Storm Day

We lived in Sarnia, Southwestern Ontario, a region we laughably called the Banana Belt, for almost 35 years. Everything being relative, it was almost as close as you can come in Canada to having a Banana Belt. Southwestern Ontario's summers are the hottest in Canada, and its winters, although not of West Coast mildness, were often fairly benign. There, we experienced many winters of low snowfall, and even when we it did snow a lot, it tended to melt down quite a bit before the next one struck.

When we moved to the Ottawa area, we were prepared for a more genuine Canadian climate, but our first two winters here were not all that wintry. Although they were colder than Sarnia and the ground tended to be snow-covered for a much longer period, it was less than we expected. In fact, as I've mentioned previously, winter almost didn't arrive until mid-January last year.

This year, as have I been pointing out ad nauseam lately, the weather more than made up for two somewhat soft winters. We had our first snowfall in November and have pretty well had continuous snow cover ever since. It's almost a record-breaker; the Ottawa area hasn't seen the likes for more than three decades.

So, while yet another storm raged yesterday, we kept ourselves snug as bugs. It's a good thing we have an old cat to show the way when it comes to knowing how to relax in decadent comfort.


Come late afternoon, however, I thought of y'all and decided to go out long enough to take some pics. I told you the pile was high.


Nice Neighbour did clear our driveway twice during the day, but the snow kept falling, so we cleared the walk a bit just before supper time. However, we left the driveway in hopes that she would show up for a return engagement today. How many things can I cross when I say that?


I know I've been harping on about the weather rather a lot lately, but I've been pretty impressed and can't seem to help myself. I will make an effort to lay the topic down. Really. But I might get out for some more pics later today. Meanwhile, here is one that Cuppa took from inside the porch this morning before AC had deigned to arise from slumber. See her blog for more.