The scurs changed from the winter Studebaker thermostat in the Weather Eye but it took a while to work through the system. Will the temps warm for all that extra daylight we’re being promised? Starting Wednesday, mostly cloudy with highs in the mid-20’s and lows near 10. Mostly cloudy on Thursday with a slight chance of snow. Highs in the upper 20’s and lows near 20. Friday, a slight chance of snow. Mostly cloudy with highs in the upper 20’s and lows around 10 above. Saturday, mostly sunny and cooler with a highs around 20 and lows near 5 above. Sunday, partly sunny with a slight chance of daytime snow. Highs near 30 and lows around 20. Monday, partly sunny and warmer with highs in the mid-30’s and lows near 30. Mostly cloudy on Tuesday with highs around 30 and lows in the mid-teens, above zero of course. The normal high for March 9th is 36 and the normal low is 20. The scurs are sure the weather will warm up now we have an extra hour of daylight.
Yes it’s that time already. Just when it was getting to the point where stumbling around in the dark was no longer an issue, we get more of the wonderful government we keep paying for. It still strikes me as one of those unnecessary intrusions into my daily routine that does absolutely nothing positive for me. I mean if it actually meant some useable time in early March, it maybe wouldn’t be such a big deal. This time around however there isn’t the faintest notion that we’ll see ground fit to plant anytime soon if the snowbanks in and around area farmyards are any indication.
February snowfall totaled 16.2” at the ranch, exactly the same as we had for the month of January. Since November the total stands at 44.6” with the normal for the season at just over 52” as recorded at the SROC in Waseca. Will March get us to that average number? Very likely. March has actually become our second snowiest month based on the 1981 – 2010 30-year normals. The trend is more of our March precip has fallen in the form of rain than it once did. December has taken the No. 1 spot for snowfall as a result. This certainly doesn’t mean heavy wet snow won’t still happen in March.
March came in like frozen lambs at the ranch and put everything to the test over the past week. A few days with highs near zero and it really made one wonder what the calendar really said. Couple the cold weather with the alien that Mrs. Cheviot and I continue to do battle with and we are exhausted. Food continues to be something with temperature and texture only with the occasional faint salty or sweet taste. When a cup of coffee tastes like it was brewed with sawdust, you know you’re having a bad day. The cold has also meant needing to haul warm water for the buckets in the lambing barn, usually four five-gallon buckets twice a day. It seems like I’ve become some kind of a pack animal. The good news was stepping on the scale after a week of this nonsense led to the sudden realization that 10 lbs. can come off in a week’s time going at this pace. No pills or special diet needed.
The pheasants continue to be fixtures daily in and around the yard. Not only do they sail by the windows on the house, they also are flying across the yard, over the barn in addition to hanging out in the trees. Watching a rooster trying to walk the tightrope on a branch Monday morning was entertaining. After a while he just gave up and clucked until he decided there were some hens to check out. They certainly have become right at home and use the cover we’ve planted to get safely from point A to point B. Almost like we planned it that way.
I keep getting questions about the Studebaker Lark progress. It ebbs and flows and recently it’s been more ebbing. A very kind local gentleman sandblasted some small parts recently so we have been making some small progress. Some have asked if we grew up with Studebakers and truth be told my dad was always a Buick guy. He even had a Buick farm wagon he had made from the chassis of a late 1920’s model he had owned. The first car I remember clearly was his 1957 Buick. It was a beautiful car, salmon colored on top with a cream colored sides. Lots of nice buttons to play with in it as a kid including the cigarette lighter. The next Buick was a blue 1963 Invicta station wagon. It had lots of snort and was the family roadster for many moons. It hauled 4-H projects and kids to many a county fair. Spacious plus lots of gadgets and gizmos in this one too when we were left to our own devices as Mom ran her errands.
The Studebaker Lark was added some years later when Dad decided another vehicle would allow us to make the early morning school events we were involved in. Why something as mundane as a 6 cylinder 4 door Lark? Given our track record, one could rest assured we were certainly never going to see a supercharged ’57 Golden Hawk or an Avanti with an R3 in it. The cigarette lighter burns left on the seat of the ’57 Buick were a clue.
See you next week…real good then.