Snow

[Eamonn]

Up until yesterday the weather in the area has been very un-winter like.

Not that I'm complaining!

Yesterday we had our first snow.

Nothing to write home about. In fact when I took Dudley our new Goldie, now four months old, out for his morning constitutional it really wasn't that cold.

However when I went to leave work about noon time I had to brush about two inches of snow off my car.

I was kinda excited on the drive home, I couldn't wait to take Duddles out for a walk and see how he acted in the snow.

It was wonderful!

First off he wasn't sure why all this white stuff was everywhere. As we moved on to the grass he decided that he wanted to lie in it and try and eat as much of it as he could! He loves ice cubes and sits at the fridge before meal times waiting for his ice cube.

He soon got bored eating the snow and along with Friday our terrier we stated on our walk. The two of them like to wrestle and rough-neck a lot. At one point he came running up to me. I wished I'd had my camera. His cute little face had bits of snow on it. He was a real picture.

I couldn't resist making a few snow balls and throwing them, he chased after them and bit into them, of course they fell apart and he could find them.

After about a mile he was having a problem with a build up of snow caught in his paws. I removed the snow, rubbed his paws and soon we were good too go.

When we went for our big long walk today, he seemed to think that he was an old hand at this white stuff! He ate a little bit, but didn't really dwell on it.

He did well running and playing with the other dogs, until he came to the pavilion. We had a concrete floor put in this year and there were patches of ice, which were a new challenge for him.

I hate winter, I really dislike the cold, but watching him take on this white stuff was a lot of fun!

I can now return to my normal "Bah Humbug" I hate winter frame of mind.

Eamonn.

[Frank17]

We hade a 10-year old Corgi that loves the snow. In summer, she acts like a 20 year old dog, and lies around and pants all day or stays inside in the AC. In the winter, we get a puppy back every year, as she runs around and plays in it all day. Advantages / disadvantages of having a double coat.

 

[OneHour]

Hey Eamonn,

 

Our Aussie Shepherd also saw snow for the first time on Friday as well ... in Houston! We got a whopping 1.5"! It lasted 8 hours but very little sticked.

 

I, on the other hand, love cold weather! I can always put on more layers and be happy. Hot weather, I can only take off so much before I get arrested!

 

 

[scoutldr]

Give me 90 over 30 any day...here on the right coast, all we got was rain...and 40-50 degree temps...perfect camping weather! Of course, the ground is still saturated from the 10 inches we got 3 weeks ago from the nor'easter, so my backyard is a mud pit. I don't like snow unless it's on the weekend. People drive like morons...as they do every day, and going to work is to risk one's life. Since we only get measurable snow once or twice a year, they don't invest much in snowplow equipment. Everything here grinds to a halt and they close the schools. They are already having to go to school on Saturdays

to make up for the nor'easter. (not much damage, but streets were flooded and power was out in a lot of areas).

[OneHour]

... oh no, I'm contented with 40-70 degrees! Here in Houston, people drive the same as or even worst than you right coast folks ... doing 70-80+ on wet streets! You don't know how often I get tailgated and high-beamed as though I'm on the autobahn ... and I'm not even on the left most fast lane! People here in Houston have what we technical folks called

ID-10-T problem!

[scoutldr]

My favorites are the ones who drive through blinding rain/fog with no lights on...and get furious when you pull out in front of them because you couldn't see them...clueless MOE-RONS. (yes, we have a law...doesn't help).

[Stosh]

Last weekend I put my kayak in the garage, put my '74 Nova in storage, and dragged out my cross-country skis. I'm already to go! Just another day in paradise! We have 6-12" planned tomorrow! I'm counting down the hours!

 

Stosh

[Beavah]

Yah, livin' up here in da north, over the years Mrs. Beavah and I pretty much reached da conclusion that we just like weather.

 

All kinds of weather. It's interestin', it's fun, it's wonderous. There's stuff to celebrate and enjoy about all of it.

 

This is a day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad of it!

 

Besides, I may be old, but I can still throw a wickedly accurate snowball .

 

Beavah

 

[BrentAllen]

We went camping in the snow this weekend, which is pretty rare here in Georgia. Well, actually we were right up on the TN/NC border to be exact. A fair amount of snow on the ground, which made for some great horseback riding through the woods. The temperature dropped down below 20 during the night, which is also pretty unusual for us. The boys loved it!

 

Yeah, Beavah, I've adopted the phrase "there is no bad weather - only hot weather, cold weather, dry weather and wet weather." I'll have to add "interesting weather" to the list.

[SR540Beaver]

Given my choice, I'd be a fair weather camper. I prefer the Spring and Fall with temps in the 50's at night. That being said, I particpated in the 2005 Jamboree death march with heat indexes in excess of 110 and camped in below zero temps in Kansas in January. This past weekend was the very first campout I've ever opted out of since 2002 simply because I didn't want to deal with the cold.....and I didn't even feel guilty about it. Well, maybe a little, but not much.

[John-in-KC]

As long as I am...

 

1) Dressed in wool

 

2) NOT DRIVING

 

I truly enjoy winter and snow. Don't enjoy ICE, though. Had a crash landing a couple years back where all my body weight landed on 1 sq inch of my knee. The recovery reminded me I'm not 20-something anymore.

[Eamonn]

Some years back I had the bright idea that I'd retire to Ireland.

At that time there was no property tax in Ireland and thanks to the clever people in Brussels who worked for the EEC, all sorts of grants and subsidizes were available for farmers not to grow anything.

So I bought a small farm.

We spent a few summers there.

It rained a lot! You don't get 40 shades of green without a lot of rain. We weren't that far from the coast, so picnics on the beach were fun.

A pal of mine was happy to allow his sheep to graze on the fields, which kept the grass down.

Everything was great until one year I went over in late October.

It was cold and very damp.

The cold seemed to get into my bones. I was not a happy camper.

When I got back to the States, I gave this retirement thing a little more thought.

If I was cold and miserable over there in my 40's? What the heck would it be like when I was going to be in my 70's?

I rented the farm out for a few years and then ended up selling it.

Brent,

I kinda like the area around where you are.

Bad thing is that everyone talks funny.

Ea.

[scoutldr]

Your "Jamboree death march" is just a normal summer camp for us...

 

I, too, hate to be cold...if I don't have to be. I guess I've never really invested in the proper equipment, since it doesn't get "really cold" here...I've seen "Freezorees" in the 70's. Felt kinda ridiculous accepting a patch for it.

[shortridge]

Love the cold and love camping in the cold. It never snows around here enough to build igloos, but we get water bottles freezing overnight.

 

It's a neat challenge to bundle up and stay warm. And besides, you can almost always add insulation and put more layers on. In the heat of the summer, there's only so much you can take off before the cops are called.