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The Sequel

February 14, 2017

On Sunday we received a second snowstorm. It was another big one, and coupled with the one three days prior meant we had more snow fall in four days than in the entirety of winter 2015/2016!

The snow fell through the day and into the night. When it was all done our town received about 11 inches in total (to a total of over two feet since Thursday)!

These photos look almost black and white, but it’s just the light during a snowfall. You can hardly tell the difference between ground and sky when the snow everywhere.

I’ve used this guy more this past week than in the past two years, and I’m not exaggerating there! I can’t even remember starting him up since before Christmas 2014.

There’s more snow forecast for tomorrow but it’s not going to be a big fall. Will we see more like this again before spring? There’s still plenty of winter left, so maybe…

First Snow

October 27, 2016

Today it snowed for the first time this year. It’s actually been snowing all day on and off, and even as I type has become heavier.

Unusually for the first fall it’s sticking, rather than instantly melting like first snow usually does. I’m sure it will all melted away in a day or two.

It’s bitterly cold out right now. I didn’t wear gloves and could only stay out for a couple of minutes to take these photos since my hands started freezing (plus I have a cold). The snow is thick and slippery, and is weighing down the trees since it has come before some of them have shed all their leaves.

That’s a dogwood in our front yard. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the branches (which usually stand straight up) touch the ground like that. I was a little alarmed about the giant branches of the big trees out front which were touching the roof. I gave them a vigorous shake to try and dislodge some of the snow and raise them a bit.

I went out for a drive earlier and saw cars in ditches and police lights everywhere which is common when winter first comes. Right now though the sounds of sirens are almost nonstop. It’s a little eerie since the snow dulls a lot of sound and only the sirens are carrying.

As I said this will all be gone soon. But I hope it’s a good sign of more to come. Last year’s winter was depressingly snow-free. This year I could do with more of it. As Florence always says, snow on the ground is when Earth is at it’s most beautiful. 😉

Wildlife XV: The Shining

August 16, 2016

I left the wildlife camera out while we were away. It captured the usual suspects (squirrels, deer and birds) but also some of the rarer visitors to our yard. In total there were over 300 photos taken, almost every one of which featured an animal of some sort.

I’ll confess I didn’t put much thought into placement, and am quite surprised it didn’t fall over while we were away (I half-leaned it against the house). The above shows what you’re looking at, since many of the following shots are at night.

Two different unknown cats. There were many shots of the fluffier one in particular, suggesting that s/he looks into the french doors to peep inside our house. My guess is Emi and Yoss know about this cat (and vice versa) because they spend time every night downstairs looking outside.

One of many opossum shots. In fact there were probably more opossum photos in this one period than in every previous use of the camera combined! He’s no stranger to our patio!

A big raccoon, exiting stage left! He was only in this one frame, which suggests he was moving quite quickly. While I’ve captured raccoons before on the camera (including on video), I’ve not yet seen one with my own eyes.

Speaking of raccoons…

These actually appear to be two baby raccoons! While they were in several shots, they never got close enough to the camera for a very clear photo, and this is the best there was. But they are obviously smaller than the guy above and appear darker-furred. That and the little stripey tails tell me they may be babies! What do you think?

Lastly I’ll leave with the guy that just had to be the center of attention:

Robot Claw