There’s been too much of the white stuff lately.
Time for something completely different.
Happy Thursday.
It’s Colour Time
Category Archives: nature
It Got a Little Frosty
Okanagan Lake is a little frosty around the edges.
But it’s sunny and we’re warming up; we’re about 12°C warmer than we were on Saturday.
Happy Wednesday.
Duck Update
The duck creek is open and our resident duck flock seems to be doing fine.
They appear to have come through the cold snap pretty well with feed from the city and snacks from passersby (including us).
I’ve noticed that even the small flock of over-wintering Canada geese have been accepting food as well; they’re usually quite standoffish, but any port in a storm. They’re probably wishing that they had migrated!
Happy Tuesday.
Chilly Reflections
We have warmed up significantly but have about another 10°C to go before we reach seasonal. Thankfully that’s supposed to happen by Friday!
In the meantime, a side effect of this cold snap is that we have had wind-still, sunny days that produce photos like the one above.
Happy Monday.
Misty Skaha Lake
This sudden, very unusually cold weather has caused the lakes to discharge a lot of mist since the water is so much warmer than the surrounding air. Some people have photographed mist spouts, but I haven’t been fortunate enough to see any of them.
One nice side effect of this cold weather is that’s it’s sunny, but I’ll be happy to say to good-bye to the sun as it begins to warm up (and consequently cloud up) tomorrow; thankfully, we are supposed to be at near seasonal temperatures by Friday.
This Arctic blast has been very hard on all the non-migrating birds and the animals that just aren’t used to these cold conditions; farmers are also very concerned about the tree fruit orchards and the wineries about their vines. As an indication of how unusual this weather is, a local environmental group just released instructions on how to help hummingbirds that are going into torpor because of the cold.
The eastern part of the country is now being walloped by a huge storm that has moved north from Texas. I don’t follow football but apparently a game has even been cancelled as a result!
Stay warm, everyone.
Winter Reflections
Fortunately, our cold snap is supposed to disappear by Monday or Tuesday, but it has brought along with it some clear days and nights.
A night walk produced this scene.
Happy Saturday; happy weekend.
Baby It’s Cold Outside
Having spent six winters in the subarctic Northwest Territories, I am accustomed to cold weather. I used to walk to work in -40C (-40F) and colder, in fact. The very atmosphere was frozen and crackly and my eyelashes and parka froze too, but dressed properly, I was perfectly comfortable and warm.
I am also accustomed to cold conveyances. Cold trucks, cold aircraft, cold snowmobiles, cold machinery, period.
Any engine of any type has to be treated with respect, especially if it has been left outside to cool to the surrounding temperature. The north forces patience. Everything takes more time and more preparation and precaution, and trips, even “quick trips to get a litre of milk” are weighed more carefully. Do I really need to go outside in -42C for milk? Or can I go without it until tomorrow when I have five other errands to do?
It’s funny how everything is relative. Now that I’m in the south, I see our weather from a different perspective. A couple of days ago, M and I walked to our neighbourhood brewery for a beer and a sandwich. It was windy and snowing a little. Before we left, the waitress wished us a safe walk home “in this terrible weather.” M and I laughed a bit but we also are falling into that mindset, too. I recently complained to a northern friend about an expected cold snap; she laughed and told me that I’m getting soft. Simultaneously it also occurred to me that I’m no longer a northerner, a northern-domiciled nomad who travels to the south for breaks and lives “real life” in the (mostly) cold.
There’s a saying that “we are what we eat.” But after many years of wayfaring, I’m beginning to think that we also “are where we eat,” too. We take on the characteristics of the places where we root ourselves, even if we wish our roots were somewhere else. It’s part of the human experience, I think.
I find myself thinking of our upcoming cold snap with “my! That’s cold!” But really, I’ve experienced much colder, much more demanding weather with a lot more riding on the decisions regarding it. But that’s also not my reality any more and my perception has been affected.
At least, that’s one of my little theories of relativity.
Hello Sun – We Missed You!
We had a little sun yesterday. What a treat!
But we had to enjoy it because we’re back to the overcast again (and maybe some colder temperatures for a couple of days, too).
Happy Thursday.
Snowfall
Two enormous storms are sweeping across the Pacific and are hitting British Columbia’s northern coast, Vancouver Island and lower mainland with a huge force of wind and rain. They are even reaching into the interior. At the higher elevations, the rain is actually snow, and it is coming down in huge amounts. Here in our deep valley, we are seemingly escaping the worst of it, but we did get a little snow yesterday.
Once there’s snow, our resident duck flock is more reliant on food provided for them and as soon as they saw us heading their way, they lost no time in mobbing my M who started scattering some yummies for them.
It doesn’t take long for them to devour a large bag of quinoa, especially when it’s cold.
We did get some snow collection over night but much of it melted today.
Happy Wednesday.
Autumn Memories
I think autumn is my favourite season – although when summer comes along, I love it, too – because of how comfortably warm, wind-still and beautiful it can be with all the colours. Given how rainy and overcast it has been here, it’s nice to look back as a reminder of what we have coming up.
Happy Monday.
In the Net! - Pictures and Stories of Life 