| The Calends of February | There are two seasonal diversions that can take some of the sting out of any winter. One is a mid-winter thaw. The other is going to a local bait store and buying some new fishing equipment in preparation for the spring fishing opener. |
| Candlemas Day |
There was no shadow for the Ground Hog this morning which means spring will be here soon, but I bet he's about as accurate as the Farmer's Almanac. However, maybe he's right.......there has been no winter so far (in spite of what the Almanac said), so why would it start now? (Thanks for straightening me up on that Stover.) I know. I know. Back east in Pennsylvania, Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning, but Cohasset is out of his jurisdiction. Up here we only believe local Ground Hogs and today there was no shadow for a local Ground Hog to see. |
| February 3rd | The Day the Music Died. |
| February 4th | A nice fosty morning, eh? It's not very cold, but it's pretty. Click HERE. |
| February 5th and 6th |
I have nothing to say! |
| February 7th | Nearly 10 below zero this morning! But that's still nothing like the "darned cold" February (and I softened that a bit) that the Farmer's Almanac predicted, and we didn't get the snow that it said would be here early this month either. |
| February 8th |
Ah yes, we are nicely into February! This is the time when the days of winter seem endless and no amount of wistful recollecting can bring back any air of summer. -- Shirley Jackson (circa 1955) |
| February 9th | On this day in 1963, Stover, Krzciok, and I, had a battle with darts and blow guns that were made from materials covertly acquired from the high school Chemistry Lab. The battle raged throughout the whole high school building and lasted nearly an hour. There were no serious injuries. The rest of the students, as well as the nuns, were in Church at the time; the reason we were not with them escapes me. |
| February_10th | If you visit Grand Rapids often then you already know this, but if not, here's an easy way to save money. When you come to Grand Rapids (which includes Cohasset and Deer River) always fill up with gas before you get here.......and when you leave here, always try to have just enough gas in your tank to get to the next town (ie, arrive with a full tank and leave with an empty tank). It has been my experience over the years that a huge percent of the time the price of gas in Grand Rapids, Cohasset, and Deer River is the hightest in the state. No matter which direction you go from here (north, south, east, or west), the price of gas will go down; sometimes only a penny but sometimes 10 or 15 cents. You'd be astonished at how much money I've saved over the last 20 years by following that simple rule. PS: No one, but no one, is stronger on "buying local" than I am. Even if the price is lower somewhere else, I still espouse buying local. BUT (and this is a big BUT), when a group of local gas station owners over many years continues to "rip off" the local population for no other reason than the fact that they can get away with it, they don't deserve our loyalty. |
| February 11th | Remember, there are only two rules. 1) one should always, always, always, do what one's wife/girlfriend thinks one should do, and 2) there are times that what one's wife/girlfriend thinks one should do is not necessarily the driving force. Unfortunately, I can never tell which rule applies. |
| February 12th | Hey Stover, is there still a chance that you and I, with or without our respective women (if I may be so blunt), could meet for a couple of days somewhere between our respective residences this winter? Let me know. Lori sounds like she might be up for it. |
| February 13th | Another buckburger night at Florio's! |
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On this day, when many a person is touched by the bloom of romance, remember this: You have to walk very, very, carefully in the beginning of a romance; running across a field into your lover's arms can only come later.....when you're sure that there will be no laughter if you trip and fall down. -- Jonathan Carroll (1991) |
| February 15th | Wow! Durning the walk across the lake from Randy's place last night there was a Northern Lights Show. That hasn't happened for a long long time. Neato!!!! |
| February 16th | Hey Angie and Mike! If you're interested, everything necessary for a campfire is already set up for you this weekend; it's piled up in the firepit and ready to go. All it will take to get it going is a match! |
| February 17th |
Falstaff: If I had a thousand sons, the first humane principle I would teach them should be, to forswear thin potations and to addict themselves to sherry. -- William Shakespeare, Henry IV Part Two, Act IV, Scene III (circa 1597) |
| February 18th | The guests in Cabin 5 (Angie and Mike and friends) are ice fishing in front of my house. In fact, this picture was taken through my living room window. By the way, this is the 3rd time that Mike and Angie have been here since August. Click HERE. |
| February 19th |
Angie, Mike, and friends left today and they didn't light the campfire. Oh well, that means that it's still set up and ready to go for the next people who might want to start it (maybe even Lori and I). Too bad you guys, you missed your chance. Click HERE. By the way you guys, thanks for the Paisano and the pickled asparagus. It was unnecessary, but much appreciated. Thank you, and I'll see you in August.......if not sooner . |
| February 20th |
Today is the last day for you friendly, outgoing, honest, and intellectual Aquarians, because tomorrow begins the sign of Pisces. By the way, the "Age of Aquarius" (which was made famous by the song from the musical "Hair" sung by The 5th Dimension in 1969) "dawned" sometime in the early 1900s, and the age will end somewhere around the year 4050 with the dawning of the "Age of Capricorn" (but we'll all be long dead by then.) Of course there are many other opinions on the subject, but those are the dates that many people accept. PS: Thanks to David K for straightening me up on the group who sang The Age of Aquarius. At first I said it was the Cowsills, but as it turns out they are the ones who sang "Hair". Human memory is a frail and fragile thing........especially mine. Thanks again David! |
| Shrove Tuesday | Continue with the Smileys or change to the Pine Trees; it's a tough question. What do you think? To look at both options, click HERE. |
| Ash Wednesday | Okay! Pine trees it is. Not a single person wanted to stick with the smileys. Thanks for the comments. |
| February 23rd | Has anyone seen any Snowy Owls this winter? Apparently there are more of them in Minnesota now than there have been in decades. They're even showing up in the Cities, for goodness sake.......Lori saw one in Saint Paul a few days ago. |
| February 24th | Counting today there are only three more days to fish for Walleyes, Northerns, and Bass. Sunday is the last day so you better get at it. |
| February 25th |
Now hear this: There is a "Winter Storm Warning" from midnight tonight (Saturday) through 6:00 AM Monday. Neato, right? But listen to the snow prediction: Up to 1 inch possible tonight, up to 2 inches possible Sunday, and up to 2 inches possible on Sunday night. If we get the maximum all three times (which we wont) we'll get a whole 5 inches. Wow! In a normal year that would be called "a chance of flurries". (Is that dripping with sarcasm, or what?) |
| February 26th | Today is the last day for fishing (except for sunnies, of course) until May 12th........it's all over now until the new season begins. But if you like, you can leave your fish house on the ice for another week yet. That's for you down-staters; up in our neck of the woods we can leave them out for another three weeks. |
| February 27th | The news said that Grand Rapids got 10 inches of snow yesterday, but here at LBLR it looks more like 7 or 8. No, Lori was not here this weekend; this picture is from 2009. But if she had been here, this is what she would have done......not because she had to, but because she's a sweetie. Click HERE. |
| February 28th |
Other than the one belonging to Lucas (my friend and neighbor from across-the-lake) all of the fish houses are gone. At one time there were half a dozen of them out there.
We went skiing on the Blackwater Trail this afternoon; the snow and the weather were good. The trail was a bit rough but skiable, and the lights are finally working this year after being out of order for the past two winters. |
| February 29th |
Fewer people have birthdays on this date than on any other day of the year. Isn't that a surprising piece of trivia? The weatherman said we were going to get 6 to 8 inches of snow last night. We got zero!!!! That's typical, isn't it? The Farmer's Almanac prediction that February in our neck of the woods would have "way below normal" temperatures has to be the worst forecast ever. |
