startled, but usually they will make a run for nearby cover rather than expend the energy to fly.  

What spooked them was a hunter walking down the road.  I only got a glimpse of him through the bushes and he seemed to be wearing camo and was definitely carrying a gun.  I guess those birds may have had some experience with gun-toting hunters!

This is not turkey-hunting season, but of course the birds don't know that.  I think today was the end of muzzle-loader deer hunting season, so that is what the hunter was probably doing.  I haven't heard any shots this weekend, so I guess the deer around here are safe from hunters for another year.  It may be a hard winter for them and our turkey friends though - we're hearing this may be not only a colder than usual winter, but we may have more snow.  Time will tell.  We seem to have a good start with about 7 inches on the ground and more to come tonight.

Looks a Lot Like Winter!

Weather today:  Blustery and cold.  At 6 p.m. it's 10F and the wind seems to have calmed down.  Tomorrow is another wintery day.  We took some pictures for you.

Well, this has been a blustery day.  We got another five inches of very light, fluffy snow last night and another skimming during the day today, but mostly it's been the wind shifting things around and making squalls and white-outs that's been bothersome.  It's been in the 20s all day, but just now I noticed the temperature has slipped into the teens.  It's going to be a cold night, and the wind isn't going to let up, so the chill factor will be really cold.  It is a good night to stay inside by the fire.  We remind folks to give your animals warm shelter, too. 

This morning when I was outside taking snow measurements, a very large flock of geese went over.  At first I could only hear them, but then they cleared the snow showers that were going on in the Walden hills and found clear air space as they went over our house in a southerly direction.  I guess they fly no matter what the conditions.  They seemed to be in a hurry - perhaps because they  seemed to have gotten a late start on their trip.  I guess the warm weather a couple weeks ago fooled them, too.

We're pretty surprised that the pond froze over and it looks like it may not open up again until spring.  That is definitely unusual - but of course, we could still have some warm weather and rain this month that would open it up again.  This weekend should be cold enough to thicken the ice considerably.

I've been busy doing Christmas sewing projects.  This year is more of a challenge than normal due to having macular degeneration going on in both eyes.  I can still thread the sewing machine needle with the help of a magnifying glass - I think I could manage without the magnifying glass, but it would be way too frustrating.   I think I sewed pretty straight seams, but I'll really never know unless someone complains because everything I look at seems to have "bumps," so I sort of  depend on what I think I "know" things look like from past experience.  Perhaps I should try drawing or painting a picture just to see what genre it would fit into - modern? abstract? junk?  Kidding aside, I'm so very fortunate to have discovered the problems with my sight early enough so the shots work to keep my vision from getting worse.  The doctor tells me over time my brain will adjust to the mixed and flawed images and I will be bothered less by the distortion.  Right now I'd have to say I'm a slow learner.  Fortunately, my distance vision is still good - it's reading and other close work that takes some patience.

We watched Hairspray Live! the other night.  I'd seen the movie but had forgotten all the messages within the script.  Over all, I enjoyed it, but I think the most interesting performance of the night was Harvey Fierstein playing Edna Turnblad.  I didn't recognize Martin Short right away - hadn't seen him for a while.  Loved Jennifer Hudson - great voice.  It must have been difficult to do the show that way - some shots out in the street, etc., and with a mixed cast of Broadway and non-Broadway actors.  I was glad I watched.

Nancy Burgess (Cove Road) took these pictures of those geese that George Parizo spotted yesterday. She said she couldn't figure out at first what was out on the ice (top picture looking across at Richard and Carmen Gagne's, just up the road from George Parizo's).  With some zoom, she could make out the black blobs were geese. Today the pond looks kind of slushy, as if there is water on top of whatever ice had formed.  However, it is still very much frozen over from what we could see when we went to W. Danville this afternoon.

These are some pictures Fred took late yesterday afternoon, after the snow had begun to let up.  That's Jamie plowing his driveway with "The Peach."  We have been lucky not to lose power - so far.  You can see the trees have loads of snow on them and could interfere with power lines.  The more recent snow is quite light, but the temperature today has been around 30 degrees and if we get more snow tonight it could be the heavier variety.  I measured another three inches this morning, and there are  about 7 inches out at the post, so the ground is well covered again.  Perhaps this snow will stay with us.  The weekend forecast is for much colder temps.  It's beginning to look more like Christmas!

I was surprised this morning when a gentleman who works for the National Park Service at the site of the USS Arizona Memorial in Hawaii stated a high percentage of the young people who visit the memorial don't have a clue what it's about and "don't even know who won the war."  That's really hard to believe.  Are schools not teaching history anymore, or perhaps just not in a meaningful way so students can relate and remember?  It was a few generations ago, of course, but still . . .

With Pearl Harbor Day coming up tomorrow, I've been thinking about what a terrible war that was.  I remember more about the day-to-day things, the reports on the radio, rationing, collecting metal for the war effort, buying savings stamps and bonds; but I don't know much about the political side of the war.  This morning I learned that U. S. was totally unprepared for a war in 1941 - that we had tried to remain neutral and were rated only 14th strongest country militarily, somewhere near Sweden, if I heard correctly.  When so many of our ships and planes were damaged at Pearl Harbor, it's a testament to all the people of our country that we were able to win that war.  U. S. was at war with not only Japan, but on December 10, 1941, Germany and Italy declared war on U. S.  The war was fought on two major fronts - in Europe and the Pacific, all at the same time.  WWII ended in Europe in May of 1945 and on the Pacific front in August, 1945.  Over 400,000 U. S. service men and women killed and nearly 700,000 wounded and over 30,000 missing. Today we are the strongest military force in the world, followed by Russia, China and Japan, in that order - I looked it up.  Tomorrow I'll be thinking of all the sacrifices made after Pearl Harbor was hit.

 

I just had a call from George Parizo (Sandy Beach Road).  He told me there is a large flock of geese resting in the snow across the pond from them, near the point that is Cove Road.  He said he has seen large flocks of geese flying south for several weeks now and expects this flock is just resting during the snowstorm.  George and Pat have something of a goose gourmet feeding spot off their waterfront.  George isn't sure what sort of vegetation is growing there, but said the geese have frequented that spot often this fall.  Probably word got out and this flock expected to dine there, too, but of course found the pond frozen over when they arrived today.  Tough luck, but after a rest they will be on their way and will find plenty of open water as they move south.

Snow is steady and we've picked up another couple inches, I expect.  I started off to walk, but when I started down our driveway I found there is ice under the snow and even my creepers didn't prevent me from nearly taking a spill.  Fortunately I'd taken my walking stick and that helped save me from going down.  I really don't want any broken bones, so immediately came back inside.  Will get my exercise indoors today.

First Freeze-Over at Joe's Pond

Good Morning!
After several days of not much news at all, we finally have something really surprising to report:  Joe's Pond froze over last night! 

Diane Rossi sent this picture this morning.  The low was in the teens last night, but with the rain and warmish weather, I really hadn't expected the pond to freeze over much before Christmas.  This is early compared to last year when we were wondering in late December if we'd even have enough ice to put the block out for the Ice-Out Contest.  We did, of course, and the year progressed fairly normally after that. 

This will be considered the "First Freeze-Over," and we can expect the pond will open up again at least once, maybe twice before it is frozen over for good.  However, there are always exceptions . . . ! Thanks to Diane for the picture.

We are getting steady snow this morning - it began early in the a.m. and when I measured at 9 o'clock, we had 2.5 inches.  That's in addition to about 3 inches new snow I measured Saturday a.m.  I'm seeing 5 inches at the stake in the back yard.  Roads were bad yesterday and there was an accident on Route 2 near Molly's Pond late yesterday afternoon.  I don't know who was involved, but from what I heard on the scanner, nobody was injured but the car rolled over and they were concerned fluids might be leaking from the vehicle.

Roads are bad today and crews are out trying to keep everyone safe.  The forecast for the rest of the week doesn't look promising for any letup - snow nearly every day (some rejoicing here, others not so much) and it's going to remain cold, even a little below what is considered normal.  I was wondering what winters were like 100 years ago, so checked some of my weather notes.  Most years the first snow came in early October and there was enough snow for "heavy sleds" (meaning logging sleds and local haulers) to operate by Thanksgiving.  Of course there was the occasional unusual year like 1893 when it was 48 degrees and raining on January 5.  The following year the pond froze over on Nov. 22, and by December 6, the temperature was hovering around zero, and through the holidays remained between zero and 20 below with snow and wind.  In fact 1895 was a tough year right through March with mostly zero temperatures and lots of wind.  Then in early April, when there was still a lot of snow on the ground, rain came and there was severe flooding with the pond raided two feet from normal at the dam.  The problems continued over the years with lots of snow, cold and blizzard conditions - except in 1896 when West Danville local news reported little snow that season and in the Feb. 7 issue of the St. J. Caledonian, "Robins and crows have been seen on the farm of J. L. Frye all winter, unusual visitors at this season of the year."  Late snowfall the following week delivered eight inches, and heavy snow storms continued well into April.
Actually, those years don't sound much different than what we have experienced in fairly recent years.  We'll see what this year brings.

We are definitely back in winter mode.  I measured 3 inches this morning and there is a crusty base from when the rain showers changed over late yesterday evening.  It's still not awfully cold - 31 degrees, but cold enough so the snow is sticking - to everything!  I expect there will be power outages today.  I haven't heard the news yet, but I suppose there could be power loss in some areas already.   It's snowing quite steadily, and there's a strong, gusty wind that makes a bad combination.

I have two announcements today.  The first is a poster from the Cabot Public Library. 

Kathleen Hoyne

Director

Cabot Public Library

PO Box 6, 3084 Main St

Cabot, VT 05647

802-563-2721

cabotlibrary@yahoo.com

 

Then I received this message from Helen Morrisson who volunteers for the Kingdom Animal Shelter in St. Johnsbury Center:  

 

Hi Jane,

Could you share the attached poster on the Joe's Pond Blog?

We are having our annual Pet Photos with Santa Paws next Saturday, Dec. 10.  This year, though, it is at the American Legion in Lyndonville, 10-2.  There will be the photos, a bake sale, KAS calendars for sale (if we have any left), raffle tickets for the Twelve Days of Christmas prizes.  Should be fun.

Thanks.

Helen

 

And there you have it.  Click on the images to make them large enough to read easily.  Fun things to do on wintery days!

We're getting some snow tonight, and the forecast is for colder rather than warmer weather.  The pond doesn't seem to be anywhere near the freezing point, although I'm sure that water is way colder than the air has been recently.  A few really cold days and nights will make a difference, but it may not be frozen over by Christmas.  Today the water looked dark and unwelcoming and it seems to me there's nothing gloomier than Joe's Pond on a dull day this time of the year when most of the cottages are closed up.  Of course there's beauty there - the water foul that come and go, the steam coming off the water, low-hanging clouds or snowflakes creating sharp contrast between land and gray-blue water; or mornings when the water is glassy still and the shoreline is perfectly reflected.  The people living year around on the water appreciate the changing seasons, and I'm sure to some extent enjoy the quiet after their neighbors have left; but gone is the hubbub and camaraderie of boats on one side, cars on the other, and interacting with friends and neighbors every day.

Fred and I were observing the quietness of the pond and remembering what it was like when we lived at camp year around all those years (about 18, actually!)  We agreed that whenever we were at camp, then our home, we were grateful for the quiet and chance to recharge from work, so there was never a gloomy day for us.  There were barely any year-around people on the pond then, so we really didn't even have lights across the pond or up the road to break up the darkness.  All we had was quiet and the stars overhead.  It was lovely.  

Sometimes I miss being "right on the water," but mostly we enjoy being "high and dry," surrounded by lots of grass, hills and trees.  We can see lights across the valley on the Route 15 side of the pond, and hear the traffic on Route 15 and Route 2, and from my chair in the living room, I can watch the occasional car or truck pass by and sometimes I even recognize someone.  Used to be we knew just about every infrequent car that passed, but not anymore.  Too many and a different generation.  Times and places change.

It's time to get our outside Christmas lights up - we watch for the decorations at Gerry Prevost's  directly across from us on Davidson Road.  They are usually the first to go up.  I hope they can see ours, although we don't put up anything very spectacular, so they may not even show up from there.  One year we put a ball of white lights at the top of our flag pole and brought it down on New Year's Eve - but that's another story.  It wasn't the great success I'd hoped for - think blowing snow, blow zero temperature and grumpy husband manning the video camera.  Probably won't do that again! 

 

We have no more snow except a patch in the pucker brush here and there.  I was kinda hoping that snow at Thanksgiving would stay, but Wednesday night's rain washed it all away.  The weather is mild and we can't complain about that, I guess, but many of us are simply ready for snow to come and stay.

We visited the new Aubuchon store in St. Johnsbury today - just wanted to see what it's all about.  It's very nice - much larger than the old one on Memorial Drive, and nicely laid out.  They are still stocking the shelves, but there are lots of items there - even lumber.  We picked up a few things - a timer for the Christmas lights, and some LED bulbs Fred couldn't resist because the price was really, really good.  There were lots of people milling about - both customers and employees.

We made a short stop at the mall.  J. C. Penny store was busy and there were more cars in the parking lot than usual.  Looks like it may be a good year for retail stores.  Downtown didn't seem to be as decorated for Christmas as I expected, but they are still working on the new sidewalks on Railroad Street, so probably after all the work is done the decorations can go up.  There's still time.

We noticed that the Diamond Hill Store block looks a lot different outside than when Tom and John owned it.  There weren't any decorations outside and at first we thought it was closed, but then we noticed lights inside.  It will be interesting to see how it develops, and we wish the new owners the best.