Betty Chamberlin

Betty Chamberlin who many of you know, I'm sure, from her many years in Danville at her video store, the Creamery Restaurant and most recently, the Danville Inn, passed away on Sunday.
      From the Pearson Funeral Home in Lyndonville Vermont site:
 Betty was born on May 31, 1932 and passed away on Sunday, February 24, 2019. Betty was a resident of Danville, Vermont at the time of passing. She graduated from Danville High School in 1950. Funeral services will be held at 2PM on Friday, March 1, 2019, at Danville Congregational Church on Hill Street in Danville, Vt. There will be no calling hours. Memories can be shared with the family online at www.saylesfh.com Funeral Service at the Danville Congregational Church at 2:00 PM on March 1, 2019. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Danville Congregational Church, 87 Hill St, Danville, VT 05828, or the Open Door, 29 Hill St, Danville, VT 05828.

     Betty was honored a while back by WCAX and here is a clip of that segment. She will certainly be missed by very many friends - she was a kind, sweet lady with a quick smile and lots of good humor.

I spoke way too soon yesterday when I was so enthusiastic about having sunshine that made the world seem right again after the storm. The sun came out, but the wind did not cease. I had just finished posting to the blog when the power went off.
     Losing power in the daytime never seems as serious as it does at night. After contacting the power company and finding they seemed to have no idea the power was out again in our area, we waited a while and then decided we'd better get the fire going in the wood stove again. The wind was still blowing even though the sun was out and it was only about 7 degrees above zero. We knew it could be a while.
     Fred got the fire going and then we heard a beep and for a few moments the power was back. Then it was off again. Not too encouraging. We had lunch and around 2 o'clock, got our power back. However, we kept the fire going in the wood stove - just in case. Besides, I love having the wood stove going. I'm often cold in the evening when I'm watching TV, and with a wood fire, the living room is super cozy and warm.
     We were lucky that the power stayed on and today has been very productive - we've both been busy making up for lost time on our computers. The editor for our West Danville history book sent back a long chapter I've been anxious to get, and I was able to make the corrections and get that in place with the other already edited chapters. Tomorrow I'll finish up another one to send off to her.
     We remembered today that anyone who needs to have absentee ballots sent to them so they can vote at town meeting should do it NOW. There isn't much time. Town meeting is Tuesday, so give your town clerk a call if you haven't already done so, or stop in at the town offices and fill out your absentee ballot there. Lots of people may feel it's safer to do absentee ballots than count on going to the meeting. We don't know what the weather is going to be like, and it could be you would find yourself unable or unwilling to head out to the meeting. 
     We are expecting a little more snow tonight - but right now there is nothing happening - the temperature is only 7.2F so it's going to be another cold night. Fortunately, the wind has gone down.

    This morning is one of those absolutely gorgeous clear blue sky days when you just want to bow down before the sun in awe of its brilliance. After yesterday's storm, we feel exhilarated - maybe even a little inspired. 
    That was a dark place we were in yesterday. I was getting reports on the scanner that whiteouts on the highways were causing traffic delays and accidents - mostly fender-benders - but emergency teams and wreckers were having a hard time keeping up because, like everyone else, they couldn't see worth a darn, either.
     Diane Rossi told us that although she wisely decided not to go to Shelburne to see Bill yesterday, she did go to do some errands in Danville and on the way back - in West Danville - the wind and snow was blowing so hard she couldn't see a thing and had to stop until there was a lull, all the time hoping nobody came up behind her and rear-ended her. Fortunately, she was able to proceed ok, but it was tough going.
     Jamie had a similar experience on the stretch by Point Comfort. He said there was a complete white-out and he couldn't tell the road from the white of the pond and had to stop to wait for the wind to let up enough for him to see. He said traffic was slow, bumper to bumper. With everyone in the same white no-man's land, drivers were being extra careful.
     We worried about Marie coming home after dark. She was working at the Concord (VT) Health Center yesterday and didn't get out from work until 7 o'clock. She finally made it home ok, but said she was traveling "in a caravan" with everyone going very slowly, just following the car ahead. I was wondering if people would even be able to find their turns off the main highway. Without being able to see more than the car ahead of you, how would you know where you were? It's bad enough in daylight, but when it's dark, too?
     We know a little about darkness. We lost our power last night, I think just a little after 7 o'clock. We usually are prepared better when there's a good possibility we'll lose power. We usually keep a flashlight close by, but we were blissfully watching the news and had just mentioned that the lights hadn't even blinked all evening - and even then didn't think that we might be on borrowed time.
     When the power went out, it was so dark, neither of us could believe it. Usually there's a moon or some glimmer coming from somewhere, but last night - nothing. Fred suggested we wait for our eyes to adjust to the darkness. We sat quietly, waiting, and could hear the wind roaring outside. After a few minutes, we agreed there was no "adjustment" going on, we were enveloped in total darkness. 
     It's funny how you lose your sense of direction when you cannot see anything at all. I remember getting lost in the fog once years ago when deer hunting in an area I knew like the back of my hand. But that day, everything was white, and the only direction finder I had was that the ground slanted downward, and I knew that if I continued in a downward direction I'd come to a road. But I didn't figure that out until I'd gone in a complete circle - doubling back onto my own tracks in the snow.
    The best we could do last night was go by voice. I talked and Fred got his bearing from knowing where I was - in my chair by the windows. At first, he went too far left and ended up in the dining area - but then, with me talking and listening to him, he found familiar  pieces of furniture and was able to get to the flashlight in the kitchen. Fortunately, it was where it always is kept. I'm not sure what we would have done if one of us had forgotten to put that flashlight back on the shelf where it's supposed to be. It would have been hard to remember where other flashlights might be or where the nearest matches were. As it was, we soon had oil lamps going and Fred called the power company to report the outage and then got the wood stove going, knowing we were doubtless in for a long haul without power. The power company said power was out throughout Cabot and Walden - and lots of other places. 
     We went to bed early and were sound asleep when it came back on at about 9:45 p.m. That was unbelievable! We pretty much expected to be without power for a day or so, at least.
     This morning, Fred was out early blowing away the hard-packed snow from the driveway. I measured seven inches and cleared off the deck - that was heavy to shovel! When we finished, Fred told me a couple of big spruce trees had come down on Jamie and Marie's driveway, and later we got an email from Jamie saying they had to chainsaw their way out this morning. This isn't the first time a tree has fallen across their driveway this winter, so they are old hands at the cleaning up process. Jamie says all of this is just more reasons he's loving Winter 2019.
     And that's the story from here this morning - it's cold, only 9F, and there's still a pretty good breeze out of the northeast, but the sun is shining and spring is on its way, creeping slowly but surely here, and that gives us joy.

 
 

     This has been a wild, snowy day. We got several inches more snow that we don't need, and the wind has howled all day long. In our back yard, because we're sheltered somewhat from the direct west and northwest wind, the snow tends to swirl like young tornadoes. On the hillside above us I can see the big spruce trees swaying with the gusts of wind as it sweeps over Cabot Plain. It is getting colder now that evening is approaching. We were at 34 degrees this morning, but now I'm seeing a reading of 16.4F. With the wind, it will be well below zero tonight. This is going to last into tomorrow, then we'll have just cold - and more wind, but no snow. 
     I have been drawn to watching the snow blowing around today. It is a lot like March. The top picture was taken a few minutes ago from my office window. I'm about to close the shade to close out the "view." Not very pleasant today. The next picture is the same view I posted yesterday of the lower lawn when the sun was so pretty on the ice-covered trees. Not pretty today. Then I took one more as I stood in our living room window - that's the end of our driveway and at times I couldn't even make it out the snow was swirling around so much. Everything out there is in grayscale - no color.
     That wind is making driving very difficult with whiteouts on the highways, so people have to be very careful. I have had the scanner going, but fortunately there have been no serious accidents reported in the few minutes I've been listening, but road crews are reporting visibility often at zero. This slows down response time in emergencies, but also should slow traffic - if drivers are wise.

     I have sad news tonight. I took a few minutes after lunch to catch up reading the newspapers and found that Dot Desrochers passed away on the 19th. Dot is Jim Desrochers' (Old Homestead

Rd.) mom. I have known Dot for many years - they lived in our neighborhood in St. Johnsbury, so her children and mine grew up and went to school together. Dot was school nurse when I worked at the St. Johnsbury School District's administration office. She was a very kind, generous, loving person and will be truly missed. To send condolences to Jim, Karen and their family, send to: 811 Old Oyster Trail, Sugar Land TX 77478. Our thoughts are with them.

    Just in case you didn't get the link for Marti Talbot's blog about their trip to the Antarctic, here it is again (Link). I just looked at the photos again - it must have been a very interesting trip. 
     Yesterday morning when the sun was just getting fairly high, I took a picture from our living room window of the trees all covered with sparkling frost. Then I got busy and forgot to post it, but because today has been dreary and spitting rain at us, I remembered it.
    We have had some of the nasty weather forecast, but without the promised wind - so far. We had some gusts around noon, but now it is relatively calm and the rain seems to be turning to snow. Of course it is! 
     I measured an inch of new snow this morning, but the rain will have settled what we had a bit. Still, there's a lot on the ground. As near as I could tell by looking at my backyard measuring post yesterday, there was about 30 inches of snow on the ground. At least in that spot. And that's enough.
    Drive carefully, and watch out for the other guys on the road.

Good Morning!
Lovely day here - no snow!
I just got this really nice picture of David and Marti Talbot when

they were in Antarctica recently. So good to see both of them so happy and healthy! Way to go, kiddos.

Marti asked if there is a way that new posts to this blog can be sent directly to followers' email addresses. I looked into it and found there is a new gadget that will allow this. I have added it to the blog so I believe it should work now. Thanks to Marti - if she hadn't asked I would probably never have realized it is available. As with any of these things, it's important to know that you can click on "Unfollow" at any time if you no longer want to be bothered with extra emails being dropped in your mailbox. Let me know if it doesn't work for you - I tried it and you will see I'm listed as a follower. Now I'll see if I get an email when I post this today! Exciting! Well, maybe not very, but it's always fun to discover new things. You will notice on the right upper corner of the blog page there is a new space for you to submit your email address. Once you have done that, you should receive notifications when I post something new.

We are waiting for another nasty storm to hit us. It is coming at us tonight with snow, wind and some rain possible. This sounds like a March type mean one and will mess up the morning commute on Monday. In the meantime, it's really nice today - getting a little melting going on to settle the snow before the next onslaught. I'm showing about 31 degrees, but overnight it was in the single digits again. The sun has some real warmth to it now and we are beginning to feel there's an end in sight. Maybe after this next storm. Or the next one. March can be a bear.

Another inch or so of snow last night - just enough to keep everything fresh and bright! And enough to have to shovel off the deck so I can get a fairly accurate reading from the next snow storm - and there will be one. We still have March ahead of us.
     We haven't had snowbanks like now for a few years. The town plow has been coming by every couple of weeks to wing back the banks along West Shore Road. If they didn't, we'd be down to one lane wide. Our driveway has become narrower at the bottom, but Jamie comes with his tractor and pushes the banks back for us. It gets so high at the foot of all the driveways you can't see what's coming down the road at  you - so Jamie has concentrated on keeping the banks pushed back around our mailboxes. There are three driveways that converge onto West Shore Road and it's really hard to find a place to put all the snow that comes from there.
     There are rules (laws) about pushing the snow across roads or highways, but during winters like this, it's hard to find any other way to deal with it.
 
Title 23 : Motor Vehicles
Chapter 013 : Operation of Vehicles
Subchapter 011 : Miscellaneous Rules
§ 1126a. Depositing snow onto or across certain highways prohibited
(a) No person, other than an employee in the performance of his or her official duties or other person authorized by the Agency of Transportation (in the case of State highways) or selectboard (in the case of town highways), shall plow or otherwise deposit snow onto the traveled way, shoulder, or sidewalk of a State highway or a class 1, 2, or 3 town highway.

     Do you know there are instructions for plowing snow on the internet? Nobody is surprised, I guess. Everything is on the internet. I've often wondered just how all that information gets there. Of course, somebody has to write it first, and that's the part that boggles my mind, being in the midst of my own huge writing project. Just about everything that ever happened in West Danville and was written about will be in this history book. We've all been through page after page of newspapers and documents to find all sorts of facts and factoids to include.
     Once again, if anyone has an interesting story - perhaps one that was NOT published - that you would like to have in this book, please let me know. Call me 802-563-2381 or send me an email  
janebrowncabot@gmail.com. I'm presently working on accidents that include everything from drownings to runaway horses. Then there's a chapter on some lawlessness that went on - mostly executed by highly inebriated individuals, but also a few ill-advised thieves. We are looking for funny stories or sad ones. It's all part of the fabric that makes up the community. Let me know what you remember or were told.
 

I had this message today from Craig and Heather Blair (Cove Road) whose daughter, Alexandra, is battling leukemia. Alex is a very strong young lady - some of you no doubt know her as your neighbor at Joe's Pond during the summers.  It sounds like she's doing well, but as we all know,  fighting cancer is no easy task, and the support of friends is important - it's a long, difficult road, especially for an energetic teenager that has been very involved in family, school and her community.
We wish her the very best.

Hello Jane -

Thank you for checking in and I am sorry that it has taken so long to follow up with you.  Alex is powering through her treatment!  We have been so fortunate to have the support of our amazing communities, health care providers and friends.  I will share the link to her caring bridge page.  We try and do an update every 2-3 weeks.

 https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/alexscaringbridge?fbclid=IwAR2HC_fKefOnFinKXD3aPOlMIHYcQcL8m2bwjl5AnWKFb1XkzK8KqvKxXNY

Hope all is well and truly looking forward to another season at camp!!!

Heather

Good Morning!
Another cold, blustery morning with deceiving bright sunshine accompanied by a bitterly cold NNE wind that is rearranging the fluffy two and one-half inches of new snow we got yesterday, whisking it off the trees into sparkly swirls that settle in mini drifts at the edge of our driveway. The back yard has ripples in the snow where the wind scuffed it up during the night. It's very pretty, but the wind makes it feel like below zero. My thermometer is only at 9.9 right now and the wind gusts send the chill factor down to zero and below. 
     I am having to throw the snow over the railing of the deck now - the banks have built up so there's no more shoving it under the lower rail and over the edge. The piles are about six feet deep around the deck. This morning, I had to throw it all over one end, otherwise it would blow back into my face and onto the deck, skewing my measurements - not to mention how uncomfortable that is!
     Andy Rudin sent a message yesterday that his daffodils are up three inches. Mine are under at least three feet of snow at the south end of the house where they usually come up first, and under twice that everywhere else. Spring isn't "just around the corner" here.

Here's another bit of good news - I just had a note from Marti Talbot - she and David just returned from another trip - this time to Antarctica! Marti has some pictures on her BLOG, so check it out. Great pictures, and so good to know David was feeling well enough to do this.
     This is the first day for a while that we haven't had snowflakes falling. It's been on the chilly side - in the 20s, and colder  tonight, but at least no snow the last time I checked. I heard another storm warning tonight while we were watching the news, so spring isn't here just yet.

This picture came from Tom and Camilla Dente this morning. Butch and Susan Bouchard stopped by to see them on Valentine's Day! Tom said it was great seeing some Joe's Ponders.
     It's very special to see Camilla looking so good. Both she and Tom have had a lot going on this winter. We send best wishes and lots of prayers their way every day. Looking forward to seeing all four of these JPAers back at Joe's Pond this spring. 

     We've seen just about all the different kinds of weather there is this past week. We went from well below zero to rain and back again several times, with a new coat of snow with each change. This amounted to snow every day. We thought today was going to be different - the beginning of a stretch of nice, sunny days. We got the sun, but along with it, more snow! The sun was shining brightly this afternoon and there were lovely fluffy, sparkling snowflakes falling steadily. I wish I'd thought to look for a rainbow. There must have been one out there. A few minutes later the wind was blowing a gale and for a few minutes we had blizzard conditions, like in March. Or January. It sure is interesting weather this year. 
     In a way, it's been really good for me because I've needed to stay at my computer writing every day. When the weather is nasty, that isn't bad duty! We walked up to wish Jamie "Happy Birthday" last night, and it was really quite nice. We knew there was lots of ice underfoot, but we both had our creepers on, so we were able to manage very well.
     I looked out this morning at the measuring pole I finally got put up out in the back yard, thinking I'd report how many feet of snow there is on the ground. The pole was completely covered with snow the whole length of it so I couldn't read any of the numbers at all. I would guess there's about three feet out there, but honestly, I can't figure out how to get out to actually measure it. There are high snowbanks everywhere that sort of create a wall that's higher than I want to try to navigate. I've tried that a few times in the past and it's a bear to get up there with all the gear I have to take to measure the snow depth. I'm sure my measurements won't be missed all that much.

     I took this picture of our deck a few nights ago. Interesting, isn't it?

Nearly every winter we learn about trucks or cars going through the ice on ponds where people are ice fishing. It isn't uncommon on Joe's Pond to see several cars and pickup trucks parked near ice shantys where folks are fishing. The temptation to drive out onto the ice with all your gear instead of pulling it out on a toboggan is great, especially when the ice is a foot or more thick. But it can be dangerous. The ice is not always uniformly thick. Just this week we have heard of two accidents with vehicles through the ice. One, on Willoughby Lake came over the scanner while I was working. I was relieved to hear that the occupants were out of the vehicle and ok. Here's the report: Truck Through Ice.
     A man fishing near Orwell on Lake Champlain wasn't as lucky. His truck went through the ice and he did not survive. His relatives reported him missing and his body was found yesterday. Here's the report on that: Missing Man Found .
     The state police have issued a warning to all about going onto the ice. JPA President Tom Dente sent this to me this morning.  Click to make it large enough to read.
     We have not heard of anyone going through the ice on a snow machine, but that happens, too. It's best to take extra precautions, especially if you are not very familiar with the lake or pond you are venturing onto. Ice thickness can vary with water depth and also depending on where water may be flowing into the pond from brooks or other streams. The narrows between two larger bodies of water such as we have here at Joe's Pond can be very dangerous. They are the last to freeze over and the first to break open in warm spells, so we know the ice is very thin there. The water is moving fairly swiftly through those kinds of spots and therefore it doesn't freeze as quickly or thickly.
     I'm sure all of you are anxiously awaiting my snow measurement taken this morning 😊 so here it is. I measured another six inches of light, fluffy snow. The temperature is 21 degrees, and there is still some light snow falling.  I've measured only 14 inches from this storm, but I know in nearby places there has been much more - in fact, Fred measured a strong 12 inches yesterday in the driveway when he was working with the snow blower, and I had only 8 inches on our deck. I think the wind may sweep some of the snow off because it is above ground level. It's ok - a few inches one way or the other doesn't matter that much until you have to move it. Or until it begins to melt and water goes where it shouldn't. And it all adds up to a heck of a winter this year.
 

Don't forget to get your Joe's Pond Ice-Out tickets! 
Go on line ( https://www.joespondvermont.com/iceout.php ) to print tickets, or contact one of the following:

Diane Rossi:  dmbrossi@aol.com
Mary Anne Cassani: mcassani324@aol.com
Shelly Walker: walkermecats@charter.net 

You may want to hold onto them for a bit before making your guess, but spring is just around the corner (we HAVE to believe!) and already folks are getting excited about winning all that money!
It could be you - but you have to be in the game! Get your tickets, pick a date and time and send to: Joe's Pond Association, P. O. Box 111, West Danville VT 05873 with $1 for each one. Easy as that.
 

Well, so much for my prediction that last week's below-zero weather would be the last of its kind for this winter. Even last night we had -11F and today didn't get out of the low 20s - again. And we're heading into unusually mild, rainy, freezing rain stuff - again. Now I'm wondering if we'll ever find escape this pattern of violent swings in either direction of "normal." As I listened to the weather forecast tonight and read all the winter storm warning alerts that streamed across our television screen, I was thinking that a foot of snow here shouldn't be too much of a bother - our road crews know how to handle it - but when the weather does turn around, there will be some pretty impressive streams of water coming off of these old hillsides. We have quite a lot of snow on the ground now, plus some ice layers, and it's all going to turn to water eventually. Watch out below!
    I have been working on a new chapter of the West Danville history book, pulling together information about various types of accidents that happened here over the years. A lot of them were when horses bolted and sleighs, buggies or wagons tipped over and spilled the passengers into snowbanks or onto the ground. Usually nobody got seriously hurt, but the rigs were often badly damaged. In the newspaper reports it rarely mentions how the horses came out of these accidents. Sometimes they must have been pretty well roughed up and certainly frightened. I expect there was a lot of yelling and possibly cursing going on as people picked themselves up and took off after the runaway horse and carriage.
     Those accidents increased considerably when motorized vehicles came on the scene. Cars and motorcycles frequently spooked horses, and with good reason. The poor animals had never had to share the road with anything that noisy and smelly before. 
     Sometimes accidents were caused by simply going around a corner too fast. Just like drivers today who misjudge their speed when they make a turn and find themselves rolled over in a ditch.
     Then there were the work-site injuries, fingers loped off in the saw mills or mashed in the stone sheds. Losing a finger wasn't any big deal - it seems that probably 50% of the men in town in the 1800s and early 1900s had fewer than the normal number of digits. The railroad workers had their troubles, too, hopping off of trains or sidecars before they came to a stop and getting caught under the wheels. Human error in most cases, but isn't that often the case!
     One farmer pierced his own hand with a pitchfork. I can't quite imagine how he managed to do that, but I bet it hurt. I once drove the tine of a pitchfork into my shin when I was leveling corn silage as it was being blown in. I was foolishly pulling the silage towards me with the fork and lost my balance in the soft silage.  It hurt like the dickens, and I was afraid I might pass out, but I knew if I did I'd be buried by the stream of silage comin in. I pulled the tine out of my leg and climbed up a ladder several feet to get out of the silo into the stable. I didn't pass out, but came close. I remember my grandmother poured carbolic acid on the puncture wound and tied a piece of salt pork over it. When I got home that night, my mother was horrified at the treatment and promptly disposed of the salt pork poultice in favor of a good scrubbing with soap and water, some peroxide and a clean bandage. I survived, but I was really sore and lame for several days. The tine had apparently glanced off my shin bone and done some damage that took a while to heal.
     I've really enjoyed putting this most recent chapter together. I've come to "know" the Badgers, Bricketts, Hunts, Cooks and so many other families, they seem like neighbors.
     I had a short note from Tom Dente today about JPA business. Tom always mentions the weather and he said they have had almost no snow at all in Connecticut this year. That is a good thing, I would guess. He also said Camilla is still getting chemo but has seemed "more like her old self" recently. Chemo is so hard on one's body, not to mention the stress that goes with everything associated with it, I was glad to hear Camilla is managing ok. I know lots of people have been anxious to hear how she's doing - so I decided to share this bit of good news here. Our thoughts and prayers are with Camilla and Tom every day.

     This is how our deck looked this morning - it was just about zero when I took this and the sun was trying to shine, but there were clouds near the horizon that filtered it a bit. The snow pack is down considerably from what it was before the rainy weather, but still we have some impressive snowbanks in places. I looked out around supper time tonight and we had about three inches of new snow - so tomorrow I'll have plenty of snow to measure and clear away to make my CoCoRaHS report. 
     As I'm typing this, I'm listening to the scanner - there have been several calls for wreckers to haul cars and trucks back onto the highways. This afternoon I heard a car went through the ice into a pond somewhere off of Route 5, I think south of St. Johnsbury, but I didn't get all the information. Nobody was hurt, but the car was in the water. The take-away from this: drive carefully and keep your vehicles on the road and off the ice.

Another pretty cold day at "Paridise Pond." And I do mean "pretty." The sun has been shining all day and one would think it was lovely and warm out there, but it didn't get out of the low 20s all day. Not that we're complaining after temperatures dipped well below zero with the wind we've had for the last couple of days, but it's icy under foot and just deceptively alluring for the unsuspecting.
     I wasn't fooled - I stayed inside and worked at my computer most of the day. Tonight I watched some of the Emmys - but mostly I enjoyed seeing what people were wearing. It's sometimes hard when watching these red carpet affairs to tell whether what the stars are wearing is haute couture or a costume they are wearing because they will be performing as part of the program. Some are gorgeous, while others are the darndest getups I've ever seen. I'm sure some of those women were unable to sit down amid all their ruffles and flounces - and if they did, their "angel wings," shoulder pads and ruff collars would surely cut off the view of several of the people near them. Many of the men looked pretty weird, too. But somehow they carry it off better than the women do - probably because they don't have quite as many options. Some of the men were still pretty flamboyant.
     The thing is, I don't know the young artists these days. There seem to be way more "rising stars" in the music industry than ever before, and I can never understand the words they are singing - which is probably a good thing since some of the lyrics are pretty bad - and I don't enjoy much of the modern-day music. Then tonight a lot of the performers were Latino to further complicate my understanding what they were singing - even when the music is ok. So I stayed with it long enough to see Dolly Parton - I can recognize her songs and understand her lyrics! - and then I gave it up. I'll get any other highlights in the news tomorrow.
     I heard an interesting question today. Someone asked why so many Vermonters refer to the evening meal as "supper" instead of "dinner." I hadn't really thought about it, but growing up on the farm, dinner was at noon. It was a big meal, needed to fill up the men folks who still had hours of work left. In the evening, supper was a lighter meal, and in lots of families it was served after chores were done, but others had supper and then the men went out to do the milking and final chores. Most were in bed by 8:30 or 9 p.m.
     In urban areas one has lunch at noon and dinner in the evening -  or supper, if the meal is a light one or very late, such as after going to the theater or opera. While we farmers usually had supper around five o'clock, that's more like cocktail hour for city folks, and their evening meal is just getting started about the time farmers are going to bed.
     I'm pretty sure there are more homes in Vermont where dinner is at night these days, but that is probably because fewer Vermont families are farming. Instead they are working day jobs and eating lunch at noon and a larger meal in the evening. That may be the reason so many of us have added inches around our waistlines - a big meal at night before bedtime. Never a good idea! 
    
 

We are back in winter mode, for sure. The wind is still blowing, but not as wildly as it did all night. The snow has been blowing around so it was impossible for me to get a measurement this morning. There was some new snow, and I measured half an inch, but there were bare spots on the same board, so I'm thinking that measurement was worthless. Even what was in the big plastic tube wouldn't be a true reading - I'm sure some horizontal snow was caught in there along with anything that was falling in between wind gusts. 
     The temperature is better than it was - I had a low of -11F, and now it's up to +15F. The wind was supposed to be out of her by 10 a.m., but we're still getting very strong gusts that send the chill factor to zero or a little below. The sun is nice, though! Great to sit inside where it's cozy warm and watch the snow sweeping down West Shore Road.
     We got a new scanner this week so now I can hear the emergency calls and know what the road crews are up to. It's quite different than my old scanner - the one my father had for years before I used it. This also operates on batteries so I can take it anywhere and not have to depend on electricity. It also has a non-stop weather report going on for all of northern New York, and all of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Pretty interesting.

The following is from the Kingdom Access Animal Shelter in St. Johnsbury:
Helen Morris said this is a wonderful dinner and a fun way to support the shelter. If you haven't visited the KAS website lately, here's a link: Click Here. 

The weather this morning is not bad at all - a little rain, and that may make the driving a little tricky because there could be icy spots, still. But the road crews have been busy keeping roads safe for travelers. I heard one of the V-Trans people saying that many of the accidents they had on the interstate this past ice storm were because people have all-wheel drive or four-wheel drive vehicles and they become over-confident and go too fast for the conditions. I think this is a really big problem even when the roads are dry. People seem to forget that their car is really a missile that weighs one or two tons and traveling at high speeds, no matter what your wheels are doing, you are not going to stop or even change the direction that vehicle is heading quickly.  Not only that, but the suv's are generally built higher off the ground so they are not going to take corners like a low-down sportscar, regardless of the wheel power. So please be careful and remember that you have a high-powered weapon in your control (hopefully, safely!).

We are expecting today to get windy and much colder later on. Winds could be gusting up to 50 mph, so there could be power outages. Please be careful of gusting winds and possible fallen trees and limbs or  other debris in the air. Winter is NOT over!

What a miserable night this is. We have freezing rain and there's ice everywhere. It's just 31 degrees and rain is falling but as soon as it hits a surface, it freezes. We have tiny icicles hanging from the clapboards of the house and all along the deck railing. I just took a few pictures - the last one is one of our windows, covered in ice. While I was getting the pictures, the rain began turning to snow. That will probably weigh down the branches of trees even more, so there will be lots of power outages tonight. So far we're good, but it's early in this storm.
     I've had the scanner on and the road crews are busy. Fortunately, there has been no traffic by our house since folks got home around supper time. I guess everyone knows it's a good night to stay put unless you absolutely have to go somewhere. I'm glad I don't have to go anywhere tomorrow, and I hope everyone who has to get to work or appointments makes it ok. The roads will not be good in the morning. There are winter weather advisories for most of Vermont and northern New York until 10 am tomorrow.
    

Our weather has been more like February should be today - no sunshine, but in the 20s and snowing lightly off and on. Now, at a little after eight o'clock, the thermometer is reading 29F and there a light rain falling. No doubt freezing on the cold surfaces, but at least salt will work well in temperatures like this. Kind of nasty out there, but probably lots of folks are hanging out watching the football game so won't be on the road until maybe later.
     This photo came to me yesterday - it's Dotty and Bob Noyes

(West Shore Road) having fun in Florida. Doesn't that look like a great way to get around? I know Segways can be dangerous so I'm glad to see they are wearing helmets. Way to go, Dotty and Bob! It looks so nice there - I'm not sure exactly where they were, but it may have been the Venice area because I think they were going to see Ray and Cyndi Rouleau.
     I was remembering when seniors first "discovered" golf carts were a great way to get around in Florida retirement communities, there was a lot of concern for their safety. There isn't much protection around them. However, they are apparently still being used, both on reduced speed streets and on some highways, mixing with regular vehicles and in a number of states. they are convenient, often electric so kind to the environment, and don't make a lot of noise. All good. Besides all that, they are less expensive initially than a traditional car and cost less to run. Some even come well equipped with windshields and wipers, radio, carpeting and cargo space. 
     This led me to wonder about Segways. When I went on line and checked, I found out that Segways can be used on most sidewalks in Florida; however, Bicycles, skateboards, in-line and roller skates have to stay in the street and off of sidewalks. So many rules and different in every city.
    It reminds me of a funny little story about my former mother-in-law, Dorothy Dimick. Years ago, one of the first apartments we lived in had a bathroom between two bedrooms and the kitchen, so there were three doorways. Dot came to visit and went to use the facilities and when she came out she said, "My, by the time you get all those doors closed you kind of lose interest in what you went in there for, don't you."
     I think I'd probably feel the same way about all the rules and regulations about the golf carts and maybe the Segways, too.

     

One more interesting thing from Mary Whitcomb - actually her son sent her the link and she passed it on to me. I thought it was really interesting; also, I read the whole article and listened to the nutty bird at the end that mimics whatever he hears in the forest! Here's the LINK.
     We went to Cabot this morning to recycle an old VCR that is no

 longer compatible with our TV. The snowbanks are impressive along the Cabot Plain Road. When we got on the other side of the Plain (facing west) there seemed to be less snow until we got into the Village. There, snow was piled high on the common, especially by the school and where Danville Hill Road connects to Main Street.

     Coming back by the Burtt farm, there were a lot of turkeys mingling with the herd of beef cattle and in the distance I could see at least two turkeys roosting high in some maple trees while others were foraging on the ground. They are such a big bird, it's hard to miss them when they are roosting in a leafless tree. I got a few pictures.
     Our day has remained overcast, so any groundhog that was out and about here would not have seen his shadow. However, I doubt there will be an early spring - right now we are so used to having zero degrees registering on the thermometer, spring seems really far off. You never know, though. In the meantime, it's snowing lightly again, I have a reading of 18.7F and no wind to deal with so far. I think we are expected to get some very warm weather and rain within the next few days, but here at Joe's Pond it could be all snow. That's it from here for today. Another day, another snow storm.

What's a little snow and cold when you're hungry?

My friend, Mary Whitcomb took these pictures of a gray squirrel that burrowed through snowdrifts to get to her bird feeder . . .

Thanks, Mary - great pictures! That's one hungry, snowy little rodent! Don't you want to just reach out and brush the snow off him?

Yep, we've got another cold day, but it's a heck of a lot warmer than yesterday. It's presently eight degrees above zero - and no wind. When I was out earlier to measure the new snow (one inch!) it was a little colder - about three above, but I could feel the warmth of the sun. The heat is there and getting stronger every day. Spring is definitely on the way. We just have to get through a little more nasty weather with maybe a few more crazy swings to rain and unseasonable warmth and back to cold again, but we're over the worst of it now, I believe.
     Yesterday we went to St. Johnsbury to get haircuts and do recycling. It was so cold! The wind was whipping and it went right through you. We were both cold when we got home, but I pushed the thermostat up a couple of degrees and that got the chill out of our bones. 
     I wish we'd had the camera with us. The snowbanks along the pond roads are pretty high - some of you who are away for the winter would probably be surprised at how much snow we have. I'm getting calls about whether to have roofs shoveled and who to call to do it, and my advice is to have someone you trust take a look, especially if you have a flat roof. In some places the wind will have blown the snow off, but in others it may have drifted a huge amount on a roof and that could mean trouble. Better to be safe than sorry.
     Right now the only reference for roof shoveling I have right now is Kyle Johnson. You can call him at 802-535-6735. I expect he's pretty busy, but if he can't help you, he may know of someone else who can. 
     I stopped yesterday to see a couple of friends living at Canterbury Inn, an assisted living home in St. Johnsbury. Eric Bach recently bought the facility. It is very pleasant there - one of my friends described it as "like living with family." I hadn't visited there since our 100+ year old friend, Mrs. Karacashian (my kids always called her "Mrs. K-k-k") was there a long time ago. Like all those places these days, there is a long list of people waiting to get in.
     I got this picture this morning from Butch and Susan Bouchard.

They met Jack and Sue LaGue and Richard and Carmen Gagne in Naples the other day. Butch said it has been cooler than normal in Florida. they look like a happy group all the same - even with sweaters, fleece and long pants!
     I guess the whole nation is finding this winter is unusual. In Alaska, there has been "freakishly warm" weather starting back in the fall. Of course, someone came up with "Baked Alaska," to describe the warming trend. But in Anchorage it has been consistently warmer than here at Joe's Pond just about every time I've compared weather notes. Still, it probably wouldn't be a wise move to head to Alaska instead of someplace like Florida if you're looking for relief from the cold.