An open letter to Minnesota: More snow, please

Oh Minnesota, why have you forsaken me?!

Dear Minnesota,

In my 27 years of existence, I like to think we've grown to know each other pretty well. I've camped in your parks, I've fished in your lakes, I've biked on your trails and -- begrudgingly -- rooted for your Vikings in good times and bad. While others clamor for the big cities, big mountains and ocean views, I've remained loyal to your river valleys, rolling hills and abundance of lakes.

I've stuck by you through thick and thin. I toughed out the Halloween blizzard of '91, pressing on for more candy in my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles costume while other trick-or-treaters cowered in your snowy wake. I've also endured your hot n humid summers year after year by keeping myself cool with regular trips to the lake and icy cold beverages in the malted hops variety.

Like a spouse in a marriage, I've grown to appreciate you for both your strengths and your shortcomings. I don't ask you to be perfect; I only ask you to be yourself

It is with that in mind that I come to you with this simple request: Enough with the wimpy weather, send some snow this way.

Most would agree that you've been pretty easy on us this winter, more so than most even. There's been an occasional cold day from time to time, but those have been lost amid a steady stream of days in the "sunny and upper '30s" variety.

Even worse, the snowfall has been substandard. In Faribault, it's been downright abysmal.My sled hasn't come out of my closet all winter and the snowshoes I got for Christmas have yet to be used. Meanwhile, friends of mine in more southern locales have been posting Tweets about snowstorms and photos of snowmen on Facebook. I even saw a post about a sizable snowstorm in -- gasp! -- Texas.

This is unacceptable, Minnesota. One of the things I've always appreciated about you is your tough-love approach to winter. While other states baby their residents with mild temperatures and brown landscapes, you barrage us with sub-zero temps and white-out conditions to toughen us up. Instead of shying away from you wintertime fury, we've learned to embrace it with activities like ice fishing, skiing, curling and polar plunges.

Heck, Paul Bunyan never complained about it being too cold in the winter. He just put on a flannel, grew a beard and started chopping wood to keep warm. If he tried to do that this winter, he'd probably die of heat stroke.

Minnesota, the fact of the matter is that we've come to expect a certain level of performance from you in the winter and you simply haven't been delivering the goods this year. Texas, Oklahoma and other wimpy southern states should not be stealing headlines for their massive snowstorms. You're supposed to be the top dog for harsh winters and even got recognized for it in a Leslie Nielsen movie.

In my opinion, your title as heavyweight champion of winter weather is in jeopardy. You're also running out of time to turn this wimpiness around. Temperatures are expected to be in the 40s and 50s this week and we're drifting closer and closer to those spring/summer months, when the expected norm switches to hot, humid temps, swarms ofmosquitoesand the occasional rainstorm.

You made a solid effort to buck that trend last week with a snowstorm that blanketed parts of the state with close to 10 inches of white, powdery goodness. However, the effort wasn't consistent as Faribault got nothing but rain for those days. Instead of breaking out my snowshoes for a long-awaited maiden voyage, I went running in a long-sleeve shirt and shorts and skipped a rock across the near-flooded ditch by my apartment.

The ball is in your court, Minnesota. I know you have at least one more big snowstorm in you.

Sincerely,

The frustrated guy in Faribault who wants to go snowshoeing

When it rains...

After a rather negative entry on Thursday, it was nice to see the beauty of life being reinstated over the last two days. Yesterday morning on my ride to work I had another meeting with "the poser" -- although I'm not sure who should be calling who names here. There's this old guy I see running in Surfers Paradise every so often as I ride to work. We always give each other a wave, but for some reason, the wave is more like a pose than a wave -- as if each of us is waving to a huge crowd of admirers clapping on the side of the road. I don't have an explanation for how this came about, just that it started one day shortly after I commenced this commute, and it happens everytime our paths cross now. Still, it's a nice way to start a day I guess.

Speaking of yesterday's "issue", I was specifically called into my boss' office today to be told that they approve of my lifestyle (like they had a choice there), but still have the issues that I mentioned yesterday. Maybe they'll come around later, maybe not. Maybe there's something I'm not being told. Either way, I'd be happy to let this issue die for now. I did get to round off the week with a ride home in beautiful rain. It was a real downpour, and it felt so pure! If only it would do that more often.

So onto today's ride, and a chance to enjoy the fruits of the downpour in Currumbin Valley this morning.









As can be seen from the swollen creeks and waterfalls, the rain of this week left a legacy. So many people complain about rain, the way it stops them from doing things, or it's too cold or whatever. I take a different view. If it's too cold wear Goretex, and it won't stop you from doing anything. Instead, get out and enjoy it, look at the new life it creates, the beauty it creates in a once barren landscape. Immerse yourself in it, but just do it! Once you let go of the pre-conceived "rain is bad" notions, you'll realise that it isn't so "bad" after all, and that feeling is quite liberating, and you're left to enjoy the beauty, free of distraction and worry, and free of the interference of those who are coddling indoors because "rain is bad".

I Am Soooo Over Winter

Two blizzards and temperatures in the deep freeze, I have had enough of this winter. As of the start of the new year, the Omaha/Council Bluffs area has received more snow than we normally receive the whole winter. Yesterday we got another 5 more inches.
Add that to we have had one day above freezing since Christmas. The winds have been blowing the snow all around, closing the roads. Christmas Eve I got home in a freezing drizzle. The road was closed here from then til Sunday 27th. Today, the road closed again - my car is stuck in a drift about a mile from home.
More photos and my commentary on The Winter of 09-10 is posted on my web site.

Super Duper Doggeh Organizations Near Our House!

TGIF! We just pawed Ma to tell about all the people-to-dog and dog-to-people organizations within two miles of where we live! Just down Highway 101 is the Marin County Humane Society
which has a lot of amazing programs, including one of which you'll find by clicking on the "society." Our pal, Sierra Rose just mentioned its director, Trish King, in her last post, who was also at the K-9 Carnival, courtesy of the Rangers at McInnis Park. And... even closer to us is the California campus of...
Guide Dogs for the Blind (this is the Facebook address.) It is a gorgeous setting and anyone coming to this area to visit should schedule a tour - amazing! Above is one of GDB's biggest supporters - the golden girl herself with... who else? Another lovely golden girl!
And this picture is not about a furpal organization, but rather, about a TV program we caught the other night. We don't watch a lot of boob tube, but stumbled on this NOVA program by accident: Dogs Decoded. It was quite scientific and we were a bit horrified by so many dogs kept in what seemed like a zillion cages for research in part of the program. If you get a chance to see it, we'd like to know what you think. You can click on the program site to learn more about the premise, which is actually very interesting. Also, I was looking for a wintery template and want to give this blog designer a big thanks for letting me use this one that we chose! Have a great weekend!

Happy Snow Day

While our first proper snowfall of the winter has adults grumbling as they slip and slide along pavements, or find their cars executing slow-motion spins on glassy roads, children know how to enjoy a day of snow. I had to be at my children's school at one point today, where I found this evidence of a well-spent morning, complete with regulation school tie. The age of the 'children' who had frolicked about making Mr Snowman? Eighteen. Males of the species, needless to say...

Poly Mountain Sunrise

Poly Mountain Sunrise, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

I woke up at 5:50 this morning to go on a sunrise hike. It was definitely a great sunrise - clouds rolled in which captured the light of Sun. With the clouds came wind, and with the wind came cold. It's starting to feel like fall here in San Luis Obispo - what about in your area?

Thoughts and Quotes on Art

As I see it, the world is made up entirely of photographic subject matter...with pictures you can say what you can't with words. Peter Sekaer

It seems that the artistic personality has a certain contrariness
to it. If you are conventional, than perhaps there's no impulse to create. Author unknown
Art comes from a desire to make sense of the world and one's experience in it. It's intended to make up for the separation that we feel between us as humans and beauty. The artist tried to recreate beauty...to make the world whole again. Author unknown

Travels in South Carolina

Here are more pics from last weekend when we attended a horse show where our youngest daughter was showing.
On the way back, I found this little country store where I just had to stop. Isn't it the cutest thing? I bought some benne (sesame) seed wafers, fried peanuts in the shell, and a divinity log. I rarely buy anything home canned as I can do that myself. They had rows and rows of all kinds of preserves, jellies, and syrups. I can make divinity, too but don't usually go to the trouble; except around Christmas. And I do love me some divinity. It's aptly named, for sure.
I love the symmetry of the jars and rows. It reminded me of a little store I found in Stamfort, England. This store looked very British. I made use of their washroom as I had about a two-hour trip home. I really just wanted to go in there and look. It didn't disappoint.
Have ya'll tried she-crab soup? It's delicious. I make that, too, only I leave out the crab row, so I guess mine is he-crab soup?
Click on the first photo and you'll see that the address on the mailbox is 1330 King's Highway. I love that address, especially since it was a one-lane paved lane leading into the country. South Carolina is rich in history going back over 300 years. Not old by European standards, but certainly old by American ones.

Panning for Gold

One of the fun things we did in Colorado was panning for gold. It wasn't REAL gold panning, but it was still fun. We did learn the correct technique for panning which will come in handy when we do it in Tennessee or North Georgia for real.
My daddy has all the necessary equipment. He's played around with gold panning for years. He even bought a motorized dredge. He's cool like that.
Gold was discovered in Dahlonega, Georgia before California's goldrush in 1849. The gold on the dome of our capitol building in Atlanta came from Dahlonega. Maybe this fall we can try our hand in one of the many creeks on my parents' farm.

The Forest

The Forest, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Here's a small sample of the forest at Redwood Regional Park...obviously redwoods, with a few California bay trees mixed in.
As for the garden...not much is happening right now. Some of the daffodils are starting to bloom, and a few magnolias as well, but that's about it. We are patiently awaiting rain here in California - it is needed if we wish to avoid a severe drought...

Tremont Outdoor Resort … Our Home Base in the Smokies

With the last sightseeing outing of our trip now in the can, it’s time to do a quick review of the campground that has been our home base for seven nights.

When we decided to visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP), we wanted a nice, quiet campground that would encourage us to relax in between our exploratory trips into the park.  After checking out the various campground websites and reading the reviews on the RV Park Reviews site, we settled on the Tremont Outdoor Resort.  Conveniently located right outside the Cades Cove entrance of the GSMNP, it fit the bill perfectly.

The resort is conveniently situated to explore the “peaceful side of the Smokies.”

We made our reservation in January, which allowed us to pick what I think is the prime site at Tremont — B34.  The only downside to this site is that it’s on a slight incline.  Not a big deal; a couple of wood blocks under the passenger side tires solved the problem.

We had a young family tent-camping on the driver’s side the first night we were there; after that, the site remained empty until the night before our departure.  The site on the passenger side was empty during the first half of our stay; and even after it was occupied (first by a 5th wheel, and then by the mini Boler), we were never cramped thanks to the orientation of that site.  Lots of privacy and space; my kind of site.

We are delighted with our site — B34 (circled in red on the map).
[Campground map courtesy of the Tremont Outdoor resort website]

Sites B33 (left) and B34; you can see how #33 angles away from our site with a
reasonably wide green space separating the two.

We’d read some comments about traffic noise at the sites overlooking the river.  This may well be true for the sites where the river is more like a gentle stream (either side of the bridge crossing the river), but behind our site, the sound of the water as it dashed downriver over small rapids drowned out any traffic noise.

There were also comments about the temporary bridge crossing into the campground that were a bit of a concern.  We were told at the time we made the reservation that the new bridge would be completed by April; and it was.  Mui had no problems maneuvering the 40-foot (12 m) Phaeton with the toad still hooked up onto the bridge from Scenic Highway 73.

Looking downriver from the bridge towards our site, which is just around the bend on the right.
Before the bend, Little River is quiet; after the bend, it gurgles and churns over small rapids.
(the cabins on the left are part of the koa.)

The sites that overlook the river have a very nice covered deck where one can enjoy the peaceful, yet not-so-quiet Little River.  When we arrived, the picnic table was on the deck.  After debating placing it elsewhere, we left it there.  The table was shaded throughout the day and made a great ‘office’ from which to process photos and write blogs.  Of course, we ate almost every meal there as well.  I spent so much of my time on the deck that Mui even rigged up an extension cord so I could keep my laptop charged up from the 50 Amp pedestal :-)  The over-long site had plenty of room behind the coach.  Placing our comfy chairs in that space, we pondered nature and caught up on our reading.

Our Deck and Little River as seen from the bedroom window; you can see why the sound
of the water would have drowned out any traffic noise.

When we made our reservation, we were told that there was no wi-fi; but we were assured that there was a strong cell signal (Verizon).  At least that’s what our notes say.  The part about the cell signal turned out to be true, but even better, there was wi-fi (perhaps set up sometime between January and April).  I don’t know if the signal strength was good everywhere, but the repeater was on the roof of the comfort station right across from us, so we enjoyed smoking-hot connectivity that was plenty good for streaming video.

The camp store/office is at the top of the bridge entering the campground.
The pool is behind the office; the temps were too cold, so we did not indulge.

While we found our site plenty spacious, some of the others did look a little squished together.  This could have well been because so many of the campers had spread out in the available space with their chairs, and extra tables, and other camping accoutrements.

Looking down from our site towards the right half of Loop B; all of which is 50 Amp FHU.

Loop C has water and electric only sites that were all but empty during our stay.

Loop A has 30 Amp FHU sites; some of these angled sites are pretty spacious.
This is where most of the egg campers were set up at the end of the week.

The campground website lists the amenities and such, so I’m not going to go into all that.  While the $42/night shoulder-season rate is not inexpensive, we were OK with it; especially since our great site encouraged us to spend a lot of time relaxing at the campground between exploratory trips into the GSMNP.  Since we were booked for 7 nights, we did get a 10% discount off the base rate.  (Monthly rates are available.)

Will we stay at the Tremont Outdoor Resort the next time we’re in the Smokies?  Probably not; and it has nothing to do with the campground.  We feel that we’ve explored this part of the Smokies pretty well.  To get to the yet-to-be-visited parts of the GSMNP would require considerable driving from here.  So, next time, we’ll look for a different campground as our home base.