Where's the Sun?

 I'm pretty sure the forecast was for some sunshine here yesterday (Saturday) and today, but there hasn't been even a hint of any that I've seen. I checked the weather map a few minutes yesterday and sure enough, only the Burlington area and some of the northernmost town were in the clear zone - the rest of Vermont was socked in with a winter storm watch going on. No surprise - it's January! We got a total of about 7.5 inches of snow from this last storm. At least there was no new snow to shovel this morning!

I had a nice note from Manuel "Chico" Carcoba yesterday. I hadn't heard from Chico for a long time, and it was great to hear from him. I know lots of you will remember that he logged in our Ice-Out tickets for many years, back in the day. He was doing that when I first got involved, back when Don Walker, Dave Parker and Homer Fitts were doing it. It was a very different situation back then. We sold only a fraction of the number of tickets they sell today, but everyone was just as enthusiastic about the Ice-Out Contest. The logging-in process was similar back then, but much more detailed. I don't know  exactly what program Chico used, but it must have kept him very busy typing in all that information.

I was trying to remember the formula Chico came up with to help figure out when the ice was likely to go out. It involved Woodbury Lake, where he has a cottage, and Fred and I kept track of when Molly's Pond opened up - there were a few days in between - and then about a week after Molly's opened, Joe's Pond opened. I'm not sure if that still holds true, but it's probably pretty close. It's too early to begin thinking about the ice being gone - it hasn't had time to freeze much so far this year. I expect there will be at least two feet of ice before things begin to thaw out again. Some years we've had close to four feet of ice on the pond, but that doesn't happen often.

I was rummaging around in my sewing stuff downstairs the other day when I ran onto a paper pattern I'd made years ago for a "cozy" for my hot water bottle. I'm a big fan of hot water bottles. No cords or worries about short circuits, or it getting too hot or cold. In the cozy, it's pleasantly warm when you need it (or icy cold) but never uncomfortable, and you never wake up with your feet on a clammy, cold blob. Properly filled, hot water bottles are easy to place anywhere you need relief. They will drape over aching joints or cool a fevered brow. I made that patter one year so I could give each of my kids one for Christmas - my idea of a really "practical" joke. I bought heavy fleece for the body and combined with a knit top, there was no need for zippers, snaps or buttons. Along with the pattern I'd made, I found the card I'd attached with a "Jane Brown original poem" on it. It read:

I'll warm your tummy or cool your head,

You'll love me forever and take me to bed.

Either hot or cold, I'll sooth your pains --

I'm good for cramps, sore muscles or sprains.

I can calm colic, shoo spasms, or wipe out woes,

Chase the blahs and blues and warm your toes.

I'm old-fashioned, it's true, but hard as you try

You'll never find anything as handy as I!   

 I don't remember the reaction I got from my "homemade presents" that year - I probably took some kidding, but I bet they all used them sometimes. I'm sure the boys remembered being tucked into bed with one from time to time when they were little. I still have mine - and when I've come in from outside chilled through and can't seem to get warm, this is what I grab. All that's needed is a couple cups of water heated in the microwave for two or three minutes and I'm snug in a blanket in my recliner, hugging my hot water bottle, happily watching a Hallmark movie, toasty warm. Best therapy around!