Well, folks, this might very well be the last week for Snow-Gauge Clif. The backyard is essentially snow-free, and this morning, when I took a picture of Clif, he was in a celebratory mood.
The front yard has a little more snow, but not much, and this is mostly where Clif piled the snow when he scooped the driveway.
And here’s a view of the front yard.
We shall see what the rest of the week brings, but by next Monday, that little patch of snow by the lamp might very well be gone, and the dirty snow by the driveway should at least be greatly diminished. As I’m sure readers have figured out, these are heady times at our house by the edge of the woods.
As I mentioned in a previous post, time was when we hoped that the snow on the patio would be gone by April 22, my daughter’s birthday. That way, we could have a celebratory drink outside in her honor. Some years, the snow was gone by April 22; some years it wasn’t. Last week’s post on March 30 illustrated that the snow was gone, and I don’t think it’s coming back. Even if we have an April snowstorm, it won’t add up to much and will melt quickly.
Therefore, this year, snow-out on the patio was March 30, a full twenty-four days sooner than April 22, when we hoped the patio would be clear for Shannon’s birthday.
For contrast, here is a picture of the patio taken on April 12, 2015. Eleven years ago, this was normal. Times. Have. Changed.
Readers might be wondering why we aren’t thrilled to have snow-out sooner, in March rather than in April. To some extent, we are. But remember, we live in the land of the ice and snow, and our climate really does resemble Sweden’s. Snow in winter and spring is normal for Maine. For us, five inches is nothing to get flapped about. It takes a foot or more to make us moan.
Also, an earlier spring leads to a hotter summer. Nowadays, temperatures sometimes rise into the mid-90s and even higher. This, we absolutely hate. If we wanted to live in a hot climate, we would move south. But we don’t. Even though some people might find our cold weather challenging, Maine’s chilly climate suits us. I don’t dream of moving south. Instead, I dream of moving north.
However, central Maine is our home, and here we will stay. Thank goodness for the heat pumps we had installed last June. Not only do they not require fossil fuels to run, but they also keep the house nice and cool on unbearably hot and humid days.
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Looking
Art: Saltmarsh Moonrise by David Morgan
Last week, we met friends for drinks and a bite to eat at the Maine Evergreen Hotel in Augusta, where there is art for sale on every floor. Two weeks ago, our daughter Dee, an art lover extraordinaire, bought two paintings. Last week, she bought a very beautiful print, Saltmarsh Moonrise, by David Morgan.
Unfortunately, my phone camera did not capture this print well. My apologies. For a better view of this stunning picture, click here to go to Morgan’s website and scroll down.
Dee has all her new pictures hanging in her room—what lovely additions!—and she is done buying art.
At least for now.
Notes From the Hinterland 
Inquiring minds want to know what Snow-Gauge Clif does during the summer? Do you put him in the garage/storage shed with the snow blower? Or did he come with accessories that convert him to Rain-Gauge Clif? 😉
Tee-hee! Fear not. Clif wears a lot of hats: Yard-Work, Tear-Off-Old siding, Paint-the-House, Do Errands…Well, I think you get the idea. 😉
I must say, Cliff is very cooperative when it comes to the images, Laurie. 😊.
I agree with you about weather. Even though I was not born in Norway, I love the weather here and hope climate change does not happen soon. A good winter is essential for a productive sping and summer.
One more lovely painting.
Thanks, Rupali! Clif is bit of a ham. 😉
😊
P.S. I feel exactly the way that you do about climate change and cold weather.
Hi. Many flowering trees in my area are in blossom. Have flowering trees blossomed where you live?
No flowering trees yet, and there won’t be for a few weeks.
Snow-out is certainly earlier than it used to be, often by a month. I just pray for a northerly jet stream that is better than a southerly one. But one can only hope!
Love Dee’s choice, it’s beautiful!
it certainly is! I was a little shocked by the 2015 picture I found of the patio in April. Wow, have things changed.
That picture is a real beauty, but I’m a real sucker for all things blue.
I’m glad to see Clif smiling as he retires the snow gauge! And thank you for the explanation of Maine’s snow habits and the connection between early springs and scorching summers: no thank you! (Except that’s my life…) I’ll remember from now on that Maine’s climate is akin to Sweeden’s!
Thank you also for attaching a link to David Morgan’s website. I’m a huge fan of images depicting a window or door, and I like his work on those subjects. I know Dee will enjoy her beautiful piece!
I do wonder how much longer the Sweden analogy will hold. Our climate has changed so much in ten years. The picture from 2015 certainly tells the story.
I also noticed David’s pictures of windows and doors. (I, too, am a fan of such pictures.) As we Mainers might put it, Dee’s room looks wicked sharp with all the new artwork mingled with the old. 😉
It is curious for us to think of heat pumps being used for cooling.
Ours do both, beautifully. And now that we have such hot weather in Maine in the summer, they are such a blessing. Time was all we needed were fans. That time is gone.
I wonder if those little bits of snow are sad to melt away. I can anthropomorphize about anything in the world, but this is the first time I’ve looked at snow patches and felt a little sad for them! No sadness for you, though — on to patio gatherings!
A wonderful bit of anthropomorphic imagination! I had never thought of them that way. But you’re right those little bits of snow do look sad.
Fingers crossed re snow
We’re supposed to get a little this afternoon. We shall see how much accumulation there is.
Our remaining snow looks similar to yours, but our forecast is for a little more today. I’m ready for gardening season.
We have snow in forecast for today, too. Spring sure is a fitful event in northern New England.
Goodbye snow gauge! PS We’re expecting a dusting of poor man’s fertilizer today…
Same here! I hope enough falls so that I can get a picture to amaze my blogging friends who live in warmer climes.
I just posted mine! Drat, it is really coming down hard and we already have two inches!!!
Wowsah! Not much here. We shall see…
How do the roads in your area cope with your extreme weather conditions? Here in our part of the UK we are seeing more and more pot-holes as spending on road maintenance decreases , but your weather is more extreme than ours so I fear you may also have pot-hole problems.
Oh, we have pot holes aplenty, some big enough to cause the front end to need alignment. The state and towns are pretty good about fixing potholes. Sorry to read that potholes are becoming more of a problem in your area and that spending on road maintenance is decreasing. What the heck!
Wow! All that snow disappeared very fast! Do you think you’ll have more snow? We had lots of snow this weekend, and it stayed about 24 hours and is now gone again.
It’s snowing a little bit now, but it shouldn’t add to much. Winter is pretty much over, even if it snows from time to time. How about for you?
Laurie, I share your concerns and fully understand that early heat is not a gift. We’re dealing with that here in California. I’m glad you’ve been able to add a heat pump to cool your home on those blistering days. I know you’ll enjoy those celebratory birthday drinks, whatever the weather might be.
I’m glad Dee has found beautiful art for her room, though it’s hard to top the beauty of her cats. =^..^=
Thank you for the reminder of heat pumps! BTY, this last rainstorm has washed away most of the remaining snow, although mounds still live in some parking lots.
We love ours! Yes, those parking lot mounds are slow to go.
Times are definitely changing but I’m so glad you’ll have your patio for the celebrations! We had almost zero snow here in NM over the Winter but had the most glorious rain last night. It’s not the same, but we’ll take every drop we can. Hope you’re enjoying a lovely week, Laurie!
They certainly are! But we did get a dusting of snow last night, about an inch, and that cheered me up. 😉 Glad you got some rain.
The weather conditions are changing here too. Thank you for the photos.
My pleasure!
Heat pumps are a blessing. Our spring is earlier and warmer than normal here, and we are already way below normal precipitation levels, including snow pack in the mountains.
They absolutely are! So glad we have them. I sure hope you get some rain soon. Lots of worries on the news about what kind of summer the West is going to have.
We are forecast to get some rain this week, but we will see. The forecast seems to shift daily.
Fingers crossed!