Hello, and I'm not kidding when I say greetings from what normally is deep south temperate climated Mississippi. It's been Siberia around here. It is ironic that snow is having to be trucked in to the Winter Olynmpic site, while here there has been snow galore.

Following a day of sleety rain on Thursday, it started to snow during the night and Friday morning woke to a world covered with a blanket of white, and still coming down. Falling snow is so beautiful, fairy like, fascinating. I pushed back the curtains in my bedroom, pulled up a chair and through the window watched the snow falling on the azealea bush outside the window. Awesome. Magical. And cold.

The azalea had clumps of white clinging to its leaves that looked like cotton bolls. What makes snow so special is that it covers up the bleak dreary grays and browns of winter. For a while at least the earth is pristine and pure and even the air smells fresh and clean.

I went out and took photos until I used up all the film in the camera, made a big pot of soup, layered up in long sleeved garments, turned the heat up high and waited it out.
And wonder what has happened to the normally reliable west to east air currents and the Gulf Stream--what's skewed up the weather? Stay well and warm, fellow travelers. Bye for now.
susil