I thought the same thing, too. But then realized that at the rate this sleeze bag is going, we'll all be long gone before he coughs up (boy, that's something I never, ever want to visualize! or hear!) one dime.
Sorry for bumming you out, E. Jean. My previous house, that I lived in 30 years, had a heat pump. Living in the Mid-Atlantic, I used to CRINGE every time "auxiliary heat" would kick in, because the needle on the meter outside would be going around 1,000 miles an hour! With this storm coming in less than two days, I'm keeping fingers and toes crossed that the electricity stays on. I have gas heat, but the thermostat needs electricity to run that, I think. Haven't had a big snowstorm since I moved here five years ago, so I don't know for sure.
Anyway, E. Jean, I must admit that I always enjoy the questions you ask, as well as your comments!!!! They make my day! And I love Mrs. Bates, BTW.
Speaking of cold, I went grocery shopping this afternoon to avoid the humongous crowd tomorrow and noticed that there were NO jugs or bottles of water. Toilet paper and milk were still there, but the only water they had in the store was flavored water. One lady started complaining so I tried to cheer her up by telling that all she needed to do was go outside, fill up a big pot of snow, bring it in the house and let it melt for a little while --- assuming our houses WILL be warm --- and then she'd have water. Then we discussed the crud that comes from the sky with the first snowstorm of the season, and agreed that who knows what's in the water in our pipes at home? I just warned her that should she need to get some snow, to make sure it's not YELLOW!!!
Wow! Mine was only $118. I also have a heat pump. I had bills like those the first year I moved into my house because the contractor had set my thermostat to "back-up" while testing it and forgot to change it back. Since it was a new house, and I am female, they initially thought I was setting the thermostat too high. I told the contractor I wouldn't pay their final bill until they came out and fixed whatever was wrong. Luckily, that got their attention and got me an apology.
Sounds like the contractor I used to have. It does suck being a female at times like that. I've gotten ripped off more times than I can think of. Glad you stood your ground, and that they at least apologized. $118 isn't too bad, especially with a heat pump.
Oh, to you and E. Jean (and everyone else here who has a heat pump), if you're expecting snow, whether a few inches or feet, try to get outside once in a while to knock off snow from the top and dig out (which is a hassle but necessary) snow that's along the sides of the A/C unit. Not doing that can be an expensive afterthought.
Wow!!! I'll never complain about my house again! Call me naive, but what about the toilet? Does that water freeze, too? It's very thoughtful of your company to pay for your utilities (being sarcastic) in the wintertime, but what happens when summer coms? And will they pay for cooling your place? Have a tacky question: how thick are your exterior walls? I'm not familiar with paper and wood construction. It's still probably a lot better than the first apartment we lived in after we got married. The walls were so thin that when our next-door neighbors had a loud party on a weeknight, and I tried to get them to be a little thoughtful since it was after midnight, and I banged on the door with my broom, THE BROOM WENT THROUGH the sheetrock or whatever the wall was made of, and made a hole!!!! I could see everyone peeping into my kitchen. That was not only embarrassing, but it didn't go over well with the neighbors, or the landlady.
Dianne this really made me giggle. I’m outside right now so my fingers are warm enough to type..! 🤭
The toilets are fine unless the pipes freeze— I leave a tap running a tiny bit before bed (perks of growing up 🍁). The heat pump is a below average AC in summer. This whole thing is a huge character building exercise but I like my old house and unlike most it came with a yard that I could cultivate into a wilderness where the dog could snoot around. No insulation and quite thin exterior walls— most Japanese people would close big metal shutters across doors and windows to keep heat in overnight, but I find that too enclosing so I manage the consequences. I’m off to buy batteries for the heat pump remote today.. fingers crossed 🤞 that’s the issue? 🤷🏼♀️ 💪
Lesley, thank you for comments! I love your attitude, and your ability to think outside the box. Do you get back to Canada very often? Have relatives there from my father's side of the family.
I recall visiting my husband's grandmother. She was in a big old house in the downtown part of a small town. She had "summer" and "winter" curtains that were from floor to ceiling. The summer ones were sheer, like nylon gauze, while the winter ones were made of heavy, thick, lined cotton. I have plastic on the windows that I know I wouldn't need to open in case of an emergency. That helps a little.
Aww thanks Dianne, you are LOVELY! Canadian insulation has utterly spoiled me but it pays to be able to take an Indiana Jones theme song approach if you’re going to leave home..
seasonal curtains absolutely ring true!!!
Apparently a cork particle spray (sourced from a 🍷 industry that is increasingly going for screw tops) is the absolute gold standard (if pricey) in Europe these days! I love a bit of insulation chat. 🤦🏼♀️
While you're out, or before... anyway at some point, do an outside wall assessment. You look for evidence revealing any water supply pipes that run along any outside facing wall. If inside a closet or cabinet, leave those doors open. If you're in E Jeans condition and "any" water supply pipes on an outside wall are visible, make sure a tap from said pipe is at least dripping; Also, stop at a building supply like Home Depot and obtain electric water pipe heating cables, wrap the cable around those exposed pipes and just plug them in. I'd still leave faucets on at a drip rate - safe and relatively cheap. I have more tips if needed for emergency heat; Just respond back.
Jena! Heeeeeee! Mrs. Bates! Poor thing. Yes. She is a hawk. I have been hearing from friends that I have been slandering her. Owl indeed. She is a HAWK. And about a twent four pound one too!
I really think you should, especially based on what others are saying it costs them to heat their homes which are 3 4 or 5 times larger than your small space. That amount is ridiculous.
I “liked” Mrs. Bates, not the electric bill or the fact that you’re freezing. This polar vortex = even more bad news! Damn it! I just paid my electric bill, too. $269.83. But I hadn’t paid it since Nov. (In Nebraska electricity is publicly owned and therefore may be a little more reasonable than other places…?) I wish you were warm, E. Jean.
Also congrats to the Hoosiers!!! What a wonderful football game! I thought of you as my man and I watched. I told him about your cheering for Indiana. He thought that was so cool (and it is) (and you are the coolest in my opinion; but I do hope you can WARM UP somehow).
Just got my bill today. I wear at least one sweater or sweatshirt, with another over that, plus thick socks and bedroom slippers, and try to keep the thermostat low, but not so low that there's condensation when I breathe. The place is so drafty, though. At night, I turn the heat down more, since I have an electric blanket.
It's going down to 9 degrees tomorrow night, so I will make sure to open the cabinets below the sinks adjacent to outside walls, and allow the water faucet to drip slowly all night long. Had a pipe break a few years ago, and that was not a cheap repair job, either.
The Nordics say there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes and equipment. Get in touch with Patagonia and offer to test their stuff. You could be like an NCAA DI cheerleader with an NIL deal. I bet that would be fun.
Well we had several 80+ degree days (… but climate change is a hoax…!) so to keep our pet birds healthy, we had no choice but to run the ac. We also had monster rain storms over the holidays and my apartment had a fairly significant leak. We had to break out the big fan to dry out the drywall.
Julie, I'm going to overestimate and say take the amount of your bill, move the decimal point over between the six and one, and that might be a ballpark estimate?
No, not quite that high. I rented this place in 2010 when rents were at a more reasonable rate. The landlord is only allowed to raise it a certain percentage each year based on the prime interest for that year. Of course he tried to raise it more than what was allowed several times, but I pointed out the laws to him each time.
I think he really wants us to move so he can renovate and max out the rent on this unit. He will have a hard time filling it, though, because I’m in the end unit that is right next to a playground of an elementary school. Screaming 6 year olds have a sound frequency that is not pleasant at 7:00 in the morning.
I don’t have any utility bills; I qualified for HUD Subsidized housing and it provides all of those with my very low rent. I am disabled so it makes my life easier.
OMG, E. Jean. I AM FUCKING TELLING YOU. I live in what used to be called a "junior efficiency" on Staten Island. One bedroom, one bathroom, one kitchen - all tiny. And a "great room", which is also tiny.
FUCKING $600 was my last electric bill.
On Staten Island, we have 2 data centers that have just sparked up. I'd check nearby in your vicinity. The AI companies - Meta, Google, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, literally every major tech company who is trying to shove AI down our throats - are setting up these data centers which inhale cold water and electricity, and exhale pollution.
We are paying for this. Not the companies setting this shit up. WE are paying for it. We are subsidizing this shit.
Yes, Laura, AI will also steal all our work from artists, musicians, writers, and any creative or original thought- steal from all of us- all our work + never credit anyone!!!
No, Laura, I never heard of her, but I believe what you are saying. AI Is like a giant vacuum that sucks in everything + as u said just returns pollution- depleting all the beauty on earth!!
Yikes, that is very expensive electricity. Mine is pricy in the city at $100 monthly with me unplugging most of my appliances except when I use them. Mrs Bates is beautiful!
She is beautiful! Is there a Mr. Bates? One humongous reason I don't want the electricity to go off is because I have two heated birdbaths plugged into outside outlets, and birds visit all day, for drinking and splashing.
I love birds, too! They help me keep my what's left of my sanity. Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal take sips of water together, which is beautiful. It's also great to see small wrens next to larger doves, enjoying dips and sips, getting along so well.
Sally, my it occurred to me that if this had been just one month earlier, we would definitely have had a White Christmas. Bing Crosby would have been so happy! I bet you've had your share of them over the years. I'll get with Nancy to send snow back to you. Or I can save a little bit and keep it in my freezer to send to you once it's cold enough where you live!
Yeah, Sally, I'm loading up all the snow on the roof of my Civic. Then I'm going to drive all the way to Utah, and dump the snow in the middle of Salt Lake City, and drive home again, after getting a coffee at whatever the best coffee jernt is in Salt Lake City. Yeah, you can have our snow! (I'm outside of Boston.)
Utah is one of my favorite places. Driving cross country 55 years ago, in the '62 Falcon, it began raining hard as I drove from Wyoming into Utah. In those days, the windshield wipers on cheap cars were powered by a vacuum from the engine. As I climbed the long hills, I had to keep letting up on the gas, so that the windshield wipers would work, and I couldn't get the Falcon over 30 on the uphills. And so it went for I can't remember how much time. But then, I started descending, and got to a place where I could see the entire Salt Lake Valley off in the distance, including the Salt Lake itself. The rain was battering parts of the Salt Lake, and in other places the sun was shining on the lake. Salt Lake City was a small piece of the valley back then. I so wish I'd had a camera with me. It was one of the most beautiful sights I ever saw.
In summer of 1962 my family of six camped in a 40 hp VW Westphalia camper from MA to SLC and back again, three weeks. We saw quite a lot along the way— a cave in Minnesota, a ferocious storm in the Badlands, the Homestake Mine in SD where my grandfather had been a manager, the Black Hills, Rushmore, Yellowstone, Niagara Falls, and more. My mother’s parents lived in SLC and there was a big family reunion. I remember vividly coming over the top of a hill and descending into the city, with my grandfather intercepting us and then following us down. His car had a hidden compartment in it for bringing liquor into the state, which was illegal at the time they moved there. I have a miniature gold ingot and a beautiful geode from the trip.
That must have been a really great trip, and interesting about not being able to bring booze into Utah! My family went through Utah the summer of '61, on our way from Seattle to Boston. We stopped in Vernal where there was a lot of digging for dinosaur bones. We also went through Utah going cross country in '57, and in 1960--both Boston to Seattle. The latter trip was the only time I've been to Yellowstone. Old Faithful was very impressive, and little squirt... well, it was kind of like the geyser equivalent of a male orgasm. (In all these years since, this is the first time I've ever thought of that, but it's true. It went off just about every second.)
I'm not sure what part you thought was funny--maybe because it really was some tough driving those 55 years ago, partly because that Falcon just didn't have much power, and I had two people with me, and the uphills were quite steep for that car... And the view from where we stopped was one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen, partly because of clouds blocking most of the sunlight, but letting some of it through, and so there was both sunlight and hard rain hitting different parts of the Great Salt Lake. Really was amazing. I've taken a lot of cross country trips--including on a bicycle--and I don't remember anything quite so beautiful.
TBH, I have no idea how much our heat bill has been, I have had it set to auto payments for decades. But, it is only January, and here in Western Washington, we already have leaves coming out, trees budding and flowers blooming. In January! I have lived here 23 years and NEVER have seen this. Climate change is real.
It really is so obvious, right? The total snowfall at Solitude has averaged 365 inches per season (with yearly variation) from 2012 through last year, with up to 100 days of snowfall. So far this season, they've gotten 102 inches of snow in 15 snow days. I went snow shoeing up there right after Christmas and you could still see vegetation poking out of the snow along the roadside. Usually, there are 5-6 foot tall walls of snow there instead left by the plows. Reminds me of that Pete Seeger song we learned as kids, "Where have all the flowers gone...when will they ever learn?"
The last year I lived in Seattle, 1960-61, it snowed twice in Seattle, an inch or two, that had melted by the next day, which astounded my 7 year old self, since in Boston, where I'd lived between ages 4-7, there was plenty of snow in the winter. . I don't remember what months those snows took place, although maybe I do. something inside my head is saying November and March. I'm pretty certain about November, but the second snow might have been in February. I don't remember any buds or flowers during the winter.
Ouch!!!
To be honest, my first reaction was-" Wow, he's finally paying her?! "
Har!!!!!!!
I thought so too!
I thought the same thing, too. But then realized that at the rate this sleeze bag is going, we'll all be long gone before he coughs up (boy, that's something I never, ever want to visualize! or hear!) one dime.
Sorry for bumming you out, E. Jean. My previous house, that I lived in 30 years, had a heat pump. Living in the Mid-Atlantic, I used to CRINGE every time "auxiliary heat" would kick in, because the needle on the meter outside would be going around 1,000 miles an hour! With this storm coming in less than two days, I'm keeping fingers and toes crossed that the electricity stays on. I have gas heat, but the thermostat needs electricity to run that, I think. Haven't had a big snowstorm since I moved here five years ago, so I don't know for sure.
Anyway, E. Jean, I must admit that I always enjoy the questions you ask, as well as your comments!!!! They make my day! And I love Mrs. Bates, BTW.
Speaking of cold, I went grocery shopping this afternoon to avoid the humongous crowd tomorrow and noticed that there were NO jugs or bottles of water. Toilet paper and milk were still there, but the only water they had in the store was flavored water. One lady started complaining so I tried to cheer her up by telling that all she needed to do was go outside, fill up a big pot of snow, bring it in the house and let it melt for a little while --- assuming our houses WILL be warm --- and then she'd have water. Then we discussed the crud that comes from the sky with the first snowstorm of the season, and agreed that who knows what's in the water in our pipes at home? I just warned her that should she need to get some snow, to make sure it's not YELLOW!!!
I love it when someone makes E Jean “Har”!
I also thought she must have gotten a payment.
Ditto (Makes her 'har' part)
Migawd! I had the very same thought!
Hah, same - in installments - LOL
Like the Epstein files
Me, too!!!!!!!🤣
Me too!! My bill was $151.89 in NJ.
Wow! Mine was only $118. I also have a heat pump. I had bills like those the first year I moved into my house because the contractor had set my thermostat to "back-up" while testing it and forgot to change it back. Since it was a new house, and I am female, they initially thought I was setting the thermostat too high. I told the contractor I wouldn't pay their final bill until they came out and fixed whatever was wrong. Luckily, that got their attention and got me an apology.
Sounds like the contractor I used to have. It does suck being a female at times like that. I've gotten ripped off more times than I can think of. Glad you stood your ground, and that they at least apologized. $118 isn't too bad, especially with a heat pump.
Oh, to you and E. Jean (and everyone else here who has a heat pump), if you're expecting snow, whether a few inches or feet, try to get outside once in a while to knock off snow from the top and dig out (which is a hassle but necessary) snow that's along the sides of the A/C unit. Not doing that can be an expensive afterthought.
AHHHH! GOOD ADVICE, Dianne!
Thank you, good to know!
Damn girl, you should write a book!!!!
My company pays the bill for my utilities in Japan. However it only has a heat pump which doesn’t function. The house is made of paper and wood.
As a Canadian, I have never seen ice 🧊 come out of a tap until this morning at 8 am. Here in layers and in solidarity ✊
Gooooood heavens, Lesley!
Wow!!! I'll never complain about my house again! Call me naive, but what about the toilet? Does that water freeze, too? It's very thoughtful of your company to pay for your utilities (being sarcastic) in the wintertime, but what happens when summer coms? And will they pay for cooling your place? Have a tacky question: how thick are your exterior walls? I'm not familiar with paper and wood construction. It's still probably a lot better than the first apartment we lived in after we got married. The walls were so thin that when our next-door neighbors had a loud party on a weeknight, and I tried to get them to be a little thoughtful since it was after midnight, and I banged on the door with my broom, THE BROOM WENT THROUGH the sheetrock or whatever the wall was made of, and made a hole!!!! I could see everyone peeping into my kitchen. That was not only embarrassing, but it didn't go over well with the neighbors, or the landlady.
Dianne this really made me giggle. I’m outside right now so my fingers are warm enough to type..! 🤭
The toilets are fine unless the pipes freeze— I leave a tap running a tiny bit before bed (perks of growing up 🍁). The heat pump is a below average AC in summer. This whole thing is a huge character building exercise but I like my old house and unlike most it came with a yard that I could cultivate into a wilderness where the dog could snoot around. No insulation and quite thin exterior walls— most Japanese people would close big metal shutters across doors and windows to keep heat in overnight, but I find that too enclosing so I manage the consequences. I’m off to buy batteries for the heat pump remote today.. fingers crossed 🤞 that’s the issue? 🤷🏼♀️ 💪
Lesley, thank you for comments! I love your attitude, and your ability to think outside the box. Do you get back to Canada very often? Have relatives there from my father's side of the family.
I recall visiting my husband's grandmother. She was in a big old house in the downtown part of a small town. She had "summer" and "winter" curtains that were from floor to ceiling. The summer ones were sheer, like nylon gauze, while the winter ones were made of heavy, thick, lined cotton. I have plastic on the windows that I know I wouldn't need to open in case of an emergency. That helps a little.
Aww thanks Dianne, you are LOVELY! Canadian insulation has utterly spoiled me but it pays to be able to take an Indiana Jones theme song approach if you’re going to leave home..
seasonal curtains absolutely ring true!!!
Apparently a cork particle spray (sourced from a 🍷 industry that is increasingly going for screw tops) is the absolute gold standard (if pricey) in Europe these days! I love a bit of insulation chat. 🤦🏼♀️
While you're out, or before... anyway at some point, do an outside wall assessment. You look for evidence revealing any water supply pipes that run along any outside facing wall. If inside a closet or cabinet, leave those doors open. If you're in E Jeans condition and "any" water supply pipes on an outside wall are visible, make sure a tap from said pipe is at least dripping; Also, stop at a building supply like Home Depot and obtain electric water pipe heating cables, wrap the cable around those exposed pipes and just plug them in. I'd still leave faucets on at a drip rate - safe and relatively cheap. I have more tips if needed for emergency heat; Just respond back.
E. Jean, that is criminal!
It is! It is!
E. Jean I hate to break it to you but that is not an owl. It's a hawk.
Jena! Heeeeeee! Mrs. Bates! Poor thing. Yes. She is a hawk. I have been hearing from friends that I have been slandering her. Owl indeed. She is a HAWK. And about a twent four pound one too!
We keep our house at 65 degrees and our bill was still over 450 dollars. 🤯😢
ANN! Ann! My sister of the Frozen Tits!
oooooooo that's awful.
OMG!!! I won't complain about mine anymore. Where do you live?
How is that even possible? I would request a review. There is something wrong there.
Good idea, Jena!
I really think you should, especially based on what others are saying it costs them to heat their homes which are 3 4 or 5 times larger than your small space. That amount is ridiculous.
Mine was $250+ last month (a large 2-BR) in Asheville. I think we're all competing with AI data centers now.
I'm so sorry, E. Jean, what sticker shock. (Do you think you could go all solar, or are the woods too close?) I second Jena's call of criminal.
My electric bill was more than yours ! That really sucks about our electric bills.
WHAT?! YOU MEAN THERE ARE TWO OF US, LINDA?
I “liked” Mrs. Bates, not the electric bill or the fact that you’re freezing. This polar vortex = even more bad news! Damn it! I just paid my electric bill, too. $269.83. But I hadn’t paid it since Nov. (In Nebraska electricity is publicly owned and therefore may be a little more reasonable than other places…?) I wish you were warm, E. Jean.
Also congrats to the Hoosiers!!! What a wonderful football game! I thought of you as my man and I watched. I told him about your cheering for Indiana. He thought that was so cool (and it is) (and you are the coolest in my opinion; but I do hope you can WARM UP somehow).
Go Hoosiers! thank you Rebecca!
Just got my bill today. I wear at least one sweater or sweatshirt, with another over that, plus thick socks and bedroom slippers, and try to keep the thermostat low, but not so low that there's condensation when I breathe. The place is so drafty, though. At night, I turn the heat down more, since I have an electric blanket.
It's going down to 9 degrees tomorrow night, so I will make sure to open the cabinets below the sinks adjacent to outside walls, and allow the water faucet to drip slowly all night long. Had a pipe break a few years ago, and that was not a cheap repair job, either.
The Nordics say there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes and equipment. Get in touch with Patagonia and offer to test their stuff. You could be like an NCAA DI cheerleader with an NIL deal. I bet that would be fun.
Excellent idea, Philip!
I bet that would be fun.
Our electric bill was $613.61 for a 2 bedroom apartment in Los Angeles. (I won’t tell you what the rent is)
Geeeeze Louise! This is TERRIBLE, Julie!
Well we had several 80+ degree days (… but climate change is a hoax…!) so to keep our pet birds healthy, we had no choice but to run the ac. We also had monster rain storms over the holidays and my apartment had a fairly significant leak. We had to break out the big fan to dry out the drywall.
Julie, I'm going to overestimate and say take the amount of your bill, move the decimal point over between the six and one, and that might be a ballpark estimate?
No, not quite that high. I rented this place in 2010 when rents were at a more reasonable rate. The landlord is only allowed to raise it a certain percentage each year based on the prime interest for that year. Of course he tried to raise it more than what was allowed several times, but I pointed out the laws to him each time.
I think he really wants us to move so he can renovate and max out the rent on this unit. He will have a hard time filling it, though, because I’m in the end unit that is right next to a playground of an elementary school. Screaming 6 year olds have a sound frequency that is not pleasant at 7:00 in the morning.
my bill was $108 and change.
I don’t have any utility bills; I qualified for HUD Subsidized housing and it provides all of those with my very low rent. I am disabled so it makes my life easier.
Mary! This makes me happy to hear!
Thanks,E.Jean!! What are you up to these days?? You’re in a warm place, I hope! It was -30 wind 💨 chill here in Chicago today!!
OMG, E. Jean. I AM FUCKING TELLING YOU. I live in what used to be called a "junior efficiency" on Staten Island. One bedroom, one bathroom, one kitchen - all tiny. And a "great room", which is also tiny.
FUCKING $600 was my last electric bill.
On Staten Island, we have 2 data centers that have just sparked up. I'd check nearby in your vicinity. The AI companies - Meta, Google, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, literally every major tech company who is trying to shove AI down our throats - are setting up these data centers which inhale cold water and electricity, and exhale pollution.
We are paying for this. Not the companies setting this shit up. WE are paying for it. We are subsidizing this shit.
AI will steal all the resources on earth!!!! From humans, animals,
Trees, plants!!!
Ugh, massively agreed. And there's no reason for it! It's just autocomplete on steroids. We can do better!
Yes, Laura, AI will also steal all our work from artists, musicians, writers, and any creative or original thought- steal from all of us- all our work + never credit anyone!!!
Have you read Timnit Gebru? She was fired from Google for identifying all of these problems. And more. The proponents of AI are, ultimately, eugenicists. https://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/13636/11599
Thank you for this important story, and he link, Laura.
No, Laura, I never heard of her, but I believe what you are saying. AI Is like a giant vacuum that sucks in everything + as u said just returns pollution- depleting all the beauty on earth!!
I recommend reading her. She is an incredible intelligence.
yes. And it is happening as I write these very words, Judy!
Good Grief!!!!!!
Yikes, that is very expensive electricity. Mine is pricy in the city at $100 monthly with me unplugging most of my appliances except when I use them. Mrs Bates is beautiful!
Mrs. Bates sends you her regards, Nancy!
She is beautiful! Is there a Mr. Bates? One humongous reason I don't want the electricity to go off is because I have two heated birdbaths plugged into outside outlets, and birds visit all day, for drinking and splashing.
I love birds, too! They help me keep my what's left of my sanity. Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal take sips of water together, which is beautiful. It's also great to see small wrens next to larger doves, enjoying dips and sips, getting along so well.
Lovely, I love birds.
Me, too.
It has been the warmest winter on record in Utah this year. $148. Our snow went to the East Coast this year. Sad face.
You are in luck, we are sending all of the snow back…❄️
Thanks, Nancy! I'm ready!
Sally, my it occurred to me that if this had been just one month earlier, we would definitely have had a White Christmas. Bing Crosby would have been so happy! I bet you've had your share of them over the years. I'll get with Nancy to send snow back to you. Or I can save a little bit and keep it in my freezer to send to you once it's cold enough where you live!
Love that, Dianne! Stay safe and warm.
Yeah, Sally, I'm loading up all the snow on the roof of my Civic. Then I'm going to drive all the way to Utah, and dump the snow in the middle of Salt Lake City, and drive home again, after getting a coffee at whatever the best coffee jernt is in Salt Lake City. Yeah, you can have our snow! (I'm outside of Boston.)
Thanks, David. Coffee we've got. I'll treat you to a coffee at Java Joe's.
Utah is one of my favorite places. Driving cross country 55 years ago, in the '62 Falcon, it began raining hard as I drove from Wyoming into Utah. In those days, the windshield wipers on cheap cars were powered by a vacuum from the engine. As I climbed the long hills, I had to keep letting up on the gas, so that the windshield wipers would work, and I couldn't get the Falcon over 30 on the uphills. And so it went for I can't remember how much time. But then, I started descending, and got to a place where I could see the entire Salt Lake Valley off in the distance, including the Salt Lake itself. The rain was battering parts of the Salt Lake, and in other places the sun was shining on the lake. Salt Lake City was a small piece of the valley back then. I so wish I'd had a camera with me. It was one of the most beautiful sights I ever saw.
In summer of 1962 my family of six camped in a 40 hp VW Westphalia camper from MA to SLC and back again, three weeks. We saw quite a lot along the way— a cave in Minnesota, a ferocious storm in the Badlands, the Homestake Mine in SD where my grandfather had been a manager, the Black Hills, Rushmore, Yellowstone, Niagara Falls, and more. My mother’s parents lived in SLC and there was a big family reunion. I remember vividly coming over the top of a hill and descending into the city, with my grandfather intercepting us and then following us down. His car had a hidden compartment in it for bringing liquor into the state, which was illegal at the time they moved there. I have a miniature gold ingot and a beautiful geode from the trip.
That must have been a really great trip, and interesting about not being able to bring booze into Utah! My family went through Utah the summer of '61, on our way from Seattle to Boston. We stopped in Vernal where there was a lot of digging for dinosaur bones. We also went through Utah going cross country in '57, and in 1960--both Boston to Seattle. The latter trip was the only time I've been to Yellowstone. Old Faithful was very impressive, and little squirt... well, it was kind of like the geyser equivalent of a male orgasm. (In all these years since, this is the first time I've ever thought of that, but it's true. It went off just about every second.)
David, thanks for some much needed laughs.
But I'm damn happy to have given you some good laughs!!!
I'm not sure what part you thought was funny--maybe because it really was some tough driving those 55 years ago, partly because that Falcon just didn't have much power, and I had two people with me, and the uphills were quite steep for that car... And the view from where we stopped was one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen, partly because of clouds blocking most of the sunlight, but letting some of it through, and so there was both sunlight and hard rain hitting different parts of the Great Salt Lake. Really was amazing. I've taken a lot of cross country trips--including on a bicycle--and I don't remember anything quite so beautiful.
This weather obsessed Canadian thought it was funny to imagine your zeal to remove snow, then drive it away. 😊
I don't like snow, and so I like to get rid of it! Of course, if it's a bright sunny day, the snow often looks good.
It's funny others had the same thought I did 🤣🤣🤣
TBH, I have no idea how much our heat bill has been, I have had it set to auto payments for decades. But, it is only January, and here in Western Washington, we already have leaves coming out, trees budding and flowers blooming. In January! I have lived here 23 years and NEVER have seen this. Climate change is real.
It really is so obvious, right? The total snowfall at Solitude has averaged 365 inches per season (with yearly variation) from 2012 through last year, with up to 100 days of snowfall. So far this season, they've gotten 102 inches of snow in 15 snow days. I went snow shoeing up there right after Christmas and you could still see vegetation poking out of the snow along the roadside. Usually, there are 5-6 foot tall walls of snow there instead left by the plows. Reminds me of that Pete Seeger song we learned as kids, "Where have all the flowers gone...when will they ever learn?"
I've seen those 5-6 foot snow walls in Washington State, in the Cascades, I think (it was like 55 years ago). Impressive!
Yes, some trees are budding here in BC too. A few flowers too.
This happened in NC as well - they will be in for a shock this week!
The last year I lived in Seattle, 1960-61, it snowed twice in Seattle, an inch or two, that had melted by the next day, which astounded my 7 year old self, since in Boston, where I'd lived between ages 4-7, there was plenty of snow in the winter. . I don't remember what months those snows took place, although maybe I do. something inside my head is saying November and March. I'm pretty certain about November, but the second snow might have been in February. I don't remember any buds or flowers during the winter.