Not nice

On the day that we're remembering our fallen soldiers that the heroes still with us have to face cold temps and a frosty blanket of white on their journey down to the cenotaph in Victoria Park.

These older gentlemen and ladies will put on their uniforms over sore joints and achy bones and do what they have to to honor fallen comrades because that's what they do.

It is instructional, though, as the rest of us stand around with numbing toes and running noses while at the park to be forced to endure just the smallest degree of the cold misery many of them encountered

A good reminder, for sure.

Lest we forget  . . .

Snow spotted in London

Yipes - you snow bunnies will be glad to hear that snow has been spotted in downtown London on this morning of November 10, 2011.

Yes, you heard right.  A few flakes were seen dancing downtown and I blame the people in Victoria Park.  No, not those controversial Occupiers but the other ones - those putting up Christmas lights.

It's too early to anticipate the Yule and therefore Mother Nature is protesting. 

This is acting out at its most visible.

So stop it - put away the festive folderol and let's finish fall first!

It's baaaack!

This is a shot from Saskatchewan of a snow storm on Monday, Nov 9. 

In southwestern Ontario, we tend to get hit heavy and hard early in the snow season - harken your mind to last year's beginning of December snowmageddon or the October snowfall in 2009 that ONLY hit London - but this time it's our comrades in Saskatchewan.

So get those booties and parkas out - we can't be far behind boys and girls.

BUT don't forget - wear sandals until snow flies!

Keep warm and carry on!

Autumn has fallen . . . hard

Well, it's September 7 and it's 14 degrees Celsius (that's 57 for us Fahrenheit-ers) here in Southwestern Ontario - YIKES. 

The last few days of August were in the 20s and low 30s (70s & 80s) and that lasted through the first couple of days of September.  It was like the weather hadn't realized it was the beginning of fall - the climate hadn't caught up to the calendar.  But as soon as it did, off went the heat and on came the cold.  Man it was chilly waking up on Labour Day at 16C or 60F degrees!

And so it begins, our journey toward winter.  Though the leaves haven't started turning yet, it won't be long.

Sure sign that summer is over: the sedum is blooming. 

All that beautiful colour that Mother Nature gives us in the Autumn is just a cheat to make us forget the endless white that will soon blanket the landscape.

Some people profess to love fall - the colour, the renewal, the new season, the cooler temps.  Is that you are you a 'faller' or do you dread it because it's the beginning of winter?

Chime in here and let us know what's your fav season.

SNOW-FREE ZONE!

It's safe to come out of the house, finally!!

With Victoria Day weekend safely behind us, gardening season has officially begun in Ontario. 

Some parts of Canada are ahead of us and others behind - but most if not all of the country is now officially snow-free!  That's right - the long, painful winter can now be put behind us and we can look toward an unforunately short summer - followed by another awful, horrible, long, painful winter!

But always the optimist, the short summer months are to be enjoyed!!

ROCASS will be on hiatus during these few short months of nice weather.  But I couldn't end the bitching season without recognizing two fellow ROCASSes who contributed invaluably to our united ROCASS experience.

Charles Vincent, talented artist and graphic artist extraordinaire, created the logo.  Thanks, Chaz - you've truly embodied the very essence of the ROCASS spirit in it!

Erika Faust, my able assistant at Write.On Communications and fab writer/editor - and now web page creator - took my little idea and ran with it, making ROCASS.ca the fun, frivolous waste of time it is!

Thanks to both of them and we'll be back in a few months with plenty of gripes and swipes at that always-hate-it white stuff!

Frozen bunny ears and death to the Ground Hog!

Well folks, it's nearly Easter weekend and even though 'spring' is officially supposed to start with the Vernal Equinox - this year it was on March 20 - the 'spiritual' start to spring is often around Easter.  I don't mean spiritual in a religious way, but rather as a 'we're all caught up in the spirit' kind of way.

This year, however, the Easter bunny - that arbiter of warm weather that makes us frisky and spreads eggs (a fertility symbol) around - has moved in with his/her rodent buddy the two-faced ground hog.

That punctilious pundit of meterological predictions got it REALLY wrong this year.  He foretold of six more weeks of winter the day named for him at the beginning of February and here it is nearly 12 weeks later and it's SNOWING in London, Ontario.

So that's it - spring has officially been cancelled! 

Is there any hope for summer?

141 certifiable people!

That's the number of folks who answered yes to the London Free Press poll yesterday: Are you enjoying April's snow?

That's right - 940 people answered the poll.  85% - the sane ones replied an emphatic NO!

So the crazy minority of 15% - or 141 people - said they enjoyed freezing and slipping, grey skies and chill winds, wilting spring flowers and scared squirrels.

Just goes to show you  . . .