Fifteen years a homeowner and we still have do not own a snow blower. During the first few years, it was pure ego and young backs that scoffed at the futility of owning a gas-powered machine when our able bodies could do the job just as well. Then there were those years of thin snow cover and the fact that we really do not have a good place to store one (who needs one anyway?).
After this last dump, my ego and back have caught up to me. The only problem now is that they cost upwards of $1,500 while 15 years ago they were only about $500. Live and learn, I guess.
I wonder if the trees will ever drop their leaves. This is the first I have ever seen this happen. Perhaps a good solid (solid and cold) wind will whip them of their branches, but so far, they seem to be clinging on tight.
A rash of illnesses is sweeping the valley. Our house has been hit by the flu that seems to be dropping kids like falling dominos, one after the next. Reports are that some classrooms had as few as eight kids in class, out of over 20 students. Strep throat, influenza, a stomach/GI bug, another flu-like illness, RSV, COVID — take your pick, they are all spreading.
There’s lots of talk by the talking heads that the lack of exposure to these viruses during the pandemic is to blame. All the isolation and mask wearing have delayed the introduction of these common diseases and now they are re-emerging and affecting people in substantial numbers whose immune system isn’t primed. It’s probably true and just goes to show that no matter what we do, Nature prevails, and we can’t outrun the bugs (that is bacteria and viruses).
We may not be able to outrun bugs either, due to climate change. Some hypothesize that perhaps when the Earth is too hot to inhabit by humans, insects will be the dominant species on Earth. At the very least, mosquitos will (and already do) spread more disease to northern latitude than ever before. Did you know mosquitoes hibernate in a process called diapause? I don’t know if this explains why I find them in my shower in January, but I may be the only person who manages to get mosquito bites during winter.
In the spirit of holiday movie watching, my kids watched “Edward Scissorhands” for the first time. They thought it was strange, which I explained was sort of the point. The hyperbole of the stereotypes portrayed in the movie of the lonely housewife and the middle-class American suburb eluded them. Perhaps that’s good — because society has grown out of those social conformities to some degree that they didn’t even understand what was being mocked. Or maybe it’s because they’ve grown up in Twisp.
For those who never saw this movie or forgot, it’s a modern day “Boo Radley” story where a social outcast is misunderstood, ego and mob mentality mix with fear amongst townsfolk, and tragedy occurs. The themes of non-judgement and treating others kindly still hold true and I am happy to say the holiday movie did its job to make my kids think a little harder about kids who might not fit the mold. What’s your favorite holiday movie? I’ll take suggestions as we’ll need a few more to get through the flu season.
