A Day for for Growing Icicles

It's brilliantly sunny outside, I have a tonne of chores that should've been done yesterday (well weeks ago some of them) but I'm here typing instead...a secret vice! can you have a secret vice in a public place (don't answer that it doesn't bear thinking about..well some of the examples that come to mind certainly don't) Anyway at least it has less calories than chocolate and No caffeine.

The heavy machinery is working outside as I type, whirring and beeping and periodically obscuring the bright sun. The machines grade (scrape) the road and pile all the snow they can into a long hillock down the centre of the roadway then another machine gobbles up the snow and spits it out of a side spout into a convoy of heavy trucks that run gently alongside, they queue up to be fed and when full, thunder off with their brimming loads of snow, to empty at the nearest 'snow dump' (just think empty car park/quarry type space that ends the Winter beneath tonnes of snow!)

It's definitely a day for growing icicles the sun is so strong and bright, that there is a steady drip, drip run off in it's beams, but the thermometer is 29 in the shade so it's still freezing out there albeit not by much!

It may not be Spring here yet but it smells like 'break up' the end of Winter when everyone gets so excited, as the light is back!!!! and Spring will soon be on it's way. There should be a chorus of singing and dancing in here but I can do neither so it's imagination time!

The trees are starting to show buds, the birds are singing...Skiers are trying to get as many 'last ski outings' of the season as they can. Before the crisp white stuff disappears for the Summer.

Redoubt grumbles in the background as a distraction, but as few inches of fresh snow fell and covered the thin layer of grey ash that covered the city over the weekend and spruced it up nicely. It even snowed lightly for a while this morning, big fluffy light floaty flakes...most unlike our normal powder... I still remember my puzzlement when I discovered that there were different kinds of snow and that "snowman" snow (soft, wet, clumpy stuff that sticks together well and is mould able!) falls very rarely here, we really usually have almost sand dry powder that kicks up when you walk through it.

"Where is our lunch????"

Well off to feed the birds who have celebrated the return of the light with some lovely brown eggs..the clever things and then off to mundane chores but perhaps a quick lunch first.

And if you are a cat of course then you can just relax and enjoy the sunshine....