New England’s 2007/2008 winter was one most New Englanders would like to forget. Shoveling rooftops, driveways, and sidewalks over and over again, hearing about roofs caving in, and broken bones from falls was no picnic. Now winter 2008/2009 came with a bang in the form of an ice storm. Last week my sister and her family woke to 55 degrees in their home in New Hampshire with no electricity and no water. Thousands of people were/are without power.
Children, however, always manage to have fun during snowstorms, and in the coldest of winters. I remember the New Hampshire of my childhood. We skated on Nuts Pond, and slid down neighborhood hills for hours, returning home completely soaked, mittens dripping wet, and still on our hands. Huge icicles on buildings were pulled off and enjoyed, and the snow never melted all winter long. I guess we didn’t notice the cold and wet because having fun was more important.
More recently New England has had mild winters with barely any snow. Skiing wasn’t what it used to be. But it seems New England winters are back in full force. I think I’m going to get a lot of emails from family and friends in the north about the weather. It’s just a guess, but maybe writing about the cold and snow makes them feel warm. It makes me feel cold just reading them. I heard someone say that the Farmer’s Almanac wrote that it’s going to be a very cold winter. Shhh! Don’t tell this to those in the northeast. I hope they have enough wood for the fireplace, and well, maybe they can have shoveling parties. Got to make it work somehow, otherwise, it gets to be a bit much. As a man in Maine said when interviewed about the power outage, “I’m already sick of winter, and it hasn’t started yet.”