We are told by our weather forecasters that a terrible snowstorm is coming our way. We are told to prepare for it, to be ready. We are told to buy the things we need, to make sure our animals are okay, to make sure we have “extras” of everything. Most people who listen to these warnings can avoid serious difficulty, but I found myself wondering today what people did before they had weathermen to tell them when a storm was approaching. How did they know to prepare? How did they know what was coming?
For all practical purposes, this day started out beautifully
and stayed that way well up to the early afternoon. The sky only showed some low lying clouds and
a few cloud wisps here and there. The sun
was shining brilliantly. Of course, it
was cold because it’s winter, but that’s to be expected. So how would I have known that a snowstorm
was approaching? That’s what I set out
to find today, and here are a few notes I took along the way.
First, I can say that I did not see one squirrel--not even
one. Usually, they are active on a sunny
day, seeing what they can steal from their bird friends. But I never saw one at all. Birds were also pretty scarce. They usually come to my feeders constantly,
but I didn’t see many at all. You’d
think that they would be trying to eat as much as possible if a storm were
approaching, but the opposite was true.
They were hidden.
 |
| We went from brilliant sunshine to total gray in less than 15 minutes. |
You’ve heard the old saying?
“Seagull, seagull, sit on the sand.
It’s never good weather when you’re on land.” I think it’s a very true saying, and I did
see some gulls on land. They don’t like
it when the wind picks up too much, which it did, or when the ocean gets too
choppy. I also found a spider web in my
house that didn’t have a spider. I just
cleaned in that area a couple of days ago and there was no web then, so I know
the spider abandoned its new web and went looking for better shelter. They say it’s because spiders can sense a
drop in the atmospheric pressure. I don’t
know if it’s true, but I wouldn’t be surprised.
And speaking of a drop in the atmospheric pressure, I had
the devil of a time today trying to keep my fire going. The pressure kept messing with the smoke
coming out of the chimney, forcing it to curl back downwards. I had several downdrafts I had to take care
of, and my house was pretty smoky. I
guess the biggest clue of the atmospheric drop, though, was not in the chimney
smoke but in how all of my old injuries felt.
Everything ached, and whenever I don’t have a spring in my step, I know
something’s going to happen weather-wise.
Finally, the wind came in from the northeast today, and it
always seems to bring snow with it in winter when it comes from that direction.
I mentioned that to the farmer up the road, and he said his cows knew it
for sure. He said whenever they swish
their tales to the east, we’re going to get snow, and he said they’d been
swishing all morning. Well, if it’s good
enough for cows, it’s good enough for me.
I think I should pay more attention to approaching winter
storms. In spring, summer, and fall it’s
easy. I always know when a storm is
approaching in the warmer seasons. I can smell it in the
air. I know that sounds a little loopy,
but it’s true. I can smell it
instantly. Winter is trickier,
though. I’ve got plenty of food and
things stored in my house, so I am not worried.
But it might still be a good idea to be able to know a winter storm is
approaching as easily as I know when one is coming in spring, summer, or
fall. We might not always have a
weatherman to give us the day’s prediction.
By mid afternoon, the sun had vanished, and rather
quickly, I might add. The sky turned
very gray very fast, and I couldn’t find a patch of blue anywhere. It all happened in less than 15 minutes. We went from brilliant sunshine to total gloom. The squirrels, birds, cows, gulls, and spider
were right, after all. There’s a storm
coming in!
