Living in Place, Snow-Gauge Clif

Snow-Gauge Clif: Week 3, 2021

40 Comments

Last week, Clif and I took a walk on a March day that was so warm I took off my jacket. Hats and gloves were optional. But this is Maine, and today, with the windchill, the temperature has dipped to 0°F.  No walks are planned for today.

Fortunately, Snow-Gauge Clif did his measuring yesterday, when the weather was less brisk. And despite the cold temp, progress has been made. The snow has gone down, and the driveway, for the first time this winter, is mostly clear of snow.

In the backyard, which gets more sun, there has been even more progress.

There are actually a few teeny tiny bare spots on the patio. (I’m thinking of cheating this year and shoveling the patio so that we can have friends over when the temp hits 50°.)

The garden emerges, and there is bare ground. Joy, joy, happy, happy!

Best of all, a closer look reveals the first green shoots of the season.

Despite the whipsaw nature of March, we are cheered by these small glimpses of Spring.

40 thoughts on “Snow-Gauge Clif: Week 3, 2021”

  9. Love to see your beginnings of spring. Your exuberant spirit is a gift.

    I had expected this winter to be the worst ever, for my psyche. Not only did I have to deal with winter, and not being able to garden, but I had to deal with social isolation and the fear of COVID, etc. But this winter felt like the fastest ever. I think maybe I was so preoccupied with the day to day of cleaning, being safe, etc. that I just didn’t have time to bemoan the fun I was missing in the garden. I wonder if anyone else felt that.

  10. I’m pretty sure “Snow-Gauge Clif” refers to him doing the measuring, but I like to think of him *being* the snow gauge. As if you were measuring the snow based on how high it goes goes up his leg.

  13. Isn’t it exciting to see those little shoots appear, even in Australia it is thrill. It must be especially so in your part of the world, it is a kind of miracle seeing greenery and new life under so much snow and ice.

  14. The tiniest bit of green packs quite a punch, doesn’t it? I was thrilled today to see some new shoots coming up from the asparagus fern. Those poor plants were nothing but prickly beige stems, but when I cut some away today, there were the green shoots. I have to find some time this week to get away from work — the redbuds are beginning to bloom, and they don’t last long!

  16. I am finally able to meet friends outdoors! 4 adults and however many children we have from 2 households can meet outside so some neighbours are coming for a cuppa tomorrow – we will need coats, hats and scarves and if it rains we will cheat slightly and sit in the greenhouse with the doors open but it feels wonderful to be able to meet again!

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