I sat at my computer, oblivious to what was happening outside. I scanned down through my Facebook feed and came across snow photos of places within miles of me.
“Oh no!” I thought, “It’s snowing outside and here I sit oblivious to what’s happening outside!” Of course, you already knew that.
But did you know it was snowing my favorite big fat fluffy snow? Oh yeah? You read the headline? Hmm. I guess I’m the only one surprised at me today. Here’s a short film about the big fat fluffy snowstorm of November 2, 2014, in Western Nebraska:
What a wonderful day! If I thought I could get up again, I’d make snow angels!
My cats weren’t interested, much, however. Dougy kind of looked out, but he’s three and a half years old, a big boy now. He just kept on moving. Andy was in the background, but never really came to the door like he often will if Dougy steps outside to experience the snow. All the more big fat fluffy snow for me!
Snow is one of the things I miss from not living in Nebraska. That said, I don’t miss the many months of snow the state gets. One or two biggies would be plenty for me.
I don’t recommend coming back in wintertime so you can enjoy a little snow, but you may find yourself somewhere some day when the snow falls. Then you’ll remember why you moved to Australia! Ha!
Actually I’ll be back this winter for a family wedding in St Louis. Not likely to get up your way, but you never know.
Maybe you’ll “luck out” and get a little snow!
Hope I remember how to drive in the stuff.
A friend served two years in Tonga as a Peace Corps volunteer. After his tour, he lived two years in Honolulu, where he drove a cab. Then he moved to Los Angeles, where he drove a cab for two more years.
He decided, then, that he’d return to Nebraska and work on his Master’s degree at Chadron State College while commuting from Alliance. His parents lived here at the time, and the idea was he’d save money this way. He rode to Chadron each day with another person working on her Master’s.
In the course of a year, there was some snow. If you remember the road through the Chadron STate Park area, especially back in the 1970s before they improved them with passing lanes and the like, you can imagine there was a bit of skillful driving to stay on the road! During these trips on icy roads, the subject of which way one turns the wheels when you start to go in a spin came up. My friend told me about these conversations while I was driving on icy roads, concentrating on staying on the road, so I wasn’t paying attention to what he said.
He said the lady he rode with said you should turn them one way, and he said the opposite. Frankly, I just do it when I go into a skid, if that happens, and I can’t tell you even now what I do! But, after a trip up to Rapid City with my friend who’d spent six years in tropics or near tropical places, I was to find out!
The trip up was bad, but the trip back was worse because there’d been melting, then the road froze over in spots. It was a harrowing ride, at slower than highway speeds. My friend, who’d gone to the trouble to renew his Nebraska driver’s license with the idea he could help drive on this trip, suggested he take over after we crossed from South Dakota into Nebraska. By that time, I was amenable to the idea, the switch was made, and, within five miles of the border, we were sliding at 55 mph backwards down the highway into a ditch: He turned the wheels exactly the direction he said he would, and he was wrong!
Thanks to a Suburban full of Kansas hunters passing by, we got the car out of the ditch and pointed in the right direction. It was a VW Beetle, and they were indestructible!
My friend lived all his life in Nebraska up till he volunteered for the Peace Corps, so had winter driving experience, but the six years in warmer climes was sufficient to turn him into a danger on icy roads.
Speaking of icy roads, I tried for a long time to figure out where exactly we had out mishap because my sense of it was we lost control on a hill, something you’d expect in northwest Nebraska. I finally worked out the location, and it was the flattest section of road for miles, no hill at all!
I spent years driving in snow in Nebraska, but we get so little snow in Australia (except around the ski fields) that I might be a bit ‘rusty’. But a couple of years, back one of our daughters borrowed our car to drive to the ski fields. I gave her a spoken ‘crash’ course on how to drive in snow and ice. She got back full of smiles and confidence, saying how many cars had slid off the road, but she never did. That one’s a quick learner.
I can’t imagine what is going to happen to all those poor sparrows! That’s too cold for me – I believe sparrows will have to move to warmer places! Keep your cats safe from the cold! 🙂
They are year around birds. As long as they have access to food, water, gravel, and some sort of shelter (for example, that fir tree they are flyiong to in the video), they can survive bitterly cold weather. At first, I thought they were pine siskins, a smaller bird, though watching the video it was obvious what they were, the reason I noted what they were in a caption. My cats are indoor cats, by my plan. Dougy would like to explore outside, and often slips outside if the door is held open (for example, to make a video of snow!), but his brother Andy is less brave.
Love this video! I feel Christmas is coming…. 🙂
Christmas advertising already is on US television…!
So pretty but snow in the beginning of November? Wow and wonder if this is a sign of a cold winter when it gets here.
We had a similar snow in Septemeber this year, followed by summer-liked temperatures…
Holy Crap, Snow! We had a couple of light flurries yesterday. But that’s normal for us. I didn’t know you get snow this early as well.
My end of Nebraska is roughly 1200 meters above sea level, so we tend to have cooler weather sooner than lower elevations. Snow in Novemeber is typical, but, as mentioned in a response to sunsetdragon, we did have a similar snowstorm in September this year. Actually, one July 4th, I remember watching snow fall, but it melted before it hit the ground.
Well you learn something new every day. So what kind of snow accumulation for an average winter? At 1200 meters you must be right up there with us here in Quebec.
There are three links, one giving averages, the other showing and telling about the worst winter in decades- the so-called “1949 Blizzard”, which actually was several storms. It may have hit the prairie provionces, too, but I don’t know about Quebec.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliance,_Nebraska#Climate
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.livinghistoryfarm.org%2Ffarminginthe40s%2Flife_30.html&ei=eF5ZVMXcMoW0yATmkoGoDQ&usg=AFQjCNF-xzBxZ514YkT2P7IChwL7zZtzgw&sig2=jSzJUatvaWJ8_xb4VClbHw&bvm=bv.78677474,d.aWw
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.livinghistoryfarm.org%2Ffarminginthe40s%2Flife_30.html&ei=eF5ZVMXcMoW0yATmkoGoDQ&usg=AFQjCNF-xzBxZ514YkT2P7IChwL7zZtzgw&sig2=jSzJUatvaWJ8_xb4VClbHw&bvm=bv.78677474,d.aWw
It’s highly variable. It seems like winters when I was a kid were colder and had more snow than now.
Very Cool! Thanks. Guess we better buy a bush plane. 😉
Lots of ranchers (this is cattle country) around here use light aircraft in their work and for getting places. Private landing strips aren’t that uncommon.
LOL! Hey did you vote?
I voted by mail in early October.
Now wasn’t that smart of you. My brother fought the lineups in North Carolina. 🙂
The two places I can vote are either clear across town or in the county courthouse. In both instances, people with physical limitations can meet obstacles (distance to walk, stairs because the elevbator isn’t working) that make voting an ordeal. Since I can vote by mail, I do. It’s good to have it done, even if my state votes 60% Republican/40% Democrat with a regularity the leaders of the Soviet Union would’ve loved (if they were Republicans).
LOL! Oh Oh! you compared the Soviet Union and the Republicans. That’s going to get flagged by Edward Snowdon’s old company! 🙂
Politically, the dominant party in this state has nothing in common with the Soviet Union-style Communists other than unbelieveable percentages of the voters voting for them, that and a thuggish mentality toward people with opposing points of view.
AH, so Nebraska is an open minded, free thinking state. Canada is a country that loves to argue politics. Nothing makes us happier then someone with an opposing view. Then we can sit and drink the night away with the goal of never agreeing with each other. A wonderful winter pass time. This is especially true in Quebec, as we have the added bonus of the Separatist party to add some flavor to the discussion. I bet more Canadians watched the returns then Americans. Just because it’s fun. My dad and I were good till about 10:00 PM betting on who would win on the East coast. 🙂
Nebraska is a narrow-minded, faux-Christian, conservative state. There is no discussion of politics. It’s more harangues using known talking points established by Republican party leaders and the Fox News people. The Democrats, on the other hand, are wimpy failures that won’t even stand by their man, the President. They are pathetic specimens who deserved not to win. I am a registered independent (not Independent, which is a libertarian party in this state), because I find both parties extremely flawed in their approaches to running* a government. I hate to be so negative, but I can’t help but feel the next two years will be hell on earth in this country. I hope I’m wrong. *[Curiously, I typed that word as “ruining”, and had to correct it.]
Sadly, I’m afraid I agree with your analogy of the next two years.
I did look into the requirements for migrating to various countries back in 2012, and actually passed your country’s long form citizenship test of 100 questions. Local politics was my downfall since I randomly selected a province (the test preseumes one lived in a specific province for the required length of time, of course) and knew virtually nothing about the local politicians, provincial government, let alone the national government’s structure, things a person committed to becoming a citizen would, of course, learn by following the news, talking with Canadians, reading civics texts any Canadian school child probably studied at some time.
Of course, the main problem with the plan is Mr. Harper and his party are somewhat similar to the rightists in this country, similar enough it seemed one gained nothing by the move, especially at my age, and the chronic issue of Quebec’s place in the nation is one I find disturbing because it reminds me of the divisions in the USA that, 150 years after the Civil War, still divide us.
Even then, sometimes I think I should have become a draft dodger and slipped into Canada before you guys put the brakes on these people moving across the border. (I followed Canadian issues in the Toronto Star, which the public library in Lincoln, NE subscribed to. Lincoln is the city where the University of Nebraska is located, so…!)Though I am glad I served in the US Army as a citizen of this country, the values of the country these days aren’t the ones I felt my service supported in those days.
Too bad you didn’t come here. You would have fit right in. Harper will go down in history as “mostly harmless” he changes his mind so much that if you shout loud enough he does what you want. The Liberals will take over next election with Justin Trudeau at the helm. The Quebec issue is more media hype then anything else. It had it’s chance to separate in the 70’s & 80’s but now it’s become a party tradition to maintain the platform. Nobody will ever vote for it. The bottom line here is quality of life. We just want to do our jobs, get paid and have fun. Never call us between 12 & 1 we take lunch seriously. And don’t expect anything between 4 & 5 because we’re getting ready to go home and get ready to go out…and argue politics. 🙂
I believe in the USA, just not its current Congress or the next one.
I feel the same way, from a brother from the north, perspective.
We’ll survive! Again, my cats bring great joy and fun into my life, even when they are naughty! (The one I named after me, Dougy, is the naughtier one…!)
As a cat cleans it’s fur, so shall we clean ourselves of the irritations of the world around us. 🙂
…spit on our hands and rub it in! I like that! I will, however, continue to use TP, thank you very much!
Thanks for the opportunity for me to decompress a little after the bad joke that was the November 4th election! I can take a deep breath now, and get on with life! My kitties still give me laughs, I enjoy writing my blog, I can count many blessings, I am doing OK financially, my Wegener’s granulomatosis continues to be in remission after nine and a half years.
I tell you, you’d make a great Quebec citizen. Except you’d be in the bar decompressing with a crowd of people. 🙂
My “ethnic” background is mostly Scottish, with touches of other rowdy Celtic peoples, so I get your point, though I am a typical American in that my linguistic skills are pathetic. I can manage German, poorly. French, if I have enough time, I can read and largely understand if I get the context, but I don’t claim any proficiency in the language. Spanish is the same. I think the fact that English is a great borrower of vocabulary from other languages makes this possible as many words are from French, German, and Spanish roots. That said, I would be part of the anglphone minority in Quebec.
I am part of the Anglophone community and the funny thing is, pretty much everyone speaks English. Many times I walk into a store, speak French, the other person, recognizes my English accent and relishes the opportunity to practice their English. This is the side of Quebec, the media never talks about.
No, it’s more disruptive to talk about the negatives. You can put scoundrels in office that way and make Jesus look like a whoremonger. (I’m still working on that attitude I must affect for the next two, four, six, ten, 12 years, as fate will have it!)
Yes it’s a rough road ahead I fear you down south of the border.
When you hear how few voted and how a fraction of a fraction controls the fate of the US for the next two years, then generations through the appointments to the couret that don’t go through (or do…!), one startsto appreciate what traitors and cowards the non-voters are. That’s a harsh characterization, but they may well have brought down the US as we know it.
I hate to say it but when I saw the statistics on voter turnout, I was appalled.
Me, too. They typically are low in off year elections, but the level this year, when so much is at stake, makes me sick to the stomach. Frankly, I won’t listen to anyone who didn’t vote express any opinions on how things are going. That’s my first question when some one starts a rant, in fact, and I will walk away from them if they say “no”, but not before I lecture them on civic responsibility. They have no business waving the flag, in my opinion, if they don’t vote.
Totally agree!!!
I probably will write my Congressman and Senators a lot in the next two years. I don’t want them to forget they didn’t win so much as the Democrats failed to win. In Nebraska, I regard any Republican contender who doesn’t get at least 65% of the votes as a loser since that’s pretty much the least a pig would get if he registered as a Republican and ran for office.
The US voter turnout was deplorable. Thank goodness Australia has compulsory voting, as well as an independent electoral commission. I feel for the US over the coming years. That said, most of us are appalled by our own Prime Minister’s behaviour but at least the election wasn’t rigged and everyone voted (if stupidly). Geez!
An independent election commission would be good. The US equivalent is split between Republicans and Democrats, and decisions are in deadlock on many things, according to one of the members of the board who recently appeared on television to discuss the process of that board. What else is new?
I don’t know what is worse: compulsory voting, where many stupid votes are cast but the end result is more representative of the whole population’s wishes or the US style elction where a majority of one-third of the potential electorate determines the direction of the country, then all the axxholes who didn’t vote whine about less than desireable outcomes. I think your system is better in that you can’t count on people to do their civic duty, even though their best interests are at risk.
We can draw Mickey Mouse on the ballot to fulfil our voting obligation, but the statistics show the occurrence of such ‘donkey votes’ is very low.
And there’s the difference, Peggy. Here we put the asses in office! (Snark attack…sorry! I’m still working through my disappointment, and I recognize the confusion “ass” vs. “donkey” might cause considering the donkey traditionally represents the Democrats.)
I’d be disappointed too. It amazes me how conservative and, in many ways, backward the US has become. 🙁
These things are cyclical. The last two congresses are the least productive in US history, the current one less productive than the one just before, which had been ranked as the worst in history. Such mediocrity was rewarded by putting the responsible ones, the obstructionists, in charge of the government. The actions of certain members of the Congress fall pretty close to these definitions, in my mind:
se·di·tion noun \si-ˈdi-shən\
~ the crime of saying, writing, or doing something that encourages people to disobey their government
Full Definition of SEDITION
~ incitement of resistance to or insurrection against lawful authority
It’s nice to know that at least one other Nebraskan shares my views. I bet there are a few others. But here’s an interesting twist. A dear friend and former Nebraskan now lives in Colorado. He lives in such a conservative community that he can’t declare any of his slightly left leaning views for fear that his car will be scratched. Geez!
electionresults.sos.ne.gov/
If you look at the various races in the link above, you’ll see there is a consistent pattern favoring Republican candidates, except the 2nd Congressional District, where their Congressman (Lee Terry) made the mistake of speaking openly about having a nice home and kids in college as the reason he accepted his salary during the Republican-forced government shutdown of 2012. Didn’t go over well, and he lost, the only national seat from Nebraska now held by a Democrat.
I don’t feel comfortable openly identifying myself as center to center left in Western Nebraska, either, but, unlike the gutless disloyalty of the Democrats running for Congress, I voted twice for him – 2008 and 2010 – because, flawed candidate or not (history will tell us), the 20098 Republican warhawk senator and a ditsy former beauty queen for vice president in 2008 and the Republican Party’s choice of a plutocrat and a Ayn Rand acolyte in 2010 pretty much told me I no longer fit the ideological niche of today’s Republican, even though I am an old white man, supposedly part of their biggest demographic component.
Having exposed myself this way, I’ll doubtlessly lose a few readers of this blog, but the main thrust of the blog is retirement and my cats, not my occasional response to the disappointments of the national and state government leaders. (Note I don’t give the Democrats hosannahs either for their inept efforts to hold onto control of the Senate or lose the House.)
You’d get my vote.
Adrian Smith, the 3rd District Congressman, was re-elected with a 75.4% of total votes cast. He’s not that good a Representative! That is to say, if I ran, I’d have to count on the Republican candidate dropping dead the week before the election to have a chance of winning, though he’d probably still be re-elected. No one would notice the difference.
I’m laughing but it’s a really sad laugh.
Yeah. It’s a sorry business because people hurt themselves by giving power to other people who work for special interests that don’t have the people’s best interests.
Oh boy, I just did some checking. Lee Terry is son of Lee Terry Sr, a KETV anchorman in the 60s and 70s. I used to babysit the Terry kids after the parents divorced (the dad retained sole custody). Clearly I didn’t indoctrinate him when I had the chance.
I remember him being the KETV anchorman –from reading the Omaha World-Herald– I lived and live all the way west, of course. Other than his ridiculous comment about why he continued to accept him Congressional pay when his party shut down the US Government in 2012, I have no specific sense of himn. Typical right wing Nebraska politician, dully predictable and most likely on his fifth, sixth, seventh term in Congress because, well, it’s easier to re-elect the bastards than to examine them closely and make a voting decision based on their aptitude, character, and positions. Was he a brat then, too? (Just being snarky. No answer required!! 😉 )
I don’t remember them being difficult kids, but I do remember being amazed that the dad had custody.
Me, too, because I recall there was some issue with LT, Senior’s use of alcohol or some such. It’s all a haze after all these years, and I may be remembering slanders, not facts.
No memory of any issues when I was babysitting.
Other than his classic Nebraskan ultra-conservative positions politically, I’m not particularly aware of any issue with the soon to be ex-Congressman, other than his stupid remark about accepting his salary when the US Government shutdown was on and many people went without funds and services of the government. Worse things have been done with smaller consequences.
Indeed.
😉
I love snow!
Me, too! I only wish there’d been a lot more of it today. Sometimes it’s nice to be snowed it!
I love looking at the snow through the window. That wind up my tail, however, makes me understand why your cats prefer indoors. Not really ready for the snow just yet – looks like Old Man Winter found you early!
Actually, they have hair that keeps them reasonably dry on the inside unless they were to be out in it for a really long time. You can see what I mean in the attached video:
http://youtu.be/VZkN00S7RWg
It lands on them, but doesn’t melt because they have good insulation between the body and the end of the hair!
Wish I had that set-up! My coat is so thin that if I get the tiniest bit of precipitation, I’m wet clear through.
The boys seem to handle the heat well, too. I guess the insulating qualities of their thick coats works both ways. I can see where your coat would let lots more moisture in, though!
It’s beautiful, Doug! It actually started me into my holiday spirit mode. Thanks.
Thanks! I points me a bit in that direction, too!
Oh no, snow! I still go out in it Doug and Andy. Once you start walking around in it….you get used to it. The key here is to keep walking and investigating….then you don’t get too cold. Meanwhile mom is heading into the bedroom to put on her long underwear…she says the look of snow makes her feel cold. What a wimp!
(((Shoko)))
Dougy will go out in it, but I supervise him closely. He tends to follow his nose, which can take him a long way from home if he isn’t careful! Andy is more shy about the outdoors. He prefers it through a window or screen door.