Remembering Pearl Harbor and More

 Another cold day here, but a bit of sunshine made it seem warmer than it really was. Funny how just a little sunshine can take the edge off! I don't think the temperature got very far out of the teens all day after starting off in the single digits above zero. The best part was that there was no wind today. I took some pictures of my porch last night - it caught a lot of snow! I looked at my snow post this morning thinking I would find out how much snow is actually on the ground out in the open, but the entire post was plastered with snow so I couldn't read the numbers I had so carefully drawn on it, even with binoculars. I forgot to check later today to see if the snow was still sticking to the post, but I expect there wasn't enough warmth in the sun to melt it. I'll check again tomorrow. However, we are expecting more snow tomorrow, so I don't  imagine I'll have any better success. We have been promised a warming trend by the middle of next week - but along with that a "mix of snow and freezing rain." Winter is here!

This is Pearl Harbor Day - the day the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, and the day the United States officially entered World War II. There was no television then - we heard the news on crackly radio broadcasts with "live" broadcasts relayed from the West Coast. Reports were transmitted sporadically throughout the day and from that moment on, lives were changed forever throughout the nation. I was very young, but I remember the anxiety as adults were discussing the reports in newspapers, and I recall hearing the radio broadcasts. Neighbors and relatives were in the military and my classmates and I gathered scrap metal, milkweed pods, helped in "Victory Gardens," and bought Savings Stamps and Bonds. Goods were rationed and everything had to be carefully conserved - there were few civilian goods being manufactured or produced as factories converted to war materials. I especially remember when oleo margarine was introduced as a substitute for butter. It came in a one-pound flat box or sometimes a tub and was snowy white. There was a little packet of dye that had to be  mixed with the white concoction to make it look like butter. Once it was well mixed, it was ready to be used on our toast or whatever. It was fine-tuned over time and some brands were better than others. It was much cheaper than butter but after the war was over Vermont, being a dairy state, made it illegal for restaurants to use oleo in place of butter. So many regulations, so many changes during that time, but we adapted. I came across an amusing article in Vermont Digger about Vermont and WWII.

The pond is silent under a sheet of ice and snow, but concerns about wake boats continue as a petition for prohibiting their use on our comparatively small lake has been presented to the State of Vermont for consideration. There is an informative article in today's Caledonian Record about that.It is important for people who know and love Joe's Pond to know about this and make your opinion known either in person or by writing a letter. You will find all that information in the article.

Enjoy the snow and winter weather - ski resorts are gearing up and anticipating a great season. Snowmobilers will be returning soon with trails snow-packed and groomed. Most local folks already have their winter tires on, but we still have to watch out for the unsuspecting visitors on non-believers on our roads who think winter driving is no different than any other time of the year in Vermont so neither slow down nor bother with winter treads. Those are the ones we see in the meridian of the interstate or find nosed into a snowbank on a curvy back road. Of course, we have our local yahoos who probably have winter treads on their pickups but no fear and little common sense. They usually get their comeuppance in due time. It's called a learning curve!