We should be getting some warmer temps this week as well.

Toni, hope you're getting some snow or rain your way. The hose water just isn't the same as sky drops!!

That is so true about the difference between real rain and water from the hose. I've never understood how the least sprinkling of rain can green everything up while an hour of watering seems to do nothing!

The effects of real rain are utterly astounding, I agree.

Nothing. Not a damned thing. It rained for about 4-5 minutes on the 23rd, then nothing. It's murderous out there. Today, today.. it's completely overcast and windy, but it's the chinook winds and they're warm and it smells so much like spring. Weather people are still predicting snow for tomorrow (Thurs) all through Fri, but I've heard this story too many times and I'll believe it when I see it. I personally wouldn't mind seeing 2 feet of snow like some other parts of the country, but I seriously doubt it. We're not having winter this year. I've been watching the geese flying north now for almost a month, my dogs' fur is thin like a normal coat and not thick like a winter coat...

Makes me want to cry watching people playing golf from my desk. No golfers today.. too windy. As of right now, 8:17 am, it's already 44 degs. 44 degs with a windchill of 44 degs.. humidity at 20%, dew point at 5 degrees. Sure, we have a winter storm watch for Thursday, but I'm not holding my breath.

Anyone wanna fedex me some snow or rain? Even the torrential rains that poor Calif-Sue & Zuzu are having to endure would be better than this.

Our drought has finally eased; it's raining today even though the radar shows only a small cell. Yesterday was spring-like here too so perhaps your moisture is on the way.

Hold on, Toni. I'm sending prayers up for lots of rain or snow for you!

I think it's the minerals in the rainwater that makes the difference in plants. Since my hose water comes from the city, it's been purified to a fare-thee-well and all trace minerals removed, I guess, so it's virtually useless, though pure, and I wouldn't stake my life on that.

Last winter and this winter so far have been the exceptions for us, as we usually have about 3 weeks of real winter weather, very little snow, and then we're back into summer, skipping spring altogether.

My water comes from the well and has all sorts of minerals in it - judging from the inside of the tea pot, but I guess they are the wrong ones.

No torrential rains for us, that's all in So. Calif. Zuzu gets more than we do here but it's still not as bad as it has been in So. Calif. Last night we had a good rain storm, a bit windy today with sun peaking out between the clouds, slight chance of scattered showers.

Last Friday I dropped off some (13) roses to Zuzu from a couple of places down here and we went to the local Lowes, Home Depot and Orchard Supply Hardware where she picked up several more roses, all at great deals.

ooh.. gotta start a thread to let us poor people in colder environments know what y'all got! I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO jealous!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(and, btw, I'm watching two schmucks playing golf out my window right now... don't these people have to work???)

Angie - Your prayers were answered! It's snowing! Yay!!!!!! don't know how much moisture we're going to get out of this as it's the "colorado gold" (powder, which is worthless as far as moisture content.. it actually wicks away moisture rather than providing it). But it's snowing! Today & tonight snow.. maybe a touch tomorrow.. then back into the 50s next week.

Yay!!! Moisture!!!!!!! of course I forgot my phone today & don't have my camera... but I'll have to take pictures tomorrow night of my Christmas lights in the snow.. it's about time!!!!! Nothing prettier!!

Yay!

So glad to hear it Toni!

We're sending 2010 out with a blast here - rainy....and we had a very minor earthquake this morning. That's two years in a row now I think, that we've had an earth-shake around this time of the year. Strange.

Yeah, read about it this morning, we're used to them here but how odd for you.

Snow total for me was a measely 4 inches.. not enough to even create 1" of rain. Right now, it's 3 degs w/a windchill of -9 and it's supposed to get colder with a low of 0 to -4 and a windchill tonight somewhere between -10 and -25. When it's that cold, you really can't feel a difference. Between 0 & -10 you can tell. Between -10 and -20 there's not much of a difference. Had to take out some garbage here a few minutes ago (had to take care of kitty litters & birdies... nightly duty) and just went out in my long-sleeved shirt, slacks, and booties w/no socks. My neighbor, who doesn't smoke in the house, was outside puffing away freezing his butt off and he looked at me like I was totally insane. Personally, *he's* the one who's nuttier than a fruitcake for smoking! (I konw that's gonna tick off Zuzu.. sorry, grew up in a house full of smoke and I'm probably the one who's going to die from lung cancer and not my parents or my sister, who all smoke & I do not. Big hugs, though.. still love ya!!) Did have to don on a coat to brush the snow off the driveway for the morning.. yes, brush. Not shovel, but brush. It's powdery stuff that gets caught in your throat & makes you choke. I don't like powder, but it's good for the skiers and that helps with our economy here in CO.

Chelle - I have never been in an earthquake. I'd probably die from a heart attack if I was ever in one. How terrifying!!! At least with tornados & hail, you can get the heck outta the way. What are you supposed to do in an earthquake?? Yikes!!

I think he's nuttier than a fruitcake for not smoking inside.

Fluffy snow is a pain in the rear. It won't stay where you put it. However, it's way easier to drive in.

Uhm, I was still sleeping when the tremors went through here. The cat woke me up though, and it was an instantaneous awakening which for me is very rare! So I must have noticed something off, even in my sleep.

Couldn't the smoker blow the smoke out the window with the help of a small fan? We don't have an exhaust fan over our stove so I end up using this method whenever I make something that's rather pungent, or , whenever something doesn't quite go according to plan.

I like fluffy snow, you can blow it with the leaf blower. I blew it away from the door and into the garden. The storm missed me, but friends closer to the city got 2' of snow with 3-5' drifts of blowing snow. Anything but ice or wintery mix is good with me.

Earthquakes, yikes. I'll put up with the winter to not have earthquakes. They send me in a panic.

The smoker could switch to those e cigarettes. I am very allergic to smoke, but being around someone smoking one of those last night didn't bother me. He said that it was much less expensive as well. (His bf wont let him smoke regular cigarettes in the house around the antiques.)

I still haven't gotten rebar for my trellis. I was running out of time shopping and had laundry in the car. My friend was sore from shoveling snow and grumpy. I was lucky to get some mulch and potting soil (all rebagged at half price). The peat moss was frozen solid in snow, so I just got more mulch for winter rose protection. The original plan was peat moss on the bottom covered with mulch to keep the peat moss from blowing around. My most vunerable roses have that method until I began to run low on peat moss. I wanted to get hardware cloth that people use to protect their bulbs. (They make their own mini gofer cages). The few types that they had looked too easy for the rodents to chew thru. I'll have to research that some more.

Not having a kitchen exhaust fan is one of my least favorite things about my kitchen. I had swapped out the standard oven to an electric jenair from freecycle. It has a fan that could exhaust outside, but i don't want to cut holes in the wall. I finally hooked it up and put a carbon filter on the back. It blows against the wall behind the oven. It warms the floor, too. I frequently use the convection oven/microwave more than the big oven, but turning the fan on while using the stove top has helped. I get tired of having to scrub and repaint everything from cooking grease.

We are having a couple of rare days above freezing. I am taking a break and heading back out to finish my winter rose protection.

When we took off today to go to the nature & history museum, it was a whole 2 degrees w/ a wind chill of about -5. Thank goodness I'd planned on being inside this weekend!! But, by wednesday, it's supposed to be back in the 50s. Go figure.

Crazy weather here too - shirtsleeve temps the last few days, now windy and sharply colder, though not as cold as you are Toni.

My good news for today is that since all of our snow melted away I can see that my new winter planted arbor roses are looking a nice healthy green. It appears that the amount of freezing they endured during shipping wasn't enough to kill them.

Happy New Year, y'all! It's been a balmy and rainy one here, pouring rain about an hour ago, but now just gentle patter. Whooshing some of it out West where it's needed so badly~~~~

As a non-smoke, I won't comment on the smoking issue, except to say it always sets off a major sinus infection for me to be around. My older daughter smokes and I can't stay in her house more than about 30 mins. without starting to cough and feel the effects. Visited her yesterday and felt as if I reeked of smoke when I left. Well, that was more than one comment, wasn't it?

It has amazed me how much cold newly planted roses can endure and emerge green and healthy!

Hope all of us have a simply marvelous 2011. May our gardens flourish and our children succeed, may our minds stay sharp and our dreams us lead!