Winter II
Tue, 2008-01-22 06:57
#1
Winter II
Tue, 2008-01-22 06:57
#2
Since it's only the middle of January, I think there's room for another winter thread now that the [url=http://www.rabble.ca/babble/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic&f=33&t=000341]f... one[/url] is at a hundred posts. [img]smile.gif" border="0[/img]
The canal requires several days of minus 15 or lower to develop ice deemed safe for skaters. Looks like we had that stretch of time because they were flooding the canal yesterday in preparation for skating, which might open as early as this weekend.
Tue, 2008-01-22 07:06
#3
Boom Boom
The CG icebreaker is escorting the supply ship, because new ice has formed with the deep freeze we are in right now. This is the last voyage of the supply ship until April, because every January (usually the third week) the supply ship goes to Rimouski to dry dock, get engine overhauls, new paint, etc...
Tue, 2008-01-22 07:07
#4
That sounds like great news for the folks at Winterlude!
Tue, 2008-01-22 07:26
#5
rural - Francesca
...and here in Wiarton Willie Country...the insantity is rev'ing up
Tue, 2008-01-22 09:23
#6
That's right, Groundhog Day is around the corner! I wonder what Wiarton Willie will predict this year, after such a long, hard winter?
quote:
That sounds like great news for the folks at Winterlude!
This year definitely bodes well for Winterlude with the freezing temperatures we've been getting - there should be no issue with the canal freezing over!
Tue, 2008-01-22 14:33
#7
Wiarton is a crazy town on Groundhog's day.
[url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/groundhogday/]Wiarton Willie [/url]
"Willie's death made headlines around the world.
On Groundhog Day, they put Wiarton Willie face-up in a small pine casket, bright pennies over his eyes, paws clutching a raw carrot. But it was a fake! Turns out the real Wiarton Willie was so disgustingly decomposed he couldn't be put on display, so they found a stuffed facsimile and laid it in the casket."
Tue, 2008-01-22 16:49
#8
rural - Francesca
ya know....I ran the festival 2000-2004
oh the things I did...in the name of tourism....
Tue, 2008-01-22 17:01
#9
Well... I will not hold that against you. [img]tongue.gif" border="0[/img]
I remember the scandal when Willie died that day. It made international news.
Tue, 2008-01-22 17:18
#10
rural - Francesca
oh the scandals.......
HRDC with Jane Stewart - I made Macleans magazine with that one
The trial of Wiarton Willie - accused of making a false prognostication, he was found not guilty
He died again, well actually his two roommates died, he was fine, and 3 ladies in town were told they'd be charged with criminal harassment if they didn't leave me alone
CNN called
2 Discovery Channel documentaries
I got to drive a Zamboni in the mascot suit, through the streets of Owen Sound
met Preston Manning
Mike Harris apologized to me (he never apologized to Walkerton)
it was an eventful (no pun) 5 years
Then got fired because the Torontonian I was dating stayed over night and the new Mayor held me responsible for the death of her husband, and she hated strong women, and plus the whole 'we need to keep you on contract so pay equity doesn't come into it' nonsense
there's a book here somewhere
Tue, 2008-01-22 17:25
#11
There are plenty of great scandals and scams in Owen Sound and Grey County.
I hear a few good ones at the Legion everytime I stop in for a beer.
Tue, 2008-01-22 17:34
#12
rural - Francesca
have you been tracking the craziness in Meaford?
Tue, 2008-01-22 17:50
#13
Are you referring to the Meaford Legion or Townhall?
I heard some rumbling before Christmas about the town council however I can not remember what it was about.
I have been paying attention to Keppel and Chatsworth issues.
Sat, 2008-01-26 07:20
#14
It insists upon being winter even here in the deep south.
Last weekend, a co-worker had a winter adventure. He and his wife have a trailer in a park right on the Lake Erie shore. While he doesn't like going there in winter that much, his wife does. But to make it work, you need a generator-- which he has.
But it was a "bargain" generator he got from Walmart cheap. It's been nothing but trouble. However, he got it back from a repair place, tested it at home, and took it up with him.
On Friday last, Lake Erie was open water. When they looked again Saturday, it was frozen over. And they felt lucky to be alive to see that transformation.
At about 1:00 AM, as the thermometer dropped, the generator gave out and refused to restart. So, my buddy used the propane stove to heat the trailer.
Knowing the dangers of carbon monoxide, he cracked a window by their bed, and also opened the window hatch on the roof of the trailer, as CO is lighter than air.
But, he was too concerned to fall asleep, so he managed to stay awake all night. When his wife woke up they decided to pack things in and head for home-- but found themselves trapped in the trailer.
The warm moist air in the upper half of the trailer had hit the door, condensed on the cold inner surface of it, and water had slowly dripped down to the much cooler air near the bottom of the door where it froze. It took him about a half hour of chopping with a screwdriver to get themselves free.
Oh, and they were alone in the whole trailer park.
My adventures have not been quite so anxious. I finally put the belt on the old John Deer snowblower for this weeks snowfall. Not an easy job, but since I've done it before and knew what to expect, it went okay. Except that now the snowblower engine seems to be "missing".
I'm not sure if the timing somehow slipped when the auger belt broke and jammed the engine into a stall, or if residue from the old belt on the pulley wheels is causing everything to vibrate, and throwing the timing off-- or if I routed the belt wrong in my haste. (doubt that-- there's only one way for it to fit, but ya never know) The auger does want to turn even when disengaged, as the engine sputters and backfires, so I'll look at belt things first.
Winter puts and edge on all this. I never got around to it last summer, but I'd really like to take the old thing apart, clean it, lubricate it, replace old rusty bolts etc. I'm not much a one for doing fiddly finger work in the cold.
But the unintended side effect of all this was that I had to shovel the snow that evening. By this time, the temperature had really dropped, drying the snow, the sky was clear with a full moon you could read a newspaper by, and the stars twinkled brilliantly. I managed to get everything done, and instead of wearing me out, it seemed to give me this energy boost I have been surfing on all week.
Maybe that's what I've needed to kick my butt out of this physical and often mental torpor I've been in for a while.
-----
Just did some reading on this "internet" thing, and wouldn't you know it, they have stuff about my snowblower. I might try adjusting the jet, which I have done before. Maybe the new belt puts a different load on the engine, and requires a different fuel mix?
Who'd a thunk this "internet" thingy had more than just "Babble" on it? I mean, the possibilities are endless.....
Now, if I could just find the spatula to extricate my butt from this chair......
[ 26 January 2008: Message edited by: Tommy_Paine ]
Fri, 2008-02-01 13:09
#15
It is snowing very hard here. They have announced up to 30cm. Oh I hate winter...... [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img]
If I have to ask my son the clear the roof again That will be a first in the annals of clearing the roof twice in one winter.
[ 01 February 2008: Message edited by: clersal ]
Fri, 2008-02-01 14:57
#16
My section of Ontario has missed out on another snowstorm. There are a few fresh centimetres of snow however nothing out of the ordinary.
Fri, 2008-02-01 15:06
#17
In a moment of weakness, I agreed to let one of my sons spend the day (a ped day here) at a friend's house on the south shore. That just cost me an hour of driving back and forth across the river in snowstorm-augmented traffic.
I'm adding this to the list of things he owes me in my dotage.
Fri, 2008-02-01 18:11
#18
Am I to assume you are expecting a well supported dotage?
Sun, 2008-02-03 04:35
#19
Boom Boom
You should see the snow that fell here last night - drifts five feet high the length of my property - indeed, for everyone who lives close to the water's edge here. [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img]
Sun, 2008-02-03 05:00
#20
quote:
Originally posted by Boom Boom:
[b]You should see the snow that fell here last night - drifts five feet high the length of my property - indeed, for everyone who lives close to the water's edge here. [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img] [/b]
I take this opportunity to salute you. You can keep the rest of us in touch with outport life because you had the courage to make a rational choice, and maximize the purchasing power of your disability payments, while adding to the population of a depressed area rather than an area suffering more growth than it can handle. Not quite the same thing as the folks who moved from depressed Ontario to the prairies 110 years ago, but a similar frontier spirit.
Thank you.
Sun, 2008-02-03 05:52
#21
Boom Boom
Well, thank you! [img]smile.gif" border="0[/img] I love it here from April to November; the winters are awful. I moved to the coast in 1995, and will probably die here. I'm from Ottawa, would love to return, but it's too expensive for me, and too hot in the summer, and I have terrible allergies there. If it wasn't for the terrible winters, I'd love it here with no thought ever or leaving.
Speaking of winter, now, I'm a half inch short of six feet, and at the back of the house, the snow drift is higher than me!
It's soft snow, too, so I'm not going to attempt to get my skidoo through it - I got stuck this morning just moving it from where it was. Had to get a neighbour's help getting it out.
The young man who shovels snow here is in Natashquan and won't be back until later today, so have to wait until he gets back before I can take the skidoo through the back yard. I was able to find some shallow snow to get out and feed the birds, though. Why they don't all fly south is
a mystery to me. The chipmunks, too, they should pack their bags and hitch a ride south as well.
ETA: I brought a house here with a view (not far from the water) of the Gulf Of St. Lawrence. It's a fabulous view all year round. I'd never be able to afford something like this in Ottawa. My disability pension covers the mortgage and all the basics - very little left after paying for everything.
[ 03 February 2008: Message edited by: Boom Boom ]
Tue, 2008-02-05 05:31
#22
Despite the freezing winter weather in much of the country, Canada's groundhogs are predicting an early spring! The groundhog report:
quote:
Wiarton Willie, Canada's most well-known groundhog, and Nova Scotia's Shubenacadie Sam both failed to see their shadow as they were roused Saturday, heralding an early spring that many across the country will welcome.Saturday saw severe wintry weather for much of the country, including a deep freeze in the Prairies, a massive mound of snow burying Ontario and Quebec and thousands still without power on Prince Edward Island after an ice storm earlier this week.
It's warmed up substantially in Ottawa over the last couple of days, but I'm not sure it's wise to break out the t-shirts just yet.
[url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/02/02/groundhog-day.html?ref=rss]'Get your shorts and T-shirts': Canada's groundhogs predict an early spring[/url]
Tue, 2008-02-05 05:40
#23
Willie the nincompoop!
My cats say winter is going to last all summer and they look out the window and count the birds!
Tue, 2008-02-05 05:51
#24
rural - Francesca
Hey! That little nincompoop is worth $5 million to the local economy!
Tue, 2008-02-05 05:59
#25
If I ever make it big, I'm going to get my own personal groundhog. You can't count on one that's 1,655 miles away to be accurate. It's just common sense.
Tue, 2008-02-05 06:13
#26
Boom Boom
I wish this winter would end early, it's been brutal. [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img]
Tue, 2008-02-05 12:48
#27
quote:
Originally posted by rural - Francesca:
[b]Hey! That little nincompoop is worth $5 million to the local economy![/b]
That just shows how screwed up our society is.
$5 million for a bloody rodent! In fact $5 million is too much for anything!
Sun, 2008-02-10 06:27
#28
rural - Francesca
quote:
Originally posted by clersal:
[b]That just shows how screwed up our society is.
$5 million for a bloody rodent! In fact $5 million is too much for anything![/b]
ummm - he 'generates' $5 million in economic benefit and allows small business owners enough of influx of cash to get them through the very quiet winters up here.
Sun, 2008-02-10 06:28
#29
rural - Francesca
*sigh*
quote:
All roads in both Grey and Bruce county are officially closed this hour. (10am)OPP say both the main highways and county roads in Grey and Bruce should be considered closed until further notice
I think it's a cookie baking day
Sun, 2008-02-10 06:39
#30
ElizaQ
quote:
Originally posted by rural - Francesca:
[b]*sigh*I think it's a cookie baking day[/b]
Yep. I'm trying to decide what to bake as well. Was going to do some shopping...but...guess not. [img]smile.gif" border="0[/img]
Sun, 2008-02-10 08:42
#31
Boom Boom
Meanwhile, I'm trying to get rid of a cold (runny nose, sneezing) before leaving Wednesday for medical attention in Sept-Iles (hernia). We're expecting another storm (wind, snow) tonight, ending Tuesday.
Sun, 2008-02-10 11:07
#32
Francesca,
clersal is just envious because Willie makes more money than she does. Willie deserves it because she's so smart.
Sun, 2008-02-10 12:52
#33
Yes I am green with envy. Get my cats on that rodent!
Mon, 2008-02-11 02:31
#34
This morning it's minus 30 with the wind chill, minus 18 on the thermometer. And there's mountains of snow everywhere--what the hell?! Toronto's supposed to be the banana belt of winter wimpiness.
I have to go find my parka and the warm mitts instead of those paper-thin leather gloves I usually wear. I kinda like having fingers.
Tue, 2008-02-12 05:28
#35
Yep, it's -30 with the wind chill in Ottawa today. I wonder where the groundhogs are on a day like this? Waiting for that early spring, surely!
Tue, 2008-02-12 05:32
#36
Sven
quote:
Originally posted by M.Gregus:
[b]Yep, it's -30 with the wind chill in Ottawa today. I wonder where the groundhogs are on a day like this? Waiting for that early spring, surely![/b]
The temperature, BEFORE taking into account wind, in northern Minnesota yesterday was MINUS 40. Yikes!!! [img]eek.gif" border="0[/img]
Tue, 2008-02-12 05:34
#37
That's cold enough to freeze the biggest ball of twine in the world! [img]wink.gif" border="0[/img]
Tue, 2008-02-12 05:42
#38
Sven
Last weekend, was "Hockey Day in Minnesota". As part of the day, there was a state-wide telecast of two high school hockey games played on Lake of the Woods. The wind chill on the lake was -42. Those boys looked cooooold!!
In the "penalty box" (really just a standing area behind the boards) a guy was ice fishing.
Side note: My hometown team won their game 1-0 to run their record up to 23-0. The hometown has 2,000 people surrounded by a thousand square miles of prairie dotted with other small towns. The team is ranked No. 1 in the state, ahead of teams with schools with more students than there are people in my hometown!! It probably helps that the hometown is only six miles from Canada!! [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]
Speaking of Canada, The Hockey News has been running a weekly feature called "The Year of the Ram" following my hometown team throughout the season. It's pretty cool. Going back to last season when he stepped in to start playing varsity, our netminder has never lost a game (he's something like 29-0) and his GAA is 0.90 (no, not the SAV% [which is 0.95], his GAA!!!)...
[ 12 February 2008: Message edited by: Sven ]
Tue, 2008-02-12 05:43
#39
Sven
quote:
Originally posted by Michelle:
[b]That's cold enough to freeze the biggest ball of twine in the world! [img]wink.gif" border="0[/img] [/b]
That's not the only ball freezing in Minnesota... [img]wink.gif" border="0[/img]
Tue, 2008-02-12 07:33
#40
We've hit -50 (with the windchill) all too frequently, lately.
Tue, 2008-02-12 10:08
#41
I think it's around -20C here with blowing snow.
I don't understand people who won't wear hats, gloves, proper coats and boots when they go out in this weather. I look around and I see people with their faces contorted in agony as if razor-sharp icicles were stabbing them. There's a very simple solution to the problem of painful cold, all they have to do is wear sensible clothes and load up on nourishing food.
When people complain about the cold and don't dress for it, it's like standing outside in a rainstorm and them whining about being wet.
Tue, 2008-02-12 10:15
#42
quote:
Originally posted by marzo:
[b]I think it's around -20C here with blowing snow.
I don't understand people who won't wear hats, gloves, proper coats and boots when they go out in this weather. I look around and I see people with their faces contorted in agony as if razor-sharp icicles were stabbing them. [/b]
Well, I always dress warmly. I don't care how "ridiculous" I look. (It's astonishing how often people comment. They seem almost offended.)
Tue, 2008-02-12 10:17
#43
An unusual note is that -40 C is also -40 F
Tue, 2008-02-12 10:31
#44
Sven
quote:
Originally posted by Bacchus:
[b]An unusual note is that -40 C is also -40 F[/b]
Indeed. It's the one temperature that both Canadians and Americans can agree on!! [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]
Tue, 2008-02-12 11:43
#45
Holy Jebus. It's a total blizzard outside! I sit with my back to my (huge, gorgeous - just moved to this office and still can't quite believe it) office windows normally. Well, I just turned around and it's a whiteout!
Tue, 2008-02-12 11:45
#46
quote:
Originally posted by Michelle:
[b]Holy Jebus. It's a total blizzard outside! I sit with my back to my (huge, gorgeous - just moved to this office and still can't quite believe it) office windows normally. Well, I just turned around and it's a whiteout![/b]
It's wonderful to watch a blizzard, if you're inside and warm. (Well, I think so, anyway.) But will you be able to get home?
Tue, 2008-02-12 11:45
#47
Not snowing out here in Oshawa yet.
Tue, 2008-02-12 12:17
#48
rural - Francesca
quote:
Originally posted by Michelle:
[b]Holy Jebus. It's a total blizzard outside! I sit with my back to my (huge, gorgeous - just moved to this office and still can't quite believe it) office windows normally. Well, I just turned around and it's a whiteout![/b]
My front window at home is like that, sit on the couch and watch the neighbours disappear
Tue, 2008-02-12 12:32
#49
From my window, I can see the area where the students here are having a winter ice carnival. Well, I can almost see it. I saw them braving the storm earlier, but I don't see anyone still out there now.
Brr!
Tue, 2008-02-12 12:35
#50
rural - Francesca
I just checked the radar and it's really funny as this storm is coming up from the south, the last few have come from the north-west.
You get a sense of doom when you activate the animation and you see this storm advancing your way.
Must hurry home!
Tue, 2008-02-12 12:41
#51
ElizaQ
quote:
Originally posted by rural - Francesca:
[b]I just checked the radar and it's really funny as this storm is coming up from the south, the last few have come from the north-west.You get a sense of doom when you activate the animation and you see this storm advancing your way.
Must hurry home![/b]
I'm sitting in one of the northern big green blob right now. Might explain why I can't see the road again. [img]frown.gif" border="0[/img]