winter storm iggy | Bertram's Blog

A Storm with No Name

January 21, 2023 — Pat Bertram

I don’t notice any difference between a named storm and a storm with no name. Either way, if you give it a name like “Winter Storm Iggy,” or just call it “snow,” it looks the same from my front door. And it shovels the same.

I truly didn’t think it would snow, and for a silly reason: I planted my wildflower seeds yesterday morning. I figured there was a good chance this storm was just a rumor as they so often are in this forgotten corner of the state, and that the seeds would blow away, but surprisingly, they are now buried under six inches of snow. The seeds might be overkill, since I did put some out there after the first snow had melted (it only took a month!) and before the next snow sprinkling came, but I don’t think it will matter. They are desert seeds, so they might not like the volatile weather we get here. And even if they can get acclimated to the weather, some of the seeds take a year or two to germinate.

I hadn’t expected to, but I am enjoying this snow. I have nothing I need to do, nowhere I need to go, so I figure, let it snow. Not that the snow cares what I think — it’s coming down anyway, as it has been since about 6:30 last night, and will continue as long as it wants whether I give it permission or not.

It will be interesting to see what affect these snows that come and stay will have on my yard this spring. It sure would be nice to see a plethora of blooms! And it would be nice to see if my defunct grass will green up without my having to replant it.

But for now, the white is nice.

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Pat Bertram is the author of Grief: The Inside Story – A Guide to Surviving the Loss of a Loved One. “Grief: The Inside Story is perfect and that is not hyperbole! It is exactly what folk who are grieving need to read.” –Leesa Healy, RN, GDAS GDAT, Emotional/Mental Health Therapist & Educator.

Posted in gardening, house, life. Tags: it's snowing, let it snow, planting wildflower seeds in winter, winter storm, winter storm iggy. Leave a Comment »

Nice Day of a Different Sort

January 20, 2023 — Pat Bertram

Yesterday was a lovely winter day here in southeastern Colorado — plenty of sun, still air, dry streets, highs in the forties — though elsewhere in Colorado people were digging out from the heavy snows that had been dumped Wednesday night. Because of the nice day we experienced in my corner of the state, I went for a couple of rambles around town, once by myself and once with a friend. Interestingly, everyone we met mentioned the coming storm.

According to the weather forecast on my phone, there is only a 48% chance of snow today, though they also say there could be an accumulation of five to six inches. I thought it was another of those taunts that the forecasters deal out — too often, there is no snow despite their predictions. In fact, the only real snowstorm we got this winter was supposed to have left behind a mere drifting of flakes. But then today I got an email from the regional energy supplier reminding us customers to take safety precautions because “Winter Storm Iggy” is going to bring heavy snows to this area.

Perhaps that’s true. After all, despite the sun that’s shining right now, it’s supposed to get cloudy with conditions that are right for snowfall, but what I really got focused on was the whole “Iggy” thing. What the heck is a Winter Storm Iggy? When did they start naming storms? They’ve named hurricanes and other tropical storms for decades, but this was the first I’ve heard of an intracontinental (rather than a coastal) storm being named. But what do I know? I don’t watch television or listen to the news or visit any of the online sites where people share news, fake and otherwise.

So I do what I always do — turned to Google. And I’m still confused. Is Iggy the name of this particular storm? Or is it a type of storm? Last year in February, there was an Iggy in Australia. And an Izzy in the United States.

As it turns out, it’s no wonder I’m not familiar with names of storms since it’s strictly a television phenomenon. The National Weather Service does not recognize names for winter storms. Nor do they have any plans to do so. It was The Weather Channel that started naming storms a decade ago, and these names have become part of the vernacular.

Sheesh. It’s bad enough trying to keep up with weather without having to try to remember what storms have names and what don’t. I certainly don’t want to clutter my mind with television idiocies especially since I can barely remember the names of people to whom I’ve been introduced and whose names I need to know.

I’m getting off the track here. Or maybe not. Maybe there isn’t a track. All I know is that yesterday was a nice day, and today will be a nice day of a different sort, snow or no snow.