How's the weather in your area?

[AMM]

Well, hopefully there'll be enough snow so I can go skiing Upstate on Monday (we have Jan. 18 off, Martin Luther King Day)

Well, I went.

When you're skiing, you generally want it to be cold, not warm, and it was -- borderline. During the night, they'd had rain on the mountatin. Down by the lift bases, it was warm, so the snow was wet and slippery and I had trouble getting to the red line where you're supposed to wait for the chair to come in behind you. (All I could think of was, "purple klister.") Fortunately, the lines were short -- I never waited more than 5 minutes, and most of the time, I got on about as soon as I could schlepp myself uphill through the slush to the pick-up line. So the only rest I got was when I was actually on the chair.

But up at the trailheads, it wasn't too bad. The base was ice, of course, but that's normal for East Coast skiing. (I don't think we Easterners would know how to ski on the "deep, soft powder" they advertise in the West.) The layer of snow on top (where it wasn't worn away completely) was what we call "packing snow", and when I went over it, you could hear the crunching noise that snow makes when it packs down. For the first two hours, the top was in fog, so you could only see about 10 meters ahead at any time. This was actually an advantage -- I took one trail twice, once in the fog and once in the sunshine, and it was a lot scarier when I could actually see how steep it was.

I got pretty tired -- I'm more out of shape than I thought. After 2 hours, I couldn't trust my legs, so I went inside for an hour. I went back out and did a few blue (intermediate) trails, but then gave up for the day. I'll have to do some early morning bike rides to get my legs in shape for when I go again (Feb. 15.)

Obligatory skirting reference: I did not wear a skirt while skiing (I've done it cross-country, but not downhill), and I've only once seen someone in a skirt on a ski slope, and she had snow pants on underneath. Instead, I wore snow pants with tights on underneath, a combination I can recommend. However, I did change into a skirt for the ride home.

[Jack Williams]

Thanks Gregg 1100. It wasn't a problem for me, but obviously for others. Jack.

[Jack Williams]

P.S. with this just right weather, instead of the lava-lava and t-shirts of last summer I have the much better t-dresses going.

[nicothoe]

Pity! All you needed was a little short skirt, just so it can flap about in the wind!

[Jack Williams]

I reckon I'll leave the little short skirts for the girlies. After all, they probaply wear panties!

[Jack Williams]

A further comment on the dresses. The advantage is that there is nothing tight around the waist, so you can float freely with ventilation around the bod. With the absorbent 100% cotton knit, medium weight, better than the average t-shirt, but not heavy like sweatshirts, one can wear them as t-shirts over the naked bod and if get sweaty, change them often. They have been reintroduced, so I have stocked up. A couple more colours too now. Very pleasant in this hot weather!

[Jack Williams]

The brown ones are actually lighter and floatier than ever! I really recommend them. Better than nude. In that you have the wafting fan effect. Absolutely divine.
This is close to the colour.

[Jack Williams]

Waft on by!

[crfriend]

Waft on by!

Right. Try "wafting" in this:

Tonight...Mostly clear. Cold with lows around 1 below. West winds 15 to 20 mph with gusts up to 40 mph. Wind chill values as low as 17 below.

Saturday...Sunny. Cold with highs around 20. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to 30 mph in the morning. Wind chill values as low as 17 below in the morning.

Units are Imperial.

As an experiment, I ventured outside earlier this evening in my new very long, somewhat heavy, "walking skirt" and can say that with a warmer slip or petticoat it'd do the trick for this unspeakable weather. Not a whole lot of cold air got up underneath, despite some pretty heft gusts, and the main skirt stopped most of the wind. Another long layer would likely stop the rest. I have some errands to do tomorrow; I'll wear it out and about to see how it works.

[AMM]

Waft on by!

Right. Try "wafting" in this:

Tonight...Mostly clear. Cold with lows around 1 below. West winds 15 to 20 mph with gusts up to 40 mph. Wind chill values as low as 17 below.

Saturday...Sunny. Cold with highs around 20. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to 30 mph in the morning. Wind chill values as low as 17 below in the morning.

Units are Imperial.

Down here, it was yesterday (Friday) morning that was pretty cold, this morning (Saturday) was warmer. I went out before dawn yesterday with tights and my rainbow skirt, and my calves got pretty cold. If I'd gone with a longer (and heavier) skirt and added knee socks, I think I would have been fine.

This morning, I tried some cable-knit tights with my blue skirt, and I was plenty warm. But, as I said, it was relatively balmy (maybe 20 F) If anything, there were parts of me that were hot and sweaty. (That's the problem with heavy tights -- lots of insulation at the top where you don't need it, and not as much on the legs.)

[Sarongman]

Today, Sunday, was the first anniversary of the devastating bushfires and there was a declared day of mourning with church services and a major service in St George's (Anglican) cathedral. There is better weather in Victoria this year but we are getting drenched in rain. here in Queensland and Northern New South Wales. Mt Tamborine had the heaviest February rain with about 14 .8 inches overnight and some people have been drowned trying to cross flooded causeways and dozens of rescues carried out. How's snowmageddon going on the U.S.?

[crfriend]

How's snowmageddon going on the U.S.?

Today, in the little hamlet just outside Worcester, MA I live in, the sun is shining brightly, there's just a spot of light frost on the windows of my car, and the day looks like it's going to be a pretty one.

The brunt of the storm stayed south of us. AMM may have gotten a bit of snow, and if so, I hope he's out frolicking in it. I'm just relieved that I don't have to shovel today and can focus on more mundane matters -- like getting the laundry done.

[ChrisM]

IT's quite cold (for us) here.

It is Carnival here in New Orleans, and the temperature is only supposed to touch 50F today. This makes it challenging to stand on the road side and watch the five parades scheduled for today.

Our favorite is the dog parade - The Mystic Krewe of Barkus. Today the theme is "Saints Tailgaiting" so we expect lots of dogs in football jerseys and so forth. There are usually about 1,000 dogs in the parade - it's worth googling for some pictures from previous years!

Happy Mardi Gras Y'All
Who Dat!


Chris

[Uncle Al]

Just spoke with a relative in Northern Virginia. They received
an additional 24" of snow yesterday, on top of the 8" they already
had. Jim is out using his snow blower, trying to clear their 800'
driveway.

I'm glad I don't have to do that anymore

Uncle Al

[Since1982]

Chris, I think you're gonna have a hellova Mardi Gras this year what with the Saints winning the Super Bowl.