I had a very sad realization this weekend. This may be the first year in my entire life to have missed seeing snow in the winter. There is still a chance that I will see snow when I go to Detroit and Omaha in the month of March. I kind of think of March as spring, but I don't know if that's technically correct. When does spring begin exactly?
Wikipedia states, "Astronomically, some Western countries consider spring to begin with the vernal equinox (around March 20 in the Northern Hemisphere, and September 23 in the Southern Hemisphere), and ends with the summer solstice (around June 21 in the Northern Hemisphere and December 21 in the Southern Hemisphere). Such conventions are by no means universal, however. In Chinese astronomy, for example, the vernal equinox instead marks the middle of spring, which begins around the time of Lichun (around February 4). In the Irish Calendar it is counted as the whole months of February, March and April. In meteorology, it is (also by convention) instead counted as the whole months of March, April, and May in the Northern Hemisphere and September, October, and November in the Southern Hemisphere."
Because of my penchant for astronomy, I will choose to adhere to the vernal equinox for the measurement of this personal life landmark. So if I see snow by March 19 by 11:59:59 pm, I will continue my life-long seasonal tradition. If not, I will be sad. If there is no snow at all during those visits, I will have gone an entire year without seeing its beauty. I can't even think about that possibility. Cross your fingers for me.
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3 comments:
There's snow in Southern California, but just like everything else in L.A., you have to drive to get to it.
A large part of the joy of snow (and nature's other wonders) is that you don't have to work for it.
It's nice to know that snow is still "magical" to people who grew up with it every winter. I've only experienced that once in Southern California, when a freak snowstorm hit Upland, when I was little (how little? Jimmy Carter was President). I don't think my family, at the time, fresh from New York, understood how unusual it was (it has never happened again). It was some serious snowfall, too... enough to build a snowman. Other than that one time, snow was something we had to go to (albeit only about a ten minute drive up to Mt. Baldy).
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