3rd House Journal: Into February

The photo above is from last year, February 22, when we were finally able to get out of the house after 100 inches of snow fell, mostly all in the previous 3 or 4 weeks. We were so thrilled. We drove to Cambridge, just outside Harvard Square, found actual cleared parking on the street, and got this table by the window at the Cambridge Common pub. You can see the snowbanks still piled high outside the window. It's what I used as the February photo on my 2016 calendar, likely in no small part for the joy imbuing the remembrance.

This year thus far we have had very little snow, and what we have had has melted lately with warm days and sunshine. Tomorrow is also expected to be warm but with drenching rains - more like late March. In some years I'd feel a bit wistful for lack of snow, but this year I'm grateful. Still, the winter is certainly not over yet, despite the fact that Punxutawney Phil did not see his shadow this morning and thus predicted an early spring.

At the skating rink at the Frog Pond on Boston Common it's winter all season no matter how warm the temperatures (within reason) as they keep the ice cold with refrigeration. We managed to get out to see it during our wanderings on Saturday (no, we didn't skate as we never do, but the lines were also very long and the ice crowded). D was feeling better and the weather was nice so we did a lot of walking around, plus took the T out to our friends' place in Jamaica Plain that evening for their annual Grinch party. Alas, all that activity was probably pushing it for D as he was dragging on Sunday and still feels a bit set back. Hopefully more rest this week will help. This coming weekend we are driving up to see my friends at their lovely ski house in Vermont. It's pretty low key, but I know it'll be tiring for him if he's still feeling under the weather.