Winter's Storms

Baby, it's cold outside but that's okay as long as I'm next to the warmth of our woodstove roaring away on this brutal 12 degree day.  It's not as cold as some spots in the world, so I'm happy with that. But 12 degrees is, well, 12 degrees and that is pretty chilly in my book.

We're on the second wave of snow according to the weather people.  Yesterday was a Lake Effect Snow Storm Warning, now we're getting snow from a Northern Clipper.  One more wave is coming tomorrow through Monday.  We don't have a lot of snow accumulation where we live, but it's enough that the roads are not nice...

That means spending extra time cleaning and thawing your cars before you can think of going somewhere.  That's part of the cost of a winter storm.  It takes more time to get things done, so it slows you down and it's an inconvenience for sure.

But, maybe the slowing down part isn't so bad.  It slows us down to make us realize how good things were before the storm and how fine they'll be after them. 

After all, it takes the storms in life to make us appreciate the sunny days and how the sun always shines after the rain...or snow in this case. 

Storms can either make us afraid or make us stronger.  I like the second choice better...

Here's a short video produced by my son of some winter footage around our small town...enjoy!


Hoary Madtown - A Frozen Wasteland from Luke Roberts on Vimeo.





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Winter's Blues

As we head into this winter season, nature's color palette shifts to beautiful blues.  Winter seems to slip into these colors as easily as we put on our most colorful denim jeans and leave us with the same comforting feelings as well.  Frosty turquoise and brilliant periwinkle shimmer in the glint of ice and snow; on land and in the sky. So in ode to these tranquil blues; here are a few photos to warm up any azure chills...

The shores of Lake Erie, northeast Ohio in January

I carefully made my way to the beach through a rutted snow covered path to take these few photos.  It was getting on in the afternoon, so the light wasn't very good but I couldn't resist taking a few pictures anyway.  The glinty ice covered boulders (used as a surf break) and the bracing north wind reminded me in seconds that it was a full on winter blast here on the northern shore. 

The wind was especially strong on this day and though it's hard to tell in the photos, the waves were big for our "little" great lake.  Bigger than I've seen them for sure, at least since Hurricane Sandy came through, and those waves were scarily amazing.  
Because of the way the lake and where we live are situated, we are able to receive lots of "lake effect snow" here.  It has to do with temperatures, warm for the lake and cold in the air, wind patterns coming across the lake and the lake NOT being frozen.  So, open water means lake effect snow can come at a moment's notice.  Because we live so close to the shore, we normally don't get dumped on as much as those a little south of us do...but it's still shoveling just the same!

So, snow season is upon us and I have to say, once the roads are clear, I don't really mind.  It's so much prettier to look at then the mossy dark green of the hibernating grass and brown muddy paths throughout the landscape.  Give me the brilliant blues of winter...perfect for resting and dreaming of springtimes to come...

What do you enjoy about winter?  

Be blessed! 

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