Snow at last

posted by Helen

We had our first big snowstorm last week and it was great. I estimate we got around 25 inches. This photo was taken during the early part of the storm; the picket fence has since disappeared under banks pushed in place by the snow plow.

Cammy was mystified by the depth of snow, and even though I have shoveled a nice dog run for her in the front yard, she remains convinced that it is still in my power to take her to that nice big green place where she could run freely if only I weren't so stubborn. When I walk her up the street she regards the snowbanks towering over her on either side of the road with astonishment. The landscape of her world is completely unrecognizable.

Science and Groundhog Day

posted by Helen

As a kid, I wondered about the predictive capabilities of groundhogs. Perhaps it says something about the shallowness of my nature that, unlike the groundhog, I assumed a bright sunny day to be a harbinger of spring, not the harsh sentence of 6 more weeks or winter.

This morning as I walked Cammy and contemplated the shadows we were casting on the headstones of Old Quechee Cemetery, I wondered again about the science of groundhog day. It is a bright, clear, cold day.

Naturally, I turned to Google as soon as I sat down at my desk. There is some science to the superstition.