April Showers Bring...May Snow?

It snowed all day Thursday and Friday, May 2nd and 3rd. I've never seen snow in May. In all my years I don't remember a single day in May that had snow. Except this year. Most of the midwest got hit with snow. My poor brother and his family got socked with a full foot of snow. They lost their tree. For the first day it hardly collected. And the next day it wouldn't stop.

I covered my strawberries in the hope that they would survive the snow and cold, which they did. In fact they look better than I've ever seen them, big and tall and ready to send out berries. I improvised on the covering, (an old storage box) which worked beautifully. It was windy enough to blow the container away so I placed a frozen bottle of water on top for some added weight.

When the snow came I loved the way the grass looked. The bright green grass and the pure white snow was lovely. So I took pictures. And didn't mind the snow on Thursday. It was Friday that bothered me. I saw the results of a head-on collision on my way to the office that morning. Someone had been going too fast and wasn't able to keep traction on the curve. Both cars suffered but thankfully there didn't appear to be injuries.

It was slick going in that day. The pretty green grass was gone, under a blanket of white. The snow continued all day. The ground was slick and slushy, the snow was often intense, and the wind never let up the whole day. It was cold and horrible. And I just kept thinking how it was May, and it shouldn't be snowing. I called Jeff on my way home from work on Friday to complain, but he was in too good a mood for that. He laughed and told me he "made me something". But he wouldn't tell me what it was. It was only when I pulled in that I found this guy.

I guess it was perfect packing snow. It took Jeff 20 minutes to make him. I love the frown on his face. As soon as I saw him I lit up. I couldn't stop smiling. The embodiment of winter in the middle of May. He was gone by mid-day today. The rain has brought him low. But for a moment I was smiling and happy in the middle of the spring chill. Clearly Mr. Snowman was not.

Snow Cream

I can't remember if I've posted this recipe before but it's so good that it's worth posting again.

On Monday the weather stations were reporting that we would get 1 to 3 inches of snow on Tuesday. In the Midwest that's certainly not enough snow to cancel school over or really to take seriously. So I wasn't worried about it. When I went to leave for work Tuesday morning it was just starting to come down. I still wasn't thinking hard about it. But 10 minutes into my commute, when I could hardly see the stoplight a block away I was starting to think that it might be something more. By the time we had two inches on the ground they had changed the forecast. Now it was 3 to 6. Still not bad. By noon it was 5 to 9. And the snow kept coming.

The snow finally stopped at about noon today. We had over 24 hours of snow and ended up with about...11 inches. A far cry from 1 to 3 inches don't you think. When I would look at the radar there was Des Moines, right in the middle of swirling vortex of snow. Even worse, the storm was shifting mostly west. Storms that come from the east are never good. What I'm saying is that it's been a frustrating couple of days. At least for a snow/winter hater like me.

The one good thing to come out of the snow was that we finally got a chance to make snow cream. Jeff introduced me to snow cream when we were first dating and since then I've been a fan. We didn't have enough snow last year for any but most years we have at least one snow that is perfect for the recipe. You need a wetter snow, preferably big flakes. Dry snow won't work.

Set a soup pot outside during a big snow storm. You'll want it at least half full of snow. Then add 2 eggs (raw), 1 cup sugar (at least), 1/2 cup milk, and 2 tsp vanilla. Stir together until snow has a beautiful  pale yellow color. Spoon into bowls and eat immediately. It's sugary sweet goodness, even better than ice cream.

For those of you who are panicking about the raw eggs right now, this dish might not be for you. I'm a long time eater of cookie dough with raw eggs, so this doesn't even phase me. One of these years I might get Salmonella from them. But until I do, I'll still continue to eat raw eggs in my sweet treats.

Learning Courage

Twelve years ago I would hardly leave the house after a snowfall. If snow fell, even flurries, when I was out and about I would rush home. I hated to leave the house with even a small amount of ice on roads. I had Jeff drive me to work for years on snowy days. I was scared. I lost sleep on nights snow was predicted. I worried endless over forecasts. I had the Weather Channel constantly up all winter. I was truly afraid of snow.

We had a blizzard this past week with 10 inches of snow and 40 to 50 mile an hour winds. I woke up Thursday morning, the height of the storm, and cleared off my car. I let it sit and warm. Then I drove to work. Slowly, ever so slowly, but I drove. I won't tell you that it was fun. Many of the streets hadn't been plowed at all. The ones that had were skating rinks of ice. When the wind it, the car skidded to the side. It was terrible. I was one of a dozen people who made it into work. It was announced at 7:30 that the state offices would be closed until noon, an unheard of thing (in 13 years we've only closed once).

The next day I also got up and drove to work. I've ingrained in myself that not going is not an option. The commute was far better than the day before but still slick. Still slow. As I sat at my desk I listened to people come in and talk about how terrible their drive in that day was. I listened and in the back of my head I thought "yeah but yesterday was worse". And I realized that I was now one of the brave ones in the office. I was one of the people who drove in terrible weather. It wasn't that I was not afraid, far from it. But I did it. And I started to think about the definition of courage. It's not being unafraid, as I always thought. It's about being afraid but doing what you're afraid of anyway.

More Portents of Winter

They are predicting our first snowfall tonight. The beginning of November! This is way too early for a first snowfall. Our furnace hasn't even been turned on yet. I'm pretending that it will stay rain in the hope that this isn't actually the beginning of winter (In my mind, it is officially winter after the first snowfall). But even if it doesn't snow tonight, in my heart I know it's coming. I'm suddenly cold.

My second omen that winter is right around the corner is that I cracked open my first pomegranate this evening. Those shiny red fruit are my winter addiction. I tasted a couple of the seeds and they had an acidic aftertaste that wasn't great. I'm guessing it is still too early in the season. It was heavy but not really heavy enough to be fully ripe. But another reminder that the dread season is coming. Bleh!

Into a Winter Wonderland

I'm not a winter fan. In fact I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to say that I hate winter. Hate it! I hate the snow and the ice and the cold. But since I live in the Midwest I have about five months of winter to deal with (November-March). It snows at least a little through these months. In the past I've been content to hide indoors and only go out when the snow has stopped flying. This year I'm trying something different.

My brother and his family were in town this weekend and we spent a ton of time hanging out with them. It was wonderful. But I was complaining to my very athletic brother that I wanted to start running but I didn't want to go running in the winter. We don't have a treadmill and the sidewalks are way too slick for fearless running. The conversation went a bit like this:

Me: I do want to start running but I'll probably wait until the spring.

John: Why?

Me: Well, I don't have a treadmill and I'm not going to run outside.

John: Why?

Me: The sidewalks scare me. I'm not comfortable on that kind of ice.

John: Where do you live?

Me: Huh, West Des Moines

John: And there are no fields out there?

Me: Run in a field?

John: Yep, go running in the snow. If you fall, who cares. It's soft. Find a nice snowy field and run. It doesn't matter where you run. As long as you have fun and get some benefit from it.

He's so smart! So I decided to try it. And I am happy to say that it works. I couldn't run for very long but I was able to run. I was in boots and jean and my Yaktraks but I was able to run. I'm excited to make it a regular exercise program. It was actually pretty exhilarating to be out in the cold air running, like when I was a kid. And I didn't worry about falling.

My other thing is that I've started pricing snowshoes. I want to trek out into the woods and I like the idea of using snowshoes. So far most of them have been in the $50 to $100 range but I'm going to keep looking a bit. I need to learn more about the difference. I'm excited that I'm starting to get out into the winter weather. Perhaps these months won't be quite so wasted after all.

Who Needs Sleep?

I find it funny that I just bought that song from BareNaked Ladies. And it feels so appropos today. I'm living on about 3 hours of sleep so I won't be posting anything huge. I'm not sure I'd be coherent enough for anything more than a couple sentences. So instead, I found this. And considering the amount of snow and cold we are expecting in the next three days (12 inches!!!!) I figure there is no time like the present to post it.

Stuart Carlson

Milwaukee Journal Sentinal

Snow!!!

The earliest snowfall I remember was a week before Halloween. And even then it only left a dusting and was not even enough to accumulate. I remember driving up to fencing class in Ames in a blizzard on Beggars Night. But I don't remember ever having a year where we had a good deal of snow before Halloween. Yet this is what I woke up to this morning.

This is not just a dusting of snow but almost an inch settled on top of my air-conditioner. The cat keeps wondering why I won't open the door for her. It is cold out there. And snowy. I'm hoping it's not a sign of what the winter will be like.

And for no other reason than that I liked this picture which Jeff took of the cat, I'm posting it.

I can almost imagine her saying, "I'm not coming out until cold snowy-ness is gone."

Freezing flamingo

Nothing like a flamingo to start your day. I'm trying to write a children's book called Early Bird and one of the images is of a flamingo in a stocking cap and scarf. So yesterday over lunch I played with Microsoft Paint and made this. He's not a particularly good flamingo but I had a ton of fun creating him. And I downloaded Paintbrush for the Mac when I got home last night.

Snow!!!

As always the first snowfall of the year makes me happy. There is just something magical about the first one which seems to bring people outside to play in the beautiful white flakes. Yesterday was our first snow and I watched a young girl riding her scooter through the flakes, mouth open to catch them on her tongue. Then I took the camera out to try to record some of this magic. Of course there is no way to pin down magic but it's fun to try. 

Now don't get me wrong, by the seventh snow I'll be complaining and by the 30th I'll be done with winter. But for this moment I was happy. For this moment I was more than ready for winter. Here are a couple of the shots I took. I've noticed that falling snow doesn't photograph well but it does video well. I love the mixing of snow with leaves. I'm particularly proud of the red one. And the pumpkin reminds me that autumn moves into winter. My neighbor still had hers out and it was collecting snow fast. 

Jack Frost

They're predicting snow this evening for down here in Des Moines. This would be our first for the season. Traditionally I would say that I'm not even remotely excited about this. I've never been much of a snow fan. Of course it is pretty. Of course it can be fun (love snowmen and snowball fights). But then you have to leave the house. And that's not so fun. 

I have to admit the mere suggestion of snow makes me want to pull on my slippers and sweaters. I want to break out the hot chocolate and curl up on the couch with a book. In winter I become a homebody. I have tended to hibernate as much as possible in the winter. It's not the cold that gets me. I can handle the cold. I just hate to drive in the snow. 

I come home from work after having driven home slow enough to anger the people behind me. And once home I don't normally leave the house unless Jeff is driving. I hate to drive in snow. Hate it and am scared of it. I would go to work and back but that was normally the limit. 

But this last year really tested that fear. We had over 70 inches of snow in Des Moines. Normally we get just a little over 30. I started the winter with this terrible fear of driving. I would lose sleep over the mere suggestion of snow. I was scared of sliding, I was scared of being stranded, and I was scared of getting into an accident. It's strange that as you do something day after day, suddenly it doesn't look so scary anymore. The difference is that last year I didn't offer myself any options. I went to work every day, except one.  

This year I'm actually okay with the idea of snow. Tomorrow will be pretty. I'm sure there will be big white flakes floating lightly from the sky. It won't stick to the roads and it will actually make me start to think that winter is coming. The 70 degree temps the last week, had made me start to doubt. But winter is coming. And for the first time, this year, I don't need to hibernate. I'm sure I will a little. I have a lot of writing I want to get done, I have books waiting to be read, and a subscription to Blockbuster that often goes to waste. I'll easily fill my time. Tomorrow I'll try to post pictures of the snow. And I'm actually hopeful we get some.