A Snow Globe World

It was a snow globe world for just a little while.

It's rare that snow falls in Kansas without a gusting wind on the side. An evening check of the pasture just south of our house February 19 was like shaking that snow globe and watching the flakes gently drift to the bottom.

Ironically, it was the same pasture where, just the week before, I'd taken photos of bright bluebirds against the winter brown landscape, their bodies painting the drab surroundings as surely as a periwinkle blue Crayon colors a blank page.

This time, white and silence were the themes, except for the intermittent call of a cow trying to find her calf.

We probably had 4 inches total, which isn't a lot. However, last winter, we didn't need to get our snow shovel out of the wash house.

 

This year, the first snow actually fell in October, while fall leaves still clung to the trees. (It didn't amount to much then either). A little more came as we moved cattle in November.

This winter, we've had a little more moisture, but most has been in ice or sleet form.

It was undeniably pretty, especially since after a ride to the pasture, we could come back into a warm house.

The calves didn't seem to mind.

 Their milk machines were still dispensing warm snacks on demand.

I had a morning appointment with the dentist in Hutchinson on Wednesday. Randy was my chauffeur in the 4-wheel-drive pickup, which was nice since even the major highways were a mess earlier in the day. However, sunshine and warmer temperatures melted some of the snow yesterday, and today's forecast should clear up the rest.

A layer of straw behind windbreaks was dispensed in the pastures yesterday to give the cattle a dry place to lie down, if they wanted. Another weather system may bring us more snow this weekend. I think Punxsutawney Phil missed the early spring prediction.