Time may change me, but you can't trace time

The scurs and Weather Eye gave us glimpses of spring, then dashed our hopes with more snow. Now that meteorological spring has arrived, does Old Man Winter throw in the towel or does he let it freeze solid first? Starting Thursday, mostly sunny with a fair chance of evening rain. Highs in the low 50’s with lows in the mid-30’s. Mostly cloudy Friday with a good chance of rain. Highs in the upper 50’s with lows in the mid-30’s. Mostly sunny on Saturday with highs in the upper 40’s with lows in the mid-30’s. Sunday, sunny with highs in the upper 50’s and lows in the upper 30’s. Mostly sunny on Monday with a slight chance of rain. Highs in the upper 50’s with lows in the mid-40’s. Tuesday, mostly cloudy with a good chance of rain. Highs in the upper 40’s with lows in the upper teens. Mostly cloudy on Wednesday with highs in the mid-30’s and lows in the low 20’s. On the 5th, our daylight increases at three minutes per day. On the 7th, we’ll see 11 hours and 30 minutes of daylight, about the same as we saw on October 5th. Daylight Saving Time arrives on March 8th. The normal high for the 8th is 35 and the normal low is 19. The scurs ask that you please bear with them. They have 16 clocks to change.

 

Yes indeed, it’s our least favorite weekend of the year at the ranch. Daylight Saving (Losing) Time is back in full force on March 8th. Not only do we lose an hour of sleep, we’re forced to get up and bumble around in the dark doing morning chores. It will take until April 10th for the sunrise to get back to 6:40 a.m., approximately where it was on March 7th. Fortunately, the daylight is increasing at a 3 minute per day clip. Still, the overall toll this time changing foolishness places on society is something we’re well aware of yet have failed to change. Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

 

As we moved out of February, some are nervous about the direction our precip has been taking. It was well below what would be considered normal in New Richland and at the ranch. .27” of liquid equivalent precip in town with 3” of snow. At the ranch only .28” of liquid equivalent precipitation and 2.5” of snow. Normal for February, based on the last 30 year average, would be 1.2” of liquid equivalent precip and 10.8” of snow. The frost depth measured 13” at the SROC on February 23rd and was same on March 2nd. The promise of warmer temperatures and some rain should make short work of that.

 

The recent snow was representative of much of the snow we’ve received this winter. Typically when we get into late February and early March, our snow becomes wetter. The snow that fell on Saturday was anything but. It averaged about 5” around the area and when melted out, it only yielded about.04” of liquid equivalent precip per inch of snow. To put that in perspective, the snow we receive in January usually melts out to around .07”.

By the next morning this recent snow had settled tremendously. By Sunday afternoon, the snow that looked like snowblower material had shrunk by about half. By Monday due to warmer temps and sublimation, 5” of snow had largely disappeared. This last snow didn’t hit their tails, but the robins were back at the ranch on March 3rd. It’s coming.

 

I decided a week ago last Saturday, given the forecast, that it would be wise to cover the daffodils and crocuses that had bravely emerged back on February 11th. Even though the low on the 14th was 8 above, the ground was only semi-frozen, so I wondered if it was really necessary. Several flower pots and a hanging sheep feeder later, the plants were safely covered. It was likely a good decision. The overnight low that Saturday night was 6 and the low Monday morning was 0. The plants can remain covered until this week’s warmup is in place. Even then, it’s not a bad idea to keep the covers handy just in case. It wouldn’t be the 1st time they’ve needed to be recovered. Might not be the last.

 

We got through shearing part 1 at the ranch on Saturday during the snowstorm. Luckily we’d heeded the forecast and had all the sheep locked inside to keep them dry. Wet sheep make everyone crabby, including the sheep. The shearer got through the brood ewes yet to lamb and they were a handful. They also sheared hard thanks to a sticky layer in the wool next to the skin on many of them. The blades won’t glide easily and have to be more forcibly pushed through the wool. This while you’re trying to hang onto an uncooperative 4-legged participant. We’ve got an encore performance scheduled for next weekend, God willing and the river don’t rise.  

 

This most recent snow was one a Corgi could definitely agree with. Belly deep, fluffy and evenly distributed, it was perfect to wander aimlessly without getting hung up. Poppy looked like a little train with that long body. Snow makes her coat softer. Even as dry as it was, this snowfall was no exception. Once the snow melts, however, it always reveals several “things” of interest for her to dawdle with, sniff at or roll in. Monday night I was working on this column while eating a few potato chips. Drawn to anyone who has food, Poppy sat down beside me. Within seconds my olfactory senses caught a whiff of what smelled like eau de cat poop. Sure enough Poppy must’ve rolled in something while we’d been filling the birdfeeders. I immediately took her out to the garage. With a brush and warm water, I cleaned the offending area, dried it with a towel, then took a whiff. It still smells!

 

See you next week…real good then.