In folklore, a ring or a halo seen around the sun or the moon means precipitation is coming and since it is winter, that means more snow is on the way again!
The halos are formed by the tiny ice crystals in the high cirrus clouds that reflect the light. Halos around the moon are usually just white whereas the ones around the sun can be more colorful and sometimes look like rainbows.
Ring around the Sun
With another new coating of snow overnight, winter continues on but the birds were singing loudly this morning and even a little cheerful. The warmer temperature and sunshine might be the reason to their cheerfulness but the smart birds were the ones that left their summer resort home and found warmer lodgings. The oriole’s nest still shows signs of the ice earlier in the week but otherwise seems a might cozy yet.
Abandoned Oriole’s Nest
Groundhog Day is a day celebrated on February 2 across the United States and Canada.
It is based on a belief that on this day the groundhog, or woodchuck, comes out of hole after winter hibernation to look for its shadow. A celebration which began as a Pennsylvania German custom in the early 1800s. An entry in a 1841 diary refers to Groundhog Day.
According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow, then spring will come early, which I thought would be the case this morning since it was snowing when I went to bed last night. But the sun was out bright this morning so the groundhog will see its shadow and retreat back into its burrow, and the winter weather will continue for six more weeks. (Although winter probably will be longer than just six weeks this year.)
With the ice and snow on the ground, my weather predicting woodchuck would probably climb a tree to prevent his feet from sticking to the ice. There he can keep his feet a little warmer and see for miles the snow covered landscape and he definitely would hibernate for another couple of months.
Weather Predicting Groundhog
Today is National Freedom Day, an observance in the United States that honors the signing of a resolution that proposed the 13th amendment of the nation’s constitution on February 1, 1865. Abraham Lincoln, who was the president at the time, signed the resolution to outlaw slavery. The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified on December 18, 1865, outlaws slavery and involuntary servitude.
But apparently that amendment does not apply to people who have cats, since humans are cats slaves! And they can be rather demanding and forcing us into involuntary servitude if you don’t want to get clawed up.
It is hard to work on the computer when the ‘master’ is around, blocking my view to the monitor or sitting on the mouse. Apparently Tippy wanted to make sure I was editing a picture of herself to be in the next children’s book. She will be rather disappointed when she finds out that she is not the star in the next book!
Cats Rule
After several days of snowy, icy conditions and now several cold days on tap with -20 to -35 wind chills, I think it is about time that this ‘not so nice’ weather hit the tracks and head on out of here and let some color return to the landscape again.
Hit the Tracks
What is an eerie noise that sounds like rain is actually the icy limbs rattling in the wind and it makes you wonder how many limbs are going to break under the weight of the ice. And can be sort of pretty to look at and it seems like snowflakes, the ice creates a unique form on every needle, branch and limb. It appears every needle on the pine tree was encased by the ‘pretty ice’.
Unique Ice
It is strange hearing thunder and watching the snow light up with the lightning on a winter night. And while that might be pretty to watch, seeing the freezing rain was not and now it is very difficult walk on the slippery ice and the trees are coated with ice.
Icy Trees
With the new snowfall, there is very little color on the landscape, and certainly no bright yellow flowers. Bright flowers and even colorful spiders won’t reappear for a few more months.
This successful spider, carrying its latest victim, is called the goldenrod crab spider or flower (crab) spider, because it is commonly found hunting in goldenrod sprays in the autumn. The goldenrod attracts a large numbers of insects and therefore, the older female spider will prey there to produce the best possible clutch of eggs.
Younger females will hunt on a variety of flowers such as daisies and sunflowers and are able to change their color to yellow or white. The color change takes several days to complete.
The goldenrod crab spider does not build webs but instead they ambush their prey and they have small jaws with venom to take on larger insects.
Goldenrod Crab Spider
There might be a lot of critters looking for a barn or somewhere to hide today when the freezing rain arrives today. And if a lot of ice falls, some of these limbs may break under the weight of the ice.
Cozy Barn
With temperatures finally above zero (but not above freezing yet), one might be tempted to take a hike through the fields but the snow can hide objects under the snow so you might have to follow the deer trails.
Hidden Objects Under the Snow
